Zoom R16 - Any Opinions?

FBH · Post by **FBH** » Tue Jan 19, 2010 8:37 am

I was doing some searches on the Zoom R16 and noticed that a couple of folks here have one.

It looks like a really convenient piece of gear for the home recording enthusiast (like me).

Does anyone have an opinion to share on the quality of the mic preamps, the AD converters, or the hardware? Does anyone have a particular gripe about the unit?

I'm thinking about dumping a bunch of gear (including a Firepod and some cheap-o outboard compressors and reverb units) and consolidating. Storage space is kind of at a premium.

kslight · Post by **kslight** » Tue Jan 19, 2010 9:48 am

I'm curious too...also would be interested to know if anyone has the LR16 too.

Studiodawg · Post by **Studiodawg** » Tue Jan 19, 2010 10:25 am

I have the R16...and a bunch of other recorders. I like it because it fits in my laptop backpack. I take it almost everywhere I go (work, etc.) I use it for songwriting and as a backup for location recording. I am always skeptical regarding technology, but I have been enjoying this little unit. It's not "perfect" but in my lifetime I've never seen anything quite so accomodating for getting tracks done commando...tuner/metronome/16 individual tracks/2-track "master mix"...

kingmetal · Post by **kingmetal** » Tue Jan 19, 2010 12:36 pm

I was foaming at the mouth for that thing until I found out that it only had 2 channels with Phantom. Still looks like a decent box for mobile recording (I love my H4n and I had an H4 before that).

dsw · Post by **dsw** » Tue Jan 19, 2010 1:08 pm

So use dynamic mics!

FBH · Post by **FBH** » Tue Jan 19, 2010 5:13 pm

I wonder how the pres would compare to those on my Firepod?

kingmetal · Post by **kingmetal** » Wed Jan 20, 2010 9:20 am

assuming they're like the pres in my H4n, they're very 'meh', but then again stuff I do out in the field with my H4n usually is stuff that I'm willing to take a quality hit on. I would not suggest considering something like the R16 a sonic upgrade, Zoom stuff sounds alright but usually offers a boatload of features for almost no money.

LazarusLong · Post by **LazarusLong** » Wed Jan 20, 2010 9:34 am

kingmetal wrote:assuming they're like the pres in my H4n, they're very 'meh', but then again stuff I do out in the field with my H4n usually is stuff that I'm willing to take a quality hit on. I would not suggest considering something like the R16 a sonic upgrade, Zoom stuff sounds alright but usually offers a boatload of features for almost no money.

bingo. $400 gets you 8 pres, 9 faders, 2 built in mics, built in effects and it acts as an interface and so on. Sounds like a deal to me.

dsw · Post by **dsw** » Wed Jan 20, 2010 11:04 am

I think the pre's on both the R16 and the H4n are quite good considering the price of what you pay for the features you get. Meh? no, they're better than meh. They're almost great.

FBH · Post by **FBH** » Wed Jan 20, 2010 11:33 am

What I really need is to meet someone in Atlanta that has one. Anyone out there?

I don't think I'm going to get real answers this way. I need to tweedle knobs and hear for myself.

No offense intended to the lot of you, of course. I appreciate the input.

kingmetal · Post by **kingmetal** » Wed Jan 20, 2010 11:38 am

I totally agree that for the price the pres are quite good, I don't mean to make them out to be shitty. They're just not pres I would choose over any other pres that I've heard (except my stupid Presonus TubePRE which I hate). The phantom on my H4n is super noisey as well.

HOWEVER, for the price you can't beat them.

Studiodawg · Post by **Studiodawg** » Thu Jan 21, 2010 7:27 am

Firepod pres are "darker" and R16 pres are "lighter"...both have detail, but I suspect the Firepod has more low end due to the rail voltage...more volts per channel...but only two channels vs. eight...I use both units for different apps.

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Zoom R16 - Any Opinions?

Zoom R16 - Any Opinions?

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