A couple of further notes on the Zoom F8:
Although it can run on eight rechargeable NiMH AA batteries, there is no pr=
ovision in the F8 for charging batteries. The Sound Devices series is much =
better in this regard with its onboard charging of rechargeable battery pac=
ks.
The F8 has an 8xAA battery holder which slips into the body of the recorder=
through a rear door hatch. The battery holder itself has two plastic side =
covers to enclose these batteries. These covers are flimsy, and can be expe=
cted to fail with any regular use. It=92s unclear how well the AAs will sta=
y in place without those covers.
Additional battery holders are available for $25. If you=92re expecting to =
make any fast swaps in the field, having extra battery holders and pre-load=
ing them with AAs is the way to go.
The rear door hatch on the F8 is metal, but its hinge is also flimsy, and c=
ould easily be broken off if you=92re fumbling around your kit bag trying t=
o change the battery pack. This is a more serious issue, because the hatch =
door is the only thing that secures the battery holder into the machine. Un=
like many other portable digital devices, the F8 does not have a little sli=
p clip to retain the battery pack. If that rear door hatch breaks off, your=
days of using AA packs in the F8 are over.
Dan=92s previous advice about external powering options through the locking=
Hirose jack is definitely a better way to go for long term powering. Inter=
estingly, while that Hirose port accepts a fairly wide range of voltages, Z=
oom also opted to include an additional power connector (non-locking coaxia=
l plug) that appears to need a pretty stable 12 VDC. This enabled them to g=
et away with including a relatively cheap wall wart 12VDC external power su=
pply with the F8.
Better things to say about the F8: it has two SD slots, both high-capacity =
up through SDXC, and can record redundantly to both of them. Also, if you=
=92re only looking to record up to four inputs, you can have each of those =
routed to two input channels to enable recording at different levels, or bo=
th decoded and undecoded MS, or just as another level of redundancy.
One note about using the F8 as an 8x4 Mac/PC interface: in order to get sig=
nal from an F8 input into your software, you have to =91arm=92 the track on=
the F8 by hitting its button on the F8 front panel, just like if you were =
using it as a stand-alone recorder!
=97Flawn
"While a picture is worth a thousand words, a
sound is worth a thousand pictures." R. Murray Schafer via Bernie Krause.
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