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Zoom H6 Pro Handheld Recorder

S

suraci

Apr 11, 2005
1,014
100
#1
I'm looking for advice on recording my practice sessions

i'm using headphones with the tiny Blackjack amp ( uses two AAA batteries )

so many ideas are coming to me. i want to record them

i don't have a DAW or MACBook set up

the blackjack is doing just fine
but now i want to record ( NOT a professional recording ) it for review later

any suggestions appreciated
 
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#3
yes possible overkill
i just looked at a simple tutorial
and realized i probably can't simply press "play"
to hear "my genius works of elec bass art"
lol
i would have to hassle dropping into
my macbook
then fiddle around with the mac

all i want is to
1. capture all my ransom musings on bass
2 easily hear them
3 i like the Blackjack w headphones
i do not want to use amp
and prefer not to use macbook or even tne ipad pro ( 1st gen)
if i have to use the ipad. so be it
but i want to listen to my bass through phones and record for 30-60
minutes
if feasible
any alternatives !!

thank you very much

PS. As a long time veteran multi instrumentalist i want to say. we should preserve our OWN IDEAS not just borrow from the greats.
 
#6
I have a Zoom H2N that works pretty well for what you're describing. It has a speaker built in for playback, as well as a headphone/line out jack. I've used the speaker for playback without having to download the file to a computer. Also has a simple mic/line input that you may be able to drive with the headphone out of your little amp. It's $150 new, but I bought it for $100 used.

H2n Audio Recorder | Buy Now

I'm not familiar with the H6, but after looking quickly on Zoom's website, I think it's more than you need by quite a lot. Unless you have a need for multi-tracking and interchangeable mic capsules, the H6 seems like overkill.

Does your amp have a speaker, or do you have to use it with headphones?
 
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#7
it's called blackjack
i plug elec bass into blackjack
and hear the bass with headphones with no latency

there is no speaker in the Blackjack
if there might be a better unit for the purpose ( bass to unit to headphone ) above. let me know

my only question about the
h2n model
HOW LONG can i record uninterrupted??
 
Last edited:
#9
Shepsdad said:
27009360[/URL], member: 347711"]I bought an inexpensive lapel mic that plugs directly into my iPhone to record songwriting sessions. I think the mic itself was under $20, and I bought a phone mount that attaches to a camera tripod. Just hit record and you have surprisingly decent audio AND video. The entire rig was maybe $35
Click to expand...

ok thank you for the idea
i just want to check my scenario , if it fits
with the lapel mic and iphone

i don’t use a bass amp
i use the blackjack (newly acquired ) direct to headphones
it’s a satisfying zero latency mix into the headphones

how does eg 30-60 minutes of bass playing get recorded?
thanks again
 
#10
suraci said:
ok thank you for the idea
i just want to check my scenario , if it fits
with the lapel mic and iphone

i don’t use a bass amp
i use the blackjack (newly acquired ) direct to headphones
it’s a satisfying zero latency mix into the headphones

how does eg 30-60 minutes of bass playing get recorded?
thanks again
Click to expand...
Ahh, sorry, didn’t notice that you were using a headphone amp. I believe, though, that you should be able to find a cable that would go from the headphone jack to the lightning jack on the iPhone and record video that way.
 
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#11
I know you don't want to, but I would seriously reconsider just using a DAW since you are already using a headphone solution with no amp. This is assuming where you typically practice is near a laptop or desktop. If you are already looking to record ideas that you have, then it sounds like eventually you are going to maybe want to develop those ideas and having a DAW and learning it now will only help with that so you can start making demos. Having your 30-60 minute sessions recorded in a DAW will probably be a lot easier to quickly move through your ideas when listening back as well. You'd be able to very quickly and easily cut out the ideas that you like from the wave form and move them into a file with all of your other good ideas too. Just my opinion though.
 
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#12
Shepsdad said:
27009394[/URL], member: 347711"]Ahh, sorry, didn’t notice that you were using a headphone amp. I believe, though, that you should be able to find a cable that would go from the headphone jack to the lightning jack on the iPhone and record video that way.
Click to expand...

as they say , “no problem “. i appreciate the input.

this is the first time since i took up bass 1966 or 7 , where i tried the headphone amp .
it’s cheaply ( Blackjack ) made ( i already brought one back ) but sounds “fine” if a little heavy on the bright side .
But the cheap squier bass i’m using and the cheap headphone amp
pleasantly surprise me with a more modern sound. so i’m
digging it
if anyone knows of a higher quality way to use headphones.
let me know. but if you haven’t. try it !
 
Last edited:
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#13
N4860 said:
I know you don't want to, but I would seriously reconsider just using a DAW since you are already using a headphone solution with no amp. This is assuming where you typically practice is near a laptop or desktop. If you are already looking to record ideas that you have, then it sounds like eventually you are going to maybe want to develop those ideas and having a DAW and learning it now will only help with that so you can start making demos. Having your 30-60 minute sessions recorded in a DAW will probably be a lot easier to quickly move through your ideas when listening back as well. You'd be able to very quickly and easily cut out the ideas that you like from the wave form and move them into a file with all of your other good ideas too. Just my opinion though.
Click to expand...

no no no. i appreciate your idea thank you

as to where i’m recording :
in a warm and friendly cafe; as i’m choosing to live in a car. for the foreseeable future.
(i refuse to pay $2000 ( with utilities) a month for little more than a dump.)

i have a flexible mind and may change my mind. but it’s been 5 months in a car and it’s about positive attitude . i
won’t let the economy fragment my focus.
——
so daw, means , no way an ipad could do this, right ?
in total - what do i need ?
can i keep the cheap headphone amp in the loop?

i have an el capitan / 2009 mb pro which is sluggish

i’ve never used a daw. but feel i have to bite the bullet .
for an old musician which daw is least hassle on mac side ( i will never go windows )
i’ve heard and owned logic ableton reaper but never went anywhere with it

1. so daw
2. interface. but wait a minute before i go on. there is ZERO latency with the cheap headphone amp

i will not tolerate ANY latency.
why?
because one of my wonderful
teachers taught me
there is WHAT you play ( chords melody etc
and more importantly HOW you play it .

sure basslines are important. but so is the way you play them.
so latency is a non starter - a destroyer of subtly .

talk to me. i’m eager to get a used mid 2015-2019 macbook

daw
interface
i see people in starbucks with computers and one guy had part of a studio in a starbucks. amazing ! He was a published composer player .

the sound has to be “inside the box”.
the noise in the room is not a factor.

when i really want to record i have a studio i can use. but my first goal is capturing a lot of bass lines on a regular daily basis
downstream i will hopefully record elec bass. drum loops , keys etc

really appreciate the input
 
#14
My band has been recording rehearsals with the bandleader's MacBook and Garage Band (which I think comes free with MacOS). Our PA is all digital and acts as a multitrack recording interface, but you can get simpler (and less costly) interfaces.

I have a Zoom H1 (the lowest model when I bought it maybe 5 years ago), it's great. The built-in stereo mics can do great live recordings, or you can plug in an external signal source and record from that. It has a USB interface so you can copy the recordings off it for editing and archiving; or it can act as a recording interface to record directly with DAW software.
 
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#15
I've used a zoom q3 video recorder for years. It will also record audio only, stereo xy mics. They are available used for well under $100. [ebay, reverb]. Stereo headphone out and attached usb out. Fits in a shirt pocket and runs off 2 aa batteries. I never leave home without it.
 
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#18
suraci said:
can these zoom units ( h6 and less expensive models ) playback to
the headphones without dealing with the downloading
to computer
Click to expand...
Yes.

It has a heaphone jack as well as a line out. You can record multitrack as well as overdub additional tracks or even punchin and mix to stereo later without ever needing a DAW. The channels have limiter and compressor built in. What the channels do not have is EQ. I have one and I use it to record band practices and gigs as well as building ideas because of the multitrack capability. You can record 6 channels at once.

here is the manual: https://zoomcorp.com/media/documents/E_H6.pdf
 
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#19
I have an H6 and use it to record the room audio during practices, and have used it with several mics and the DI out from my amp going into it and I also use it as my primary audio interface with Logic Pro.

It's a great gizmo and do not regret the purchase one bit.

Older and simpler versions like the H2 and H4 might be all you need, and I believe they even have guitar effects which are missing from the H6
 
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