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Zoom h4 battery compartment lid
I have a Zoom h4, and would use it except that the battery compartment seems too insecure. The lid lifts and of course the power goes out – end of recording.
Since I’m putting this on a remote vehicle to back up my wireless recording, I am unable to monitor the device. So this is a dealbreaker. Has someone else encountered this problem and come up with a solution? Is this a part that I just need to replace?
Bob C
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10 Replies
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G-tape?
Regards,
Ty Ford
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Good idea, both for the battery compartment and for keeping the XLR connections tight.
The H4 has a very poor design for the battery compartment. I think this has been fixed in the H4n. But in the H4 the compartment closes at one end, which makes a moveable part (the lid) responsible for a snug fit with the battery.
Tech support gave me a couple of good ideas: retightening the lid with the little black screw on the back; don’t keep batteries in it; if you’ve kept batteries in it too long, you may need to stick a pencil in and pull up the bottom springs.
I’m looking for another audio recorder now. Better battery compartment of course, more secure XLR connection, & less susceptible to inadvertently turning off the record button. Ideally, so I wouldn’t need to place more than one lavalier mic, it would also have an XLR pass-through to my wireless transmitter. My main use for the device would be to back up a wireless, and I’d hope to need the actual audio from the portable device rarely.
Bob C
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Hi
My zooms battery compartment has been held on with gaffer tape almost since i bought it. BUT when i used it in a vehicle where I needed a long record time recently, I used a car 12v adaptor to the 12v input to power it from the cigarette lighter. (best use of a cig lighter ive ever found!)Thast way id no worries about battery cost, running out etc etc.
Bits from Maplins in the UK were about £20.
Peter -
My Zoom H4 says “DC9v” on the back. Were you able to use a 12v cigarette adapter straight in, without transforming to 9v?
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NO, thatll blow it.
The car adapter i bought had a rotary voltage selector on it which allowed selection of multiple different voltages. It also had a whole variety of different adapter shapes and styles to choose the correct one. I recall i had to look carefully at the polarity too to not get things reversed.
But it did work beautifully in the end, recording continuously for a 3 day shoot onto 3 x 32 gig SDHC cards.
Im sure this was ithttps://www.maplin.co.uk/Module.aspx?ModuleNo=37423
Cheers
Peter -
They’re still putting cigarette lighter in cars?
Not in the US.
Regards,
Ty Ford
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It’s called a 12v auxillary power socket today but you can plug a lighter into it.
Eric
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An interesting observation Ty. yes they still call them cigarette lighters here, but as has been rightly observed, smoking is a dying habit. I think most people use them now for sat navs, phone power, dvd players for the kids etc etc. – an Zoom powering!
PeterPeter
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Peter,
Do they allow smoking on European flights?
Over here, for many years, the pre-takeoff announcement includes info that smoking is not allowed, even in the bathroom. There are no more ashtrays in the seat arms.
I thought it was universal, but someone mentioned that on some flights elsewhere in the world, smoking was permitted.
What say you?
Season’s Best,
Ty Ford
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Ive not been on a flight, train, or in any workplace or even a pub or nightclub where smoking is permitted for some years now here in the UK. Is outlawed in any indoor public space or workplace. Of course a car is personal space to the rules about cars (and their 12v adapters, where this all started) have not changed.
I Dont smoke personally thank heavens.
CheersPeter
Peter
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