This near-consecutive NOS pair of Oktava ML19 microphones came from a 1984 factory sealed crate from the Oktava factory. The ML19 is an incredible ribbon mic, but needs an expert's knowledge and expertise to bring it to it's maximum potential - especially if they've been sitting in a crate unused for forty years.
That's why this NOS pair has been fully restored, cleaned, optimized, and matched with new ribbons, new cables and connectors. The old deteriorating foam has been replaced with custom-made foam for the ML19, the ribbon motors have been extensively cleaned, and the original poorly installed ribbons have been carefully replaced by Cole (Picks) Suddarth. The original mic cable has been replaced with a new XLR connector.
The mics come with their original cases, stands, documentation, and passports. The ML19 is essentially the Soviet BK5s, and after a full restoration and a few little tweaks, they outperform the BK5 in every
application. I have been using ML19s in just about any application you can think of (lead vocals, main pair for a string quartet, chunky riffs, kick drums,
overheads, banjo, and dozens of other applications) for over 20 years, and it's one of the only mics I've consistently used for that long. I believe it’s the best bang for your buck mic ever made. And yes – you absolutely can find them for pretty cheap on Reverb, even “NOS”. But fair warning, to get them to sound like this, between shipping, tax, shipping for repair, and shipping them back, it will end up costing you as much or more than what we're for these already fully restored matched and tested dead-mint ML19s, plus you'll have the hassle and wait associated with getting them fixed up.
