Help needed with Zoom H4N

[John Parkin]

Hi Guys,

I am trying to use a Zoom H4N to pipe audio into my Epic X and having no real luck.

Is there anyone out there using the H4N that could let me know the exact settings they use to get good audio?

As of right now I can get audio, but it is incredibly quiet and when I boost it in post there is so much noise it is unusable.

Thanks,

John

 

[Andreas Mendritzki]

As in, you're sending a line out of the headphone jack from the h4n into the Epic?

Follow your signal chain:

How are your levels on the zoom? Good?

What's your headphone out level set to? (might be a dummy point, but remember that this is independent of your record volume). And of course, what's your input level set to on the epic?

And, also important, what's your routing? Because the h4n will send out a stereo signal to the cam, which ingests mono. A straight wired mini-jack stereo cable seems to work for me 100% of the time, but of course, just gives me one of the two channels coming out of the zoom - so do some left-right tests to see which is the side that is coming through on the cam.

And listen out of the headphone jacks on your cam. If it sounds crappy out of the headphone jack, its going to sound crappy in post.

 

[Ryan Skeete]

What Andreas said is good advice. But my question is, why are you using the camera audio when you seem to be recording to the H4N? Isn't the point just to have a scratch track on the camera so you can then sync it with the clean, pristine, USEABLE audio from the Zoom in post? Unless you haven't given us the whole picture...

 

[John Parkin]

What Andreas said is good advice. But my question is, why are you using the camera audio when you seem to be recording to the H4N? Isn't the point just to have a scratch track on the camera so you can then sync it with the clean, pristine, USEABLE audio from the Zoom in post? Unless you haven't given us the whole picture...

I am using the H4N to record, but for the occasional time I forget to press record on it, it would be nice to have the audio there on the Epic too. It also makes it much more easy to sync with a scratch track when the scratch track is decent.

Thanks Andreas, I turned the output volume on the H4N all the way down to 1 (out of 100) and then set the gain in camera, and I now have crystal clear audio on my R3D files!

 

[Dane Henry]

I use it this way. I send a line out the headphone for a scratch track to the camera. I have the WC A-Box use mini to xlr cable from Zoom to A Box

and yes it has saved my ass when I have forgotten to press record on the Zoom

-Dane