mic selection

Have you considered Pipe's mics? He has a nice deal going in The Lounge. If they don't grab you (and I think they will), I'd probably go for the Oktavas, for acoustic instruments.

if not pipes, oktava, and theres mod options too

Im only testing the mics to see that they are consistent from mic to mic. I'm not actually measuring the real frequency response of any of them, just comparing one to another. The actual frequency response that shows the three polar patterns was done by a testing company.

In case anyone wants to know, I decided to go with the Oktava MK-012 for now (just ordered). I'll get multipattern LDCs at some other time.

Of course answers from those who haven't used all of these microphones (and I haven't) are by definition irrelevant, but my experience with the 012s is satisfactory. Having bought a picked pair of new, genuine Russian ones (not the Chinese fakes!) for $75 for two a few years ago, I certainly consider them a best buy...even if they're not pretty. ;) [Wait, that's not fair...they're prettier than any of my other Oktavas. Well, just.]

You aren't going to be unhappy with a pair of mk012's. Theyre AWESOME tom bottom mics, and good for a lot of other stuff as well. Cymbals, guitars, rooma

Received the Oktavas today, so far I like the sound. Couldn't really do much testing yet since I got them fairly late and I couldn't try them in stereo as I forgot to order a stereo bar or a second mic stand... oh well. I think it's a really nice addition that they throw in individual response measurements. They would appear to be matched within .5 of a dB for most of the range except at the presence peak where it's almost a dB, so yeah, pretty good. The measurements also state "10.8 мв/па" which I assume means 10.8 mV/Pa sensitivity.