kelly mouthpieces

[PioneerJon]

what does veryone think about kelly mouthpieces....... u know the lexan ones......r they good for marching corp?

[Jeff]

what does veryone think about kelly mouthpieces....... u know the lexan ones......r they good for marching corp?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Picked up a Kelly mouthpiece for cold weather use and found it to be well made and designed. However, I wouldn't recommend it unless you are playing in low temperatures or allergic to metal. Mine plays well, being very close to Bach Mount Vernon specs on the 1C, 3C, 5C, and 7C trumpet models. It was much better than I expected, but it doesn't have the fullness of sound and projection of a comparable silver plated brass mouthpiece. It's a minor difference, but one that was noticeable to my ears.

[luthen]

I have 2 Kelly tuba mouthpieces, because I am allergic to metal, deathly so, they are the Kellyberg style, modeled after the ever popular Helleberg mouthpiece, I have 1 in black, and 1 in glow-in-the-dark I've never marched corps with them, of course, I've never marched corps, period...lol (that shall change) however, with my Lexan polycarbonate (really just a fancy way to say plastic) I can get the same kind of tone as my band student teacher on the same instrument with a metal mouthpiece, and yes, the plastic is nice to have for the low temps, I brag about it all the time to my Marching Band peers...not to mention, they come in 18 colors, so you can match any uniform ~_^

[King_ReMO]

Everyone in my jazz band bought one. Not sure why....anyways, they're okay mouthpieces. I prefer my Doug Elliot, but they're alright.

[Dave]

I've been using one in Frontier and been pretty happy with the results so far. It doesn't feel significantly different from the real thing, it won't chip or scratch like a metal mouthpiece, and there isn't to my ear a real significant difference in sound. Don't think I'd use it for solo work or anything like that, but for drum corps it seems to work fine.

[iloveto8va]

I use a kelly 3c for marching band/corps stuff, but, I noticed the sound was a little too bright, and it didn't respond as well, so I put a Curry monster sleeve on it, and it helped everything....and it looks really cool

[contrachick06]

I have a kellyburg mouthpiece its ok lol i got it cause i thought it was funny. but i did make alittle craft project out of it i put it on a string so i can wear it as a necklace. but i put it on a string for both vanity reasons and practical now not only do i look cool but i can feel free to buzz any time inspirtion arrives

[AmelloGuy]

i recently was playing on a kelly 3c mouthpiece for about 2 weeks and was thinking about switching to that from a bach 3c. i like the rim and my sound quality is not much worse, but the projection is nowhere near that of a metallic mouthpiece. i agree about the weather thing, but that is about the only time i would play on it.

[L.Peterson]

Eh... The sound isn't really all that bad. The projection isnt as good, as already stated, and for me, my high range endurance isnt as good, which isn't good.

[Tacco]

We (Blue Stars) experimented with the Kelly's last spring and decided to use them for our mello section for the season! Here'e what we experienced having played on them for most of the winter and all 10 weeks straight of the summer season--

* the sound was darker (more "mello" if you will...), we did sound tests indoors and outside

* the endurance in the section was stronger than mello sections I've taught over the past ten years

* the players thought they were more comfortable than their counterparts

* we didn't have any issues with balance or projection, even against the rest of the hornline who were not on Kelly's

* the temperature advantage works the other way too, meaning they didn't get hot in the sun

Overall, we enjoyed our Kelly experience. They may not work for everyone, but they sure worked for us!!!

Good topic/thread!!!

Tacco