Paul - you do what you have to do to stay alive. We will be here to buy
your excellent designs provided the price makes sense. Yes I am
disappointed. Dang, I was really looking forward to the fixed filter bank.
And the cloud gen. But I understand how business works. You have to be
flexible. Price increases are understandable given the length of time from
the initial orders. And it's not like you took any of our money, so do what
you must.
So I'm curious, what % did RoHS play in your decision? It's definitely had
an effect on ∗my∗ hobby.
-George
----- Original Message -----
From: "Paul Schreiber" <synth1@...>
To: "MOTM litserv" <motm@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Saturday, June 17, 2006 12:42 PM
Subject: [motm] ∗∗Pre-orders are being purged∗∗ please read
> Existing "pre-orders" for the following:
>
> MOTM-520
> MOTM-450
> MOTM-600
>
> are being removed from the system. As you all know, these have been 'on
the
> books' for several years. The reality is, due to increases in component
cost,
> postage, labor and the RoHS laws I cannot ship these at the original
prices. FAQ
> below. In most cases, the credit card info has changed, people have moved,
etc.
> It's just too much to deal with.
>
> Q: Does this mean these projects are cancelled??!?
> A: No.
>
> Q: When will you have these ready to go?
> A: I have no idea. Circumstances have drastically changed over the last 18
> months.
>
> Q: What about the Cloud Generator?
> A: Front panels are in-house. I have bought tools both for myself and a
> consultant that has agreed to assist me. If things go well, I can have
> prototypes by Christmas (for people to test). This is assembled only (SMT
> technology). The new price will be under $500.
>
> Q: What abut the uSeq?
> A: I have many of the parts and the front panels in house. The CPU is
being
> changed from a 8-bit to a 32-bit ARM. This means a new software rewrite. I
can
> have hardware by the end of the year but software is an issue.
>
> Q: What about the fixed filter bank?
> A: The design is done, and 1 prototype exists. There were only 27
pre-orders. I
> am no longer convinced this is a viable business decision. I will revisit
the
> concept in the Spring of 2007. Price increases in the pots and knobs alone
will
> increase the price $75 over the original. The panel costs, at this low
volume
> will be higher.
>
> Q: What about other modules mentioned in the past: VC ADSR, the VC Pulse
> Divider, the Envelope Follower, the Triple Pre-Amp, etc?
> A: All of these are scheduled for production. I believe there is enough
interest
> to justify tooling them. The VC Divider will ship first, followed by the
VC
> ADSR.
>
> I'm sure there are folks that will be upset over this, but again: if you
want me
> to continue MOTM, I ∗HAVE TO MAKE MONEY∗. This is A HOBBY, I don't have 4
free
> employees, I'm not single living in my parent's basement, I'm not content
to do
> this for $4000/yr pre-tax profit. I ∗want∗ to keep going, but is has to be
on
> ∗my∗ terms (shrug).
>
> Paul S.