An upgrade from Zoom h4n

[J0sA1Ac]

Right now I'm using a Zoom h4n for audio for home recording purposes.

I would like to upgrade to something better for audio. Is there any recommendation i could get for 200-300 for a audio interface and 200-300 for a small diaphragm.

[raregroove]

Audio Technica AT4041 $299 (sold as a pair in the pack is $499)

Focusrite Saffire 6 interface $185

later you can add another AT4041 for a stereo pair, they match pretty good.

This is a great little setup on the cheap.

[ljguitar]

Originally Posted by J0sA1Ac

Right now I'm using a Zoom h4n for audio for home recording purposes.

I would like to upgrade to something better for audio. Is there any recommendation i could get for 200-300 for a audio interface and 200-300 for a small diaphragm.

Hi J0…

I like the Lexicon Omega for a home interface, and in the $200-300 range the options for small diaphragm mics the Octavas are pretty enticing. Actually, I'd probably be looking for something in the 20mm diaphragm range rather than true small diaphragm.

I like the tone they produce with acoustic guitars…

[J0sA1Ac]

Originally Posted by raregroove

Audio Technica AT4041 $299 (sold as a pair in the pack is $499)

Focusrite Saffire 6 interface $185

later you can add another AT4041 for a stereo pair, they match pretty good.

This is a great little setup on the cheap.

Right, thanks dude. Haven't heard much people talking about the AT4041. Have you personally used the AT4041 and the saffire 6? Saffire 6 sure looks neat but there's a small crowd with bad reviews.

The Sapphire 6's in my consideration along with the emu0404usb and the presonus audiobox.

Thanks for your time for the input.

Originally Posted by ljguitar

Hi J0…

I like the Lexicon Omega for a home interface, and in the $200-300 range the options for small diaphragm mics the Octavas are pretty enticing. Actually, I'd probably be looking for something in the 20mm diaphragm range rather than true small diaphragm.

I like the tone they produce with acoustic guitars…

Havent heard of the lexicon omega, but did a quick search. Have you personally used it before, and any bad experiences? Read that it has bad quality control issues.

Right now I'm trying to narrow down my audio interface choices to Sapphire 6, emu0404 and the presonus audiobox and of course if there's something as good in the range.

Mic's wise, I've seen many people talking about how value for money the Octava mk012s are. But I've recently read on gearslutz about the Little Blondie by a forumer there. Its a really small condenser mic (really small) that has all good reviews (if not almost all).

http://littleblondie.com/

Has anyone tried them?

[ljguitar]

Originally Posted by J0sA1Ac

...Havent heard of the lexicon omega, but did a quick search. Have you personally used it before, and any bad experiences? Read that it has bad quality control issues.

Hi J0sA-etc…
I have used both Lexicon models for fun, and have had friends using them for home recording units, and they all worked just great.

Easy to setup and use.

[moon]

You might be able to pick up an Apogee Duet on ebay for not much more than $300 (mac only). They're very good.

I'm not sure about the little blondies. Personally I'd go for an Oktava Mk012 or ADK A6. The latter isn't an SDC but is very good on acoustic guitar. I've got one myself.

[Doug Young]

Unless you need more channels, or are going to upgrade to a pretty serious level, I'd suggest just getting some good mics to use with the zoom. You're going to need to spend quite a bit of money to make even a small audible improvement over the zoom. Better mics with the ability to have different mic placement will get you pretty far. Don't forget room acoustics. Together, you get a much bigger improvement than moving to a mid- quality preamp.

[Doug Young]

Incidentally, with your budget I'm not even sure you hear an actual quality difference with mics. The biggest benefit would probably be the added flexibilty in mic placement

[J0sA1Ac]

thanks for all the input guys. you make sense with using the zoom as a interface. i shall do it that way then, skip the audio interface and go with a better mic.

ps. btw i'm a fan.

[Fran Guidry]

Here's a comparison of the H4n and a fairly pricey recording chain consisting of a Shure KSM141 mic ($350 or so), John Hardy M-1 preamp ($1600 or so), LynxTwo a/d ($800 or so):

H4n: http://www.homebrewedmusic.com/audio/1-3-h4n.mp3
$$$: http://www.homebrewedmusic.com/audio/1-4-jh.mp3

Those were recorded at a distance of 3 feet, so you're hearing both chains stressed to the max.

Here's the H4n with the Shure mic, compared to the $$$ chain:

H4n: http://www.homebrewedmusic.com/audio/3-1-h4n.mp3
$$$: http://www.homebrewedmusic.com/audio/3-2-jh.mp3

These were recorded a little under 2 feet distant, to minimize proximity.

There was a time not too long ago when there was a huge and obvious difference in audio quality between pro stuff and amateur stuff. Back when pros had Studers and amateurs had 4 track cassette Portastudios moving from a Portastudio to a Teac 4430 was a noticeable improvement.

But these days transparency is cheap. Even in low cost consumer devices, frequency response is wide, distortion is low, noise is inaudible at realistic playback levels. Because modern low cost recording systems start off with such excellent audible quality, incremental improvements are very expensive and quickly exceed the real perceptual limits of human hearing.

Fran

[ljguitar]

Originally Posted by Doug Young

Unless you need more channels, or are going to upgrade to a pretty serious level, I'd suggest just getting some good mics to use with the zoom.

Hi guy…


Agreed…using good mics make a bigger difference than upgrading the preamps...(once one gets above the amateur gear $75 tube-preamp level). The H - series Zooms have great preamps in them (I use an H4 pre H4n and it sounds great with decent high end mics)