Using ZoomH4next to record from receiver

[Spencer]

I just got one of these for recording practices sessions and like it a lot for that purpose. It does a good job of recording my mandolin.

I would also like to use it to transfer some old cassettes over to digital format, using my stereo receiver to send the signals to the Zoom. They show this in the manual, but without any specific information as to connections (at least that I can find). I assume that you can take the line out from the receiver and plug that into the XLR inputs. I have the cable to do this, but I am unsure as to whether the levels are compatible, and since I don't want to fry anything, I thought I would ask here to see if anybody else has tried this, and has some recommendations or precautions.

I have everything else I need in the way of programs on my computers, so it's only this connection that I have any concerns about.

Spencer

[Ole Joe Clark]

My digital recorder has 1/8" input and mike jacks, so I just plug a line in with male stereo connectors on each end into the headphone plug on the stereo player and into the mic or line in jack on the recorder. I use headphones on the recorder so I can hear what I'm recording. Works like a charm. Easy to convert old LP's, cassettes, etc., to digital. I also can record the audio from a DVD and put it on a CD, and cherry pick favorite tunes to the recorder. No special software or tools required.

Hope this helps.

Joe

[foldedpath]

It looks like the H4n doesn't have a separate Line Input jack, so you'll have to use the XLR-1/4" combi inputs. A stereo cable with RCA plugs on one end, and mono 1/4" plugs on the other should do the job.

Without a separate line input, you'll be going through the H4n's mic preamp circuit. That isn't an ideal situation, but it should work okay, as long as you can set enough gain reduction to avoid clipping. Just watch your input levels. You can't damage anything if you clip the signal, it will just sound bad.

Also, I would recommend connecting your cassette player directly to the H4n, and bypassing your audio receiver (unless it's an integrated cassette/receiver). There is no reason to have that additional hardware in the chain, and you'll get a cleaner recording just going direct from the cassette player. The levels may be lower that way too, which could help avoid clipping.

[Spencer]

Thanks for the tips, I hadn't thought about going in directly from the recorder. I'll work on it this weekend, and we'll see how it comes out.

Spencer

[michaelpthompson]

It looks like the H4n doesn't have a separate Line Input jack, so you'll have to use the XLR-1/4" combi inputs. A stereo cable with RCA plugs on one end, and mono 1/4" plugs on the other should do the job.

Good advice to use the 1/4" rather than the XLR. XLR is normally used for a balanced mic level input, and your line out could easily overdrive it. The 1/4" is more likely a better impedance match and intended for line level, rather than mic level. At least I would hope that they wired the two inputs separately, even though they are in a combi plug. Keep your line level low until you find out.

[Spencer]

Status report:

Used the 1/4" plugs on the combi-input connected directly to the tape deck, and turned the recording level all the way down. The range is from 100 down to 0.1. I only had to turn it up to about 0.5 to get decent recording level, and it seems to work quite well, though I haven't listened carefully to it yet. It is real easy to transfer over to a PC, where I will split and edit things, probably with Audacity. Now all I need is the time to get through that big stack of tapes.

Thanks for all your advice, it all helped. Spencer