The Zoom H2n XY vs Mid Side microphone configurations.

In this video I compare the recording quality of the Zoom H2n's two forward facing XY microphones to its three rear facing Mid Side microphones.

[iClamperson]

11 years later and you're still helping people like me understand this. Thanks!

[gsargen]

love that Mid-Side configuration. Sounds very natural.

[DeAudiofilosyLocos]

This is the best video I have seen for this unit and thank you for playing.

[AlexanderSomma]

Thank you for this overview. I found it quite helpful in being better able to explain how the recording modes differ.

[ewanyork]

Many thanks! Really appreciate the clear explanation with diagrams. I've only received my H2n today and this has been the most helpful introduction to the stereo modes yet!

[saboteur]

Major is the best. We love your videos, mr. Cane. So much positive energy and calmness. You are one very special man, major.

[efetack]

Glad I found the video i was looking. Helped a lot! Rare thus super well explained. Thank you.

[SOISSES-Almanya]

Thank to this kind person i understood the whole theme at last.

[mikenaughton]

Great explanation. Well done. The differences were very noticeable with headphones. The mid side was very solid. Thanks.

[wahabdilawar]

Brilliant.
Thank you very much for your time and effort.

[raysrcsandtech]

Excellent video now I just need to find one as it seems to be an old video not sure of they sell it. Thanks for your effort best video showing this mic

[colliedogjoy]

I'd like this twice if I could. Great set up and explanation. Thanks.

Thank you for this video, I like the ambient test and I could hear the road and environment well, my plan are to use it too record simple ambient environmens.

[ichsanrahmanto]

are you a professional narrator ?, damn your voice sooo goood

[JasonHannah]

Great video. Thanks for the examples. It helps a ton

[vimalraj]

Thank you for this amazing video. exactly what I wanted.

[alexgregory]

great stuff! lots of work went into it !

[phoenixmediaforge]

Hello Trace, and thank you for the layman's explanation the the pickup patterns. What is driving me nuts is that there isn't a clear indication of what constitutes the front and rear of the microphone. While its generally accepted that the front is the display side, looking at the pattern adjustment knob indicates that the microphone nulls are pointed in the direction of the display side - which would make that the back of the mic. That seems odd because how can you do critical self-recordings if you cannot see the display? Every microphone from a cheap Tascam TM-80 to a Neumann U-48 correctly indicates the directionality of the microphone by the graphics on the body.

The manual shows the X/Y pickup lobe towards the display side. If that is true then the graphics on the selector are reversed from what they should be. The M/S graphic shows the mid pickup lobe off the opposite (non display) side. The graphic on the selector matches that.

The live graphics for adjusting the M/S ratio also indicates that the lobe is away from the display and the null is toward the display.

Having just got this recorder and have little experience with it, it would appear that the X/Y pickup is towards the display and the other modes are on the non-display side.

You demos did not show you speaking into the recorder. I'm guessing you were on the display side?

Thanks Trace.

[BoomerStories]

Super :) Very nicely done and explained :)

[BeMeCam]

Since in a M/S recording the Side channel (right) should be 90 degrees off, and the M/S reocrdings from the H2n seem to be in phase, I wonder if the Zoom H2n decodes the M/S to stereo onboard, instead of providing a raw M/S recording?

EDIT: Ah, looks like by tweaking the M/S mid/side level options far enough you can record in M/S Raw mode. Cool!