>>1625588If you've got an H4N I would take that for a spin with the built-in mics first. They're breddy gud and it takes all the complications out in terms of mic stand/cabling/phantom, mic technique, etc.
The preamps in the H4N are ok but they won't be as quiet running external mics as the built-in mics are, so it blows out pretty quickly into an expensive and tedious exercise to get it right, which is totally not worth it if you're just starting out. Last thing you want to do is take all the fun out of it.
When it comes to external mics you need to choose carefully, and it really depends on which recording techniques you'd like to use. Cardioid and other directional mics have various pros and cons over omni mics, and vice versa. But for the best, most detailed recordings you need to use the recording technique as well as you can for the type of mic you have. Also, small diaphragm mics tend to have a broader and flatter frequency response (especially omnis) than large diaphragm mics, although they also typically have lower sensitivity and more noise (which may or may not be audible). I personally never take LDCs out because they're too big and bulky and just colour the sound too much. I stick to SDCs and almost always omni, because of the natural low end and really flat/transparent response. But omnis sound dead and dull if your placement isn't the best and if you don't use an effective recording technique for the subject.
I pretty much always record ambience and with the Jecklin disk and omnis (occasionally cardioids) it sounds amazing. For smaller sound sources or close-up recordings it depends. I have a mini stereo shotgun mic that's pretty neat, or just cardioids in a coincident/near coincident pair works great as well (which is what the H4N has built-in).
In short, record with the built-in mics a few times and see what you think, they're good quality long as your placement is good.
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