I had a phone conversation with the guy who runs Oktava USA last night, about the Mk-101 and 102. Nice guy, but didn't seem to be very technical, not that I pressed him. Anyway, he says the MK101 capsule uses the same RTT made diaphram as the LOMO head sold by the Soundroom. He had just returned from Frankfurt Messe 2006, and had compared the two directly, and said there was no real difference, just the subtle difference imparted by the different housings.
I'm in no way representing this as fact, and I have no reason to believe or dis-believe him, one way or the other. If true,
the MK-101 capsule is a nice alternative at $199 vs $329 for the Lomo head from the Soundroom. Also interesting is
the MK-102 capsule which uses the same diaphram as the $1500 MKL-5000. The 102 is a front address, the 101 is a side address. I forgot to ask if he does any Taylor/SR type screening process, but my guess, based on his seemingly un-technical microphone knowledge, is he's just selling whatever passes Tula's QC. Now, to be fair, he was at home dealing with the kids during our conversation, and he may know a lot more details than he was inclined to go into after hours. It does seem clear that he's selling real Russian mics, and it also seems like Oktava is attempting to mainstrem itself as a major player in the studio mic business, which may mean a new emphasis on quality. One can only hope, since the good Oktavas are good mics. Here's a link for Oktava USA
http://www.oktavausa.com/
And here's a link for OktaBa Tula
http://www.oktava-online.com/
