H6essential Review - BEST Handheld Recorder?

[@FreePodcastTools]

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[@jimcrawford7446]

Efficient, well done and to the point. Quickly covered many necessary points with little waste of time. I appreciate getting this kind of well spoken (with visual aides) knowledgeable review from an experienced tech person.

[@pcofranc]

6:26 good point about MicroSD's tiny size; could easily do both - normal SD slot in the recorder with the micro sd card inside of it, now everyone's happy.

[@yuan249520028]

Already have my H6e for one month,still feel fantastic on it👌🏻

[@FreePodcastTools]

Glad to hear it! I love the unit and it's a staple in my filmmaking and remote podcasting. I am really happy with the price point.

[@Av-pu2bo]

Quality review Hank. Question for you, because Zoom has named the new handy recorder series Essential. Could this mean Zoom maybe releasing a Pro/Elite series at some point in the near future?

[@btsr2553]

Pro? I always find and have always found it a bit strange when manufacturers suddenly label a product with the addition "pro". So everything that came before from that product or manufacturer was not "pro"?

[@FreePodcastTools]

Thank you for the comment and kind words. I wouldn't be shocked if they came out with a higher end version of this recorder. It's clear they wanted to differentiate from the original H6. If they take a page out of Rode's playbook, they'll let it sell for 12 months or so before they do.

[@FreePodcastTools]

@@btsr2553 some companies are terrible at naming devices like Fifine's Tank3 and Rode's NT USB and all it's variations. I kind of hope they go in the F-series direction but keep the form-factor of the handy recorder. They have used "Pro" in their products before with the "F8n Pro Multitrack Field Recorder". I would tell Zoom that the $1100 price tag is the only identifier I needed to tell who it's aimed at. 😂

[@Av-pu2bo]

@@FreePodcastTools Much appreciated

[@Av-pu2bo]

@@btsr2553 Isnt that how manufacturers charge premium price with a subtle name tag or change!?!

[@EternalMedia]

Does the Bluetooth connection allow you to monitor the sound with Bluetooth headphones 🎧??

[@FreePodcastTools]

No. The BTA-1 Bluetooth accessory is for wireless control and timecode on certain devices.

[@btsr2553]

Thank you Hank, as always, for your short and to the point summary of Zoom's H6essential. Well, you talk about the elephant in the room. But it's not just one, it's a whole herd of elephants. What you said: The quality of the casing is not as good as I expect from Zoom, only the plastic casing makes it a bit worse. Another drawback are the preamps, which are quite noisy. It's are quite a negativ hammer. The lack of compatibility with the previous microphone capsules. Also a minus point, but I wouldn't care. I have still been using the Tascam DR-100MKIII on a weekly basis for years. I'm considering switching to the new Portacapture X6 or X8. Unfortunately, TASCAM also has the missing Bluetooth. Furthermore the switch to MicroSD, unfortunately TASCAM is also involved. Both premium manufacturers are making the same direction. By the way, do you know whether the Zoom can automatically record at a certain (line or mic) level? The TASCAM recorders can do that. Here I can start recording automatically from a given certain level and if the level falls below this again, the recording stops automatically. Furthermore, five seconds before the recording is started with the record button is automatically included in the recording. Do the Zooms have this too? Thank you again. Take care and a hearty Bavarian "Servus!"

[@FreePodcastTools]

Thank you for the great comment. The negatives do stack up and make the device less than what we'd hoped for. As for automatically recording at a certain level I'll say Zoom is hyping the 32-Bit feature with the idea of raising the gain to whatever level you want in post-production. It's definitely not what you're referring to, but it's their version of "set it and forget it". I've recorded in that manner and did not prefer it to actually setting the volume using the mix feature. I'm hoping Zoom goes back to the lab and cooks up something that's a bit more feature rich. I'd pay a lot more if they'll give me more features and functionality. Thanks again.

[@garymoroney7565]

Hi Hank so far so good but big issue I have is setting my output especially the XY mic. The manual said set on -20db but I find this low Should it be +20db

[@FreePodcastTools]

I agree with you that the output is extremely low when set to their recommendation. Personally, I set mine to +10dB but wouldn't blame you for going higher. +10dB is what works for me.

[@archtopeddy]

Thank you for the review. Excuse my ignorance about these things but I'm confused about what the Blue Tooth adaptor offers. Can you connect a Blue Tooth speaker using the adaptor rather than using the 3.5 mm line output? Thanks!

[@FreePodcastTools]

It doesn't seem to be the intended purpose. Here's what they say: Using the BTA-1* Bluetooth Adapter, sync with wireless timecode devices via bluetooth. Use the BTA-1* Bluetooth Adapter to pair with the H6essential Control App for iOS. Sound more like film and iOS App usage.

[@archtopeddy]

@@FreePodcastTools Thanks for the response. And I agree with you regarding the BT. I just wanted a second opionion. It appears the only option for audio is the 1.5 mm output jack, the headphone output and using the small internal speaker.

[@FreePodcastTools]

@@archtopeddyyou are very welcome. I do appreciate that they included the combo inputs and the output jacks on the device. Makes it a bit more flexible.

[@trickeyt.v96]

Is it the best option for a visually impaired musician? Thanks

[@FreePodcastTools]

When it comes to a full featured device I would say yes. Everything else that comes up seems to be much more basic like the Eltrinex V12Pro.

[@ww1www]

thanks for this review. I have quite a few recorders, including the original H6 which I loved and the Tascam X8 which I somehow regard as the real successor of the H6. Honestly, the X8 is close to perfect and the touchscreen that you want to steer away from makes the X8 so versatile that there is no contender. It makes the X8 much more than just a recorder. The H6e ? Well... I was looking forward to it, but it seems to be a disappointment... no upgraded preamps, no compatibility with older Zoom capsules, no touchscreen, no usable mixing features, no effects... and it is plain ugly in its looks.

[@FreePodcastTools]

I definitely appreciate your thoughts on the X8 and the H6e. It is fair to say the X8 is in a class all its own for sure. I'm getting older so seeing screens outdoors can be a challenge for me so the dumbed down function of the H6e is easy for me in those rare circumstances. I certainly agree that the capsule issue is a major fail for Zoom. They just want to get more money out of people. I'm a huge Tascam fan and will probably grab one of their new recorders in the future. The only thing I need to investigate is the battery life of the X8. Thank you for the great comment. You make some excellent points.

[@melpicsnj]

I agree that bluetooth should be included

[@FreePodcastTools]

Maybe at some point they will make a complete device that meets all of our needs. Thank you for the comment.

[@adv.rohitl.jbrasdesa2402]

Buyers beware the zoom h6 essential is not compatible as an audio interface on windows 11 arm 64 computers. The driver available is only for x64 processors. I am stuck with my device .

[@FreePodcastTools]

😯 Have they said if there will be some sort of update in order to make it compatible? I'm on Windows 10 and don't plan on upgrading anytime soon.

[@adv.rohitl.jbrasdesa2402]

@@FreePodcastTools their answer is the driver on the website is the only one available. No other communication. Strange people

[@FreePodcastTools]

@@adv.rohitl.jbrasdesa2402 that's a terrible response they gave you. It should be job one to find a fix since you're a paying customer. Well that really puts a damper on my previous recommendation. I am glad you pointed it out but sorry you're going through this.