Michael kelly

[blackhawkjoe]

Okay, before i was kinda looking at a morgan monroe mando. now i want a michael kelly, just so i have a nicer one untill i can afford a Gibson or Weber. i was kind of leaning more towards the legacy elegante, or the dragonfly. Is it worth my money?

[Eric F.]

Is it worth my money?

Well, only you can answer that. Plenty of people like them; plenty of others don't. I have payed a lot of them and i thought most were more or less OK - they wouldn't knock your socks off but they weren't awful sounding. A few were pretty thin. One was outstanding. If I had been in the market, I would have bought it on the spot, but that's the only one I've played that floated my boat.

Isn't the Dragonfly up around $900? I think you can get a pretty fine mandolin for that kind of money if you look at a used A style. I recently picked up a stellar Flatiron Performer for $700, and used Breedlove Quartzes consistently go for less than $900. To me, there is a huge difference in tone between those mandos and MK's.

[JTMartin]

I played a couple of new MK's among many others last week during my search for a new mando. One was a Legacy Dlx and the other a Dragonfly. I tend to agree with Eric that they were just OK, neither great or bad. The Dragonfly had a finish flaw and didn't have the punch or volume I was looking for. To be fair, I only tried one and it would have probably sounded a little better with a good set up. Maybe I was expecting more for that much money. I would definately play one and look it over before I bought it. I'm sure there are some better and some worse than the one I tried. For what its worth, I tried a JBovier Tradition that was better than anything costing a grand or less...until I played an Eastman that went home with me. If you just HAVE to have an F style you might want to check them out if you haven't already. Good luck and I hope you enjoy your search as much as I did!

[ALog]

I have 2 MK's, an Elegante and a Dragonfly...both are fine mandolins and I compared them to Eastman's and Weber's...for the money well worth it and I'm sure you could find them for less. As always, I would definatley paly and as many mandolecturns have acknowledged...play em til it speaks to you. Both of these did, although the Elegante is likely to fo to help satisfy a case of MASalaria...a Kicking Mule!

[Mandolusional]

I own one myself and there are a quite a few good threads about MKs so if you need more info give it a search here. I have an 06 Dragonfly III and I'd characterize it as a good, durable mandolin. Mine has a good tone, decent volume, and I receive positive comments about it from my instructors, but it's not a Gibson. I hear the quality has become more consistent but it can vary so try them out first. I have a friend with an older MK and it sounds really tinny while mine woofs in comparison.

[Ivan Kelsall]

My first mandolin was a Michael Kelly "Legacy" Solid. I only had it for about three
months.I thought that it was a lovely instrument for the price,maybe even better than i thought,seeing as it was the first Mandolin that i ever owned/played,i had nothing to compare it with. It was easy to play,having been set up well by the store
i bought it from & i had it long enough to realise that i had a talent to play.It was obvious that it wasn't giving me the 'absolute sound' that i wanted,but we're talking about a $700 Mandolin,not a Gilchrist. All told,if i had to start again,i'd go for the Michael Kelly.I wish i had it now,just to see what difference my 28 months of playing would do for it,as i'm sure that the limitations i experienced when i had it,were my limitations,not that of the Mandolin,
Saska

[Rick Cadger]

I've never heard a Michael Kelly I liked. A bit thin and toneless, the three or four I've seen - not sure what the models were.

Only ever seen/heard one MM - it was played by an American chap who sat in a session with us in Ireland. It was not a good mandolin even though he was a good player.

I'd say consider an entry level Eastman rather than either of those. Or maybe a Bovier or Jade (the latter is still a bit of an unknown quantity, but they are handmade instruments, as are Eastmans).

I'd be inclined not to jump in too fast for a pac-rim production line mando - except maybe the Bovier.

[Don Christy]

I have a 4 year old Michael Kelly as well as 2 nice small builder customs and an old gibson f2. The Michael Kelly was my first mando. When I got it I didn't know anything about good tone or good instruments, but I found the MK very easy to learn on with great playability.

After having it a year, my ear and my playing was better and I thought it was a little thin sounding. I had a local luthier do a setup on it. What a huge difference. The sound became much fuller, complex, and louder. As I said, I now have several other higher quality hand-made small builder mandos, so I have considered getting rid of the MK. I just can't talk myself into it. It sounds good and plays great so I keep it and use it as a traveling mando and sometimes keep it at work. I guess it's my "beater" now, but it seems awefully nice for a beater.

You'll find plenty of pro and con MK threads here. I think the same will be true of any of the production import mandos. You'll hear over and over, play the mando if you can. If you're like I was, you're a beginner and that won't be all that useful for now. I suggest having an unbiased friend that plays mando (those are hard to find in mando land) check it out or buy used with approval period through the cafe.

Good luck,
Don

[Chris "Bucket" Thomas]

My first mando was a MK. For what it was (a high quality entry level/beginners instrument), I thought it was a good product.

But, knowing what I know now. I would buy a Flatiron A model. Why: About the same $$ and your skill level will not outgrow it. Also, you will get 100% of your money out of it when you sell it.

[DaveNB]

I bought a festival pack. In that price range there are fewer choices. It has opened up a bit since I bought it in October and has a pretty decent sound now.

I wanted to buy a new instrument from a local dealer so that I could get the setup just right, as with this class of instrument the setup cost is a significant fraction of the price.

The festival pack instrument has a matte finish and a number of other economies, but nothing that affects playability and I am happy with it.

I know this doesn't directly address the topic, but with MK being the subject line, I couldn't resist.

David

[Out in the Woods]

I currently play a MK Dragonfly. The setup from the factory was awful - I spent a lot of time adjusting things when I first got it. So you definitely have to factor in some setup time/cost. It's a very decent player now though.

Even with the setup time/cost, I still think they're worth the dough.

[Celtic Saguaro]

As far as I can tell MKs are in most respects similar to Morgan Monroes, so if you prefer the looks of one or other that would be the way to lean. #Either would be fine as a starter. #As others have said some of the higher priced MKs may not be a great bargain compared to a low end Eastman. #If you really want an f-style and can't afford much more, I don't think you will be unhappy to have an MK or an MM as a first mandolin. #You might also take a look at Kentucky mandolins in the same price range.

[Treetopper]

I have two Michael Kelly mandolins, a Dragonfly and a Plus, they are both good mandolins, I personnally don't have the talent to make anything but a moderately priced mandolin sound good. I would love to have a Gibson, Etc, but at my age, I think I will be content with what I have.

[Brady Smith]

I have a Michael Kelly..it's very good. The MK's I've seen are much better than the Morgan Monroe's. Just play them as much as you can or have someone reliable do so to make sure you get a good one. There's good one's and bad ones like the rest of them.

[Mark Richardson]

My first mandolin was a MK Deluxe. The GD tuners were slightly crooked and one of the strings would rub against the lower peg. I did not really notice this until the first time I changed strings. I then became aware of the flaw and it began to bug me. I returned it to First Quality and the gave me a store credit and took a few more of my dollars and I moved up to a Eastman MD814. The MK was great as a first mando. Just look it over very well before you put your money down.

Last summer I really moved up to a custom San Juan. I keep my Eastman in the kitchen where it still gets played as often if not more than than my San Juan, five-ten minutes here and there. If you like the MK go for it, it will be fine.

[John Zimm]

I own an MK Firefly and have had it since 2003, and I love it, but it took a lot of time playing MKs to find one that sounded as nice as this one. It really seemed then (maybe things have now changed) that some MKs were really terrible, and some were very nice. The one I stumbled across has such nice tone I can't believe I paid so little for it. I believe it compares favorably with instruments in the 2-3K range. However, it could have been dumb luck, perserverance, etc, that I found an MK this nice, and it seems not to be the norm with MKs. That said, I've not yet outgrown the sound of this mandolin.

-John.