Icarium Posted December 9, 2008 Report Posted December 9, 2008 I don't remember seeing it. Towert's posts asking for pics are still present though.
tyrion Posted December 9, 2008 Report Posted December 9, 2008 Did I post on HF that Tom should put up some pics or am I nuts? I just looked and the post isn't there. Nuts.
Voltron Posted December 9, 2008 Report Posted December 9, 2008 Nuts. Were you the commanding general for the 101st Airborne during the Battle of the Bulge? I think Aaron moderated my ass in the HF thread.
tyrion Posted December 9, 2008 Report Posted December 9, 2008 Were you the commanding general for the 101st Airborne during the Battle of the Bulge? I think Aaron moderated my ass in the HF thread. A great movie. I didn't see any deleted posts.
blubliss Posted December 10, 2008 Report Posted December 10, 2008 That is seriously fucked up. I other SP news, a little bird told me that there are at least 13 broken SP amps out there of all types in need of repair and they won't send them to Mikhail. It seems that somebody could make a nice living cleaning up Mikhail's crap. I guess Mikhail may not learn until he fails completely. If my amps go bad, I was thinking of asking this guy to take a look: Guitar Amplifier Repair Los Angeles , Tube Amp Repair and Custom at Tubesville by Blackie Pagano Did anybody hear this duality amp at the NY Int'l Meet in 2006 or meet this guy Blackie? He is 15 minutes away from me.
n_maher Posted December 10, 2008 Author Report Posted December 10, 2008 Did anybody hear this duality amp at the NY Int'l Meet in 2006 or meet this guy Blackie? He is 15 minutes away from me. I've never met the man but I did get to hear the amp. It was one table over from me and it is both a work of art and sounds amazing as well. If I had the cash Blackie would be on the short list of people I'd consider commissioning for a build.
guzziguy Posted December 10, 2008 Report Posted December 10, 2008 I've met the man and I got to hear the amp. It was one table over from me and it is both a work of art and sounds amazing as well. If he would do it, Nate would be on the short list of people I'd consider commissioning for a build. FIFM
jp11801 Posted December 10, 2008 Report Posted December 10, 2008 did I misunderstand Towert's post or is he calling out Tom on his claim of a fucked up amp?
n_maher Posted December 10, 2008 Author Report Posted December 10, 2008 I think Towert is honestly just curious, he's not the type to call someone out in my experience.
Voltron Posted December 10, 2008 Report Posted December 10, 2008 I understand him to have the same question I do, which is why not post some pics after making those claims? He said he was skeptical but that isn't exactly calling him out.
jp11801 Posted December 10, 2008 Report Posted December 10, 2008 I understand him to have the same question I do, which is why not post some pics after making those claims? He said he was skeptical but that isn't exactly calling him out. the morbid curiosity in me wants to see the amp but I have no doubt the amp is fucked up as Tom has not made off base claims in the past and has supported SP during his wait.
purk Posted December 10, 2008 Report Posted December 10, 2008 I understand him to have the same question I do, which is why not post some pics after making those claims? He said he was skeptical but that isn't exactly calling him out. I believe Tom is trying to get Mikhail to issue him a full refund. I'm not sure whether he is going to post the picture of the PSU or not, but Tom will drop by my place this weekend to borrow my Sony SCD-1 to test the functionality of the Meastro XLR preamp/headphone amp.
spritzer Posted December 10, 2008 Report Posted December 10, 2008 I guess Mikhail may not learn until he fails completely. If my amps go bad, I was thinking of asking this guy to take a look: Guitar Amplifier Repair Los Angeles , Tube Amp Repair and Custom at Tubesville by Blackie Pagano Did anybody hear this duality amp at the NY Int'l Meet in 2006 or meet this guy Blackie? He is 15 minutes away from me. Asking him to take a look wouldn't be a bad idea. All the SP designs are out there so the schematics are easy enough to come by if he doesn't know them already.
purk Posted December 10, 2008 Report Posted December 10, 2008 I guess Mikhail may not learn until he fails completely. If my amps go bad, I was thinking of asking this guy to take a look: Guitar Amplifier Repair Los Angeles , Tube Amp Repair and Custom at Tubesville by Blackie Pagano Did anybody hear this duality amp at the NY Int'l Meet in 2006 or meet this guy Blackie? He is 15 minutes away from me. Andy, I had a local master repair tech who is very experienced with repair of tube amps to look at my SDS when it stopped working early this year. The problem was with a bad diode near the PSU and the cost of repair was $45 and it was done within one hour. I would not send the amp back to Mikhail unless you exhaust all the local repair possibilities. Mikhail refunded the cost repair to me afterward.
Icarium Posted December 10, 2008 Report Posted December 10, 2008 After hearing Tom's experience I will have to quit being a fool and look in my amp after I get it back. As I should have done when I got it and before I sent it out.
socrates63 Posted December 10, 2008 Report Posted December 10, 2008 I other SP news, a little bird told me that there are at least 13 broken SP amps out there of all types in need of repair and they won't send them to Mikhail. It seems that somebody could make a nice living cleaning up Mikhail's crap. When my SP amp first arrived, the second input was dead, but I had read about delays so I didn't send it back. bhjazz was kind enough to open it up, fix the issue and clean up the innards. I think he took some pics but I don't have them. In any case, it's too bad about what's going on with SP.
spritzer Posted December 10, 2008 Report Posted December 10, 2008 When my SP amp first arrived, the second input was dead, but I had read about delays so I didn't send it back. bhjazz was kind enough to open it up, fix the issue and clean up the innards. I think he took some pics but I don't have them. In any case, it's too bad about what's going on with SP. It is indeed sad and he's been asked time and time again to clean up his act but he never listens. He's also found the common weakness of all audiophiles and exploited it mercilessly i.e. a lot of upgrades promising better performance and charging a bundle for them. I couldn't care less about Mikhail but I do feel bad for the customers as their amps might become worthless (or very worth very little) on the used market. They could be fixed though and converted into something much better but it will require a lot of work and even more money.
luvdunhill Posted December 11, 2008 Report Posted December 11, 2008 well said Voltron. Where is Singlepower? Where is Mikhail? - Page 78 - Head-Fi: Covering Headphones, Earphones and Portable Audio
Voltron Posted December 11, 2008 Report Posted December 11, 2008 well said Voltron. Where is Singlepower? Where is Mikhail? - Page 78 - Head-Fi: Covering Headphones, Earphones and Portable Audio I sent my apologies to Mike but it was too ridiculous to let that combo of posts sitting there. I am not defending Mikhail but this "last straw" business concerning Tom's amp that we have never seen and don't know if it is completely functional, etc., is made all the more ridiculous by Tom's post tonight that Mikhail and he have spoken and emailed and Mikhail is going to make it all better. Believe when you see it, but the idea that Mikhail intentionally fucked him was stupid in my book and the thought that he is engaged in criminal activity is not only legally wrong but also childish. I couldn't care less about Mikhail but I do feel bad for the customers as their amps might become worthless (or very worth very little) on the used market. They could be fixed though and converted into something much better but it will require a lot of work and even more money. Just as soon as you've heard your first SinglePower amp this statement about converting them into something better might have at least a shred of credibility. Why do you insist on making statements about something you don't know about? The supposed list of non-functional SP amps or the schematics simply do not give you a basis to make such judgments in my book.
purk Posted December 11, 2008 Report Posted December 11, 2008 I sent my apologies to Mike but it was too ridiculous to let that combo of posts sitting there. I am not defending Mikhail but this "last straw" business concerning Tom's amp that we have never seen and don't know if it is completely functional, etc., is made all the more ridiculous by Tom's post tonight that Mikhail and he have spoken and emailed and Mikhail is going to make it all better. Believe when you see it, but the idea that Mikhail intentionally fucked him was stupid in my book and the thought that he is engaged in criminal activity is not only legally wrong but also childish. Just as soon as you've heard your first SinglePower amp this statement about converting them into something better might have at least a shred of credibility. Why do you insist on making statements about something you don't know about? The supposed list of non-functional SP amps or the schematics simply do not give you a basis to make such judgments in my book. I have been spoken to Tom and as far I know his amp turned on. He, however, still have way of testing out the amp (broken phono stage, and no CD player). I will loan him my Sony SCD-1 during this weekend so he can check it out. I have to admit that it was very bad of Mikhail to send that PSU to Tom, but Mikhail intends to make it up to tom by building him a new SS psu. Again, we will never know until Tom gets his new SS PSU.
foo_me Posted December 11, 2008 Report Posted December 11, 2008 For the most part, I've stayed neutral on topics like this and believe in the feedback system taking its course...but at this point, it seems overwhelmingly that that feedback paints a picture of Mikhail as someone who has willfully lied to his customers, may have done some malicious acts (pending further info in Tom's case), and acted extremely unethical (regarding adding features to Dan's stuff without his stuff and charging for them). It appears to me that Mikhail holds his customer's amps hostage. If you're a customer and he treats you like crap, which he apparently has done over and over again, you seemingly have no recourse but to eat it. I can't believe that he can according to Dan, add features that he explicitly did not agree to and then charge for them!?!? How can that be condoned. If anyone did that besides Mikhail or some other vendors who have a long history at head-fi, would that at all be acceptable? I imagine they would be easily/quickly banned. I haven't also commented since I have no skin in the game as I have sold my SS amp a while ago. Moreover, I've always had friendly conversations with him both over the phone and at meets, but this is truly a case where actions speak louder than words and I think he really needs to be held accountable for his actions and not merely what he continues to say and promise...it's absurd to me to think that anyone who is a nice guy can do what he has continously done over the past year(s).
Icarium Posted December 11, 2008 Report Posted December 11, 2008 Well to clarify I am reasonably sure the 1750 doesn't include the battery upgrade thing. He said something like he might be able to include it but he isn't sure. I don't know. I'm not particularly interested. I've never been super interested in battery type things since replacing it is a hassle esp if I have to go through him. 1750 I guess isn't a totally ridiculous number if he really had to replace all the transformers and a multitude of other things + upgrades and labor... given the original cost to the amp. I dunno. It is just more than I expected and hoped... and it's a lot to swallow without something in my hands and no idea when I will have something in my hands. I also worry that I may not get what was promised or paid for. It is perfectly believable that a guy that's as on the edge as he seems to be these days to cut corners esp with me breathing down his neck... but I hope that won't be the case. That's why I'm trying to stick with the... "Take extra time if you need it, but deliver something I genuinely will be satisfied with and meet the deadline you give me." and why I tacked on an extra week to the latest deadline he's given me. I don't want to be yet another dude who has guilt tripped him into giving me free upgrades/work, although I would not say that it is a wrong thing to do esp when you get the olde extra year tacked onto turn around time + the freaky getting back different amps thing. I do want to compensate him fairly for his time and parts, but it's tough to judge what that is. More so without seeing a before and after or really anything at all. Of course that is partially on me.
Beefy Posted December 11, 2008 Report Posted December 11, 2008 1750 I guess isn't a totally ridiculous number if he really had to replace all the transformers and a multitude of other things + upgrades and labor... given the original cost to the amp. I would love to know why he had to replace all of the transformers anyway
purk Posted December 11, 2008 Report Posted December 11, 2008 I would love to know why he had to replace all of the transformers anyway I had my doubt when I had Mikhail upgraded my SDS, but I confirmed all the parts when I openned up the amp for inspection.
foo_me Posted December 11, 2008 Report Posted December 11, 2008 Dan...I understand you want to be fair, but from what I'm reading, I don't think he's being fair with you....but I understand you have to be practical and deal with him... hmmm....I could be sympathetic a few months ago when there were alot of people waiting and giving him the benefit of the doubt...who knows, he might turn the corner...but it's been a while and he continues to do the same things...maybe in Tom's case, getting a little worse. Just seems to be a little too much. When you talk to Mikhail, he is a rational, reasonable person is he not? I have never had a discussion with him and thought he was dumb or unaware in any way. Yet, how could he continue to do what he does and not be aware of its impact to the customers? I can't think of anything except he knows what he's doing... Given that, I really can't have any sympathy. Should it really be that hard to get an honest answer? Who in the entire world would know when an amp will be ready to ship if not the builder himself. I don't think that's in any way unreasonable or extraordinary...it should in fact be a given that he deals in an honest and fair way...especially given that he knows how passionate people are about their gear.
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