Zoom H5

I've extensive experience with H1, H4-n, H5 and H6, and I must say that H5 is my favorite.

Pros:
External mic preamps are very quiet, much better than H4
Handling noise is minimized thanks to the matte surface
Detachable internal mics makes it compact and much easier to use it for booming applications
I love the protective metal over the gain knobs
Works as an interface

Cons:
The internal mic quality is still disappointing (not a significant improvement over H4). You gotta turn the nob to around 8 most of the time to get a decent sound but taht introduces an awful hiss. Also, I find the high frequencies quite harsh, almost distorted even in medium gain settings.
Internal mics are way too frail, I broke a plastic part already when it fell from only half a meter height
Interface is tedious
No internal memory
Only 44 and 48 kHz operation when using it as interface (no 96)

Get this if you will mainly use external mics, the preamp quality is worth the upgrade from H4 ,and it's very affordable. If you don't need the extra inputs, I find H6 redundant, because sound quality is very similar if not the same. If you'll only need the internal mics, I'd recommend Sony D100, but that's in another price range. I'm afraid Similar units like Tascam won't be a big of a difference in that manner as an alternative.

I now have the H5, I ordered it first thing and I?ve now tested it out the first time. After the H4 using it is a breeze, no real need for manual, it sounds great, BUT I?ve had 1) one serious problem and 2) another annoyance that I didn?t think of until using it in real life.

1) I use the recorder mainly to record my DJ sets, both the record out (of a Pioneer DJM900nexus DJ mixer) and the crowd/ambience, which I did the other night, but the recording is somehow messed-up. My set was a bit over two hours long and while the first hour was fine, starting around the two-hour mark (not exactly, though) there are digital glitches thru out the rest of the recording, making it unusable. I don't know what causes it and I?ll have to go back to the H4 until I figure this out. The SD card is the same 16GB one I've used without any issues with my H4 for several years, so shouldn't be that.

EDIT: I contacted Zoom support and was adviced to get a new (SanDisk) class 10 SDHC, which I did and now the recording is flawless. I don't understand this, as the old H4n was and is working just fine with my old memory card with the same sampling frequency and bit depth (44,1k/24bit), but I guess some specs have changed and the new one needs a newer spec card.

2) The H4 gain settings are done via the +/- buttons on the side vs. the actual gain pots on the H5. Most of the time I record a line level stereo signal out of a DJ mixer and it is REALLY hard to set the levels of both line channels exactly the same by turning the H5 dials/knobs, which affects the integrity of the stereo recording. Also, it was REALLY fiddly to adjust the gains to a level where it wasn?t way too hot or dead quiet, and even though you have the numbers on the dials, setting them up seemingly even yielded to a 1-2dB difference between the channels. It shouldn?t be that hard, I hope I missed something.

Let's get straight to the point
Plus:
The sound is great if you use it for field recordings.
There are lots of internal settings including a metronome, markers
The software part of the product seems really solid, lot's of settings to choose from.

Cons:
The phantom power with the batteries just doesn't work on my device, it just restarts. I don't know if I had faulty one but beware.
There is a strange wobble sound when you try to use it as an audio interface, you can hear it when plucking the first string on guitar.
Some of the Zoom guys got back to me and said that it's actually true, it's on all H5 devices, so beware of that too.
Here is the message:
"We can confirm that this is a limitation of the H5 while using it as an audio interface. When using the H5 as an Audio Interface, the audio quality is not as good as standalone. Specifically, there is a "warble" which can be noticeable. You should not experience this when recording to the SD card"

The SD card sounds fine, so if you're using it for that I guess that's ok.

I went travelling so I sold off my audio interface and bought just the Zoom H5 for all my field recording/audio interface-esque needs. So far it's serving me very well. It's pretty robust and when in the plastic case that came with it I really don't worry about it. Works well not just as a recorder but also audio interface and impromptu mixer, a lot of things for that price. The battery life could be better and it also could have a dedicated charging port but 4 rechargeable batteries usually go a long way for me. When recording the self noise is a lot especially with higher gain so it's good to have some sort of tripod. The interchangeable capsules are, I think, an excellent idea but have yet to test that out fully because I don't own more of them. The volume control could've been a wheel but that's nitpicking.
Overall I'm happy with my choice so far!

I wanted to primarily record foley for use in music (sounds in nature or everyday objects etc.) but I ended up using it to also record band rehearsals and to record some friends' music performances (with the built in XY mic or with the SSH-6 - purchased separately). I have it for approx. 1 year and a half now and over time while getting used to it, its functions, workflow and its limitations I can say that it is a great device.

The sound is quite decent and the XY mic definitely delivers better sound than built-in mics from mobile phones or tablets. The amount of versatility this device brings is also quite astonishing. Being able to use it as a portable audio interface and having XLR/TRS connectors already brings a lot to the table.

The biggest downside is the high preamp noise which can be worked around if you sucessfuly sample a second or two of pure silence and then remove the noise in post production. The other downside is that when recording it produces quite a lot of handling noise if you're not super still. That's why I mostly use it on a stand.

I'm not a professional sound recordist or musician. I use my audio recorders for conducting interviews and stereo field recordings of soundscapes.

I can compare to my other recorders. I own a Sony PCM-D100 which is better built and much quieter and more sensitive but it costs more than twice as much. The zoom H5 has the advantage of varied microphone options and two xlr inputs.

In terms of build quality the recorder is good, not as good as the sony, but it also doesn't pick up as much handling noise.

Great features- interchangeable microphones, multiple inputs.

In terms of noise floor- it definitely has some hiss at higher gain settings. I will use it primarily for interviews and location recordings and have found that a conservative use of the noise filter in my DAW will sort out most of the problems.

I already have one of the Zoom F1 recorders and several of the mics, so this fits perfectly in the ecosystem and gives me lots of options.

Overall for the price and features it's great