What's up guys?
It’s Andy, and this is my review over the Zoom H1 portable digital audio recorder/microphone.
So the Zoom H1 is a very popular device when it comes to beginners looking to improve their
audio quality if you're a podcaster or if you make videos or if you want to record music,
if you're a journalist.
It’s perfect for a lot of beginners because it does have some good quality audio that
you can use as a microphone or as its own portable digital audio recorder.
So let’s get right into this review, and then we’ll do an audio quality test so you
can hear what the Zoom H1 sounds like.
So if you’re watching this review you're probably looking for a cheap microphone or
audio recorder and this one is one of the best that you can get: the Zoom H1.
It’s very versatile.
It can be used for many different situations, and it is affordable so it's right at $99
and it’s perfect for beginners or amateurs so you don’t have to break the bank.
But you can get high quality audio from this thing.
The build quality, it does feel cheap.
It’s made out of plastic almost all the way through.
So I don’t think it’s as durable as the more expensive options but I’ve never had
a problem with mine, as long as you don't drop it and break it.
But the good thing about that is that the plastic makes it lightweight.
It can fit in your pocket.
It’s small.
It’s compact, and that’s what I love about the Zoom H1.
It’s very portable, take it anywhere.
Another thing I like about the Zoom H1 is that it's very easy to use.
It’s not too complicated.
It doesn't have very many features so you're not gonna get tied up in all the different
functionalities like the Zoom H4N for example.
So it’s very basic.
On the front you just have the LCD display, and you have the big red record button so
that's pretty simple on the front.
On the right side you have the USB port.
You have the hold and power button.
There’s a delete button.
You have the play, pause, forward, and back buttons, the input level buttons, and the
line in so you can connect an external microphone.
On the other side you have the line out for headphones and the volume rocker up-and-down
for playing back your audio.
And you have the microSD slot.
This does come with a 2GB microSD and it does support microSDs all the way up to 32GB I
do believe.
And on the bottom you have the speaker because you can actually play back your recordings
and listen to them on the device itself.
On the back you have the battery slot.
It’s powered by a AA battery, and you have the three options: the lo cut, auto level,
and the recording format.
It does support WAV and MP3s.
There’s also a tripod mount where you can mount this to any tripod that has a standard
tripod screw.
And on the top you have the heart of the Zoom H1 which is the XY stereo microphone.
So let’s turn on the Zoom H1 and I’ll show you how it works and how it sounds.
So to turn it on just slide the power button to the power side and hold it for a few seconds
and the Zoom H1 will turn on.
You can adjust the audio recording as much as you like.
If you want record in WAV or MP3 you can adjust the bit rate.
You can also adjust your input control or your gain so you can up the gain if you're
far away from the mic or you can lower it down if you have too much noise going on.
And to start recording you just press the record button on the front.
Now for what you’ve been waiting for, this is the audio quality test so you can hear
how the Zoom H1 sounds.
So far in this video I’ve been recording the audio with my Rode VideoMic Pro shotgun
mic on my DSLR.
Now let’s switch over to the Zoom H1 so you can hear how that sounds compared to this.
So now you're hearing the audio from the Zoom H1 which is about almost 2 feet away from
me with the input control set to about 60, and I'm recording in the 320 kilobit MP3 format.
So hopefully it sounds good.
No it does sound good.
I’ve used this for a lot of my videos, and it does work perfectly.
It fits right in your pocket or you can mount it to a tripod and just do it or you can hold
it in front of your face like I'm doing right now.
So it does produce some great quality audio for $99.
One thing I do recommend if you get the Zoom H1 is get the accessory pack if you can.
It’s another $20 or $30.
It just supplements the Zoom H1 very well.
It comes with an adjustable tripod stand that comes in handy if you want to mount the Zoom
H1 on a tripod.
It comes with a padded shell case that you can put the Zoom H1 in when you're traveling
so it doesn't get beat up.
It comes with a foam windscreen that helps out a lot, kind of works as a pop filter and
also blocks out the wind when you're filming outside or recording outside.
It comes with a mic clip adapter so if you want to mount this on a typical standard microphone
holder stand you can do that.
It comes with an AC adapter and a USB cable so you can use this as USB microphone and
you can use it to transfer all the files to your computer so you can edit in post.
So that’s my Zoom H1 review.
I hope you guys enjoyed this.
Again the link to this on Amazon is in the description below so check that out if you
want to get this microphone.
Highly recommend it.
Make sure you subscribe and give this video a thumbs up.
And I will talk to you guys in the next video.
Bye.