Featuring three internal microphones and ready for a wide range of creative applications including field recording, capturing speech and musical performances, and Foley work, the Zoom H2essential puts powerful, flexible, and intuitive recording with surround capabilities in the palm of your hand.
3 Built-In Microphones for Flexible Recording Options
The H2essential is the only Handy Recorder with three internal microphones. With the ability to select different mic patterns, it gives creators more options than ever before. The recorder features two cardioid mics facing front and rear and a bidirectional mic facing side to side, allowing you to choose the perfect pick-up pattern for every recording.
Set your pickup pattern to 90 or 120° stereo, or choose mono for a hyper directional pickup, reducing background noise. Then choose to record from the front, rear, or activate both sides for surround sound pickup. Record in MS Raw, and control the width of the stereo image in postproduction by adjusting the mid-side levels—terrific for controlling ambient noise.
Powered by 32-Bit Float
With 32-bit float recording, you can stop worrying about setting levels and focus on creating powerful, immersive content for your audience. The extended dynamic range means you'll never need to stress about clipping, the dual A/D converters can handle anything just about anything loud you throw at them, while even very low-level signals can be normalized without introducing noise and artifacts.
The H2essential supports sampling rates up to 96 kHz and now includes input gain control for additional flexibility when tailoring recordings to specific environments or workflows. When connected to a PC, Mac, iOS, or Android device using the USB-C port, it can be used as a USB microphone while simultaneously recording to the SD card. The compact recorder makes a great fit for on-the-go podcasting and streaming to your mobile device.
Applications
- Solo Musician - 90º Stereo / Rear Mic: Record in 90° stereo with the rear microphones to capture a natural stereo image.
- Ensembles -120º Stereo / Front and Rear: Using the front and rear-facing stereo 120º microphones, capture a wide, immersive sound field of the entire ensemble.
- Podcasts - Mono / Front and Rear Mics:Mono pickup reduces environmental noise for better isolation. Using the front and rear microphones, you can capture two discrete tracks.
- Streaming and Video Calls - 90º or Mono / Rear Mics: Use the H2essential as a mono or stereo USB microphone for streaming and video calls.
- Sound Design - 90º Stereo / Front + External Mic: Record audio for sound design with the front-facing stereo microphone to capture focused, detailed sounds. Add an external shotgun mic to add directional pickup with reduced background noise.
- 32-Bit Float USB Mic: Connect the H2essential to your mobile device via USB and record professional audio directly onto your phone's video. Perfect for video podcasts and live streams.
- Mid-Side Recording: Record in MS Raw and adjust the width of the stereo image in post production. This is helpful when you want to control ambient noise.
Packed with User-Friendly Features
- The H2essential has advanced features such as a low-cut filter, noise reduction, prerecord, auto-record, and playback speed adjustment. A dedicated Marker button to instantly set reference points while recording.
- AI noise reduction intelligently analyzes and reduces environmental sounds for cleaner recordings in challenging conditions.
- Use the Auto Gain function or set input levels manually depending on your preference.
- Add the BTA-1 Bluetooth Adapter (available separately) to pair one or more H2essentials with your iOS device, remotely hit record, sync timecode. The unit also supports the TCA-1 Timecode Adapter, allowing you to integrate precise timecode into professional audio-video workflows.
- Add the specially designed furry windscreen (available separately) to provide wind protection when recording outdoors; the custom fit provides access to the controls while the windscreen is attached.
- Use the 3.5mm input to accommodate audio players, keyboards, and lav mics with plug-in power. You can record with the front mic and the 3.5mm input simultaneously.
- The 1.3" color LCD screen makes it easy to navigate through the H2essential’s simple interface and includes an option to turn LED brightness completely off for discreet operation. The real-time waveform display lets you see your audio as it records.
- Audio is recorded to microSDHC and microSDXC cards up to 2TB capacity, plenty of room for all day in the field; record WAV files for full fidelity or opt for MP3 files to save space.
- Power is supplied by two AA batteries or via the USB-C port. This includes bus-power as well as external USB battery packs.
- With both front and rear stereo recording active at 32-bit float / 48 kHz, you’ll get about 8 hours of battery life with common alkalines and about 17.5 hours with high-density lithium batteries.
- The onboard speaker allows you to listen to your recordings for quick reference and utilize the Accessibility functions.
- The H2essential is designed with accessibility for the blind and visually impaired. Navigate the menu with audible descriptions through the built-in speaker or headphones. Creators can choose English, Spanish, French, Japanese, German, Italian, or Chinese.