Oktava Studio & Home Studio

Took a chance on the ML52-2 Ribbon and in a word, "Psyched". I mostly record acoustic and electric guitars in combination with my Neumann and AKG C414's. I set the Oktava quite a distance from the acoustic and behind the Condensers to capture more room (sound treated). I was super impressed, I put it up against the Royer and the Oktave out shined it at 1/5th the price. Mine came with the Lundahl 2911 transformer,recommended, also I use a quality Mic Pre, which is a must. The stock mic clip is junk so I ordered the Oktava Elastic mount (47$ shipped). This is a killer ribbon, warm, articulate and fast, really brings out the bass in a good way, it does need careful placement and is a bit delicate. Handle with care. But it is wonderful sounding and looks cool as well. I am very happy with it and I have a lot of mics of the high end type, what a value, so get one, get the Lundahl tran and the shock mount and you be happy,,for reals...

After an exhaustive search I took a chance on the Oktava ML 52-2 Ribbon Microphone. I was very pleasantly impressed with the sound of this Mic, far exceeded my hopes, in a word it is a Fantastic Microphone, I put it up against Royer, Rode, sE, and others and the Oktava out preformed those in a big way. I use it in a multiple mic set up along side my Neumann and AKG C 414 Mics and the blend is out of this world, alone it is outstanding as well, all you could hope for in a Ribbon Mic, I place it further out than the other mics to capture the room, I record mostly acoustic guitar but it works killer on amplifiers as well, super warm and articulate. You need a good mic pre and careful set up for best results, impressive in every way, compared to microphones at 5 times the price. You must get the elastic shock mount (47$ US from Oktava, shipped) .The only thing I can think of is the mic is delicate and must be handled gently, but it takes hugh SPL and is wonderful. I use a DBX Tube Pre, Do NOT use phantom power, this is a passive dual ribbon, plus it looks cool as heck, Old School design, I can not say enough about the quality of this Mic, I highly recommend the Lundahl 2911 transformer upgrade as the stock tranny is not so good, you can get the Lundahl from Oktiva or other places, a real must (75$ US) so for under 300$ you get an extraordinary good mic for less than 1/3 the cost of a used Royer, sounds better. Check one out, you will not be sorry, well built and sounds fantastic, cheers,,,

The Oktava MK 319 is a large diaphragm condenser microphone, designed for use in the recording studio. While it is designed for studio use, it will also work in the live setting, as it is cheap enough that you don't have to worry a great deal about it breaking if you are looking for a reliable condenser microphone to record live shows. It is a well built, sturdy microphone that will last a good amount of time if treated right. The shock mount for the Oktava MK 319 usually comes separately, but is sometimes sold together with the mic. OVERALL OPINION I've been using the Oktava MK 319 for about a year and have found it to be a good, cheap option for a large diaphragm condenser mic. I have used this microphone for a wide array of recording applications, including for male and female lead vocals, as well as back up vocals, acoustic guitar, trumpet, saxophone, and a variety of other things. It is usually the mic that I would use if I am out of top end condenser microphones but need another one for another instrument. The sound quality of the Oktava MK 319 is pretty full sounding, which is what makes it a good vocal mic. However, it isn't the richest sounding microphone and wouldn't recommend it for recording professionals unless you have no other choice. The price of the Oktava MK 319 is what makes it such a nice option. You can get this good sounding condenser mic for an extremely reasonable price, making it perfect for home studio owners. While it won't ever match the sound of a Neumann or another top end condenser mic, it is a nice substitute for those who cannot afford a top tier mic. I would recommend the Oktava MK 319 to home studio owners looking for a cheap condenser microphone to add to their arsenal.

The Oktava MC-012-01 is a small diaphragm condenser microphone that is made for use in the recording studio. It has the ability to use different pick up patterns as it has different caps for different patterns including ones for cardioid, hypercardioid, and omnidirectional. Each one also comes with its own mic clip. OVERALL OPINION I've been using the Oktava MC-012-01s for about a year or a year and a half and I've found these mics to be pretty great, especially considering the price. These are some of the best bang for your buck on the market as they offer a high quality small diaphragm condenser microphone for an incredibly low price. Like most small diaphragm condensers, these sound best on acoustic instruments like acoustic guitar, mandolin, banjo, and acoustic piano. They also work great as drum overheads and will even work as room microphones. Having the options for different pick up patterns is a huge plus as it just adds to the versatility of these mics. After hearing the Oktava MC-012-01s I couldn't believe how cheap these actually are. I used them in a pretty large recording studio so I was expecting them to be at least double or triple the price but was astounded to find that they are very cheap and quite accessible to home studio owners because of this fact. Oktava has a great line of microphones, some of which are better than others, but the MC-012-01s are probably their best for the price when it comes to small diaphragm condenser mics. If you are a home studio owner (or even a professional) definitely check out the Oktava MC-012-01 if you aren't looking to spend too much on a small diaphragm mic.

These are small diaphragm condenser mics. They are quite commonly found in pairs, so you can do stereo recording with them. They are best suited for recording, but you could use them live if you needed maybe an overhead setup or something like that. They are cardioid pattern, so they have a good amount of off-axis rejection. Since they are condenser they are well suited to applications like drums where you need quick transient response, or violins where you need a lot of high frequency detail. Since they are small diaphragm, they are even better for these kinds of applications, because it takes less air to move the capsule. They require phantom power to operate. OVERALL OPINION I have had these for maybe 5 years in a stereo pair. I used them as drum overheads for a long time. Really, they are just kind of average microphones. They come with a pad connector, so if you are recording something very loud you can still get a usable signal. They do a pretty good job with transients, but I do wish they were a little brighter. Most things I recorded with them ended up needing some additional treble added to make them shimmer. Low frequencies were not well represented, but you wouldn't normally need them with the sources this is best suited for. They lasted a long time and were dropped many times, but sadly eventually one of them broke upon being dropped, so now I only have one. They served me pretty well for a long time though as a pretty cheap stereo pair of condensers. They were a good value for the price at the time, though now you may have better luck elsewhere. I probably would not get these again, because they were not as bright as I would have liked in a mic that is mostly suited for bright sources.

I use this for voice over, live performance and studio applications. I did not compare the MK-219 with other microphones. I found this with stand and cable at a Goodwill Store. I was surprised when I saw it. I saw the price and thought somebody was kidding or had set up a sting. The MK-219 will pick-up the slightest sound so if you want a clean recording, don't record in public. I have used it to mic a video set and direct to a video camera (via slr). Versatile, solid. Phantom power can be problematic. The best $45 I have ever spent.

This is a ribbon Microphone made by Oktava. They haven't made new versions of this microphone for over thirty years. Therefore, these are really rare and extremely valuable. I was lucky enough to work on a few sessions with an engineer who owns one, and it sure did impress me. It's really fragile, and old nowadays, so you must make sure to not use it outside the home or studio. Basically no live use. It's a ribbon mic but unlike a lot of more popular ribbon mics it does not have a figure 8 pickup pattern. It's unidirectional, or one-direction. Be careful (extremely careful) not to use this microphone with phantom power, because that will destroy it. OVERALL OPINION I really like the sound of this microphone quite a bit. Like most ribbon mics, it's got a very warm, smooth sound that recalls the old styles of music such as big band and others. It can work great in a variety of contexts though. This one in particular has a very old, distinct flavor to it. It's definitely not the best mic for brighter, more modern sounds, but it does have a variety of uses. For vintage-sounding vocals, or warm strings, it works wonders. It works great on horns as well. I can use it on guitar cabinets when I'm using a really bright sound that I can't capture with a different kind of mic (which happens sometimes). I like it on piano too, but only for the aforementioned vintage sound. For modern, bright clear piano sounds that are more realistic, it wouldn't work as well. That's fine though, as that's what condensers are for! I don't know where you'd find this mic, which made me wonder if I should review it. But it was such a good piece of gear that I figured it had to be done. I'll certainly see if I can get more of Oktava's ribbon mics as this one really made me a believer.