Axis Wah Announcement

RaymondLin

I also don't understand why some are giving him a chance.  It's not his first time, he has done it on many products and if it wasn't for this, he would have continued to do so for sure.  He has told lies after lies after lies.  Even instructed lawyers to try and shut people up at the beginning, people seem to forget that.

He has backed into a corner and has nothing else to lose, this is his only card left and I find it amazing some people are buying it !

dindude

It's no wonder that he had to go to such lengths to make money, he didn't do ANYTHING himself it seems.

 He contracted out what little "manufacturing" he did, he hired help to design his pedals, he had someone else do the dealer liaison, then when someone suggested on TGP he change the wording on his website his response was "yeah I've sent that to my web developer". 

WTF his business overheads must of been astronomical for what is a one-man-band business! He's a marketing man with no apparent skill for making guitar related kit.

Gassage

Here's a thing; not defending Mason, but what's the difference between what he did and also buying a cotton teeshirt worth £6 from India, sewing a horse on it and then charging £60 sold through Ralph Lauren?

(I know it's maybe not as simple as that but...)

My point is we are consumers and when we don't like consumerism that goes beyond so called fair play then we scream.

RaymondLin

Gassage;346756" said:

Here's a thing; not defending Mason, but what's the difference between what he did and also buying a cotton teeshirt worth £6 from India, sewing a horse on it and then charging £60 sold through Ralph Lauren?



(I know it's maybe not as simple as that but...)



My point is we are consumers and when we don't like consumerism that goes beyond so called fair play then we scream.

The Ralph Lauren tee still says made in India on the sticker.

randomhandclaps

The Ralph Lauren example is different though as it's not pricing that is damaging in this instance but the lies and subsequent mistrust and scepticism it produces.  Ralph Lauren are not claiming some ground breaking technology or evolution, they are largely selling a branding and in that respect you could argue that they and similar companies epitomise consumerism.

Say company 'A' sells a cotton polo shirt for £10.  Then along come company 'B' and sew a horse onto theirs and charge £60.  Then come along company 'C' and sew a unicorn onto their one and sell it for £200.  In an open market that's all fair and the consumer has a choice.  If a 1" unicorn means that much to a consumer that is their option based on honest and open information.

Not too long ago on this very forum a company/builder popped up with a revolutionary new pedal he was selling for £200. He claimed to be a successful and renowned pedal company. @Gassage and @Wazmeister may particularly remember this, as not only did the guy post a for sale business ad which I objected to but also commented on a previous Cornish pedals thread dismissing Pete Cornish's products for using inferior parts and being overpriced and over-rated.  His pedal he claimed was a reworking of Pete Cornish's G2 so after I finished choking on the irony I did a bit (not much was needed) digging.  The strangest element for me was that this forum member whilst slagging of Pete Cornish's gear seemed completely unaware that the Cornish G2 was a reworked Big Muff - this is a fact that Pete Cornish has never hidden or dodged.  The guy's claim was that after years of research he had discovered that Pete Cornish used inferior capacitors and that the first step he made to 'drastically' improving it was to upgrade all the capacitors.  Without wishing to start a mojo parts debate now, I can categorically say that it makes no difference and as I posted at the time in that Pete Cornish thread, to believe that someone like Pete Cornish would make an inferior product and risk a huge reputation for the sake of saving what equated to a total of about 20 pence is ridiculous.

So other than the upgraded capacitor what made this guys pedal unique?  Well he had apparently (and again after years of research) discovered that swapping the silicon clipping diodes in the Muff/G2 for BAT diodes again drastically improved the sound. 

Despite music being my main interest and working area I was brought up in an electronics background.  Naturally the two paths have always seem to cross and I tend to stay aware of what goes on where the two meet.  As such I had known for years that a common modification for those wishing to smooth out the Big Muff was to indeed swap the silicon diodes for BAT diodes.  Again this raised my suspicions of this guy and company.

An internet search revealed that this guy was in fact a bull shitter who had bought a kit and soldering iron literally two months before.  I found numerous posts on building forums with people advising this guy on really basic stuff, one of which being the BAT diode swap.

I very fairly (i.e. sticking to facts rather than personal insults) raised all of these and was criticised and warned for attacking a new member.  My response was that I felt this guy was providing dishonest information and seeking to exploit not only the community as a whole but a group of people I am very fond off.  I did not feel it was information I could sit on waiting for someone to get stung.

My issue was not with the guy starting up my issue was the bullshit that meant people could not make and informed decision.  Members sell BYOC on the classified all the time and say "I built this...." (and usually charge appropriately) so others can make decision based on that.  To other pros on this board their reputations grow because they deliver what they promise.  I do believe that this is very important to the continuation and survival of both small businesses and the consumer choices it provides, especially at a time when a lot of good businesses have gone under through no fault of their own. 

Anyway I may have digressed slightly so I will shut up now and embark on the joy of the walking the kids to school.

ThePrettyDamned

I remember that one @randomhandclaps, proper weird.

Thing is, if he wasn't so bat shit crazy to start with and making odd claims, people could easily have taken him seriously. Bit of goop on the board, who'd know?

I think goop should be largely rejected to be honest. It doesn't protect the circuit (plenty of people spend time degooping now) and it can make repairs more difficult and expensive. Why bother? Be a straightforward, honest company charging fair prices and you'll be okay.

Of course, without any name players or a pgs demo, it could be impossible - I wonder how @juansolo 's work would change if pgs offered him a deal. Imagine them demoing the gilnourizer.

sinbaadi

He'd be happily taking payments still, if the cat were still in the bag, it seems to me. So any apology has to be viewed in that context, and consequently I have no sympathy and had I purchased one of his "products" I wouldn't accept his apology all.

randomhandclaps

ThePrettyDamned said:

Thing is, if he wasn't so bat shit crazy to start with and making odd claims, people could easily have taken him seriously. Bit of goop on the board, who'd know?

I think goop should be largely rejected to be honest. It doesn't protect the circuit (plenty of people spend time degooping now) and it can make repairs more difficult and expensive. Why bother? Be a straightforward, honest company charging fair prices and you'll be okay.

I couldn't agree more.  Even with price I don't really mind what people charge as long as honest information means you can make a fair decision. 

I would never buy a single item that had been gooped for so many reasons.  The Vertex and Freakish Blues crap along with and the inability to repair modify being the main ones.

ICBM

I think it's pretty clear that unless, like Pete Cornish, the builder has been using goop since way before all this nonsense started, and/or also specifically says what the circuit is based on - ie it's being used to *physically* protect the circuit from harm - then it can be assumed that the only purpose of goop is to hide a ripped-off circuit.

These con artists must be really stupid if they don't know how easy it is for anyone with the right skills to analyse even a gooped circuit and prove exactly what it is, or isn't.

randomhandclaps

FelineGuitars said:

It's like that trend 5-10 years ago where all celebs would go to the Priory Clinic to get help after behaving like complete pricks, and three months later we would all accept them back with open arms. Think it was a Max Clifford strategy

That man should be in jail for some of the crap he's pulled.

spacecadet

randomhandclaps said:

FelineGuitars said:

It's like that trend 5-10 years ago where all celebs would go to the Priory Clinic to get help after behaving like complete pricks, and three months later we would all accept them back with open arms. Think it was a Max Clifford strategy

That man should be in jail for some of the crap he's pulled.

There's still a chance he could end up there. The Yanks don't take too kindly to this sort of practice and if BBE fancy doing something about it he's in all kinds of bother.

frankus

I think Max is on his way there.

xwolf5150

Seen the Bonamassa comments ?
It seems Vertex's deception runs very deep.
I can't see any point to this guy's attempt at self vindication....he's obviously a simple con artist who got caught.

digitalscream

wolf5150 said:

Seen the Bonamassa comments ?

Link?

spacecadet

Not a very good recommendation!

http://forum.jbonamassa.com/viewtopic.php?id=27168

frankus

Frankly anything JoBo has to say on the matter is going to be like Charlton Heston after a shooting.

Don't worry foolks all the rest of the US of A hand made pedals are hand made and not made in China an' sold you by good ole US of A scheisters and swindlers... they're made here in 'murica and I appoint Ted Nugent as enforcer to ensure no commie bastard piece of crap is covered in goop and sold to honest merkans.

course all the components will be Chi-nee but shucks folks Mexican's kids don't like the poisonous vay-peurs.

spacecadet

FelineGuitars said:

I also cringe and assume it's because they're Merkins and it's so ingrained in them to spout the God stuff

Google Merkins! I think he could be described as one of them! ;-)

randomhandclaps

ICBM said:

I think it's pretty clear that unless, like Pete Cornish, the builder has been using goop since way before all this nonsense started, and/or also specifically says what the circuit is based on - ie it's being used to *physically* protect the circuit from harm - then it can be assumed that the only purpose of goop is to hide a ripped-off circuit.

These con artists must be really stupid if they don't know how easy it is for anyone with the right skills to analyse even a gooped circuit and prove exactly what it is, or isn't.

The thing is there is a certain amount of misinformation and negative mythology spread around the internet by folks opening up pedals and going "Oh it's got an opamp and clipping diodes so it's obviously a Tubescreamer rip off!".  The Timmy being a prime example of this poorly judged internet expertise where if you take such a black and white view of circuits the everything would be a Tubescreamer, Rat or Fuzz Face etc. rip off.  In that sense I do understand why some may feel "Judge my circuit on sound rather than appearance." and be tempted to employ goop.  If Paul Cochrane had gooped the Timmy and no-one had ever looked underneath you wouldn't have people accusing him of making just another Tubescreamer which anyone who actually tried it would know it is not.  Unfortunately, repeatedly and far more commonly genuine reasons don't seem to be people's motivation for gooping.

mike_l

spacecadet said:

FelineGuitars said:

I also cringe and assume it's because they're Merkins and it's so ingrained in them to spout the God stuff

Google Merkins! I think he could be described as one of them! ;-)

Not at work though....

ICBM

randomhandclaps said:

The thing is there is a certain amount of misinformation and negative mythology spread around the internet by folks opening up pedals and going "Oh it's got an opamp and clipping diodes so it's obviously a Tubescreamer rip off!".  The Timmy being a prime example of this poorly judged internet expertise where if you take such a black and white view of circuits the everything would be a Tubescreamer, Rat or Fuzz Face etc. rip off.  In that sense I do understand why some may feel "Judge my circuit on sound rather than appearance." and be tempted to employ goop.  If Paul Cochrane had gooped the Timmy and no-one had ever looked underneath you wouldn't have people accusing him of making just another Tubescreamer which anyone who actually tried it would know it is not.

No, if you can see the circuit it then becomes easy for people with actual knowledge to show that it isn't. Covering it doesn't help anyone.

In fact it's something akin to a Tube Screamer clipping circuit with Rat filtering, but is not a direct copy of either.

I'm still curious to know whether the Timmy or the Zendrive came first though, because the circuits are so nearly identical apart from the clipping components I find it hard to believe it's a coincidence.

(Assuming the reverse-engineered circuits available on the net are correct, which I don't have any reason to doubt.)