To be fair, from the response I got which I posted above, initial customers are not being ignored. You can install the new noise reduction system on it if you wish to pay for it, which is fair enough. And there's nothing wrong with them bringing out new product. I'm quite happy with the situation...just wish I had held on a bit as I'd probably have gone for the one with the built-in phono stage.
You are so right on the MSRP jump, and I agree 100% that some manufacturers do this. I have long thought PS Audio should immediately STOP their 10-30 or so percent safety net "disguised" as a trade, which I believe harms their product values in the long run. While it is true they can recoup "some" of this money by selling or having someone sell these used pieces, it does NOT help the perception of their products. It clearly shows their products should not be valued at their normal retail prices, but rather their discounted prices. Additionally, when Polk runs what they call a Family & Friends sale once or twice a year, offering a big discount on their products, several things happen. If people learn they can purchase a piece normally listed at $6,000.00 for $4,200.00, it's not long before the general public just completely stops buying that product unless they can get that substantial discount. IMO, a manufacturer should NEVER offer these schemes to unload stock. These discounts from the manufacturer destroy the used market and does nothing but make existing customers angry. Polk's 40-60% or more, once a year discount of their speakers clearly devalues their products. The end user will always think twice about ever buying a product from a company that routinely offers huge discounts on their products once or twice each year. It should be evident to any manufacturer that their actions will cause the general public to wait until these give away deals are offered before buying any of their products. This needs to STOP. I am in no way saying the end user does not desire a great discount on what we purchase, but what I am saying is that this discount should NEVER come from the manufacturer of the product, the discount should be negotiated between the audio dealer and the end user, quietly, which will maintain the public value of the equipment in question. Everyone knows there are substantial markups on audio equipment, and discounts are given by many dealers, but those price reductions are offered on a one on one basis through negotiations between the dealer and buyer only. One company I have always admired for keeping the value of their products at a very high level is Wilson Audio. You won't see any Family & Friends discounts or huge trade in values guaranteed by Wilson Audio! How about Audio Note, has anyone seen them devalue their products with once a year discounting, I don't think so. I really believe this type of manufacturer discounting of their products will quickly lead to the perception their products are really not wort much at all, as the end user will know that at any given time the product they paid full list price for can be dumped at 30-67% off by the manufacturer, devaluing their used equipment to virtually nothing.
Just decided to return my Sugarcube SC-1 to MusicDirect to get a refund and order an SC-2 . This is probably what I should have done in the first place but I kept telling myself that I could just continue to do my vinyl ripping manually and not need the single button auto ripping feature. Well, after working on a couple vinyl rips this week I've changed my mind. It's too much time and too much work to clean up, split, and tag tracks for each LP. I just hope the summer launch of the non beta software comes to pass and in the meantime I'll still have the pop and click removal to enjoy. I thought about just getting the new SC-1 plus with digital out but it's only $500 more to get the SC-2 and be done with it. Thank goodness I had an extra used car to sell to pay for all this. What a crazy hobby. Wish me luck.
They did a 'live' rip and the database found it, and put in track markers. I was the only one in the room for a good 30 minutes and we were really putting it through its paces. I don't believe they were using an unreleased version of the software to do this?
I'm just hoping the auto-splitting and tagging are finally implemented sometime soon but at least I'll have the SC-2 when it is. I'm also excited that they seem to now be working with Discogs to expand their tagging database and that should be fantastic.
The video said summer, after they sold through the existing stock...although I don’t know who’d buy an SC-1 now that there is a $500 cheaper model in a smaller box that does the exact same processing coming out.
Basically, all manufacturers have “Friends & Family” discounts offered to members of the industry and the press. Typically, the products are sold a few points above cost, and at a level about the same as wholesale dealer cost.
They are in the Osborne Syndrome and that is a horrendously bad idea. Having announced the new version, they should cut the price of the existing one to $500 below the new one, and move 'em out, seed their market, get some publicity, and get back to business. How many of the completed old ones would they have in stock to sell right now? 10? 20? 50? 100? (Plus any make-good rebates to dealers who may have it in stock, such as possibly m.d.)
I agree. I’m really not sure about this company. They seem to have a nice product here, but their business sense just seems woefully inept. The first go-round they announced the products and prices at trade shows, and then jacked everything up about $500-$1000 when it was finally ready for release. They only have 1 dealer (MusicDirect), which seems like another blunder as well. For a company that’s trying to get it’s legs, they certainly seem to be kneecapping themselves.
I tried doing some recording a few weeks ago, not complete albums, just isolated tracks from a Ludwig LZII that I’d promised to upload. After doing everything the way I thought I was supposed to, I wound up with nothing on my flash drive. Can’t say why, but can say that I have WiFi issues and it’s highly possible that controlling the process through the phone app was the letdown during the final processing. Next time I plan on using the web interface on my laptop. In other news I recently purchased the Parks Audio Puffin phono stage and DSP. It certainly lived up to the hype, a terrific sounding unit with loads of flexibility for the user to get the sound they want. Now of course the Puffin like the SC-1 or SC-2 is doing AD/DA conversions. So what happens when using both the Puffin and SC-2? Great sounding music with no pops or clicks. Yes folks, introducing a double dose of digital into my analog chain only resulted in my hearing excellent sonics (I can hear the hordes who think this statement is insane feinting away now . But seriously, it was quite something to confirm with my own ears that this combo only enhanced my enjoyment of music and in no way sounded off or digital. Both devices use good DACs and fine software to get the job very well done. I also tried out the Puffin with some CDs. There it had some positive effect, but in my case the Rega Apollo offers great sound quality all by itself and the Puffin’s tweaks weren’t as a big a bonus as they are with vinyl. There’s a whole thread on the Puffin, so that’s all I’ll say about it here.
You are right on target with your comments, Music Direct will give you everything the hen lays but the egg! If the company is anxious to get product in the field quickly, Music Direct is not a very good choice, I so agree.
What most are waiting for, the SC-2 with internal phono stage. Spoke to Dan, it's in the works, no time given! Let's wait, what do you think?
I would think anyone with the budget for the SC-2 already has a phono stage (and one that would be superior to what would be added internally to the SC-2) so I would think this would only add unnecessary cost to the product.
I thought the same thing, however, I just sold my Parasound JC-3+, so depending on what's under the hood, a one box solution might be the ticket. If the new SC-2 with phono stage was on the same par as the JC-3+, that would be a nice purchase, however, it could be like the phono stage in a $200.00 receiver, who knows at this point. Will they put an ultimate phono stage in the new product or something mediocre, that is the question. Might be waiting a long time to figure that one out.
I'm reminded this week just how lamentable the instructions for the SC1 are. I've got a new mobile phone and cannot for the life of me get the app to pair with it. So I open the app. I click "WiFi set-up". I press the awkward little button on the back of the device for 5 seconds and get a message on the SC1 saying "WiFi set-up sugarcube_1244" Back in the app I get some technical message about "fetching connected WiFi access points" but there's no button to press to pair or anything. So I just switch every thing off and try again and fail again. Can anyone explain in plain English how to complete what should be the most basic of tasks!
Try the opposite, first. Press that button on the SC1 and then connect WiFi. See if it makes a difference.
Thanks but no such luck. I'll probably just give up with it. I've said it before but for such an expensive device the instructions are little short of disgraceful.
I've lived with the unit for a while now, and there's an added side bonus - it lets me know, once and for all, which albums are just not worth keeping any longer. When the clicks and pops are removed and all you hear is the wear, it makes a difference. Getting a tidy little stack of trades together.
