Not pleased with Zed's (Stephen Mantz') service

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1moreamp
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Post by 1moreamp »

WoW ! I have been out of the loop, Vin you never mailed me any of this :?:

I seriously doubt that Mantz is running all of his show in a one man band scenario. He has a amp business to run, and support. The repairs were just to keep his shop people working I was lead to believe... Maybe his business is worse then openly is known. Times are tough as we all know...

but I will stand corrected until we see something new come out of this... I hope you can get those amps fixed Vin..LMK if I can be of help....C :)
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mhyde71
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Post by mhyde71 »

that said - no matter to me - you guys are great eric and cecile (in fact everyone save 1 or 2) But the point i am leading up to is that you and most have always been there for me with a response or two about a concern or issue i may have from time to time... i just hope and look forward to being able to return favor or whatever in near future...
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vin78
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Post by vin78 »

Eric:

Well to restate my point, I remember when you fixed my Outlaw. I remember when you "jammed to nine inch nails" a all night on that amp...yeah i havent been here long lately, but I do remember things like that.
That indicates to me that you made certain that it was working as PG intended before sending it back to me.

There is no way in hell that Stephen will do that.....besides, I take it that Stephen is a fan of NIN :lol: :lol: :lol:
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mhyde71
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Post by mhyde71 »

if it were me vin, in your shoes... i'd speak to an attorney. about that whole shipping fiasco, and treatment of amps. he may give two shits, but he also may see that you mean fucking business, and not to be reckoned with. It might be the simplest little phone call from an attorney that sets him off to do right by you... never know i guess, worst case your out 30 for an attorneys hour of time. but maybe even better by 3 or 4 fold. dunno
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tristan20
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Post by tristan20 »

OR send you one of those 6 channel amps hes making hehe :wink:
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Eric D
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Post by Eric D »

tristan20 wrote:OR send you one of those 6 channel amps hes making hehe :wink:
This is the best idea, then I will buy it off him for $25. I need a boat anchor for my canoe and a ZED crap 6-channel would work well while probably not digging too deep into the sediment…
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mhyde71
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Post by mhyde71 »

Eric D wrote:
tristan20 wrote:OR send you one of those 6 channel amps hes making hehe :wink:
This is the best idea, then I will buy it off him for $25. I need a boat anchor for my canoe and a ZED crap 6-channel would work well while probably not digging too deep into the sediment…
now that's funny! :lol: :lol: that's funny!
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1moreamp
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Post by 1moreamp »

I got test gear out the ass, and I know how to use it to get the job done. And I know ZED has pro test gear at there disposal. If ZED is not using there gear, then I pity even there name sake amps product QC .. Sad ,, very Sad...

I also posted earlier in another thread that people don't talk about the testing involved behind this business. IF I ever charged for the time involved to verify and re-certify my repair work, no one could afford the cost of the repair.
ALL amp makers run this cost overhead gauntlet. JL just drops a "B" stock amp back in the mail most of the time and calls it repaired. Their "B" stock was re-manufactured overseas at a very LOW cost, so long term testing is financially feasible.

As I have said on many occasions, "The time involved to take apart and reassemble and then test is 90% of the repair time" The repairs are usually no brainer stuff a soldering student could perform. Its the careful attention and incite to details that matter, especially on PG products.

And yes you must completely repair the amp to one's best ability. I only stop when PG can not supply what I need I.E. case parts and the like, the rest I can build or buy for myself on the open market. Or I just do not charge for what work I have done.
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vin78
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Post by vin78 »

Eric D wrote:
tristan20 wrote:OR send you one of those 6 channel amps hes making hehe :wink:
This is the best idea, then I will buy it off him for $25. I need a boat anchor for my canoe and a ZED crap 6-channel would work well while probably not digging too deep into the sediment…
No need for the Zed 6 ch. Even with this bad taste in my mouth, I would not have bought it because I learned that its full Class D :roll: :roll: :roll: Way to go Stephen!
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vin78
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Post by vin78 »

1moreamp wrote:WoW ! I have been out of the loop, Vin you never mailed me any of this :?:

Sorry C, I was waiting to see if Zed would resolve these issues. I didn't want to come to any conclusions as I felt that it could be just bad luck for me.

But with Wakeup's post with the link, he probably treats all of his clients amps in this manner...even with Zed made amps :shock:
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stipud
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Post by stipud »

I think the poor level of service and the brash lack of remorse shown by Stephen needs to be shared with others, so that they don't get burned like this as well. If we can save another classic amplifier, let alone a custom built personalized amp like yours, then I think we have done our part.

I have merged the two threads and deleted/split off the white noise so that we have one concise post regarding this incident.

If you guys would like to post a link to this thread on your other forums, you can use this link:
http://phoenixphorum.com/not-pleased-wi ... 10106.html

The more forums we can spread the word on, the better. Maybe then Stephen will pay attention to him, and do what is right. :evil:
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mhyde71
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Post by mhyde71 »

i'll be sure to also put it all of the wooden canoe forums we are familiar with at work. he he he.. hey never know.. (jk)
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Post by dedlyjedly »

The "ripoff" link Wakeup posted obviously took place on a public forum. In fact I remember reading it first-hand when it originally unfolded (on ECA if I recall correctly) and being shocked at how childish and unprofessional Mantz's responses were to those negative claims and accusations. Pointing out spelling and gramatical errors are certainly not the best approach at rebutal and lay an extremely weak foundation with which to support the rest of your argument. I understand that his livelihood is based largely on his reputation, but that certainly doesn't support or explain his actions in this public "discussion." In fact, in the eyes of the average consumer it confirms their rising suspicions about how this man conducts business. It literally makes me cringe as I read it and think about how much more damage he is causing in his misled attempts to minimize the blow back from those public accusations.
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Post by ebola »

Interesting... very interesting indeed.. :|
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vin78
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Post by vin78 »

Sorry about the bad pics. Bad lighting or bad focus, or both

Here's a closer look at Stephen's opamp

Image

Fixed

Image


I went ahead and replaced the rest...

Image
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vin78
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Post by vin78 »

Oh, on a side note. I just learned that when desoldering/reworking temperature control of the soldering iron is key (at least to me). I've been doing some homework and it appears that 370F is a good safe temperature for reworking...I may be wrong though.
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vin78
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Post by vin78 »

Anything else to replace while I have board out? Caps have been replaced
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mr tibbs
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Post by mr tibbs »

I would say anything that Zed touched. At this point I don't trust his ability at ANYTHING!!! :evil:
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Eric D
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Post by Eric D »

Since ZED touched the board, you may want to burn that board and get another, as it is clearly now contaminated...
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tristan20
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Post by tristan20 »

1moreamp
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Post by 1moreamp »

Hey guess who this is on flea-bay ????

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... 0395378765



Yes it is no other then Stve Mantz and ZED audio selling parts and service..

Go ahead have a field day with this one ... :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:
Stewart
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Post by Stewart »

Guys,
sorry to hear about this. Give us a call on Tuesday- maybe we can work out a deal to fix your amps. Just so you know, Roland still does repair work for us. Flat repair rates are still reasonable, so just give Jim Slusher a call and let's see if we can get your units broken connector fixed.

BTW, the power supplies in the amplifiers are more than adequate for the design (and the time they were built). We can certainly check these specific units to see if the power supplies need repair.

Best,
Stewart Millager
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stipud
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Post by stipud »

Cheers Stewart. :)

But I thought you guys sold off all your MS connectors? We haven't been able to buy any for awhile... v:?v
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vin78
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Post by vin78 »

Stewart wrote:Guys,
sorry to hear about this. Give us a call on Tuesday- maybe we can work out a deal to fix your amps. Just so you know, Roland still does repair work for us. Flat repair rates are still reasonable, so just give Jim Slusher a call and let's see if we can get your units broken connector fixed.

BTW, the power supplies in the amplifiers are more than adequate for the design (and the time they were built). We can certainly check these specific units to see if the power supplies need repair.

Best,
Stewart Millager
Thanks for the info Stewart, are the parts still available? I epoxied the terminals back together, but I would guess with all the torque applied when tightening and loosening the set screws will eventually cause the terminals to fail again.

I will call in on Monday, please let me know what Jim Slusher's ext is.
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vin78
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Post by vin78 »

Also, Stephen recently reimbursed me for the repair charges...I wonder how he knew I posted this since I never told him about the thread. :?:

Now the REALLY hard part is finding these parts, I hope Jim Slusher can help me out.

This thread can be deleted or locked if Tom chooses to.
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