KEL...The Most Mic for the Money?

It seems like just a few years ago, in my podcasting days, friends whose opinions I trust were raving about this great little Canadian company’s inexpensive little mic. “You really should try this mic,” they would tell me. “Yeah, sounds good and you can’t beat the price. But it’s not a real VO mic,” I argued. OK—whatever.
Next thing I know, the HM-1 is turning up in home studios everywhere. It’s now known as one of the best mic values ever.

Mr. Kel himself, Kelly Dueck, has suggested that Kel doesn’t necessarily want their mics to sound like everyone else’s. These mics fill in those special places in your microphone tool box. Not too bright, not too dark—just right for special needs.

Lately, several of you have sent me word to check out the newest offerings from Kelly’s crew--the HM-2D and the HM-7U. You said they would surprise a lot of Voiceover artists. So, by popular demand:

Hi Willie,

We've updated the site and are going to be adding new clips, soon. Here are two that you can use -- one for the HM-7U and one for the HM-2D. Enjoy!

Just a quick note about the clips I just sent -- the mics were flat into an Amek 9098 pre, into the converters on a Focusrite ISA428, no compression.

Thanks! Please let me know if you have any questions ...

Kelly, for KEL Audio
kelaudio@kelaudio.com

My impressions? You know I am a fan of transformerless mics. They seem clearer and more true to the sound. That’s just me. I am a fan of Kel’s mic philosophy--Find a need and fill it. Stay true to the goal.
The HM-2D has a familiar sound. To me, it’s a lot like a Shure SM7B large diaphragm dynamic. That’s not a bad thing—especially at half the price.
But the HM-7U intrigues me. They make references to the Neumann U47. OK, you have my attention. The Kel package is totally different in its approach to the U47-like sound. Listen for yourself. I suggest you not try to compare to the U47 but evaluate the sound on its own merit. Honestly, I would like to try this new mic for myself…it may be a winner. It has all the necessary ingredients.
LISTEN HERE
We are being blessed with exciting new choices of $299 microphones that claim to compete with $2,000 to $4,000 mics. We will feature some more of them in the future.