Zoom H4-N vs. Tascam DR-40

[Anders Larsen]

Hi Peter

I have no first hand experience, but Nofilmschool.com has a pretty extensive comparison article that might be of intrest to you:

https://nofilmschool.com/2012/04/audio-recorder-roundup-h4n-zoom-vs-tascam/

[Pete Burger]

Thank you, Anders!
A comparison like that, was exactly what I was looking for. Much appreciated!

——————————————
“Tragedy is a close-up; comedy, a long shot.” – Buster Keaton

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[Anders Larsen]

You’re welcome. Happy to help.

[Declan Smith]

I recently was in the same position, however I am interested in quality of the microphones. I decided to spend a bit more and go for the Roland R26, on spec, but mainly because it can record 6 channels, and has nice big level controls. I received it last week and it’s the first product I’ve bought in a long time that excites me more now I have it. It’s simple awesome. Rigged feeling, easy to use and absolutely crystal clear sounds. I have yet to plug an external mic in though!

Declan Smith
https://www.madpanic.tv
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“it’s either binary or it’s not”

[Pete Burger]

Thank you Declan!
Really interesting product. Well, I think I’ll have to ponder if it fits my budget…

——————————————
“Tragedy is a close-up; comedy, a long shot.” – Buster Keaton

Me on Twitter (english/german)
https://twitter.com/FastFoodVideo

My german blog
https://fastfoodvideo.de

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[Paul Kagawa]

I’ve used both and like some things about the Tascam, especially the the line/mic switch, the locking XLRs, and light weight. One problem with the Zoom is that the mic inputs are very sensitive, and I’ve had several occasions where the audio from a mixing board distorted because I couldn’t lower the input enough. I thought the Tascam would be a good solution because it has a mic/line input switch to attenuate the signal.

But I ran into a separate problem with sync drift on the Tascam after an hour of recording. You can see the details here: https://wp.me/p2gorK-1I

So I still use the Zoom, but run the signal through a Shure portable mixer first so I can get a real mic level output to the Zoom.

Hope that helps

–Paul Kagawa

Website: http://www.paulkagawa.com
Blog: http://www.paulkagawa.com/blog
twitter: @paulkagawa

[Pete Burger]

Thank you, Paul!

Very valuable information! Thank you for posting! Had to shoot some band-concerts and theater performances in the past and was planning for future jobs to get audio directly from the mixer into the recorder instead of the cam and do syncing in post… So, maybe it won’t work as perfectly as I hoped for with the Tascam… bought it last week…

But most of the time (99% of my jobs), I’ll be using the recorder as an external audio device with my DSLR or Sony HD cam for shorter videos, interviews and stuff… So I’ll have clips no longer than max. 4-5 minutes.

As you wrote, the line/mic switch is a blessing and the locking XLRs are extremely important for me when in the field.

Sound quality (from what I tested so far) is very good – very low noise for a recorder of that price.

So, thanks again! Much appreciated!

——————————————
“Tragedy is a close-up; comedy, a long shot.” – Buster Keaton

Me on Twitter (english/german)
https://twitter.com/FastFoodVideo

My german blog
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[Paul Kagawa]

Peter, for short runs the Tascam should be fine.

The other issue I had with it was a write fail to an SD card. I had set it up to write a new file every 1gb automatically, but the first time it tried to save the file it said something like “Write Error – Press Enter.” When I checked later there was a file name but no data, so I lost about an hour of the recording. (Details here: https://wp.me/p2gorK-17)

After that fiasco I would use a card that is certified by Tascam, and test it a lot. You can get a pdf of their Tested Media List here: https://tascam.com/product/dr-40/downloads/

I now routinely use XLR Y-cables and simultaneously record to the camera as a backup, even with the Zoom H4n.

Best of luck with your projects.

–Paul Kagawa

Website: http://www.paulkagawa.com
Blog: http://www.paulkagawa.com/blog
twitter: @paulkagawa

[Pete Burger]

Paul, I already saw the article on your blog and bookmarked it for later reading.
By the way, your blog is a great resource!

The XLR-Y cable advice is an excellent tipp! I wouldn’t have thought about that.
And with the two XLR-inputs of my Sony I’ll get even two “backups” – one directly from the Tascam, the other from the on-camera mic (which I use sometimes for ambience).

Again, very much appreciated! Thank you!

All the best to you and your projects!

Greetings from Munich, Germany!

——————————————
“Tragedy is a close-up; comedy, a long shot.” – Buster Keaton

Me on Twitter (english/german)
https://twitter.com/FastFoodVideo

My german blog
https://fastfoodvideo.de

Tweets by FastFoodVideo

[Brent Dunn]

Peter:

Roland has a much better recorder system than both of these. Roland has great preamps, which is what you really want in a recorder.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?atclk=Brand_Roland&ci=14934&N=4248627700+4291256676

R-16 being around $500

R-5

Roland R-44 has great preamps, the best of these…but $1,000

Brent Dunn
Owner / Director / Editor
DunnRight Films
DunnRight Video.com
Video Marketing Toolbox.net

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