[RnB180]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mavis No doubt there are reasons, possibly even good ones. But five months, to repair an amp?

yea id be upset if I were in your shoes also. Good luck with your amp.

 

[jjcha]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hunter_Killer Fact is, theyre eletronics people. Not schedules people.

The moment Drew took money for the amp, he became a business person, which means schedules.

I'm very sympathetic to manufacturers and retailers, that they're just normal people doing the best they can. I have no doubt Drew is a good guy, but wow, five months is definitely not good at all.

Still, have faith, be patient and nag politely. I find, despite being an attorney, this approach results in better outcomes than being upset/threats/lawsuits, whatnot.

Best regards,

-Jason

 

[jsc3]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hunter_Killer Fact is, theyre eletronics people. Not schedules people.

Then he shouldn't be taking people's money and making promises he can't keep. I understand he is overwhelmed, etc. I read his letter on his site. I even sympathize with him, I've been overwhelmed at times too. But I don't think the original poster is wrong to be upset - five months is a LONG time for this.

 

[12796]

I have been waiting 4 months for an amp from Shellbrook.

On at least six occasions I have been told it has been dispatched but receive no reply when I ask for a tracking number. I have asked for a refund now - but no reply.

Nick.

 

[Thaddy]

Quote:

Originally Posted by biovizier I have been waiting 4 months for an amp from Shellbrook. On at least six occasions I have been told it has been dispatched but receive no reply when I ask for a tracking number. I have asked for a refund now - but no reply. Nick.

As another forum member mentioned...4-5 months is simply rediculous. Expecially someone who had already purchased an amp from you. It's hard to attract new customers, but it's even harder to keep current ones. It seems like this boils down to an issue of Drewd being unorganized. There had to have been a period in those 5 months when that amp just sat somewhere forgotten about. I'm just speculating though, as I have contacted Drewd a few times about amps, and always received prompt replies and excellent responses.

If I were in the soles of these Head-Fi'ers who start these threads thought, I'd be asking for a refund after a month. His amps are certainly not big and detailed enough to warrant that much build time, unless he is machining the cases from scratch

 

[n_maher]

If Drew's not responding to your emails, he's not getting them. I've never had it take longer than two days for him to respond to anything. Usually it's much faster. Try sending him a PM.

And this type of post is exactly why I only build 1 amp per month. The profit margin on these things is really small compared to the time committment required to build them right. I think that Drew had no idea (well, maybe just not a good idea) of how many orders he was going to get. And Headsave closing up shop definitely hasn't helped.

I'm not going to sit here and make excuses for Drew but he's posted a phone number on his site for contacting him. I'd suggest to those who are not getting responses via email or whatever that you take him up on his offer and call him.

Nate

 

[pietenkees]

im in the same situation as some other users here. Waiting for that stupid amp. Pm'ing via head-fi hasnt been working, sent him one 2 weeks ago and still he hasnt sent a reply. Im getting pretty tired of waiting by now

 

[12796]

Hi,

I emailed Drew and also PMed him here - no response. On half a dozen different occasions when he has responded he always says it has been dispatched that very day - but when i ask for a tracking number i again get no response ... until two weeks later when he says again that it has been dispatched that very day, and so on and so on. Clearly this is not just a matter of emails being lost. He said it was dispatched six times and it wasn't and clearly many others are getting the same response. Delays are one thing and lack of replies are another - but this on the face of it appears to be deception - possibly in a well meaning attempt to stall for time. I for one would appreciate another approach instead of this tactic of customer service.

Nick.

 

[12796]

I suspect that none of these emails are being "lost" - I think he is just snowed under and is doing his best to hang onto orders way past his capacity to deliver and has mistakenly taken a less than 100% honest approach to customer service. Actions speak louder than words. I was told two months ago it was being dispatched that day or had already been dispatched, and on many occasions since that time I have been told the same thing - at two week intervals. Each time with some excuse and another assurance it is already in the post. The bottom line is... this has been happening every couple of weeks for months and the amp is not here.

 

[Sovkiller]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bg4533 The delivery confirmation that cost .45 cents is not tracking. It only tells you when the item has been delivered. If the label was printed at a post office it will tell you when the package was accepted. If the label is printed online it will only say the post office is expecting the package. Nothing is updated until the package is delivered.

Exactly, but it does not seems to me a number that match the ones used for delivery confirmation that cost .45 cents....OTOH Global Express Mail is a service to ship outside the US, and wouldn't take it...So this one could be an Express Mail Service one, as he lives in Canada...Accordingot the USPS website:

Global Express Mail - The fast way to ship overseas and prices start at just $15.50.

And that service does offer a tracking number AFAIK....

 

[drewd]

Alas, here we go again. Exileru's amplifier has not been sitting around for five months. The amplifier that is on the way to him is the second amp that I've built - the first made it as far as Canadian customs and disappeared. As I said on the web site, I've been swamped like you can't believe with orders and that's made an absolute wreck of any scheduling that had planned on. Biovizer's amplifer is a case of disorganization and confusion. I've not seen a refund request, but I have not checked my PM's on HeadFi and he hasn't sent me any emails.

Other than a few special requests with very long lead times, I have taken no orders in most of February in order to clear things up. I've said it on the web page and now I'll say it here: I'm just one guy who has a very busy small business that I run in the evenings and weekends after my day job. Lest anybody think that I'm taking the money and running, let me be clear - I work 8 to 10 hours a day as an electrical engineer, then another six hours in the evening as an amplifier designer and builder. I'm not complaining - I enjoy the work and I don't want to end up folding up shop like Headsave because of the press of business.

Thaddy, you're right, there's nothing about any of my amplifier's that is so complex that they should take so long to assemble. But if you do the math, three to four amplifiers a day works out to 90 to 120 of them a month. I can't build them that fast. And that's where the problem started.

Here's how I see it - there are two ways to cut down on the number of amplifier orders that I receive. The first is to raise the price on the amplifiers until the order level tapers off to something manageable. The second is to put a hard limit on the number of orders that I take per day. The first method just doesn't seem fair to me. I don't make a lot of money from the amplifiers, but I don't do this to be wealthy. There's enough overpriced stuff out there and I'm not going to become part of that culture. So, I've taken the other road. Two amps a day - that's all that the web page will take, then it shuts off ordering.

Now, for folks who are still waiting, I'm working. Biovizer, I'm going to review my PMs and find you. Your case is a little unique and pretty stupid on my part - I'll definitely take the blame for that. Exileru, your amp shipped last week, just as we discussed. Alea35, your amplifier is shipping on Monday, along with the last of the backlogged amplifiers. Noname, ditto with your cable.

As the saying goes, I'm swimming as fast as I can.

-Drew

 

[12796]

Drewd,

Hi. I emailed you at shellbrook labs only a few days ago stating that if you did not provide me with a tracking number than I wanted a refund (as you previously stated that you disentangled me from the spam filters some months ago then I assumed they could not be responsible). I also copied this as a PM. Two weeks ago you assured me that all the issues were resolved and the amp had been dispatched... given that you have said the same thing half a dozen times since new year then I am sure you can understand my crisis of confidence in your assurances. I understand you are overloaded and are trying your best but I do require you to tell me exactly what is going on.

Nick.

 

[joe_dc]

I also am waiting for a MaxiMoy from Drew and I'm getting no e-mail response. I placed my order more than 1 month ago. Drew said it'd ship on 1/25. It is 2/24 and I still have nothing.

 

[pigmode]

Quote:

Originally Posted by joe_dc I also am waiting for a MaxiMoy from Drew and I'm getting no e-mail response. I placed my order more than 1 month ago. Drew said it'd ship on 1/25. It is 2/24 and I still have nothing.

Has it been paid for yet?

 

[earache]

Are these amps really so popular that there are 90 to 120 orders per month? There are many places to spend your money. There is absolutely no excuse for a 5 month delay. Good guy or not, if you can't take care of existing customers, stop taking any and all new orders. At this pace you are doing permanent harm to your companies reputation and your problems will soon take care of themselves.