If anything can be learned from this story, it's that people can easily be manipulated into jumping to false conclusions.
+1
If anything can be learned from this story, it's that people can easily be manipulated into jumping to false conclusions.
Lesson?
The OP has a hearing aid, suffers from Tinnitus and failed to get his WA speakers properly installed.
I think he's just snakebit.
Obviosuly a bad experience on all sides. Bad Luck for all. SIHT happens.
The Polish dude needs to step in here ASAP and correct the situation. And explain in this thread how he has corrected this situation for Mad Floyd. It's not worth it over a few grand. If he doesn't, he's hosed. Right now the words "Made in Poland" do not have an assuring ring to them.
The Polish Lampizator dude is a hard working entrepreneur that needs to step up here. He has come way too far. But he needs to understand that running a company with a trusted brand is more than having a handful guys rave about your sound. The 3-5 vocal guys on the Internet who are currently raving about the Lampizator are gear swappers. They will be on to the next dac hot in the next few months. Yet, if not corrected, the stain on his reputation will not go away easy. From a customer service, the trial period needs to be extended to 30 days, and start only when there are no issues with the product. He should learn customer service skills from Roger Sanders who wants and asks for his gear back if the customer is not happy.
Good Luck to all parties here
One of the few times I agree with you.
On a different slant, many if not most of our dearest manufacturers would not have survived the hypercritical mentality brought upon us by the Internet. it would be wise for the folks at Lampi to bring a resolution to this (IMO) rather benign) issue.
I however continue to believe this should have been dealt offline ...
Completely agree.
Oh, hang on .....
If anything can be learned from this story, its not to deal with garage operations with dubious ethics. And I'm only 14 posts into this thread. Can't see what else happens. But when 2 posts out of 14 describe gear that arrived defective, you gotta be nuts to deal with this company. No technology changes faster than DAC technology. Believe me, in 6 months there will be another DAC of the month and it will probably be cheaper by far. (Better to save up and by the new Nagra DAC? At least you can be assured that will work out of the box!))
You can hear stories like this from every single manufacturer. I don't feel this has any relevance or bearing on this distributor, especially seeing the comments from the OP when he received the unit.
Absolutely, Frantz. As should have been the Magico Q7 / Roysen debacle from a few years ago. I'm assuming that Mad Floyd has tried to communicate with the party, but got nowhere.
In other cases that we don't hear about, things probably got resolved over good tequila (or drink of choice), and thus built up trust and good will.
It's true that I've had a tube fail. One of the 101d's that Fred sent me failed. It didn't explode, it stopped working and the glass is blackened.
That settles it for me, regarding my comment about "special circumstances" and a "blown tube". Therefore, my friendly advice to the distributor still stands. Hope you get your money back.
You made yourself very clear that you do not like tube. Why do you bother trying this DAC in the first place? Who said 101D is the most neutral tube? Have you done any research on the tube? Every tube will give different sound. Tube gear is never neutral.
You guys are so lucky on this side of the world that dealers/disturbors offer home audition. In other parts of the world, home trial/audition is an unheard thing. One can only hear in dealer's sound room. That's why one tend to do a lot of research before going to dealers.
Just caught up with this thread. I initially thought it would be better if I refrained from posting because I knew I would just sound defensive and my entire approach was to let others decide for themselves if the situation was fair or not. Then I realized I don't have such a thick skin. Before I posted, I shared the email exchange with some friends to see if it was just me being irrationally upset. They encouraged me to go public if I felt there was no other recourse. I was so shocked that a dealer would want me to be stuck with a unit that I didn't want and I've never experience the 'tough luck' & quoting of a company policy that he didn't mention originally.
In hindsight, I agree that this was in bad taste and regardless of what animosity I feel towards Fred. I am often too 'righteous' for my own good.
My main beef (right or wrong) was that I purchased something without realizing I purchased it. In all my history of auditioning a piece of gear I have always had a discussion at the end of the review period with the dealer. Sometimes I have paid up front, sometimes not, but I've never had a dealer not be clear (or perhaps courteous) when an audition was graduating into a purchase. I didn't have a problem with the length of the audition; it seemed fair to me. My issue is that I didn't think the clock was ticking. I didn't know about a 'strict 7 day policy' and that I was already given a trial period that exceeded it. I've never read a company policy for returns because I've never returned an item that I've (knowingly purchased). In this case it was more frustrating given that I didn't start listening to the DAC until a week later. Why? Because I did enough research going into this that I was pretty sure I wouldn't like this DAC with any tubes but the 101d's. I don't like a tube sound. I can't stand coloration. I only became truly interested when some people told me that there was a good chance I would like it with 101d's. When I finally got the DAC working with the tubes they sent me, it WAS during the first week. After assuming that they were 101ds and using them on the wrong setting, I learned that they weren't. I mistakenly wrote 2A3s but they were actually 6A3s (one was an RCA, one was a Sylvania). I didn't like them and asked Fred to provide the 101ds that we agreed upon and stopped listening to the unit until the tubes arrived (a week from the date I initially received the DAC).
Btw, I did try to learn the height of the DAC before it arrived. The response I got from Lukasz was something to the effect of 4" plus the height of the tubes. And yes, when it arrived it didn't fit in my rack and I was disappointed. My rack has adjustable shelves but normally has to be laid on its side to adjust it (which means removing all the gear), but I did it. In fact, I did this while I was waiting for the 101ds (I'm basically saying here that my reason for wanting to return it has nothing to do with its height).
It's true that I've had a tube fail. One of the 101d's that Fred sent me failed. It didn't explode, it stopped working and the glass is blackened. This happened this past Monday morning. Earlier, Fred had offered to lend me his more expensive 101d's (which was very nice of him) but suggested I wait until the unit was more broken in. So on the Monday morning when the tube failed I wrote him the email that you've read.
So now I have a DAC that has something loose inside it, blew a fuse initially for some reason and may or may not have caused a tube to blow. I'm not sure I want to put the other tubes I've purchased in it because I worried that this may happen again. I can't sell this thing in good conscience without divulging this. I'm not going to use it either so it's a real shame. Somebody who likes the sound of this thing should have it.
Anyways, I regret this thread and while I stand by my position (right or wrong) I apologize to the community and Lampizator for all the ruckus. While I cc'd Lukasz on my emails, he is on vacation and was unable to respond. I will appeal to him next week when he's back. Regardless I've learned a few lessons here (one being don't mess with the Lampi crowd! ) and I think it'll do me good to go and 'process' this for a while.
Fair enough Ian. From the listening sessions with others, it sounds like the B7 was a clear winner (despite its warts). Other than the "bass" what are your actual impressions? I would get it serviced and/or trade it in for a GG which is superb. Your dac fiddling will be over....
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