Used Zoom F6 Multi-Track Field Recorder

2024-10-31T10:17:56

Tiny 32 bit recorder. Works great!

Ryland S.

2023-02-09T11:08:10

I'm not an audio pro, or much of an amateur for that matter. I use the F6 to record middle and high school choir performance. We're talking groups of kids ranging from the volume of a kitten's meow to belts that fill an auditorium. The 32 bit float recording option of the F6 has turned my recording efforts from a mass of continuous frustration in setting levels to a group to set it and forget it. I've not had one performance where the audio was unusable and that has allowed me to actually enjoy the performances. Given that I have constant tinnitus, I don't think I can accurately assess the detailed sound quality compared to other recorders.

MATTHEW W.

2022-05-13T09:54:09

Lots of features. Compact and portable.

LINDA O.

2022-05-13T09:51:44

Product bundle had everything I needed.

LINDA O.

2022-03-11T17:27:28

Great recorder. Love the 32 bit floating point.

David M.

2022-03-10T16:53:11

I have 4 other field audio recorders and this is the best. Combined with the Stingray bag and its a powerful field recorder.

STAN T.

2022-01-08T12:58:50

I thought I was being at least a little bit clever getting the Zoom F6 and K-Tek KSF6 Stingray Bag in a bundle for cheaper on Adorama than it costs on Amazon or B&H, and technically, it was an okay deal, but boy was it more of a hassle than I would have preferred. First of all, the XLR cable that comes with this bundle is cheap, which I thought would be fine temporarily as long as it works, but it turns out that the male connector doesn?t even fit in the Zoom F6 XLR ports. I?m glad I didn?t end up going to set trying to use it without testing it first, but now I have to get a more reputable cable, because I don?t want this to happen again. Secondly, the K-Tek bag is just alright. It feels like the Zoom F6 just barely fits in it with a Sony NP-F970 battery attached to the bottom, but I think the buckle will keep it secure for the time being. The strap is also kind of awkward; it doesn?t feel secure when used as an over-the-shoulder sling and it will definitely kill your neck if you try wearing it over your head, so the way I currently have it jerry rigged is by tightening it around my waist in a way that it doesn?t slip down, and then I added pants suspenders to add some extra security. It?s probably not the best rig, but it feels comfortable and it?s light enough that it doesn?t feel cumbersome or bulky at all. It feels like I can leave it on and forget about it during lunch or something. However, you will have to get creative to mount any lav receivers or spare XLR coils to this rig. As for the mixer itself, I?ve only gotten to use it a little bit, but it?s pretty much what you?d expect for a prosumer-level field mixer. I definitely will end up upgrading it down the line when I have the money because it doesn?t have as many workflow/shortcut features as the Zoom F8n, but the 32-bit float is nice when you?re hard-lining a boom mic straight into the mixer. Other than that, you still have to be careful with clipping if you?re using any sort of wireless transmission (for lav or boom), but because it?s not a Sound Devices or Zaxcom mixer, you have to dial in those settings on the lav transmitters and receiver body packs individually, which is fine but takes time and is less flexible if you?re working with talent who?s voice may fluctuate from a whisper to a scream. Luckily, I?ve been pretty good with working with boom ops to get good boom sound. I do like the metadata control that the Zoom F6 offers with naming individual tracks and creating named folders (and having the name be a prefix on the actual recording files) and how easy it is to reset the take number with a new folder. It feels a little more intuitive than with the Zoom F8n, but I do wish you still have the ability to put the T before the take number. I also like the division of the XLR inputs so that it?s 3 on each side and with the corresponding track knobs on the same side. It makes separating boom and lav track mixing a little more intuitive if you set it up as two dedicated boom inputs on the left (track 1 & 2) and inputting lavs to the right side (tracks 4, 5, & 6). Haven?t had to send a line-out feed to a camera quite yet, but the 3.5mm jack seems to be useful for a cheap wireless feed using the RODE Wireless Go II, especially since the Go II tends to add compression which would theoretically make camera audio tracks easier to edit with before having to bring in the raw sound files with the 6 ISO and 2 LR tracks. Anyway, that?s everything I have to say about the products themselves. What was the biggest hassle with this order was getting it shipped to my apartment. This may be an issue unique to myself, so I?m not taking anything off on the rating, but to let it be known, I was told by customer service that it couldn?t be shipped to my shipping address. So they asked if it could be sent to my billing address (which was fine, but any money I saved on this bundle was put into gas money to drive upstate). When I asked what the issue with sending it to my shipping address, they simply asked again if it could be sent to my billing address. I also had to answer that question in at least 2-3 separate emails from separate representatives within the span of 30 minutes which I don?t understand, but that?s fine. After an order cancellation and then some email correspondence, it finally got shipped which I?m glad for. I later came to realize that it was being shipped with UPS and had to be signed for (which makes sense since it?s over $700), so I thought maybe that was the issue with my shipping address; however, having to later order a Sennheiser MKE 600 with the Rycote SuperBlimp off of Ebay, I found out that UPS orders were able to ship to my shipping address, even if they had to be signed for. So now, I?m just confused about what the issue was with shipping this bundle. I wish I had an answer for what the issue was (perhaps I formatted my address in a way that wasn?t compatible with Adorama?s system), but I truly don?t know.

SEAN-DAVID T.

2021-12-31T07:27:46

I bought this as my first field mixer. The build quality is great and the compact form factor doesn?t take up much space.

BRIAN F.

2021-12-24T08:49:18

nice works great

antonio c.

2021-11-02T18:33:16

I have been using Zoom recorders since the original H4n and they are fantastic value for the money. The H5 recorders have consistently been my go-to for 90% of projects and they work great. However, there are times when I need other videographers to use my equipment, and let's face it.. some people suck with audio, and it would be great having a nearly "fail safe" recorder. When I replaced my Rode Wireless Go units with Zoom F2's I was amazed at the simplicity and quality I got from the 32-bit recordings. It was at that point I knew I had to have a 32-bit recorder for our primary events. Enter the F6! Now of course I wish I had the money for the Mix Pre 6 II, mainly because of the better, lower noise pre's, but for the price point I find very to little complain about since this is already a huge advantage coming from 24-bit recorders. Take the plunge and get one of these!

BRADLEY B.

2021-10-26T08:11:04

I dont know how people went without the capabilities of this tiny recorder! It is perfect for my needs, small, compact and versatile! The only drawback is that if you are using a somy battery to power this, the sd card slot is behind the batter for some stupid reason! So in order to switch cards you have to take off the battery. But not a dealbreaker for me! I still really like this product!

BEN G.

2021-09-22T20:17:14

This thing is really great. Looking forward to more field use, but initial testing has shown that this is amazing with 32 but float. I am a one person video production crew so having this ready to roll without having to monitor levels is a godsend. Hopefully it?ll stand the test of time!

Jonathan G.

2021-06-29T08:42:06

Ease of use, very compact, solid build, feature-packed, 32-bit float recordings.

Shaba K.

2020-12-13T09:40:38

I purchased the F6 for my audio recording for narrative and documentary work, as well as live streaming. I love the 32-bit floating point recording mode for the filmmaking work! Very forgiving for loud and soft sounds! For livestreaming, the six (6) inputs are perfect for my host and up to five more guests! It's a small device and runs for a long time on one NP-F style battery. The internal AA batteries allow recording to continue if I need to swap NP-F batteries without stopping a recording. Do I recommend? Yes, definitely!

BOB K.

2020-09-21T08:58:15

The ability to record in 32bit float makes it great for solo shooting. I film a lot of interviews. 32bit float eliminates the worry of peaking audio. Can't recommend enough.

Robin M.

2020-07-23T08:41:01

I use this mostly with an iPad to livestream with Wirecast. I am by myself so it has been a godsend having it take care of most audio problems before they get to the mix. I can work getting the cameras and audio put together at a high level and not fuss with an analog mixer. I have 2 F6s because there are times I need 8 microphones to cover an event. I’ve also use one of them to field record and the sound quality is really worth it. The F6 is a wonderful audio tool!

Steven H.

2020-04-23T08:55:31

I'm not going to bore you with all of the wonderful features of this recorder as I'm sure you would have researched it by now. However, I do have one big complaint about it. When using the line out feature to plug directly into my GH5 and GH4 bodies, I get a horrible noise distortion. My GH5s does not have this issue. This is big for me because I like having a backup recording on the camera's audio track in case something happens to the ONE SD card that this recorder accepts. Some people have had nightmare issues with corrupted files, and I would never rely on a piece of equipment without a backup feature. Never! After many emails to Zoom, today they finally admitted that there's an issue with this line out feature and that they are working on a firmware upgrade to fix it. So, just be warned if you use line out in this manner. Do tests to see if your camera is susceptible to the issue. With that said, I LOVE the features and sound quality of this very fine instrument.

Floyd J.

2020-02-19T07:20:18

As a professional video producer AND voiceover artist, the Zoom F6 has been a game-changer! I use it as my field recorder on all my corporate and event shoots. It SHINES on events because if I have a panel discussion with people with all different levels the 32bit Float removes the nightmare and lost time I used to deal with leveling everyone and dealing with clipping. On the Voiceover side, I use this as my audio interface into my Mac to record my VO and the low-noise floor and great pre-amps have improved my VO quality. This thing is a beast! I love the compact form factor. I can deal with th tight space for the knobs. The placement of the SD card is a little wonky but not enough to deduct a star on this review. The fact that it can take Sony batteries is incredible. I am a happy creative.

DAN R.

2019-11-14T08:10:24

Fantastic management of individual track inputs; 32 float bit manages volume spikes; small size is great; bluetooth control is a plus

Dawnja B.

2019-11-14T07:06:58

I was surprised how small it was and portable. The device is amazing the sound is capture clear and crisp and having all dynamic range on the float files is incredible. Is like RAW files for audio. I highly recommend this device to those people who do not have their own audio crew and do it all as a one man band show. Say good bay to the days where the audio is not longer the cause of your anxiety on location.

Marlon C.

2019-11-09T08:05:24

Sound quality is excellent. Form factor is precise and has a small footprint it won’t get in the way of anything!

CINTIENE D.

2019-11-07T05:42:18

So far I am blown away! This is a must have in my audio kit now! With the dual DAC and 32bit audio one would have to work hard to not get great audio. The first project I used it on was run and gun. Over the course of the production we would transition from people yelling, to practically whispering, sometimes in a matter of seconds. In the past the yelling would have clipped until I could bring the gain down, and the wipers would have been noisy when brought up to reasonable levels in post. Not with this recorder. The yelling didn't clip once, and the whispers were brought back up to a normal listening level with no perceptible noise increase. It was like I had recorded both with the correct gain setting. When you're holding a boom, and also recording sound this is a God send!!! We'll see how the recorder holds up over time, but the build quality seems solid! Also, with the dual battery system you can change batteries mid take if needed! This recorder is a keeper!!!

Jonathan G.

2019-11-06T07:51:17

I was in the market for a sound/field recorder and I am glad that I did not purchase a more expensive Zoom product before pre-ordering this darling little magical tool. Coming from owning a Zoom H1 and renting the H6, I feel professional in the audio quality this device produces. There is plenty to learn and apply but starting off simple is allowed. I have had all 6 inputs with lavs and recorded in a poly file. I will not do this again because it's easier to already have your mono/stereo files ready for post-production.

Thabani M.