price, speed, ambience, music scale

very amp dependent, quality of construction, visual aesthetic....why didn't they give these speakers a better box design? can sound a bit boxy, not a delicate speaker for those who crave for microscopic details and timbre, slow bass

Before purchasing these speakers, I had never taught of owing a floorstanding as at the time I was a graduate student and shared thetwo bedroom flat with my flatmate in London ( no spare space). The speakers I used at that time were a pair of bookshelf Dynaudios, bought second handed and happily driven by Musical fidelity XA-1 and X-DAC with SONY 900 CD. However one day Musical fidelity sent me a letter about the special promotion on KT 2 which limited to just 2 pairs of slightly cosmetic imperfection with only 300 pounds a pair ( from 700 pound). I started gathering information about it and found that it got 5 stars rating from What Hifi and Hifi Choice.....quite good wasn't it? So I hurried out to grab a pair. Unluckily, the only one left for me was dressed in a boring walnut veneer....what da heck, I bought one. It was the first time I bought a hifi kit without a listening test.
The moment of truth had come, I connected them to the XA-1 and the sound was incredibly ....crap. very blur and boom, I found that I was cheated. The Dynaudio was far superior in every senses. The weeks of disappointment lived with me however after the burn in period passed the Kelly started to get in shape, what seemed to be too loose got tighter and I began to accept what magazine reviewed. They started to give an authoritive presence in their voice.
However I still in doubt with its full potential, as I heard that the Kellys are very amp dependent and would sing beautifully with a good valve amp. The XA-1amp at the time didn't make a sonicquality I was looking for either ( it just simply looks gorgeous,very modern, seductive, the Audi TT might got some inspiration from the XA-1), so I decided to try the Kelly with a Valve amp. Hell, I then was just an oversea student, who gonna lend a valve amp to me, very unlikely indeed. The only valve amp I could imagine was the one in Bangkok, my dad's little VTL.
After many discussing with friends I decided to ship them back home when I graduated. They cost me quite a lot for a speaker this size to be shipped to Bangkok, if they still sound liked they did with the XA-1 I would feel very stupid indeed. 3 months of waiting( the shipping was snail slow) finally ended and another moment of truth began.
The result was very pleased, a bit stunt by what the amp and the room size could transform a pair of so-so sounding speaker to be a lovely one, I was very glad that I didn't make a wrong decision.
The sound quality of Kelly in a large room ( 3 times the size of my UK. flat 's livingroom)was awesome. They need quite a large room to perform their best, before then I had never experienced a close to live-like performance in my livingroom before. The sound it created with VTL amp are now warm and rich in tone with a dynamic, speed and scale that make you think of a full-body red wine. It can' t match the gorgeous mid range voice created by the good ole vetaran ProAc Super Tablette(previously hooked with the VTL), The ProAc is a sweet soprano compare to mature barritonevoice, Kelly rendered.
Am I pleased? not in all respect but I found myself enjoy having these speakers as my companion. ( only if I can play them with a good quality valve design)

Similar Products Used:

I have never owned a floor standing before. These are my first.
ProAc Super Tablette, Dynaudio Audience 5, TDL RTL1

I've got two pairs of these beauties (I got a damn good deal I couldn't resist). They are quite sensitive - 95db/W/m so they play LOUD! Even at low volumes they sound extremely lively. The drivers are of very high quality. They are so very transparent, that you have to hear them to believe it. They are at their best with voices, piano, guitar and drums. With very complex symphonic pieces they can be a bit harsh, but this really isn't a criticism for speakers at this price. For rock and jazz they are second to none. The only drawback is that they need a good amp to drive them - they sound (and react) like electrostatics. Their impedance can drop to below 4 Ohms, demanding high current from the amp (95db/W, what did you expect, a free lunch?)
I run them with musical fidelity's own XA-50 and they are a match made in heaven.

Highly recommended, especially if you can find them cut-price. I auditioned them next to their big brothers (KT3) and they sounded better controlled (at half the price!)

Verdict: five stars - no contest!

For quite a long time, I have been fishing around for a pair of speakers to replace my old custom-made boxes that I ceased to enjoy (or maybe just realised that I had loved them more than they deserved). I also wanted to avoid joining the cost-no-object freak camp as my wallet would have very soon told me better. My old speakers were a big closed box job, with very punchy bass, high sensitivity but, alas, no real finesse in the treble department. The effect was that I was really enjoying them when playing test discs, like a drum or a double bass track on one of those Chesky jazz samplers. So when the notorious August 17 came (Russians will understand me!) and I found myself with a wad of roubles that I had to dispose of as soon as I possibly could, I remembered all the intriguing reviews I had read in the (mostly British) audio press, dashed off to a hi-fi shop and bought a pair of Kellys (I would have gone for the higer-end KT3's but they weren't available).
And I haven't regretted my choice ever since. They have their drawbacks, of course (in the nether regions, ironically) but somehow I no longer care. For the first time in many years, I am listening to the music, rather than to my equipment. And they are oh so lively! I have never believed in absolutely lifelike reproduction of music and I don't claim that I am closing my eyes and see the musicians and singers in front of me when I put a record on but I think I am getting from my music about as much as I have ever hoped to.

So, especially at this price level, it is an unreserved thumbs-up.

P.S. The true manufacturer of this product is Musical Fidelity, so I was a little bit at a loss where to place my review in the list. And I am not sure whether it has been or is going to be marketed in the US. The price quoted ($850) is that in Moscow.

My other equipment includes a Pro-Ject 6.1 turntable with a Golring 1042 cartridge, a Musical Fidelity A220 integrated amp, an MF X-TONE tone adjustment unit (rarely used), and a Marantz CD-63 KI Sig player that I feed through the MF X-10D line buffer and which is, nevertheless, the only component I would really feel like upgrading.

I've got two pairs of these beauties (I got a damn good deal I couldn't resist). They are quite sensitive - 95db/W/m so they play LOUD! Even at low volumes they sound extremely lively. The drivers are of very high quality. They are so very transparent, that you have to hear them to believe it. They are at their best with voices, piano, guitar and drums. With very complex symphonic pieces they can be a bit harsh, but this really isn't a criticism for speakers at this price. For rock and jazz they are second to none. The only drawback is that they need a good amp to drive them - they sound (and react) like electrostatics. Their impedance can drop to below 4 Ohms, demanding high current from the amp (95db/W, what did you expect, a free lunch?)
I run them with musical fidelity's own XA-50 and they are a match made in heaven.

Highly recommended, especially if you can find them cut-price. I auditioned them next to their big brothers (KT3) and they sounded better controlled (at half the price!)

Verdict: five stars - no contest!

Very sensitive at 95db
Wonderful dynamics and transparency

Boring to look at (but not to listen to!)

Now discontinued, the Kelly range from Musical Fidelity is a stunning design. Very sensitive, wonderful dynamics and headroom. I'm using with good ancillaries, which helps, however they will fit into most systems. Probably the best value British made 'speaker of the last 20 years! If you ever see a pair second-hand in good nick, snap 'em up. You'll be amazed at what 95db sensitivity can achieve.

Similar Products Used:

Many