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Re: The Three-Ring Circus, a.k.a "Gibson"



At 11:12 PM -0800 12/28/98, Tiktok Mobile HQ wrote:
>
>I read the interview, and my first thought was that he's unaware that the
>Echoplex exists.

I guess it seems that way in the interview, but Henry would clearly be
responsible for the move to another division. Since Electar seems to be a
division they want to focus on, I read the echoplex switch as Henry
recognizing that as the only successful product in the old Oberheim line.
He's keeping that for a more prominent division, and tossing out all the
other Oberheim junk that never sold well.

>Gibson has been in a state of confusion for longer than
>I can remember.  I bought my first Echoplex two years ago, and I've held
>off on getting the LED display fixed (one of the elements in the
>loop-time counter went out early on) due to the numerous re-org's, office
>relocations, and horror stories about sending in units and not seeing
>them back for three months while no-one returns your phone calls.

like I said, that's ancient history. You really ought to give them a call.

>In the
>meantime, Gibson keeps buying up smaller companies and raising the prices
>on their thirty-year old designs, which still have less-than perfect
>finishes while listing for $3000+.

And yet they still sell every one they make, and when they raise the
prices, the sales go up! Rough business, huh? It's like the wine industry.
Or Harley. I find it pretty funny the way some guitar players get worked
into a lather over this. It's usually the same guys who would defend to the
death any other big corporation's right to make a buck, but as soon as it's
their treasured guitar maker, the rules change. Those guitars are status
toys for rich guys, who lap them up like there's no tomorrow. If you're not
one of them, well, that's why there's hondas, gallo, and epiphone.

>I'd have to say that if they're going
>to rename the Echoplex, I'd suspect another impending long delay for new
>units, service, etc. Ah...life in the soap opera of the looping
>underworld continues business-as-usual.

no need to be so cynical. I think the transition is largely complete
already, with no serious bumps expected. It seems to me that they've made
it ok. Nobody's said anything here anyway, and you guys usually scream
about everything, so it must be safe! :-)   But ya know, you could always
call them yourself and see how it's going.

kim

______________________________________________________________________
Kim Flint                   | Looper's Delight
kflint@annihilist.com       | http://www.annihilist.com/loop/loop.html
http://www.annihilist.com/  | Loopers-Delight-request@annihilist.com