I thought it might be interesting to compare some aspects of the Zoom H2N, the Zoom H2, and the Sony M10. Well, I was interested, YMMV.
Unfortunately I can't get away from home at the moment to get some live audio comparisons, but none the less the samples I prepared at home may be useful. Use of mp3 format for the uploaded samples (from original wave format recordings) does not, I think, compromise the results.
Samples are at
http://www.fileden.com/files/2007/9/22/1451533//Noise and image mixdown.mp3
Firstly I'm looking at the noise from the three devices' own mics, and then at the noise from their mic inputs using a Rode SVM as the source. That's not the quietest mic in the world but as it's the source of all three tests you can none the less make some valid comparisons.
For making a simple comparison of noise I used the clock tick test. This involves recording a quietly ticking clock in a quiet room. In fact the clock used is more or less inaudible unless you hold it about six inches from your ear. For the test, it was about 4 inches from the mics. The recordings are normalised so you can then compare the noise on a more or less level playing field.
The noise levels sound huge, but if you played back the samples at a low level so that you could barely hear the clock tick, you would be getting a more real-world impression of the noise.
In the attached file the noise samples are in this order -
H2 internal mics (120 degree XY always)
H2N internal mics (120 degree MS always)
M10 internal mics
H2 using Rode SVM mic
H2N using Rode SVM mic
M10 using Rode SVM mic
Comments - Not much difference between the H2 and H2N.
The M10 is radically quieter and you can hear birds outside as well as the clock.
The H2 with the Rode mic is dreadful, as expected.
The H2N and M10 with the Rode mic are not radically different though the M10 is better. The H2N noise is "brighter".
Next in the file comes some stereo image tests. This was simply done by speaking at about four foot distance at the left side of each mic (90 degrees). So the replay should come from the hard left.
Order of samples -
H2 internals
H2N internals
M10 internals
M10 with Rode SVM mic for comparison.
Comments - Quite a difference in the tonal result for the H2 and the H2N - when speaking towards the side of the H2N you are on-axis to the "side" mic capsule which adds clarity perhaps, but it does sound unexpectedly "thinner". Sound comes from hard left as it should. The Sony M10 gives a more or less mono result (speech comes from the centre although recorded at the side like the others) due to its closely spaced omni capsules which cannot capture a true stereo soundfield.
Next I tried to evaluate the tonal qualities of each device by the crude method of playing the same short section of music (chosen for its frequency range) into each from a good pair of speakers (sadly in an acoustically untreated room). Apart from giving some feel for the frequency responses, note also the stereo image.
Order of samples -
H2 internals
H2N internals
M10 internals
H2N using SVM
M10 using SVM
Comments -
Not much difference between the H2 and H2N. M10 internals provide a rather bass-heavy almost-mono sound. H2N with SVM sounds a little brighter than the M10 using the same external mic, but is it thinner? I'm not sure.
Overall conclusion from these samples -
The H2N does not offer a radically improved audio performance compared to the H2, although the mic input is much better than the older device which was stupidly noisy in that department. But I think it's subtly improved. Improvements in its physical design and operation are perhaps more significant.
The M10 internal mics are bass heavy, with poor stereo imaging, compared to the H2N. Noise is however much lower, but for me that's not worth the loss of stereo in most situations. YMMV. The H2N mic input is a bit more noisy than the M10 mic input but in this test it gave a brighter sound - I'm undecided whether that's a more accurate sound or not. Overall, perhaps it's a little thin.
The H2N is more of a standalone "mic that records" than the M10, which in my view needs to be used with external equipment. However, using external equipment with the H2N is perfectly possible, whereas with the older H2 it was out of the question.
I need to look at the line inputs in due course.