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post #91 of 100
6/28/04 at 7:38pm
Thread Starter 
Kevin, for all your supposed brillance,your lack of even basic social skills amazes me.

Ray Samuels is personal friend of mine and when you call him "sleazy" or imply that he may somehow be dishonest,you not only reflect poorly on yourself but you insult all the people who consider Ray a good friend,including myself. This probably does'nt make sense to you. I doubt that anything other that abstract acedemia makes real sense to you but in the real world,the one where folks actually pick up the phone and talk to one another,we don't fling insults at folks we don't know and have never met. Since I've actually met you, I can say that while none of this is really,truly suprising coming from you,I'm still shocked that you would say something like this about Ray Samuels.

You should know that Ray Samuels is an EE and has worked on various defense projects including most of the current military aircraft(F-22 Raptor,F-18 guidance systems,F-16 weapons systems) and all the space shuttles. This ain't rumor,it's fact. Ray's skill and talent are above reproach and anyone who does question this obviously has no idea what he's talking about. Ray is one of the kindest people I know and does'nt have a "sleazy" bone in his body.

It is not my place to defend Ray's gear,it speaks for itself,but when you insult one of my friends,we have a real problem.

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post #92 of 100
6/28/04 at 9:11pm
OK, pick another name, the result is the same. The act of painting over
the chips whether by Ray or anyone else is in my opinion less than
ethical. He is not the only company to do this. My opinion of the tactic
of painting over the chips remains the same. I've never talked to Ray.
Never met him, never anything. I have no malice towards him whatsoever.
Pictures of his tube products on his website show well designed and
built products complete with groundplanes, layouts designed for the
components inserted into them, coupling caps correctly mounted to
the board. You don't see any resistors or capacitors with paint on them
do you?

On the other hand as jude alluded to my opinion of the rudistor rp5
is completely different. Just plain sloppy work. I'm not saying anything
about the sound, but components stuck in the air that don't fit
into a hand layed out board with no ground plane and a cheap
volume pot with obvious noise problems and added heatsinks due
to extra heat not correctly calculated for, If this is the work of a
scientist, it is a very poor one. That coupled with specifications that
cannot possibly be for an ac coupled unit... The long term reliability
of this product is certainly called into question by the assembly methods.

Rudistor is not the only sloppy one out there either. I'm sure we all
know who i'm talking about. A very nice person since i have talked to
him a few times, but a slob nonetheless.
post #93 of 100
6/28/04 at 10:03pm
My what a sh*t storm this thread is turning out to be.

How is sanding and painting the chips in any way, shape, or form unethical?

I have never heard anyone complain about other manufacturers that use proprietary screws, sonically weld plastic cases shut, or various other means like "will void your warranty" stickers to prevent you from opening up their products, period.

For example Tri-wing screws and reverse torx are one of many used by video game console manufacturers in an attempt to prevent people from modding their products to allow the use of pirated software. These tools are easy to find, and get around, but you still viod your warranty either way.

They could probably care less about curious people, as if they muck it up, they are SOL as their warranty is null and void.

So perhaps everyone should be thankful that Ray actually does allow and even encourage people to open up his products and "peek under the hood." If he doesn't want us to know exactly what parts are made by whom, then that is his choice.

I understand and supremely respect that you, Dr. Gilmore, are almost completely open source about your designs. But everyone has a right to protect their intellectual property to one degree or another.

After all, in the end, there is a way around everything, but I'd rather spend my time subjectively figuring out what it sounds like, rather than taking it apart trying to figure out how it was made. But that's just me.

-Ed
post #94 of 100
6/28/04 at 10:09pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by kevin gilmore
Rudistor is not the only sloppy one out there either. I'm sure we all
know who i'm talking about. A very nice person since i have talked to
him a few times, but a slob nonetheless.

I am certain you are talking about the Egmont Electrostatic Amplifier and I can attest to the fact that it has a rather questionable build quality. The resistors are not inserted into the holes (even though the holes are there) and the pots are not the highest quality.

The Rudistor also has a pot which is not high-end but it wouldnt take me more than 15 minutes to put an Alps pot or a goldpoint SA into the amp. All the components in the Rudistor are on a PCB inserted and soldered to perfection. Nothing is UP IN THE AIR unless you are talking about the ground and I am sure there is a ground plane because he uses it in all his designs (including the Egmont).

But they both sound better than anything I have otherwise heard so it doesnt matter to me. If it looks and feels like a vintage marantz or sony but sounds like a boombox I really couldnt care about them.

But Ray has a design and he thinks it is worth protecting from the numerous CLONE designers out there. I dont see why he should not do so. Because you have an X-Ray bleh! doesnt mean every clone freak out there does and this could stop them or at least delay them from wrecking his market share.

Everybody else reading KG's posts please remember that although he is quite brilliant with his designs and very open about his work...and although he encourages people to try out his designs DIY style...KG often fails to communicate in a way we consider "polite" and "proper" and therefore comes across as arrogant and spiteful. I am sure he is neither and text and words on a public forums are hardly the best way to make a judgement on character. I have had some rather harsh exchanges with the man in the past but I have since "removed" whatever opinions I had. Why? I looked at all the designs he has thrown open and I thought about the future designs he could bring out. Few people have done quite as much and therefore I must ask you all to tolerate his textual excesses on the forums
post #95 of 100
6/28/04 at 10:37pm
Quote:
.KG often fails to communicate in a way we consider "polite" and "proper" and therefore comes across as arrogant and spiteful.
I think you've nailed it.
post #96 of 100
6/28/04 at 11:00pm
I believe that its Ray's careful selection of particular components that make his products so good. I have personally talked to him about this. We have all heard of system synergy, why would it be any different for the individual components inside the box?

What if someone found a way to make a beautiful sounding amp from $5 worth of parts, but it took him/her a thousand hours to find the right combination of parts to make it sound a certain way. The time spent is a direct cost and that person has every right to protect their design. That's not unethical. What would be unethical is to do something like list certain parts then install something else and remove the label so no one could tell. What is so hard here people - you don't have to buy it. Ray is not selling water to people dying in the desert, he is selling an amp. If you don't like what it costs, do without.

Honestly, the kind of stuff I've read her makes me want to turn my back on this forum.
post #97 of 100
6/28/04 at 11:20pm
Quote:
Originally Posted by kevin gilmore
Rudistor is not the only sloppy one out there either. I'm sure we all
know who i'm talking about. A very nice person since i have talked to
him a few times, but a slob nonetheless.
If you are referring to Ray/Mikhail or Meier then you really should shut up and concentrate on your designs. You are better with the electrical/electronic side of things. Leave the PR and communication to an assistant or just avoid posting.

Good grief! Just when I thought I could afford to tolerate your crap


You have great suggestions but I am SURE your suggestions can be made in private to the amplifier designers and builders themselves. I am sure they will appreciate a phone call from you telling them that a,b,c can be changed and improved in this...this way...with such and such components using blah blah methods.

Why not direct your criticism in a constructive way instead of slandering someone elses products and reputation. Are you aware that this sort of posting can be treated as slander and do you know that you can be taken to court over what you said?

If I collect all your posts I can arm a lawyer with enough information to make you poorer by a significant margin.

Be aware and beware of what your tongue and keyboard can get you into
post #98 of 100
6/29/04 at 12:03am
Jesus. I don't know Ray Samuels or Kevin Gilmore, but I do know when people are being patronizing and cruel.
Jude responded to an person's opinion (which I admit is more than a little slanderous) in a very logical fashion, and most everyone else slams the person (attributing it to social skills, **** even I know that's not cool to talk about in public unless the man is president!). You guys should be ashamed of yourselves, because I know that you know better and you've proven it on other threads. I thought the whole Lindrone review thread was becoming questionable, but this stuff makes me sick.
Usually writing things in a different color does not make them any less condescending. Let people judge others on their own, lest you be judged yourself. Perhaps pictures of drunk dogs would work a little better.
I can't wait to get my SR-71!!!! I could care less about what's in it... if I did, I would have kept the XP-7.
post #99 of 100
6/29/04 at 12:06am
Did you just reply in two completely opposite ways to the exact same paragraph?

I'd like to make two points -- it's libel, not slander (slander is verbal). I would also advise against threatening legal action against someone with a great deal of money and experience dealing with much more fearsome legal departments than yours. Anyway, dealing with a lawyer would be up to Rudi, Ray, and Mikhail -- not you, as you couldn't claim to have suffered by Kevin's posts. (In any case, I suspect that all of the posts in question are legally defensible as a valid opinion based on the facts at hand, if presented in a very un-diplomatic and antagonistic manner.)
post #100 of 100
6/29/04 at 12:11am
Thread Starter 
Quote:
Originally Posted by eric343
I think you've nailed it.
I've communicated with 10 year old children online(on MARINES family forums) that have better skills than KG does. His very obvious lack of tact and diplomacy does not excuse his frequent personal attacks. He could easily have said he did'nt think painting over the chips was a nice thing to do, or that it was'nt something he would have done. Instead, we have KG once again vividly demonstrating to us all how ignorant he really is.
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