MOTM

Uh, wrong.  I have had a problem with a synthesizer toggle switch, not the
mechanism, but the cheap threads being stripped.  To protect the guilty, I
won't name the synth manufacturer, just say it is one you're intimately
familiar with.  This was recognized as obsolete switches at a synth meet and
I got replacements.

I quizzed Paul on several pertinent engineering design questions before
making selection for MOTM as my primary system in 2000.  He passed with
flying colors.  As I have a BSEE and 20 years of hardware design experience
including a year at Kurzweil (worked alongside Hal Chamberlin and Bob
Chidlaw, among others), I feel that I'm fairly well qualified to judge the
designs in the field.

Since 2001 I have bought PC boards, modules or units from CGS, Oakley,
Encore, Blacet, Wiard, Serge and Synthesizers.com.  Out of those, I have
noticed manufacturing or design issues with four of these sources.  Again, I
won't name names, but among the issues were PC board plated through holes
that were misdrilled causing an eventual failure, loose conductive metal
shavings within a module, knob inset falling off a cheap knob, and 16 Volt
rated Electrolytics for decoupling on 15 Volt DC power, ignoring good
derating practices.

Paul's module line is not over-engineered, it is engineered to work and to
last, based upon his many years of analog hardware engineering experience. 

John Loffink
The Microtonal Synthesis Web Site
http://www.microtonal-synthesis.com
The Wavemakers Synthesizer Web Site
http://www.wavemakers-synth.com


> -----Original Message-----
> From: konkuro [mailto:konkuro@...]
> 
> I generally do NOT like the MOTM format (The Black Sea), and I think
> Paul's mania for certain switches and jacks has more to do with
> marketing than functionality. Seriously, how many people have ever
> had problems with a toggle switch?!  In my 50 years on the planet,
> I've never had even the cheapest toggle switch cause problems. As for
> jacks, well, just about any *panel jack* is going to provide decades
> of use.
>