Oktava Mike Report

Using the Oktava MC012 Mike for Dialog & Gunfire

The Oktava mike is typically supplied with a complete set of capsules: omni, cardioid, hyper-cardioid, and 10 db pad. (mouse over)

Over the years I've worked on a good many films which involve extensive gunfire. It's never one of my favorite things but it's often an integral part of the business. Some mixers tell me they keep an indestructible dynamic mike in their kit for this application but I often find that I am required to record dialog in the midst of intense gunfire, sometimes from fully automatic weapons like Uzis and AR-15s. I don't usually have a problem with exterior shots but interiors can pose a hazard to the microphone.

They are even packed in beautiful cedar boxes. The box at left contains a matched set of MCO12 mikes and capsules, on the right a single mike set. (Photos from The Sound Room website)

I've blown three microphone capsules over the last 15 years (Sennheiser MKH-415, Neumann KMR 81, Sennheiser MKH-435). Two of these events happened in a single year. Repairing the Neumann was a particularly expensive business because Neumann USA would only sell the capsule in a matched set with the interference tube. The total repair bill was over $800 and it was not a happy experience collecting the money from the production company. In fairness to Neumann, they have now changed their policy and will sell just the active capsule but that still means a repair cost of about $400.

The Oktava with a Neumann KMR140 for comparison. The Neumann is only slightly smaller. Machining of the capsule threads is much finer on the Neumann. (Mouse over)

I posted a query to the production sound newsgroup (RAMPS) and several respondents suggested that I check out a Russian condenser microphone called the Oktava MC012. Several users claimed that the audio quality was quite remarkable and favorably comparable with established standards like Neumann and Schoeps. Since the entire microphone assembly can be purchased with several capsules for less than $300 it can be used in hazardous circumstances with considerably more peace of mind than the better German mikes.

The microphones are available from The Sound Room in Hebron, Connecticut:
THE SOUND ROOM
P.O. Box 423
Mahwah, NJ 07430
Phone (201) 529-0128 / Toll-Free (888) 529-0128
Taylor Johnson is the proprietor.

Of course, the easiest thing is probably to access their web site at:

http://www.oktava.com/

The Oktava in a Sabra shockmount. (photo taken from The Sound Room website)

I called Taylor and ordered a mike with three capsules and a 10db pad for $268.00. (That was in 2000, price as of March 2004 is $299.00)

It arrived in a beautiful cedar box containing the electronics tube and screw-in omni, cardioid and hyper-cardioid heads. Replacement capsules are available for $64 each. (Price was still good in April 2004) It's essentially a Schoeps knock-off. At Taylor's recommendation, I also had him ship me a large foam windscreen made from two densities of foam. This is manufactured by Craig Olsen at WindTech in Phoenix, AZ. The theory is that it may offer some additional protection from acoustic overload. In any event, it is certainly effective in manipulating the mike indoors; I haven't yet tried it outdoors but I expect some kind of Zeppelin will be necessary in anything but very light air.

There is even a large diaphram capsule available for voice-over work or similar applications. (photo from The Sound Room website)

I immediately took the microphone to Location Sound Corp. and had Marc Lesonsky put it up on the Audio Precision Analyzer to plot the frequency response with the various capsules. We were amazed at how flat they were. They hyper-cardiod head is essentially a flat line from 20 Hz~20kHz.

To see the graphs, click here.

Listening to the mike, it has a very warm and rich tone. Using it on the end of a fishpole, it does not seem to have the reach I associate with the Neumann KMR 140 or KMR150. This may be related to the very flat and true frequency response. The Neumann, by contrast, features a noticeable presence boost at the higher frequencies. In practice, I adjust for this by giving the Oktava a little extra high-end e.q. from my Cooper board and this seems to yield a reasonably close match to what I hear from the Neumann.

A closer look at the removable capsules for Oktava and Neumann (Mouse over)

I did experience some initial problems with the mike but these proved to not be the fault of the mike itself. I would occasionally (and always at the worst time, of course) hear a buzzy background noise which might come and go unpredictably. I called Taylor Johnson; he asked me to send the whole business back and promptly sent me a replacement. Taylor ran a number of tests but was not able to duplicate the problem I experienced. I checked my cables and found that I had a duplex with a shield that was not entirely intact so the difficulty seems traceable to my end rather than a fault of the mike. It did, inadvertently, give me an opportunity to test Taylor's commitment to the product. Taylor stands solidly by these mikes and will replace any unsatisfactory unit or refund money.

The results I've been getting with dialog in gunfire situations are quite good. They are certainly good enough for the intended application and allow me to go about my work with considerable peace of mind knowing that the damage risks are easily manageable.

I've also used the mike as a plant in aircraft mock-ups and similar situations and I've had good results there as well. These are typically close mike situations which allow the Oktava to shine. The issue of reach will require a bit more testing; I suspect that it's a subjective thing and that one might find that applying a bit of presence e.q. in the mix will bring everything in sounding very much like the Neumann. I don't think that flat frequency response lies. However, that still needs to be confirmed.

There are some interesting accessories available for this mike. A large diaphragm (33mm) capsule is available to convert the mike to studio application. This is available for $349.00. I haven't tried it yet but I think it might be useful for the occasions when I am asked to record narration or voice-over in the field.

Taylor also promises that a series of Schoeps-like accessories will soon be available. He plans a swivel mount and goosenecks of 20cm and 40 cm that would enhance the versitility of the mike.

In short, I've been very pleased with this mike.

Spring 2004: The Oktava has been a valuable part of my kit for about four years now. It has never failed to produce a track that can intercut with recordings made with my Neumann microphones. It has also proved to be rugged and (I should be rapping on one of those cedar boxes here) impervious to damage from high noise levels.

I contacted Taylor Johnson and he offered the following information and clarification (in his own words) regarding the Oktava mikes he sells:

1) The mics we sell are chosen by RTT engineers in Russia and tested there, matching is done there and after they have gone through 3-4 levels of RTT quality control, they are shipped here and they go through MY personal testing before re-packaging. To call these microphones standard OKTAVA MC012's would be like saying that a Mustang that came out of Carol Shelby's shop after he spent 3 days working on it was still, essentially a FORD product.....um ....ahem.....
What I sell is tested, proven and warranted by RTT. We do not use the OKTAVA warranties.

2) The Guitar Center, I belive, is the only standard US retail point for OKTAVA microphones that is licensed by the OFFICIAL, AUTHORIZED WHOLESALER of OKTAVA products, the A&F McKay company in England. We are NOT an authorized, licensed distributor of OKTAVA products. We are just a collection of design and recording engineers that test, and package microphones from various Russian manufacturers and also manufacture our OWN mics (by using different Russian lab and manufacturing facilities) in order to satisfy our OWN recording needs. We only sell stuff we USE, like and believe in!!

Taylor Johnson