Review: Zoom Handy Recorder Essential Series

Floating points feels a bit like magic. It’s been living in DAWs since Pro Tools 5.1 in 2001. Now you’d be hard pressed to find audio software not running in either 32-bit or 64-bit float internally. This huge dynamic range gives ample room for creativity when editing and mixing in software – turn things up and down as much as you like without getting into trouble. Certainly, it’s a privilege of the in-the-box, post-analogue age.
In the world of field recording, gain is king and headphones are essential. The Zoom F6, for one, has been offering 32-bit float since 2019, and it has physical preamp controls. That said, the comparatively diminutive Zoom F3 eschews gain control, a move echoed in the release of the new prosumer Essential series. No gain; no trim. The Input Gain of the preamps is reported as: “Adjustment unnecessary (dual A/D converter circuits used).” Certainly a ballsy spec.
According to Zoom, dual A/D converters are used to cover the full 32 bits of dynamic range: one low gain, one high gain. All the preamps do is turn up your Mic level to Line level. Zoom expects we will turn clips up or down in the edit, which does still work great. If preamp characteristics and creative gain staging are your bag, you’ve probably clicked away from this article already. These ultra-clean field recorders are for realism, and this system architecture is well suited to this.
There are three units in the new Essential series. We’ll start with the very thrifty H1.
FIELD OPERATIVE
For run ’n’ gun sound gathering, the H1 Essential does what it sets out to do. Its clear and focussed sound is great for the recording of individual sources – the X/Y microphone pattern looks to be most at home when applied in this way. A kettle boiling, a stream running, a crowd murmuring, you name it. The size is much unchanged from the previous H1, so it’s still very portable and discreet. With this small size comes low weight. Quite low weight. I would be afraid to drop the H1e without some kind of protective case. The H1e lacks the silent buttons of its larger brethren – everything but the Record button is clicky and translates loudly into a recording if used.
SONIC SHOWDOWN: THE LOWDOWN
Have a listen to these sample recordings. You’ll notice the noise floor is quite evident against the quiet ticking of the clock on the H1 and H4, but lesser so with the H6, where there was slightly more lower pitched background noise. The H6 also sounds a bit gutsier to me in tune, with more mids emphasis, while the H1 brighter.
Recordings 60cm from ticking clock. Not recorded concurrently, but subsequently. Clips gained to match level within ±1dB. 2” HPF @ 160Hz.






NEED TO KNOW






PRICE
Zoom H1 Essential: $169
Zoom H4 Essential: $329
Zoom H6 Essential: $499



CONTACT
Dynamic Music: (02) 9939 1299 or info@dynamicmusic.com.au



PROS

32-bit floating point, gain-free recording
Handy recorder X/Y mic convenience
Intuitive menus, accessibility features



CONS

H1e in particular feels plastic and lightweight
Monitoring can overload



SUMMARY
The Essential series marks Zoom’s decisive and inevitable move into the 32-bit future. These new additions to the long-time Handy series are great to use, good to hold, and sound great for their price.










H1 Essential
Sensitivity: –37 dB/1 Pa at 1 kHz
Clip gain: -1dB



















H4 Essential
Sensitivity: -43 dB/1 Pa at 1 kHz
Clip gain: +18dB



















H6 Essential
Sensitivity: −42dB/1Pa at 1kHz
Clip gain: +18dB












The chrome-finished plastic of the mic capsules doesn’t scream primo, but the sound quality says otherwise. I’d take a guess and say the H1e mics look to be the same as the outgoing H1n, limiting the dynamic range to 120dB (no jet engine capture, sorry!). This, and the fact the preamps also appear unchanged, makes the 32-bit float recording the headline reason for an upgrade over the outgoing H1n. The mics sound very lifelike and clear, but their noise performance reflects the price point.
The H1e is the ideal first field recorder I’d suggest you pop on a windsock, get out into the world and record away! This is a great device for taking anywhere, and never missing a moment in the field. It’s also small enough to stick in your pocket and take a lapel microphone input. High sensitivity microphones are a boon for convenience too – clips will rarely need to be turned up.
BIG BROTHERS
The two larger models are brilliant to use, solid in the hand, and well built. The menu is very intuitive and ergonomic for one-handed operation, with a wheel and menu button on the right hand side. And the screen is great! Every channel is always visible, and each show mutes when the input isn’t activated, white waveforms when armed, then red when recording. Dedicated buttons for each channel turn are on each input. All this adds up to a very, ahem, handy unit where recording is convenient and instant.





ACCESSORISE!
To get the most out of the Handys, accessories are needed. The only extra perk bundled with the three new units is a placeholder mic clip for the H6e, for when the X/Y mic is removed. Of most value would be a baby camera tripod for avoiding table reflections, a windsock and a camera thread-to-mic stand adaptor for the recording musician. You can also throw rechargeable lithium or NiMH batteries in and get accurate readings for each.



IMPROMPTU SESSION
I burst an impromptu H6e recording session upon my vocalist wife without any setup prep. Dialling in the mic stand was more time consuming than the recorder setup! I’ve laboured this point already, but no gain setting still feels so foreign. As I plugged in a keyboard and guitar, the display quickly showed how much level was arriving from each. I did the whole first take without monitoring, fully convinced 32-bit floating point would cover my backside. What could go wrong? Nothing really, but we had another crack with some more attention to mic placement. I quickly ran into an issue seemingly inherent in these devices: analogue not being able to keep up with the digital. In my monitor mix, with the vocal mic set at unity on the built-in mixer, something in the chain peaked several times during the recording. Part of me worried my condenser microphone was overloading the preamps. Thankfully, 32-bit floating point worked its wonders and the resulting multitrack was totally intact. I must have run into the limits of the headphone amplifier mid-take.
IT’S A WRAP
Zoom defined the handheld recorder category and continue to be its first name. The Essential series gives you a clue in the name – these are grab ‘n’ go recorders for every budget. Pros will likely lament the lack of gain control but these units aren’t designed as the primary recorder in a pro kit (although they’re a dead shoo-in as a backup). Some may complain about the plasticky feel of the H1e, but it suits the price, and if you are recording loud enough sources, the self-noise will never be an issue (either that, or AI can clean things up in post). The H4e scores points on build quality over its smaller sibling, though I’d still be loath to drop it, and its feature set suits its live gig recording duty very well: higher max SPL spec on the mics, and a stereo input to take a tap from the mixing desk. The H6e is pricier again but marginally less costly than the current H6, and I’d suggest feels a little cheaper as a result, but its sonic performance is great and the user experience is silky-smooth. All three are reliable workhorses and lack any obvious flaws. If you are new to field recording or sound-for-film, the plug-and-play, knob-free ease of the Essentials is unmatched. Seasoned recordists will want more control, but for everyday use, I would recommend having a Zoom Essential in your bag.






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