Re: R: Looper development and production costs?

[Kim Flint <kflint@loopers-delight.com>]

At 12:29 PM 10/16/2001, Luigi Meloni wrote:
>Hey man, not to start a war here, but I think that we just didn't know 
>that
>Oberheim before and now GIBSON (one of the biggest companies in musical
>instrument making, a design team just to create new faux abalone inlays on
>guitar headstocks) couldn't afford just to think about using some 
>different
>fonts and some other colours for a pro machine like the echoplex.

again with the fonts. we did spend a lot of time on the font choice. where 
most other MI products use AutoCAD font, we spent the effort to use 
something different. As I noted before, we picked Eras. Why is that bad? 
Did a corrupted Eras font crash your hard disk when you were a little kid 
or what?

and the color is a classic in the industry. jeez, you guys need to have 
more respect for tradition.


>Not to
>talk about the fact that Gibson acquired the company with all the projects
>done (no Research and Development expenses here).

Really? So what was I was doing all those years I worked in a Gibson R&D 
lab? I guess I should have spent more time on the fonts!


>And, namely, the white
>colour all Oberheim instruments of the past few years are coloured Sucks. 
>It
>is not only the echoplex, but even the oberheim/viscount keyboards and
>multifx processors. Same colours, same fonts...

It's even used on classic Oberheim synths from decades ago!! holy crap!!!!


>Is the echoplex a great machine? YES!!!
>Do I love it? YES!!!

You like us!!!


>Damned, I ordered it from the US years ago (and in Italy it is difficult 
>to
>get one even now), just to have the pleasure to use it!
>Is it ugly in the colour and graphics? YES!!!

You don't like us!!!


>I don't think anybody in here has suggested to change the layout of the 
>pots
>and buttons and screen (except the Matthias Grob comment about the
>positioning of the leds under the buttons), all I heard about was about a
>change in colour and graphics.

ah, but they did! except now they have conveniently forgotten.


>And GIBSON DOESN'T have a TINY BUDGET, with

oh, you work in Gibson's accounting department? perhaps you could remind 
them that our royalties are almost past due. thanks!


>the price of one or two of their 'limited edition' or 'vintage reissue'
>guitars or basses they could pay all the graphics designers they want.

Or pay to develop more expensive guitars for the custom division that made 
that money in the first place. Or pay for a few cases of premium Tennessee 
bourbon and some nice cigars, and maybe a little left over to give a good 
tip at Hooters. I know, this corporate org thing is real confusing. You 
see, each division gets to be responsible for their own profits and loss. 
One division that makes money on something is not going to up and donate 
it 
to another division for some crazy new-fangled looper thing. They will put 
it back into their own product development. I know, it sounds crazy but 
its 
true!

kim


______________________________________________________________________
Kim Flint                     | Looper's Delight
kflint@loopers-delight.com    | http://www.loopers-delight.com