Oktava MC012 vs. SP C4

[NickEngel]

I am intrested in buying a pair of reasonabley priced small diaphragm condenser microphones for use as drum overheads. The Oktava seems to be very popular, however buying a pair from the sound room costs $426, which slightly exceeds my budget. would it be ok to purchase the oktavas separately from a different dealer without the assurance of quality control? or would it be better to go with the C4's, or any other comparable microphone? Comments? Suggestions?

 

[capnreverb]

You might want to do a search for this topic in that it has ben discussed a zillion times on this forum in every way imaginable. These two mics have been the source of a lot of discusion. What it comes down to (from what i have read here over and over) is that with-

C4's you get two matched great sounding mics, shockmounts, and a set of omni and cardiod capsules, very good quality control, and a very supportive company in case you run into problems.

Oktava's - you get mics that vary quite a bit from mic to mic unless you get a matched pair from somewhere, or your local guitar center lets you try a bunch to find what sounds matched to you (good luck). Also the quality can be somewhat questionable and I doubt you can contact someone behind the Iron Curtain to address any problems you might have. --- ---- ---- However, from reading about these oktava's is that if you do happen to get a really really good quality matched pair of these mic's, they are absolutely amazing, better than the C4's and many others some say. But it's a crap shoot as too what you might get, where with c4's you know you are getting quality right out the box.

I was in the exact same situation you are and researched this site and others pretty well, and i ended up buying the C4's, and I think they are great. I also use them mostly as drum overheads and have been very pleased.

also, there are some other choices. MXL makes some SDC's that people here think are great. Audio Technica, Shure, Rode and behringer also make some.
One time I had the oppurtunity to use a Neumann km180 and all I can say is wow, but they are way more expensive, but not unreasonable.
The one SDC that most folks here generally are not very favorable of is the akg c1000. I tried one once, and i was not too impressed.

So, get the C4's.

 

[Richard Monroe]

I own and use both mics for drum overheads, and a wide variety of other uses, as well as a pair of Neumann KM184's. Most of what captain 'verb has said is true, except I disagree that a matched pair of Oktavas are better than the C-4's. They are just different. The Oktavas are more colored than the C-4's, IMHO, and can be used by some folks as vocal mics, even. Do not expect much if you try this with the C-4's. I prefer the C-4's as instrument mics, and for remote stereo recording.
For overheads, the C-4's are clean and crisp and fairly neutral, especially good for jazz, pop, or country. The Oktavas rock on blues, metal, punk, etc. They just go with distorted guitars. They are good on cheap acoustics, as their color tends to airbrush the rough edges. Customer support is nil, tovarisch. Studio Projects support is as good as any in the business.
When you combine matching at a good price, versatility, customer support, shock mounts, a decent case, and omni capsules, I believe the C-4's are the better buy. However, you'll note that I like the Oktavas enough to keep a pair around anyway, even with the Neumanns in the cabinet. You pays your money and makes your choice.-Richie

 

[NickEngel]

wow! thanks for the info. I know this topic has been beaten to death on this forum but i hadn't heard much about the C4's as overheads prior to this. Also, how are the Joe Meek Jm27's for overheads? on Ebay there is a package with 2-jm27's 2-shockmounts 2-mic stands for $149! are these mics any good. With the whole 797 audio discussion I never heard much about the actual sound.

 

[Big Kenny]

You can keep throwing mics into the mix until your head is spinning. The oktava's rock, the c4's are good, the marshall 603's are prefered by a few. I have two pair of Oktava's, one pair is matched very well, the other is matched well sonically but one is hotter than the other. I can compensate for the difference in db but I could not compensate if they had different peaks at different khz's. Go try 'em out