[RAZRr1275]

I  have carpet on the floor of my M11 room. I have asked kingwa if he'd be willing to let me return my M11 for a full refund. I love it, but I'm just not finding myself able to trust it.

 

[bimmer100]

So Kingwa did admit to this as a possibility? static causing anomalous response to volume control unit?
Out of curiosity, do you have carpet in the M11 room?  I have wooden flooring.

I have carpet in our listening room. But our amps/dacs are all on bamboo custom cut chopping blocks, and have been since new. Cheap 30-40dollar 17x17 block.

 

[RAZRr1275]

Well bad news. Kingwa is troubleshooting with me again and his bet is that it's either static or ir interference and considering what's been brought up so far it seems like the former. Working out of he'll let me return my unit since this seems like a risky proposition since there doesn't seem to be a real fix.

 

[johnzz4]

So Kingwa did admit to this as a possibility? static causing anomalous response to volume control unit?
Out of curiosity, do you have carpet in the M11 room?  I have wooden flooring.

Area rug, velour couch and fleece blankets. Come to think of it, I could probably power a small city. I feel like of I keep the humidity up, static doesn't seem to be a problem so much.

 

[nassq8]

Shame if that happened to others and keep coming; it is really a scary ordeal and indeed unfortunate. M11 + HE1000 takes my listening pleasure to an uncharted territory as far as I’m concerned. Hope things are sorted out for the affected one, and that Mr. Kingwa provides preventive measures to the existing customers in hope reducing the chances for such instances to happen. 

 

[rigo]

Maybe someone with expertise can summarize best ways to avoid static? Or are there so many variables that it's too difficult to try?

 

[RAZRr1275]

Maybe someone with expertise can summarize best ways to avoid static? Or are there so many variables that it's too difficult to try?

Far from an expert but I looked static issues up on head-fi and people where throwing things all over the place. Carpet, chairs, clothing etc. Personally my solution is seeming like moving on to something less risky despite wanting to keep the M11

 

[PeterCraig]

I'd like to throw my 2 cents in here as I was an owner of the Ref 5.32 and now have the Master 7 and I had three issues along the way that made me feel I had a defective unit.  In each case I emailed back and forth with Kingwa multiple time, he was extremely patient, and he kept suggesting things that may be issues with my setup rather then the gear.  I also had some stress with the return policy and shipping costs.
 
The language and cultural barrier did make the communication a bit more stressful then with local dealers.  But I think in Kingwa's defense he was being very diplomatic and perhaps too patient and didn't want to push the problem towards me as hard as he perhaps should of.  As it turned out, each of my issues was user inflicted, was a setup issue or other hardware problem, and things worked themselves out.  
 
Every situation and problem is different, and I can empathize with anyone having an issue with an expensive piece of gear that they just want to enjoy.  Sometimes there is a real defect that needs some attention from the manufacturer and a return is warranted.  But Kingwa is very confident about his equipment and I'm glad he held me off from returning my dacs as today I am a very satisfied customer.  One thought that always allowed me to keep a cool(ish) head is that I turned to Audio-gd to save some money and get some world-class audio gear at the same time.  So I had to accept a little more stress then if I had of gone to a local store.
 
Anyway, hope things work out in this example.  I'm pretty sure you will be happy one way or the other when all the dust settles.

 

[RAZRr1275]

  I'd like to throw my 2 cents in here as I was an owner of the Ref 5.32 and now have the Master 7 and I had three issues along the way that made me feel I had a defective unit.  In each case I emailed back and forth with Kingwa multiple time, he was extremely patient, and he kept suggesting things that may be issues with my setup rather then the gear.  I also had some stress with the return policy and shipping costs.
 
The language and cultural barrier did make the communication a bit more stressful then with local dealers.  But I think in Kingwa's defense he was being very diplomatic and perhaps too patient and didn't want to push the problem towards me as hard as he perhaps should of.  As it turned out, each of my issues was user inflicted, was a setup issue or other hardware problem, and things worked themselves out.  
 
Every situation and problem is different, and I can empathize with anyone having an issue with an expensive piece of gear that they just want to enjoy.  Sometimes there is a real defect that needs some attention from the manufacturer and a return is warranted.  But Kingwa is very confident about his equipment and I'm glad he held me off from returning my dacs as today I am a very satisfied customer.  One thought that always allowed me to keep a cool(ish) head is that I turned to Audio-gd to save some money and get some world-class audio gear at the same time.  So I had to accept a little more stress then if I had of gone to a local store.
 
Anyway, hope things work out in this example.  I'm pretty sure you will be happy one way or the other when all the dust settles.

I haven't really had the same experience. The static and vol one likely isn't user error since there's not really anything anyone can do to fix or case it since no one can replicate it on command. I've made up my mind that if he gives me the chance I'll return it. I've moved on. Going to use the funds on a Yggy 

 

[swannie007]

  I haven't really had the same experience. The static and vol one likely isn't user error since there's not really anything anyone can do to fix or case it since no one can replicate it on command. I've made up my mind that if he gives me the chance I'll return it. I've moved on. Going to use the funds on a Yggy 

Hopefully he will do a refund for you as this sounds like the sort of aggravation we use our hobby to escape from! Good luck and keep us posted on further developments. Cheers from Oz.

 

[RAZRr1275]

Hopefully he will do a refund for you as this sounds like the sort of aggravation we use our hobby to escape from! Good luck and keep us posted on further developments. Cheers from Oz.

He will but hes holding to not covering shipping if he finds nothing wrong so worst case im out of 400 and just get 1600 of the 2000 i paid. I only get all of my money back if he finds something wrong.

 

[Sivert]

I hope the issues with the volume spikes get resolved. I was considering buying a Master11 but ended up buying the DAC-19 (which I love)  to use with my LC. One of the reasons why I ended with the DAC-19 was the volume spike issue. I know it is very rare, but that is something I am not willing to risk. In my case it is not about dealing with the warranty or who pays for shipping, but simply the risk to my headphones and hearing.
 
I will probably do some upgrading later in the year and I hope I can consider the Master11 at that time. From my experience with the DAC-19 and everyone's  feedback of the Master11's sound I am sure it would be a worthy upgrade.

 

[swannie007]

He will but hes holding to not covering shipping if he finds nothing wrong so worst case im out of 400 and just get 1600 of the 2000 i paid. I only get all of my money back if he finds something wrong.

Seems a shame that you should suffer financially, and not an insignificant amount, due to a flaw in product design. No matter how you slice it, this is a design flaw. We all live with static electricity every day of our lives, there is no way to avoid it totally whilst leading a normal life.
I find it incongruous that one would have to adjust your life style/patterns to accomodate a piece of audio equipment that should be a compliment to your life, not an accomodation. Numerous other manufacturers can design equipment that takes this factor into account, why can't Audio GD? I am the first to admit that I have occasionally been zapped by static electricity discharge on a piece of gear  but it has been on very few occasions and my equipment has not freaked out and hurt my ears. This stuff happens every day and good designers/engineers take this into account when designing and building audio gear. I know there will probably be an avalanche of posts with people defending the manufacturer, blah, blah ,blah. Don't want to hear it, this is bad design and we should not just accept it because it only happens occasionally and may never happen to me. Tell that to your car dealer when he tries to sell you a car without windscreen wipers because you live in the driest county in the state and it hardly ever rains there! We need to stop making excuses for unacceptable manufacturing practices and vote with our feet. Spend your dollars elsewhere. I know that I would not use a piece of gear if I were running the risk of ear damage when using it.
I would do my best to return it and get my money back. Good luck to you RAZRr1275, I hope this gets resolved to your satisfaction. Cheers.    

 

[RAZRr1275]

I hope the issues with the volume spikes get resolved. I was considering buying a Master11 but ended up buying the DAC-19 (which I love)  to use with my LC. One of the reasons why I ended with the DAC-19 was the volume spike issue. I know it is very rare, but that is something I am not willing to risk. In my case it is not about dealing with the warranty or who pays for shipping, but simply the risk to my headphones and hearing.

I will probably do some upgrading later in the year and I hope I can consider the Master11 at that time. From my experience with the DAC-19 and everyone's  feedback of the Master11's sound I am sure it would be a worthy upgrade.

Im trying to get kingwa to take at least half of shipping costs so he can review the unit and see if he can do something about it but I just think it to be absurd if he doesnt acknowledge the design flaw and puts me out of 400. He needs to see a unit but the cost of someone gettting him one is so high

 

[Khragon]

He will but hes holding to not covering shipping if he finds nothing wrong so worst case im out of 400 and just get 1600 of the 2000 i paid. I only get all of my money back if he finds something wrong.

Why would it cost $400 for one way shipping?  Either way I recommend just return it.  I am going to hope that Kingwa is an honest person that won't hold you responsible for any shipping cost if he did indeed identify the problem.  I also hope that he will issue a recall and give all current owner any fix that is needed.  Like everyone is saying static is something that a good designer needs to handle and design their gear to protect against it.