I am going to need something to record general samples outside and inside, and I used a very old Zoom before it broke.
Looking to spend say up to £100 or maybe £150 or more if it’s really needed. Less cash would be welcome ofc 
but equally I don’t want to get something dogsh%t just to save money.
It occurred to me that online reviews would not be as reliable as this forum!
Any recommendations?
Zoom is hard to beat IMHO and they have a couple of models in that price bracket. I have an H6 and love it. Tascam also have a bunch of options if want to try something non-Zoom.
Hi I have used many of the Zoom, Tascam, and olympus ranges are good and can be found a good prices on Ebay.
The Zoom F3 is great and has XLR inputs for your choice of mics.
The Tascam DR-10L is a very small unit with a supplied lave mic of good quality
The olympus LS 12 or LS 14 are very good as is most of the LS range
Other options are using an I phone with the Rode reporter app
Or using an android phone with Rode reporter app and a Rode lav mic (if the phone has a jack)
I have used all the above option.
I hope that helps
Kind regards
Les
Thanks! I definitely found my previous Zoom very trusty. Got through a few AA batteries though that’s how old it is
Grand thanks! I’ll be sure to check all those out, hadn’t even thought of ones with mic inputs!
I’d say, get another Zoom 
- the H1 is on Amazon for about £81.
Ah yes my first Zoom was an H1. It worked fine, still does apart from me somehow damaging the mic😂
Hi Leigh,
I use H1n Zoom. Lightweight, fits easily into pocket. Excellent sound capture. If used hand-held it will pick up taps or scrape noises on the casing if you are not careful though.
I did also buy myself a little case to keep it in - proper sturdy case. Amazon.co.uk
That’s a good idea! (And thanks all for the suggestions!!)
Well I was quite lucky in that I just chanced upon a Zoom H5 on eBay opened never used and got the high bid at £100! Not bad when it’s about 180ish new😎 I think it has a case, but if it’s a crappy case will deffo buy one. Also need to order wind shield for it too. Aparantly there are interchangeable mics you can get too as well as having two XLR inputs. So maybe I’ll look at getting something I can plug into it!
Speaking of.. anyone got any recommendations for a good mic for outdoor sampling that I can plug into my XLR/s in near future? Maybe stereo pair or anything like that really.
(A much bigger subject I know😂)
I have a Zoom H4 Essential, the newer generation one…it’s nice to have 2 preamps on it with phantom power, plus you can record 4 channels simultaneously with the 2 mono preamps and the internal stereo mic…very useful for field recordings, sampling live instruments, and a scenario such as recording a vocalist while mic-ing a cabinet with 2 mics. I am very glad I got the one with the preamps versus the one with only an internal mic. Also, the new gen ones are 32-bit floating point as opposed to 24-bit, so more headroom before clipping and you can feed a hotter signal off of a mixer.
I use an H1essential for casual stuff, an F3 for more serious efforts with one or two mics, and also have an older (24bit) H4n that I’ve (ab)used for years (more than a decade iirc) that is my usual field backup.
For mics, it really depends on what I’m after and how long I expect to need to record to get it. My old reliable shotgun is an ancient AudioTechnica AT835a (I’ve had that for decades). For closeups where I don’t expect to get it wet, I often reach for a Aston Stealth for its flexibility (though I do NOT advise depending on its mount). For almost everything else, I prefer the beyerdynamic M69tg. My backup mic (also the one I’m willing to risk for water closeups) is another ancient AudioTechnica, an AM31a.
For longer outings, I do put a whirlwind Micpower phantom supply into the chain so I don’t kill the F3 batteries in the middle of a session.
I also have and use custom wind screens for the H1essential and H4n; they help a lot.
Great thanks, that’s a few things for me to look into!
Hi, I would recommend the £99 approx, ZOOM H2n, which has surround sound features such as 4 mic set up as well as other set ups. I have used this for years, or since it came out.
I would also recommend the £158 approx, TASCAM DR-60DMKII, another good workhorse for direct recording.
Once you have a familiarity of how to set up these two great recorders for field recording, you will be pleasantly surprised.
If you still haven’t bought a mic, I’d heartily recommend lookng at the Clippys from Micbooster.com
They use the same capsule as the LOM Usis, but you can actually buuy them and they’re UK made.
They are omnis though, so might not be suitable for your usecase. But they are extremely sensitive. For the money, they’re excellent bits of kit.