Members where02190 Posted October 1, 2005 Members Share Posted October 1, 2005 While this is sort of a live sound comment, I feel it will be well received here, so away I go. I work for a couple SR companies that have these Octavia MC-012 mics, el cheapo SDC's, but seem fairly well made, I mean they feel solid. I gotta say they continue to impress me to the point that I'm dying to try them in the studio. I did a show the other day that had a grand piano, a nice Steinway 7 footer, and I put a pair of them inside. Now generally I'm a 414 guy on piano, and had the SR company told me there was a grand on the show, I would have happily brought a pair. Well, let me just say I wanted for nothing from these sub $100 mics. I placed them in my usual positions...about 1/2 way from the hammers on the low section, and about a foot back from the hammers 1/2 way between the first mic and the top strings. Since the piano was being played closed lid, I aimed them forward, toward the hammers, using some rubber drum clamps. I've used them as overheads, percussion mics and for various acoustic instruments, and every time they have amazed me at their clarity and smoothness. I'm also a major fan of the AT 4041, and while the 4041 is noticably better, the 012 is a fine substitute IMHO. I've yet to find something to complain about them. Anyone looking for low budget, high quality SDC should give them a good hard look. I do know that their quality control is not the best, so make sure to check out the mic(s) before buying and compare several to get good ones, but for the money, they are really really tough to beat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Lee Knight Posted October 1, 2005 Moderators Share Posted October 1, 2005 Absolutely Where! I love mine to death. Sometimes I set them up in an ORTF config for a fast, excellent sounding stereo pickup. They work on almost anything so it's handy when the ideas are flowing and you need to capture the moment fast. OH'sAc GuitarBackground Vox at a distance Perc in the ambient big roomToms!HatSnare shell or under Love 'em. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members patshep Posted October 1, 2005 Members Share Posted October 1, 2005 where can you get ones that have been quality tested at a good price? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Scodiddly Posted October 1, 2005 Members Share Posted October 1, 2005 Definitely good mics. Be careful about buying them at Guitar Center, though - there's some kind of trademark dispute going on, and GC seems to be selling ones made in China with a bit different design. The place that sells pre-tested Oktava mics is "The Sound Room". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members patshep Posted October 1, 2005 Members Share Posted October 1, 2005 at $290 a pair, that seems high for those Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Lee Knight Posted October 1, 2005 Moderators Share Posted October 1, 2005 I got lucky and got the real deal from Guitarget for $100... for the pair! This was a couple of years back. Not the Chinese either. Mine are matched very well. I understand that doesn't happen very often however, so buyer beware. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members gsHarmony Posted October 1, 2005 Members Share Posted October 1, 2005 I got lucky and got the real deal from Guitarget for $100... for the pair! This was a couple of years back. Not the Chinese either.Mine are matched very well. I understand that doesn't happen very often however, so buyer beware. DAMN! I paid $300 for a matched pair, but I absolutely love them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Eric Dahlberg Posted October 1, 2005 Members Share Posted October 1, 2005 Originally posted by patshep at $290 a pair, that seems high for those That's the thing. If the price were half that, they'd be a great deal, but for $290 there are better options out there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members where02190 Posted October 2, 2005 Author Members Share Posted October 2, 2005 I guess my under $100 from my dealer friends is a really good deal then huh? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Scodiddly Posted October 2, 2005 Members Share Posted October 2, 2005 Originally posted by where02190 I guess my under $100 from my dealer friends is a really good deal then huh? That's a good deal, yup. I think that the whole period when Oktava was basically dumping out accumulated inventory through Guitar Center was one of those great deals - $99 for a pair! Those mics weren't going that cheap in Europe. There were some QC and parts problems with those mics, as the Scott Dorsey article on modifying the MK-012 shows. It's kind of sad that those deals aren't really available any more (though I did score one MK-012 used at a local store for $40 a few months back), but the good part is that the mics now being produced are more consistent in quality. The two that I bought for $198 a couple years ago don't look like they have the same components shown in the Dorsey article, for instance. And even though I modify and build mics I haven't been very tempted to modify mine, they sound great just the way they are. They're worth a couple hundred bucks apiece, in my opinion. Especially against the vast bulk of rather trebly Chinese mics in the same price range. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Eric Dahlberg Posted October 2, 2005 Members Share Posted October 2, 2005 Originally posted by Scodiddly They're worth a couple hundred bucks apiece, in my opinion. Especially against the vast bulk of rather trebly Chinese mics in the same price range. That's a good point. I dislike my MC012's because I'm regularly putting them up against SM81's & C451B's, but the tinny, no-midrange Chinese SDC's are by far worse. Of course, now that Oktava's are made in China... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Eric Dahlberg Posted October 2, 2005 Members Share Posted October 2, 2005 btw, I should add that it's acoustic guitars & drum overheads that I dislike the MC012's on. I've never tried them on piano, maybe that's where they shine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Scodiddly Posted October 2, 2005 Members Share Posted October 2, 2005 Originally posted by Eric Dahlberg btw, I should add that it's acoustic guitars & drum overheads that I dislike the MC012's on. I've never tried them on piano, maybe that's where they shine. Piano is where I use them the most. I don't get much opportunity to do overheads anyway. You want a good test for a mic? Ensemble w/ vocals! My usual quickie test is to set up a mic about chest or neck height, a foot or three away, and play guitar and sing. Mics that sound good with that are keepers. It's really obvious how a particular mic actually sounds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members where02190 Posted October 4, 2005 Author Members Share Posted October 4, 2005 At $99 for the pair I'm betting they were chinese, not russian. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members patshep Posted October 4, 2005 Members Share Posted October 4, 2005 personally i'd rather buy a pair of 451s used for around $400not that i know that much about different sdc's, but it seems like a better value to me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wooden Posted October 4, 2005 Members Share Posted October 4, 2005 Originally posted by where02190 I guess my under $100 from my dealer friends is a really good deal then huh? What dealer is that? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members where02190 Posted October 4, 2005 Author Members Share Posted October 4, 2005 Originally posted by patshep personally i'd rather buy a pair of 451s used for around $400not that i know that much about different sdc's, but it seems like a better value to me Hmmm....well lets see, 2 IMHO great sounding mics for under $200 or 2 great sounding mics for $400. Seems to me that 2 for $200 is a better value, but YMMV. I've never been a huge 451 fan, as I find them a bit too bright for many appilcations. Given the choice, I'd take the 012's I've been using over them. Sorry but I cannot reveal the dealer, as he is a friend, and giving me his dealer cost price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Kid Klash Posted October 4, 2005 Members Share Posted October 4, 2005 Here's a link about Oktava mics being sold at GC... it's very informative... http://homerecording.com/bbs/showthread.php?t=167810&highlight=oktava+MKL-2500 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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