4-Track Recording with the Zoom H4

This simplified guide explains the procedures for 4-track recording with the Zoom H4 and its supplied recording software, Cubase LE. When I say "Jog" in the procedures below, that means to turn the Jog thumbwheel on the right side of the Zoom H4 so that the on-screen cursor moves to a new selection.

4-TRACK RECORDING WITH THE ZOOM H4

by Bruce Bartlett  7-19-09

 

SETUP

Plug the power plug into the bottom of the Zoom H4. Plug headphones into the PHONES jack and turn up the VOLUME wheel next to the headphones (move it toward the left).

1. Turn Power on. The Zoom H4 always starts where you left off.

2. Press MENU button.

3. Jog to MODE, press jog wheel.

4. Jog to 4-TRACK, press jog wheel.

5. Press MENU button.

6. Jog to REC MODE, press jog wheel. 

7. Jog until OVERWRITE is highlighted.

 

8. Press MENU button.

 
TO START A NEW PROJECT (SONG)

1. If necessary, press the top of the MENU key to stop playback.

2. Press MENU until you see PROJECT.

3. Jog to PROJECT, press jog wheel.

4. The current project is saved automatically.

5. Jog to the NEW PROJECT and press jog wheel. It will be called, for example, PRJ004. Using pen and paper, write down that number next to your song title. You can rename the project, but let's keep it simple.

6. Jog to OK, press jog wheel.

SELECT YOUR INPUT SOURCE: MIC, OR AN INSTRUMENT PLUGGED INTO THE H4

If you want to record with the built-in microphones,

1. Push bottom of MENU button. You should see the INPUT menu.

2. Press jog wheel.

3. Rotate jog wheel up or down until you see MIC.

4. Press jog wheel to select MIC.

5. Press MENU button.

If you want to record an instrument plugged into the H4,

Plug a mono instrument, like a guitar, into Input 1 on the bottom of the H4.

Or plug a stereo instrument, like a stereo keyboard, into Inputs 1 and 2 on the bottom of the H4.

1. Push bottom of MENU button. You should see the INPUT menu.

2. Press jog wheel.

3. Rotate jog wheel up or down until you see IN1 (for a mono instrument) or IN1&2 (for a stereo instrument).

4. Press jog wheel.

5. Press MENU button.

TO RECORD ON TRACK 1

1. Press the 1 BUTTON until it turns red. That means it's ready to record.

2. Press the big REC BUTTON. It lights red.

3. Sing or play the instrument. Adjust the recording level with the INPUT1, INPUT2, or MIC switches on the right side of the H4 depending on your input source. The meter should reach about -3 on the loudest notes. Do not exceed 0.

4. To record, press the top of the MENU button (PLAY triangle). Pick up a voice or instrument with the built-in mics, or plug a mic or instrument into the connectors on the bottom of the Zoom H4.

5. To stop, press the top of the MENU button (PLAY triangle).

6. If you want to play track 1, press the left side of the MENU button - the screen display says 00:00 (return to zero). Press the top of the MENU button to play.

7. If you want to re-record track 1, press the left side of the MENU button to return to zero. Press the REC button. Press the top of the MENU button to record.

TO OVERDUB ON TRACK 2

1. Press the 1 BUTTON until it turns green. That means it will play back.

2. Press the 2 BUTTON until it turns red. That means it's ready to record.

3. Press the left side of the MENU button -- the screen display says 00:00 (return to zero).

4. Press the REC button so it turns red. To record,  press the top of the MENU button. Listen on headphones to track 1 and play along with it.

5. To stop, press the top of the MENU button again.

6. Press the left side of the MENU button - the screen display says 00:00 (return to zero). Press the top of the MENU button to play tracks 1 and 2.

7. If you want to re-record track 2, press the left side of the MENU button to return to zero. Press the REC button. Press the top of the MENU button to record.

TO OVERDUB ON TRACK 3

1. Press the 1 BUTTON until it turns green. That means it will play back.

2. Press the 2 BUTTON until it turns green. That means it will play back.

3. Press the 3 BUTTON until it turns red. That means it's ready to record.

4. Press the left side of the MENU button -- the screen display says 00:00 (return to zero).

5. Press the REC button so it turns red. To record, press the top of the MENU button. Listen on headphones to tracks 1 and 2, and play along with them.

6. To stop, press the top of the MENU button again.

7. Press the left side of the MENU button - the screen display says 00:00 (return to zero). Press the top of the MENU button to play tracks 1, 2 and 3.

8. If you want to re-record track 3, press the left side of the MENU button to return to zero. Press the REC button. Press the top of the MENU button to record.

TO OVERDUB ON TRACK 4

1. Press the 1 BUTTON until it turns green. That means it will play back.

2. Press the 2 BUTTON until it turns green. That means it will play back.

3. Press the 3 BUTTON until it turns green. That means it will play back.

4. Press the 4 BUTTON until it turns red. That means it's ready to record.

5. Press the left side of the MENU button -- the screen display says 00:00 (return to zero).

6. Press the REC button so it turns red. To record, press the top of the MENU button. Listen on headphones to tracks 1, 2, and 3,  and play along with them.

7. To stop, press the top of the MENU button again.

8. Press the left side of the MENU button - the screen display says 00:00 (return to zero). Press the top of the MENU button to play tracks 1, 2, 3 and 4.

9. If you want to re-record track 4, press the left side of the MENU button to return to zero. Press the REC button. Press the top of the MENU button to record.

TO PLAY THE 4-TRACK RECORDING

1. Press the left side of the MENU button -- the screen display says 00:00.

2. Press the top of the MENU button to play.

3. To stop, press the top of the MENU button again.

 
TO MIX THE 4-TRACK RECORDING INSIDE THE ZOOM H4

(Note: It's easier to do this in the supplied Cubase LE software).

1. If necessary, press the MENU button so you see four rectangles at the bottom.

2. Jog to MIXER and press the jog wheel.

3. Press the left side of the MENU button to return to zero.

4. Press the top of the MENU button to play.

5. Scroll to the track you want to adjust and press the jog wheel.

6. Use the jog wheel to adjust the volume of that track up or down.

7. Press the jog wheel to go to panning.

8. Use the jog wheel to adjust the panning of that track left, right, or center.

9. Press the jog wheel when done.

10. Press the left side of the MENU button to return to zero as the song is playing.

11. Repeat steps 5-9 for each track.

12. When done, press the top of the MENU button to stop.

TO DELETE A PROJECT (SONG)

1. Press MENU until you see PROJECT.

2. Jog to PROJECT and press jog wheel.

3. Jog to DELETE (it's off screen) and press jog wheel.

4. Jog to the Project number and press jog wheel.

5. Are you sure? Jog to Delete, and press jog wheel.

TO RECALL A PROJECT (SONG) TO PLAY IT

1. Press MENU until you see PROJECT.

2. Jog to PROJECT and press jog wheel.

3. Jog to SELECT and press jog wheel.

4. Jog to the Project number and press jog wheel.

5. It will say "Now Loading." The song is ready to play by pressing the top of the MENU button.

TO TRANSFER SONGS TO A COMPUTER USING THE MEMORY CARD

1. Remove the SD memory card from the top of the Zoom and plug it into the computer's SD slot.

2. Click My Computer (or Windows Explorer) and look for the H4-SD card. Double-click it.

3. Select PRJ003 or whatever.

4. You should see the tracks (wav files), for example TRK1-00.wav. Copy (drag) them to a folder such as c:\cubase\audio.

TO TRANSFER SONGS TO A COMPUTER USING THE USB CABLE

The H4's USB connection works with some computers, but does not work with others.

1. Turn off the H4's power switch.

2. Plug a USB cable between the H4 and your computer.

3. Jog to "Connect to PC" on the H4 screen. Press the jog wheel to select that.

4. The H4 screen says "Now connecting to PC..."  Wait a few minutes.

5. The computer might say, "Installing device driver software." When it says "Ready to Use", use Windows Explorer to copy (drag) the wav files from the Zoom H4 project folder to a directory on your hard drive, such as c:/cubase/audio.

INSTALLING CUBASE LE SOFTWARE

A CD-ROM containing this recording software is supplied with the Zoom H4. It installs only on a computer that is connected to the Internet.

Put the CD in your CD-ROM drive and install Cubase LE. Type in the serial number (authorization number). When the Cubase LE icon appears on your desktop, click it to start the program (even if the screen says that the installation is incomplete).

USING CUBASE LE SOFTWARE

1. Start Cubase. Select File > New Project.

2. Select Template > Empty > OK.

3. The screen says "Set project folder". Click OK.

4. Select File > Import > Audio file.

5. Look in c:\cubase\audio, or wherever you copied your Zoom H4 wav files to.

6. Multi-select TRK1-00.wav, TRK-2-00.wav, TRK3-00.wav, and TRK4-00.wav. > Open > OK.

7. Four tracks should appear, each containing the waveform of each track's recording.

8. Press the PLAY triangle to hear the mix.

To set up a mix:

1. Select Devices > Mixer.

2. Go back to the beginning and select PLAY.

3. Adjust the fader level for each track as desired.

4. Adjust the panning  <C> for each track as desired.

You can solo a track by clicking S, or mute a track by clicking X.

To add equalization (tone control) to a track:

1. Click on a track such as Audio 02. In the left column on screen, next to Equalizers, click the Open EQ icon for the track you want to equalize. It looks like a tiny triangle on a square.

2. The EQ screen should open up. Turn on EQ by clicking the four O| buttons (power on/off buttons).

3. Choose a frequency slider and adjust it as desired.

4. Close the EQ screen by clicking the Close EQ icon. It looks like a tiny triangle on a square.

To add reverberation to a track:

1. Select Devices > VST Send Effects.

2. Select No effect > Reverb > Reverb B.

3. In the Reverb B screen, set the Reverb Time to 1.6 seconds for starters. You can fine-tune it later.

4. In the Reverb B screen, turn the mix control up to 100%. Close the Reverb B window.

5. In the left column on screen, in the Sends section, click on the Open Sends icon for the track you want reverb on. It looks like a tiny triangle on a square.

6. The Sends screen opens. Turn on the Reverb B send by clicking the O| button (power on/off button).

7. Play the recording. Adjust the reverb send level as desired. It's the tiny slider under "Reverb B".

8. Close the Sends window.

Of course, there is a lot more you can do, but I hope these simplified procedures get you started making multitrack recordings with the Zoom H4 and Cubase LE.

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 Bruce Bartlett is the author of "Practical Recording Techniques 5th Edition" and "Recording Music On Location". He offers a mastering service at www.bartlettrecording.com\mastering.html , and he runs a microphone company at www.bartlettmics.com .