Intelli IMT-300 Digital Metronome Review

EDIT, FEBRUARY 2023: I sold off my IMT-300 after using it for a few months. It just wasn’t on par with my KDM-3 as far as features and ease of use was concerned. I use two KDM-3 metronomes now, one at home and one in my studio.

One can never have too many metronomes. Although I own the fantastic Korg KDM-3 digital metronome, I use it primarily in my studio. I needed another one when traveling. I did consider getting another KDM-3, but I felt it wouldn’t do too well in my cramped Peak Design bag.

I was in Tom Lee Music here in Hong Kong yesterday, and saw this guy, the Intelli IMT-300 metronome. It was priced at $300 HKD versus the Korg KDM-3 at $380 HKD. The IMT-300 is housed in tough plastic and quite solidly-built. It also has a soft case and 9V battery included and being flatter (as opposed to the more traditional metronomic shape of the KDM-3) I reckoned it was easier to put inside my bag while traveling. Enough talk, let’s get on with my first impressions.

The IMT-300 weighs about 149g with a 9V battery. Its physical dimensions are 14.6cm (H) by 6.2cm (W) by 2.4cm (D). A 3.5mm earphone jack is provided, so is a 1/4″ input for electric guitar.

One thing I can say about this metronome—it is LOUD. It has to be the loudest digital metronome I’ve ever heard. Fortunately, a volume control is provided.

The main switch is on the left side. It has four settings: Off, Metronome, Tuner, Sound. I use it on the Metronome setting all the time. Players of orchestral instruments can use the Tuner setting to tune their instruments, while the Sound setting outputs a note. What is surprising is that it covers the full range of the piano—all 88 notes, from A0 to B8. I found the main switch a little fiddly to use. There is also a DC9V if you want to use an AC adapter (not included). Sadly, there is no tap tempo feature.

The Capture M1/M2 stores two metronome settings. For instance, you could store M1 without the bell and M2 with the bell.

The IMT-300 has a tempo range from 30 to 250 beats per minute. This is adjusted using the center rotary dial. The increments are +1/-1. Unfortunately, there is no option to switch to standard metronome tempo settings (for example, if you wanted to increase the tempo from 80 to 100, you’ll have to scroll by +1 increments all the way from 80 to 100. My Korg KDM-3 allows me to go from 80 » 84 » 88 » 92 » 96 » 100)

Beats for the “bell” include 0, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. This is set using the Beat button on the right of the center rotary dial. Different rhythms can be set using the Rhythm button on the left.

The display is big and clear. However, there is no backlight.

The back houses the 9V battery (included) as well as the speaker. I find putting the speaker facing towards the back a little silly, as it should be facing the front. Fortunately, the metronome’s sound is very loud and you can always pull out the included stand and put it on top of a flat surface. You can see that it’s made in Korea but I couldn’t find their website online.

Before I end this quick review, let me say that there is a newer IMT-301 available. It costs $50 more and what you get for that is a built-in thermometer and hygrometer. The other stuff is about the same as the IMT-300.