Sound recording equipment

Nature Talk
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A couple of weeks ago I heard a whippoorwill, who was apparently on the way to somewhere else. I should soon hear the chuck-will’s-widow who lives here part of the year. I also know places where I sometimes hear tree frogs; one is by a road and a river, so I’d need a directional mike to avoid picking up car and river noises. What equipment do you recommend for recording such sounds?

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https://forum.inaturalist.org/t/sound-recorder-recommendations/54171

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Yes, I was wondering the same thing for better storage and battery power efficacy when iNatting, especially since Merlin eBird takes up a lot of battery power

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Okay, so there’s the Zoom H1n, and there’s the Røde directional mike. The only thing I know about either brand is that I’ve seen Røde in YouTube videos. Does the Zoom need a directional mike?

Zoom is in England, and I’m in the USA. With Trump setting tariffs haywire, ordering anything from overseas is risky. Do you know of anything made here?

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You do not need a dedicated recorder and if yes, you do not need an expensive one or if you want a high-quality expensive one, you do not really need a specific one. The quality is mostly limited by the microphone, not by the recorder. There is some influence of the A/D transformers, but for this application it will be extremely minor. You should concentrate on the type of microphone you want.

There are many types of microphones of different size, construction type, weight, gain and directionality. That is what you mainly have to decide. There is certainly not just one Røde products, there are many different kinds of construction by many brands.

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There is not just Merlin, there is also BirdNET that uses an online AI model from the same Cornell Uni group as Merlin does offline on your phone. I guess that Merlin consumes more power as it continuously tries to identify what you are recording. If you use your phone as a recorder, it should consume much less power. In BirdNET you only submit pieces of your recording for online AI identifications. That has some obvious drawbacks, but the good thing is that you can select the best parts of what you just recorded.

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No, I know nothing about microphones. I just pointed you to a thread.

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Can you suggest a store, or a type of store, where I can look for a recorder and mike?

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Best Buy? Guessing here.

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the Zoom H1n has two microphones built in arranged in XY, which i believe gives it a cardioid recording pattern. in other words, if using the built-in microphones, you do get directional stereo recording.

i’m not sure which Rode mic you’re looking at, but if it’s the inexpensive VideoMic Me series, that should have a similar cardioid recording pattern, but i believe it records mono, not stereo.

i think the main other differences would be:

  • since it’s just a microphone, the Rode mic will be smaller/lighter, and you’ll be able to attach it directly to your smartphone.
  • since it’s a field recorder, you can record on the H1n without a separate device (and listen to and manipulate the recordings, too), but you also have the ability to connect it to a smartphone, depending on how you want to use it. (you could even set it up to record a continuous backup track on the H1n while having it connected to another device where you can record just the parts you’re interested in.)
  • if using the built-in mics, you have to buy a wind muff for the H1n separately, while the Rode mic should come with one in the box
  • the H1n is powered, while the Rode mic probably is not. (fully-charged batteries should be able to power the H1n for at least 7hrs of recording. when you change the batteries, you also need to put in a fresh set within a few minutes of taking out the old set, or else you’ll lose the internal clock.)
  • both allow you to monitor the recording with plugged in headphones, but the H1n has a window built in to show you the levels visually. it also has a gain control nob. so having the visual level meter and gain control nob might help you get better recordings more easily.
  • the H1n has a volume control button on the side that rattles a bit, but I’ve solved this by putting a bit of electrical tape over it.

it’s worth noting that the H1n is long discontinued. so if you’re considering buying one, i’m assuming you’re getting a used one. the successor is the H1essential. It’s a 32-bit float recorder instead of a 24-bit recorder. theoretically, a 32-bit float recorder allows you to just record without having to worry about levels during recording, adjusting them in post processing, but it may not make a practical difference for you, depending on how you’re using it. (if offered at the same price, i’ve never used one, but i would probably get the H1essential.)

(i’ve used an H1n for many years, and i think it’s a very portable recorder that produces good-enough results in most cases and was affordable for most people.)