I had a back and forth with Bob last night by email. There is no bad blood. He explained a few things - which seem plausible. I can't go into them for obvious reasons. He assures me they are completely separate (from TA) and he's going to be running his own cutter.
He did express interest for me to at least review their gear when the dust settles, and knows it will take a long time to build a brand again. I'll let others do the reviewing. At this stage I expect to have another 4-6 months, and then intend to jack it in (the reviewing). I could keep it up (I still get a lot of offers), but TBH I'm finding now that I'm close to my own personal end-game, I'd just like to listen to music more and write about the gear less.
Anyway (Bob if you are reading) - definitely no bad blood. I guess proof is in the delivery. If you can keep the delivery / payment promise that'll go a long way to restoring faith. For me personally - although I know I can keep the sample LZ Big Dipper I have, I'm arranging to buy it (as its a "keeper" for me - and likely to be one of my "end-games").
All I'd suggest is for people intending to deal with IMR:
- go into it with open eyes
- stick to 1 purchase at a time
- give Bob a chance to prove he's the real deal - and lets see what he can come up with
I won't be on board this one. Sticking with the Dipper.