I feel so lucky to have been able to chat with Oliver in Prosound forums. I never got to meet him personally but I felt a profound loss when he left us back in 2014.
Oliver didn’t just study the legacy left by Telefunken and Neumann, he resurrected it. If you wanted to get in on one of his forum threads you better have your big boy pants on because he had no patience for pretenders. That’s because Oliver was the real thing, possessing an intimate knowledge of vacuum tubes and understanding where their magic is.
Oliver was a consultant to almost every modern tube mic company up until his passing. While he yielded his knowledge freely and openly many of his contemporaries took what he gave and quietly hung him out to dry. Set backs did not stop him or slow him down, his reputation and transformer business was lifting off even as his health was taking him down.
Did you follow along as Oliver and Terry Manning created the “Lucas” microphones? These were not mere tributes to the C-12 and U-47, these modern recreations broke new ground with combinations of unique high quality materials, components, and tubes that nobody else ever imagined. Oliver took thoughts and ideas and made them happen here in the real world. He hand-hammered on wind screens and shaped metal to create masterpieces.
Near the end he was preparing a new series of lower priced U-47 microphones which used real Telefunken tubes, AMI (Oliver’s transformer company) custom vintage-style transformers, German PVC capsules from Theirsch and customized metal work. Always one to go a step farther, his high voltage remote power supply provides remote selection of 11 patterns (not the typical nine). Thankfully I have one of his U-47 creations, it’s the favorite mic here at High on Technology. When I read of Oliver’s passing I was shocked and disappointed beyond words.
Oliver, I miss your threads and articles. I miss your innovation. I miss your guidance into the unknown. RIP Oliver Archut.
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| Oliver Archut |
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©September 2025 by Mark King, it is not ok to copy or quote without written permission from the author.
Want more Oliver information? Try these search terms "Lucas Microphone, CS-1, CS-4, Compass Point Studios", those will lead you to more.
Maybe it’s time to go bust out a tube mic and create some beautiful recorded sounds. . . . . . . ..
