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Post by mrholmes on Sept 23, 2014 6:46:41 GMT -6
www.soundonsound.com/sos/oct03/articles/oktavamkl2500.htmThis mic was the mic of the year 2013 in a German magazine. Its time for a new mic for male vocals. Anyone used it ever? Whats your experience with it? Does it fits your taste?? I ask because it is in Germany brand new now 330 Euro. Was released for double bill.... Mr.H.
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Post by jcoutu1 on Sept 23, 2014 7:34:12 GMT -6
I own an old, genuine, Russian model with a Russian power supply. I've had it for probably 8 years now. I would not want this to be my main mic in the locker. It's definitely a character piece with a rolled off high end. Also, the mount (non-shockmount) that mine came with bites...total crap. Personally, at 330 Euro, I wouldn't go anywhere near it. I bought mine from a failed rapper with a decent boom stand and 10 foot XLR for $100. I've only held onto mine because I grabbed it so cheap and it's nice to have some character mics around.
Does the German magazine that gave it mic of the year have a write up on it? Maybe the new ones are somehow different from the old ones? I think the guy that wrote this Sound on Sound review might have been smoking something when he tested the mic. "the MKL2500 behaved very well, delivering a nicely hyped version of the original vocal, but still with a seemingly natural character." That line is a load of crap to me. Nothing sounds hyped with this mic. Dull is more of the term that I would use.
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Post by svart on Sept 23, 2014 7:35:53 GMT -6
I've used one. It's OK. It has the same capsule as the MK219/319, so you can expect a similar (Russian) sound, but a little more "beefy" with less high end.. It's slightly noisy, but there are a few mods that can be done to fix that if you are so inclined. Be aware of the frequency response..  It doesn't have much top end at all. It actually might be lacking too much top end for male vocals as they would end up sounding very dark indeed. On a voice with a lot of gritty textrure, it might work very well. Overall it's a quality mic, but it certainly has a "sound", which makes me insist that you try it if you can, before you buy.. (or buy and possibly resell if you have the means to do so) EDIT: I see jcoutu1 has beaten me to it with a spot-on description. |
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Post by jcoutu1 on Sept 23, 2014 7:40:13 GMT -6
I've used one. It's OK. It has the same capsule as the MK219/319, so you can expect a similar (Russian) sound, but a little more "beefy" with less high end.. It's slightly noisy, but there are a few mods that can be done to fix that if you are so inclined. Be aware of the frequency response.. It doesn't have much top end at all. It actually might be lacking too much top end for male vocals as they would end up sounding very dark indeed. On a voice with a lot of gritty textrure, it might work very well. Overall it's a quality mic, but it certainly has a "sound", which makes me insist that you try it if you can, before you buy.. (or buy and possibly resell if you have the means to do so) EDIT: I see jcoutu1 has beaten me to it with a spot-on description. That frequency response really tells the story. It does have that Russian sound to it too. My MK012's have a similar Russian sound to them. Kind of bitey in the mids rather than silky IMO. |
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Post by tonycamphd on Sept 23, 2014 9:46:34 GMT -6
I actually nipped the pcb in one of these and epoxied a tube socket in it 8) after a nos telefunken tube and a number of mods to the mic itself, it sounded pretty good, the PSU was lacking though, and that really seemed to make the mic react in a VERY lerchy way to dynamics. Overall= mehh IMO.
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Post by tonycamphd on Sept 23, 2014 9:50:01 GMT -6
That said, I have a modded up MK319 that is one of my fav character mics, it's got a very sinister vibe to it  (Add devil horns 8) |
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Post by mrholmes on Sept 23, 2014 15:44:41 GMT -6
Meanwhile I had the chance to listen to some sound clips and I do like the dark character.
My guesswork - it may is way more usable as some cheap china tube mic??
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Post by jcoutu1 on Sept 23, 2014 15:57:49 GMT -6
Hey kidvybes, ever use this? Compared it to some Chinese mics? |
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Post by kidvybes on Sept 23, 2014 21:08:16 GMT -6
Hey kidvybes, ever use this? Compared it to some Chinese mics? ...it's funny, but I've come so close to buying one second-hand for cheap on eBay, more times than I can count, but comments like those posted above by reputable forum members kept me from pulling the trigger...I did have an Oktava MK319, but it was too dark for my taste, at least back then when I bought it...truth is, IMHO, there are better inexpensive options floating out there for cheap, like the MXL V77 tube-mic (one just went for less than $150) or the Studio Projects T3...both of those sound pretty decent right out of the box... |
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(Add devil horns 8)
