Here’s something I totally missed when the Zoom H2 digital audio recorder was first released: it includes a mic-clip adapter. While that might not sound very exciting, it kind of is, and here’s why:
- The Zoom H4 cannot be placed on a mic stand. Instead you have to attach a standard camera tripod, making it much harder to use the H4 at a press conference or to record music using a standard mic stand.
- Both the Zoom H2 and the H4 are susceptible to handling noise because the mic is built into the recorder. In other words, move your hands, even a tiny bit as you’re holding the recorder and you’ll hear a loud noise on the recording. Some users have reported that by holding the mic clip adapter instead of the unit itself, there’s little noise.
In other words, the mic clip adapter can be used as a handle, and makes the Zoom H2 into a much “handier” handheld recorder. You can see some shots of the mic clip adapter/handle in action at O’Reilly Digital Media’s writeup of the recent Podcast Expo.
One caveat though: the screwing mechanism is made of plastic, not metal and might not stand up to wear and tear that well. But you could probably say the same thing for the sub-$200 digital audio recorder you’re plugging the handle into as well. At that price it wouldn’t necessarily be a disaster if you have to buy a new recorder once every year or two. It’d be nice to know whether you can order replacement handles though.
This is exactly the issue I've been pondering since receiving a new H2n. The blasted threads are still plastic. My idea is to screw something into the H2n with a rubber sort of washer to protect the bottom of the mic, and then to have a female thread below to screw the handle into that. But I haven't found anything off-the-shelf that fits the bill. Maybe someone will stop by with a suggestion. Shame on Zoom for the plastic threads.