Product Comparison: Zoom H5 vs Zoom H6

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Zoom H5 Four-Track Portable Recorder

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Zoom H6 Six-Track Portable Recorder

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General Specifications

Brand

Zoom

Model

Origin

China

About the Product

Our products are constantly evolving to meet the needs of the creators who use them. With the H5 Handy Recorder, the tradition continues. The H5 provides four tracks of simultaneous recording and, like our flagship H6, it can use all Zoom interchangeable input capsules, allowing you to choose the best microphone for every recording situation. The flexible and powerful H5 provides everything you need to create multitrack recordings, audio for video, and state-of-the-art podcasting, broadcasting and electronic newsgathering.

Here at Zoom we've been building innovative products for the past thirty years. But with the revolutionary H6 six-track recorder, the bar is raised further still. Four interchangeable input capsules – X/Y, MS, Shotgun, and Dual XLR/TRS Combo – make the H6 the ultimate chameleon of the audio world, and its advanced preamps make it the best-sounding one too. Whatever your application – live recording, professional film/video work, live broadcast or electronic news gathering – the H6 can handle it with ease.

Key Specs

Maximum Recording Time

15 hours

21 hours

Voice-Activated Recording

Yes

Recording Quality

96kHz, 24bit

Number Of Recording Modes

Maximum Recording Time
Voice-Activated Recording

What customers say about "Key Specs"

Zoom H5 Four-Track Portable Recorder

I recently purchased this H5, and it sounds amazing. The quality is close to my recordings with my condenser microphones.
I can't always multi track so the H5 is exactly what I need to get a matrix recording. The XY pattern mics also get a great ambient recording. This is great for movie audio recording as well.
I bought the Zoom - H5 Recorder for mobile recording and the sound quality is astounding. I appreciate the ability to interchange mic recording systems and the ability to record up to four tracks at once.
Also has 4-track recording capability, and with included DAW software is very powerful. Received it before it was promised.
Professional level audio, but really easy to use. The external mic catches room tone, while the XLR input gets the direct feed, so you can work with several channels.

Zoom H6 Six-Track Portable Recorder

Out of the box the H6 allows me to capture 4 XLR inputs along with the X/Y mics for general sound pickup. Controlling gain on each mic is as simple as adjusting the knobs.
I use this on a regular basis , The sound quality is excellent and I love to change heads .
This recorder had exactly what I needed to isolate input tracks and allow for individual editing of each mic.
This recorder captures high quality sound and with the different attachable microphones, you can customize it to specific situations.
The sound quality and applications with this are terrific. I can use my Canon Rebel camera with it's top quality video and combine it with this for superior audio.

Size & Weight

Height

7.77 in.

8.39 in.

Width

2.63 in.

3.1 in.

Depth

1.66 in.

1.88 in.

Weight

9.52 oz.

14.46 oz.

What customers say about "Size & Weight"

Zoom H5 Four-Track Portable Recorder

Audio was super clear, the battery lasted for the entire session (better part of a day on and off), and it was super easy to carry around. Can't wait to try it out on some other projects.
The Zoom H5 is a fantastic little recorder. It feels great in the hand, and works really well as in the field.
It comes with a protective plastic shell case, which is nicely sized to the device and not overly bulky.
I am really quite impressed with this little unit. Not only does it have a solid look/feel, the size is reasonable, and the resulting sound/recordings are well within my expectations.
The size is perfect to toss in your bag and always have pro audio available.

Zoom H6 Six-Track Portable Recorder

The device feels solid but not excessively heavy, allowing me to toss it into any bag without considering or feeling the extra weight, even loaded with 4 AA batteries.
I wanted so much to love this product. It is built like a tank, light weight, and portable.
The build quality of the h6 is great, feels sturdy but definitely doesn't seem like the device to survive a fall.
This was a lot bigger in size than I was expecting.
The size and shape make it awkward to put certain places and all the optional adapters (such as shotgun, voice over mic) are mediocre.

Features

Display Type

Backlit LCD

2" full-color LCD

Computer Compatibility

Yes

Cue Marker Function

Yes

1-Touch Recording

Yes

Supported File Formats

WAV, MP3, BWF

Integrated Speaker

Yes

Interfaces

Line out 3.5mm jack, Phone 3.5mm jack, SD card slot, Remote jack, MiniUSB, XLR / TRS combo jacks

Line out 3.5mm jack, Remote jack, MiniUSB, Phone 3.5mm jack, Mic/line input jack, 4x XLR/TRS combo connectors

Extras

Compatible with all Zoom input capsules, Four-track simultaneous recording, Protective "roll-bar", Built-in effects, MS decoding, Normalize, Divide, and Trim editing, Up to 99 marks per recording, Mounts directly to tripod, mic stand or DSLR

Gain controls, Phantom power for all main inputs: +12/+24/+48V, Virtual VU meters, Up to 99 marks per recording, Built-in effects, MS decoding, Normalize, Divide, and Trim editing, Mounts directly to tripod, mic stand or DSLR, Low-cut filter, Variable playback speed, Six-track simultaneous recording

Cue Marker Function
Integrated Speaker

What customers say about "Features"

Zoom H5 Four-Track Portable Recorder

Adjusting the input volume involves using actual knobs, which gives a nice, tactile feel. Navigating through the menu is easy, but a little strange with the button that is provided.
It's very simple to use and has a myriad of inputs for adding microphones.
H5 is very handy and great quality. It comes with everything you need to start right out of the box, even batteries and an SD card.
The Zoom H5 is so easy to use. I pair it with my T5i and get clear audio. A must have
Battery life is great, and the preamps work well for the price. Having physical knobs makes this well worth the purchase.

Zoom H6 Six-Track Portable Recorder

It gives you the ability to adjust gain for audio input as needed. It comes with accessories for multi-purpose function. It is all-digital and gives you .wav format audio files which are portable across systems.
With the H6, the battery doesn't drain as quickly, you get the four XLR inputs with one more port for a Zoom extension mic. The dials on each input are very easy to change on the fly.
This product is a bit pricy for what it does, but what it does, it does well. It's pretty, easy to use, and has 6 inputs (including the attached microphones).
The H6 gives you three powering options: 4 AA batteries, a USB cord that you can plug(via a iphone plug) into the wall, or to charged USB battery. I've used on one project thus far and it sounded great.
The H6 is the top of the line, can't wait to get the shotgun attachment and the attachment to allow 2 extra channels. So easy to use, you don't even need the manual.

Warranty / Certifications

Manufacturer Warranty

1 year(s)

Certifications

FCC, CE

Other Information

Manufacturer

Link

Manual

Download