Oktava MC 012 mods

Noiz2

Noiz2

Sound Ninja
Has anyone done these mods and how has that worked for you?

For those that don't know (I didn't) Scott Dorsey wrote an article in "Recording" I think on modifing an 012 to oen up the top end and the bottom. And lower the noise. I have found the 012's very quiet and very nice sounding so I am curious about the mods.

I ordered the back issue (but found a scan of the article) and there is a guy on ebay selling the parts for $25 and I know someone that is doing the mods for $75. Email me and I will either post or send you the info.
Thanks
Sk
 
oleg mentioned (i think)that some of the newer sound room mics have already been modded. im not sure if Im remembering right... maybe he will say.
 
I addressed this in a thread a while back... it's likely that if you have those mods done you will gain little benefit. Older Oktavas were prone to poor quality control at the factory level and part substitutions were common... those days are long gone now however and the consisitent quality of the Oktava is high. There may be a cap or FET that could be replaced, but that's about it. Is it worth it? If you have an old Oktava (4 yrs) then I'm sure it is... if you got a newer Oktava from Sound Room? Then I'm sure you'll gain a tiny benefit at best. You can compare this picture for yourself with both the ebay ad and the Scott Dorsey article... as you will clearly see most of the "mods" are now standard. You won't see a picture like this on the ebay ad comparing the pre/post modded Oktava... you will see a pic of an OLD Oktava.

Oktava INSIDE 122505.jpg


Hey if you want to hear what a pair of Oktavas did recording some kids in Haiti then check this out... the kids loved to see themselves through the LCD or on the back of my digi cam... so I decided to hook 'em up with some quality studio time by letting them have free reign of my sound kit. Most Americans don't even realize how good an audio kit like that sounds... so it was fun to see a third world kid wearing a pair of 7506s... I wish I'd have had some kids pose with my DVXuser shirt or pose like they were booming... but my mind wasn't quick enough to think beyond each moment.

Oktava pair in an orphanage in the Haitian jungle CLICK

Oktava pair hanging out the window through downtown Cap Haitien
 
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very good sound, Martin

very good sound, Martin

Hi Martin,
I am using a pair of Event20/20 to listen to your clip. It is very good, particulary for the Haitian kids!
May I know what recorder that you used? Was it a DAT or something?
Thanks!
King
 
By the way, the title of this thread is MC 012, but I can only find MK012 in Sound Room. Are they the same things?
Thanks.
King
 
Yeah... used to be called MC... now all are MK. Specifically MK012-A... it's too bad my director/sound guy wasn't more open to the input of an experienced sound guy (me) because I have 4 hours of stuff that's totally seperate and I can't believe how little of it is "special" now that I'm home. A lot of the stuff that ran directly into my cam is almost as good.

I'll see what else I can find to post for you... some of the tracks are an hour + long... another of my pet peeves... *sigh*...

For those who care to know... one of the HUGE benefits of the 671 is the ease of starting a new track... one single button starts record and a new track... you ONLY want to use rec pause when you're in one consistent soundbed and you want to... uh... pause the recording. Otherwise a new track is created at the flip of the switch... and the extra benefit of doing it that way is you get 5 seconds of pre-buffer so you don't miss anything. Of course... what do I know?
 
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Hey if you want to hear what a pair of Oktavas did recording some kids in Haiti then check this out... the kids loved to see themselves through the LCD or on the back of my digi cam... so I decided to hook 'em up with some quality studio time by letting them have free reign of my sound kit. Most Americans don't even realize how good an audio kit like that sounds... so it was fun to see a third world kid wearing a pair of 7506s... I wish I'd have had some kids pose with my DVXuser shirt or pose like they were booming... but my mind wasn't quick enough to think beyond each moment.
Click to expand...

These kids sound so natural and happy:)

. It makes you sad when you look around our wealthy world and see kids with so much and yet.......so un happy:(

Well done you captured the momment really well.

Michael
 
This one was ORTF... with the Oktavas in BBGs and K-SSMs on a Sabra-Som stereo bar... on the end of a pole. This was a no effort recording though... just kids piling up around the fur-balls.

I'm actually bummed that we don't have better sound then we do... I wasn't the sound guy on this project and there are so many times when the mics are just too far from the action. Don't ever forget... the closest mic wins. I'll take an Oktava at 3' over a Schoeps at 6' any day.

Anyway... the point is that this recording was from kids piling up in front of us and the mics just standing there at head height... ORTF.
 
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Maritn, actually, I am planning to buy a new recording machine like 671. I am now just using a Tascam DAT. I wonder if 671 can have a timecode to sync with camera. In fact, I must confess that I am not sure how to sync a CF card recording machine or DAT with a camera. (If you think it is a long story needs to open another thread to talk about this, please do so. You know, you have been here much longer than me.:) )
 
Matt-

I just listened to your audio. I have headphones on. Trippy and fantastic. Great Great stereo sound. Now I just gotta pick up a second Oktava. That sounded great.

Rick
 
If I were going to buy a recorder today I'd have to take a hard look at the Tascam before the 671 (in that price range)... if my budget wasn't limited then I'd check out Sound Devices... if my budget was more limited then the 671 or Tascam then I'd get a MicroTrack.

Two Oktavas in either ORTF or XY stereo can yield some insanely good results, no doubt. Actually I did these with hyper caps on, but this is one time when I'd rather have had the cardioid caps on. After I bought my two hypers I ended up going back to Sound Room to order a matched pair of cardioid caps.
 
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MattinSTL:

My Oktava mko12 and 25ft Ramtech cable arrived today from the Sound Room, and I'm in the process of testing it.

I was surprised how skinny the diameter of the Ramtech is. My older elcheapo cable which came with my elcheapo Karaoke mike is much thicker, like the professional cables I've seen at the local TV station.

I panicked a bit... it's the Monster Cable headspace I'm still in.. fatter the better... but I'm new to audio, and prey to hype.

The Sound Room says it's a top performer, and I'm sure they're right.

Any thoughts on fat versus thin as to the quality of the audio?

Also, I'm thinking of getting an extra cable as backup. Are you still selling cables?

I understand you got burnt bigtime a while ago. I can send a money order and wait until it clears before you ship.
 
I was able to resolve the "burn" issue... that deal was 100% FUBAR... the other guy pleaded that he wasn't doing anything wrong and Paypal kept telling me that he was and NOT to read emails from him... I talked about the situation on here and he got banned... the guy continued to email me about the situation and Paypal continued to tell me to no longer speak with him. Finally Paypal said to let it go, I lost NO money, and Paypal wouldn't give any explanation when I asked what happened and why they said they would give me the money and release the situation... I have NO idea what the hell happened! Now recently I got an email from Paypal saying that they may limit my account because of "suspicious activity"... I forwarded this to Paypal as a spoof... which would be a really good spoof because the email says it comes from Paypal and the links take me directly TO Paypal... but I didn't put in any info because I don't trust the email... BUT with the fairly recent events and the BS which was NEVER explained!? I'm a little hesitant to load up my Paypal account only to see the cash withdrawn by Paypal again while I have to beg for answers. THAT is my only problem with Paypal.

As for thin or thick cables? I wouldn't worry about it... if the cable works good I'm sure it's fine. I have fat cables and thin cables, in both Musilux and Canare... and I just use whatever I have when I need it. I use thin Musilux in my Gitzo 7680c boom pole. It's pretty thin yet it works fine. I TOO prefer the thicker cables for the thicker copper conductors and the thicker protective jacket (more durable location cable)... but until you break a cable from wear I wouldn't lose any sleep over sound quality or specs. Even though I like a good cable for it's mechanical and electrical properties I agree with the common sense that most likely, the only way to tell one electrically sound cable from another is with test equipment and not human ears. I often feel as though I can hear the quality of the cables I make, but I'm not an unreasonable person... I may be perceiving that sound quality just because I know how I made that cable and what materials were used.

I'll be happy to make you a cable or two. I've been pricing at about $1 over Markertek's prices for the generic Star Quad cable, but if you want to make a fair comparison then check the DA206 cable Marktertek calls "digital"... that is how the Musilux cables spec out... and those are $12-$40 higher per cable from Markertek. I've been selling these cables just a couple at a time and this is how I like it... this is about sharing my love of sound, not business... if it were business I'd be charging what Markertek charges for "digital" cables.

This "Oktava mods" thread has really crossed a lot of topics. :grin:
 
MattinSTL said:
I'll be happy to make you a cable or two. I've been pricing at about $1 over Markertek's prices for the generic Star Quad cable, but if you want to make a fair comparison then check the DA206 cable Marktertek calls "digital"... that is how the Musilux cables spec out... and those are $12-$40 higher per cable from Markertek. I've been selling these cables just a couple at a time and this is how I like it... this is about sharing my love of sound, not business... if it were business I'd be charging what Markertek charges for "digital" cables.
Click to expand...

If you've never seen one of Matts cables, I can attest...they are PHENOMINAL. Ask Oleg. Hes got nothing but good things to say about them and hes the resident sound guru. I've got two and I LOVE 'EM.

MattinSTL said:
This "Oktava mods" thread has really crossed a lot of topics. :grin:
Click to expand...

Yeah, I suppose it would be inappropriate to tell everybody that the Joey Lawrence kid in the Photograpy section is a downright incredible talent? Okay then, I'll stick with cables and the Oktava.
 
I can also whole heartedly endorse Matt's cables. He made a couple of 100' XLR cables for me using the Musilux and they have been fantastic. At the time, I was getting ready buy Star Quad when Matt came across the Musilux. The Musilux has been much easier to lay out and recoil and no interference issues so far.

Interestingly enough, I just had a Canare-brand Star Quad cable fail on me. And it's only a 3' cable that's been well treated! When it happened, the cable was the last thing I suspected. I started fretting about how I managed to damage one of my stereo pair mics but after swapping around mics, cables, and mixer channels, the problem was the cable. What's wierd to me is that it didn't completely fail. If I yell directly into a mic, I can get a weak signal on the other end. I've looked at the connections on both ends of the cable and they look fine. Anyone else have this happen?

As far as thick or thin goes, I don't know that I would call the Musilux thin. It is thinner than most of the cables I have but in a good way. It handles very nicely. Great for location use. It has conductive polymer shielding that seems to do it's job while keeping the cable pliable. I have some Shure-brand cables that are even thinner but I've had interference problems with them.

So, Matt, I hope you keep making cables as I'm planning on another order.

Thanks,
Dan
 
I was actually referring to the "Instalux" when I said "thin Musilux"... my bad. The Instalux IS thin... the Musilux is nearly the identical thickness to standard Star Quad (the L-4E6S)... the stuff everyone is thinking of when they say Star Quad. I bought the Instalux to make give away cables for friends and video people... I use Switchcraft connectors on those instead of Neutrik... since I often seem to lose cables on certain jobs now I have something to give people which still works great... but at the end of the shoot I don't mind telling them to just keep it.

Hmm... now I gotta' go check out the photography of Joey Lawrence.
 
MattinSTL said:
I'll be happy to make you a cable or two. I've been pricing at about $1 over Markertek's prices for the generic Star Quad cable, but if you want to make a fair comparison then check the DA206 cable Marktertek calls "digital"... that is how the Musilux cables spec out... and those are $12-$40 higher per cable from Markertek.
Click to expand...

I have a 25foot Ramtech, and a 15foot cable of unknown quality. The latter might be lousy, but I have no way of determining the quality, since I'm kinda new to audio. Might be really good, but then, it came with an dynamic Ampex 850 mike (no info on the web whatsoever) which i picked up brand new for 35 bucks.

At that price, there's gotta be a catch, but the mike sounds great to a novice like me. As you stated in an earlier post, even a cheap mike sounds fine close up.

So here's my question: I'd like to buy another cable... can you advise me on a good length that's actually useful... something the pro's standardize on?

I was going to say 50feet... but that's off the top of my head, and an experience soundman might advise otherwise.

I'm building a boom (painter pole model... please don't laugh... I'm hoping to get away with it)...

My order would be 2 cables:

(1) 50feet or (? your suggestion). Is there a price diff between thin and thick?
(2) 1 foot for on cam mic. Yeah, I know, the mike is best off the camera... but for birthday parties etc... candid shots...

If you could price them both I'd be happy. I'll pm you, but maybe the info could be of use to someone else in my situation.

Thanks

PS: I'm regretting I didn't order a shock mount from the Sound Room. Do you have an extra one (used) for sale?
 
Even you have one microphone buy a couple of cables, ( you can stick with one for the camera application) , its positively wont go down but it will give you peace of mind that you always have spare , not to mention if you will have to do long lens shots and will have to reach the subject on distance you will be able by adding the second one .
if you will order only one, the Murphy's low will bite you in the ass and you will probably finish without the sound at all .
TRAST ME, IT ALWAIS WORKS LIKE THAT ,NO EXEPTIONS AND USUALLY IN THE MOST CRITICAL MOMENTS .

I use Matt's cable for the last few months on the drama serial i am recording with grate success , not even one failure after hundreds of times connecting and disconnecting .
Matt's cables not much different then the others i had and have in my life but i trust them more then any other since the person who made them for me did it with love for what he does , that is the major factor for how good his work is.
so my wot is defeniatly to support his wonderful job and use his skills in the future even i live 10000km from his home .

about muslix - its a nice cable for regular applications but as any other 2 wire suffering from dimmers and power lines crossings ,the star quads work better to eliminate these problems almost to zero .if you not intend to work on big sets it doesnt matter and muslix is much flexible cable and will work fine for your application , if you intend to cross allot of power lines stick with the star quad .
 
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