Oktava MK-012's -vs.- Josephson C42's

[Recycled_Brains]

i've of course found a myriad of great things said about both mics, but am wondering if any of you could offer a comparison.

i'm almost sold on the MK-012's for a matched pair of SDC's, but have been reading some great things about the C42's, so now i'm on the fence as to whether the Josephson's are worth saving the extra loot.

i'd be using either for any or all of the following apps... ac. guitar, OH, toms, live jam session recording.....

thanks.

also, could someone please tell me how to read the freq. response graph here: http://oktavausa.com/microphone/MK012FMSPSpecs.htm, in regards to the different colors (i.e. how is this interpreted?).

[vsr600]

just a note about that plot, I think he forgot to include the legend for those 3 colors in the first graph... my guess would be is that the yellow line is on axis (i.e. response directly in front of capsule), blue is probably 90 degrees off axis (on the side of the mic), and the red is the response directly behind the mic.
The bottom graph is the polar pattern of the mic. Pretend the mic is sitting at the origin of that graph, where the line is further away from the center that means the mic picks up more sound there. It's plotted at 5 different frequencies and the legend is included for that graph.
things to note about these two plots:
Look at the frequency response (first plot), on axis (yellow line I'm assuming) you have a nearly flat response which means what goes into the mic comes out basically. Behind the mic you have alot of rejection except in the low and high frequencies (which usually get rolled off anyway).
Also looking at the polar response you can tell it's a pretty good cardiod pattern, i.e. picks up sound pretty evenly in front of the mic and rejects sound from the rear.

[love_tempo]

I'm interested in this too. Another interesting pair would be the Avensons. I'm trying to decide between those 3. My guess is that the Avenson's would be the most natural sounding but very dependent on your room. I wonder are the Josephson's brighter sounding than the Octavia's? I hate edgy sounding mics.

[surf's up]

I'm interested in this too. Another interesting pair would be the Avensons. I'm trying to decide between those 3. My guess is that the Avenson's would be the most natural sounding but very dependent on your room. I wonder are the Josephson's brighter sounding than the Octavia's? I hate edgy sounding mics.

i find the josephsons quite bright. they dont usually work as drum overheads for me. I would say they are probably a bit brighterr than the oktavas but i havent simultaneously A/Bed them just going on recollection of usage of the oktavas. the josephsons are just on the edge of 'harsh' though; they can still sound nice. great for helping an acoustic cut through the mix. i really want to give them a shot on toms i just havent had the opportunity yet.

[love_tempo]

Hmmm...I need a pair that would work on Violin too so maybe the Josephsons would sound a bit too scratchy.

[Slider]

I have a bunch of mc-012's I keep around mostly for toms, the other day I had some guys doing pre-production and I put one on the acoustic guitar through a UA pre and it had this really nice lush "old record" quality to it.
I was impressed given the $60 price I paid for each Oktava.
Even the guys playing commented on how great the guitar sounded.

I'm sure the Josephsons are a much better all around mic, but those Oktava's are very cool considering how affordable they were.

[bplr]

the oktava mk012 was one of the first mics i ever bought. i recorded mostly voice and guitar with it. later i got into electronics and found out about the modification designed by scott dorsey (the dorsey mod). in my opinion, if you have basic soldering skills and a light touch, there's no reason not to do the mod. and it costs about $25. as far as bang for buck goes, a modded 012 beats anything i've tried.

my 2?.

[sdelsolray]

I would take the Josephsons over the Oktavas almost always. Clearer, more detailed and accurate. However, the modular design of the Oktava is nice. The mod improves things. Cheaper too.

You might also consider the Peluso CEMC6 modular SD series. Very nice mics.

[Rivers]

i find the josephsons quite bright. they dont usually work as drum overheads for me. I would say they are probably a bit brighterr than the oktavas but i havent simultaneously A/Bed them just going on recollection of usage of the oktavas. the josephsons are just on the edge of 'harsh' though; they can still sound nice. great for helping an acoustic cut through the mix. i really want to give them a shot on toms i just havent had the opportunity yet.[/quote]

My experience exactly.
I had the Josephsons for about a month and although they are nice mics they were too bright for my tastes.
They are great on Acoustic for when you want the zing.