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Re: Gibson and Oberheim



Hi Kim,

In response to my message reporting the failure of an Email address at the
Oberheim web site, you wrote:

>It would be refreshing if people would try, say, picking up their 
>telephone
>and finding out what the actual story is before screaming unfounded rumors
>all over the net and wasting a lot of people's time....

You are probably right. It might have been better if I hadn't posted my
concern. I really don't want to belabor this. 

But...

I was not trying to add to some kind of conspiracy against Gibson/Oberheim.
My intent was to offer constructive criticism via this list, believing that
the folks from Gibson who monitor it would carry the word upstairs. It was
you and they who helped me to make up my mind to buy my Echoplex, so I know
that they're out there.

>I guess that's
>expecting a lot though.

Yup. It is expecting a lot.

In my original post, I stated that I have an Echoplex and I like it. But it
is hardly my place to make a long distance call on my nickel (their 800
numbers are US numbers, I think you said -- and there also can be
significant time involved with phone tag and all) so that Gibson can
improve relations with their dealers and customers.

>But we're not hearing reports of that, we're hearing rumors of that. When
>pressed, we discover that the rumored info is based on shaky inferences,
>unsubstantiated info from some other unverified source, or based on
>something that happened two years ago rather than any current situation.

I am definitely not "screaming unfounded rumors" based on two year old
information. Only a couple of months ago, I, myself, had problems finding a
shop in the US or Canada that would sell me an Oberheim Echoplex. I
reported that experience to this list. At the time, that seemed
appropriate. In fact, it was only after several of those kinds of reports
appeared, and via the list's "Group Buy", that I (along with several dozen
other list members) was actually able to acquire an Echoplex.

If there are misconceptions and rumors about Gibson's ability to deliver
Oberheim products, they are being spread by some reasonably reputable music
dealers. Those are the people that you and Gibson need to reassure -- not
the folks like me that are trying to buy Oberheim products from those 
dealers.

I know that you have a different view of the situation. It is probably
closer to the reality inside Gibson than mine is. However, you are hardly a
typical Gibson/Oberheim customer -- you worked on the Echoplex and know
people at Gibson on a personal basis. 

My perception is that of a prospective customer, and I was reporting this
because, from that point of view, Gibson has a bit of fence mending to do.

IMO, that means taking care of small things like an Email address that
fails. Because if they don't, folks like me will be led to believe that the
recent changes, rather than solving old problems, may have created some new
ones that will continue to get in the way of satisfactory service. 

>I guess we could inform
>them of the problem so that they might have the opportunity to fix it,
>although it seems unlikely that they will with the recent changes made to
>Oberheim.

Er...

My case rests.

Regards and best wishes,

Howard

==========================================================
Howard Harawitz      howard@brooknorth.com              
==========================================================
Brooklyn North Software Works Inc.
Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada 
Telephone: 1-902-423-0257
==========================================================
Check the Halifax Harbor Cam: http://www.brooknorth.com/camsite/