New shipments delayed??

It's been a long, long time now since I've seen any hint of anyone getting the OK to order, or actually getting a shipment.

More delays? Or is it just that no one happens to be posting (hard to believe that).

I want to wait for the 950, but it was supposed to be a birthday present from my wife -- and my birthday has long since past.

If the shipping schedule is going to be slipped, that's fine -- I just would like to know. The last order notices I've seen posted were for people that reserved in mid January -- and that shipping schedule showed sending notices to everyone that reserved in APRIL in the next couple of weeks!

I reserved in early February. however, I am just about to pull the trigger on a Rotel 1066 unless I hear something real soon.

Maybe they won't ship again until they fix the hiss problem?

At the HE show in NYC, the outlaw rep mentioned that they had a parts supply shortage for the 950 and will stop shipping product for 2 weeks.

Gabe

I read in a trade journal recently that some of the chip manufacturers had slowed production to make their quarterly report look better(?) and that manufacturers who used their chips had production backlogs because of it. Onkyo was named as one of the manufacturers affected.

From the reports of Gaber, maybe Outlaw is affected too.?

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Take Care,
merc

I got on the list on January 15th and haven't received "the email" yet. This doesn't jive with a recent update that stated that reservations taken in January would become orders by the end of May. There must be some slowdown there. No problem though, I'll wait

Cary

Thanks for the information being shared here. I've been waiting for this pre/pro since December last year but didn't place an order 'til Jan 28. Now, I decided to just put off the purchase since I will be spending most of my time outside the house anyway, like playing golf or working on the modification of my car at my garage. So for those who placed an order during February, here's another good news for you.

Maybe they just decided they only wanted to sell 500 of them; that 500 was enough of a production run to get their development costs back. *shrug*

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Matthew J. Hill
matt@idsi.net

So, within about two weeks after posting their shipping schedule, Outlaw is already 2 weeks behind schedule on 950 shipments. Nice of them to tell people -- especially all those people who thought they would have theirs by now, based upon Outlaw's shipping notice.

Except for a few people out there, about everyone on this forum supports Outlaw and what they are trying to do with products like the 950. I think many of us don't mind waiting as long as it takes but I really wish Outlaw would take more initiative in posting updates. The very few updates they do send out are very imformative but if there's a change in plans after that it takes forever for us to be updated, just let us know something!

It's seems pretty obvious that shipping has been halted for whatever reason, that's fine, just fill us in. From the beginning, in reading through the threads here I see Outlaw loosing more and more of their core supporters from lack of information rather than their confidence in the 950. I don't know why Outlaw has such a cavalier attitude towards keeping their supporters updated but here we are once again. C'mon guys, we are with you, just keep us updated!

Robertd


[This message has been edited by robertd (edited June 06, 2002).]

Yeah, I agree. Don't wanna sound like I'm complaining about the shipping delay -- I just would like to know what the deal is. Accurate information (even if it is more delays) makes it a whole lot easier to keep waiting than just sitting here wondering.

Lack of information in this case is much worse than bad news.

Any new shipments or emails lately? I'm thinking of contacting Outlaws since I'll be leaving for 10 days at the end of the week and would really hate to miss "the email". If they've held off for some reason then I'll sit tight and probably be ok leaving for awhile.

Cary

It's been more than 3 weeks now since I've seen any indication of anyone getting order e-mails, or getting a shipment.

Outlaw, what's going on?????

Maybe they're still fixing the hissssss. That's just speculation. Officially from Outlaw, there's nothing but silenssssss. When the Outlaws have more to say they'll tell us.


[This message has been edited by Will (edited June 11, 2002).]

I reserved my unit back on Feb 5th. Still nothing from the Outlaws...

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"Impossible is a word used far too often" - Seven of Nine

This is typical behavior from Outlaw. A 950 problem crops up that results in a delay, and nothing is heard from a company rep until customers get angry about the lack of information. I don't know about everyone else, but I certainly find it a lot easier to wait if I know WHY I'm waiting. 950 customers on the whole have been VERY patient with Outlaw about the delays. The least they could do is show a little respect for that patience by informing us about why, once again, the 950 isn't shipping. I'm just about ready to pull the trigger on a Rotel and be done with this crap.

I reserved on January 23. I have heard neither hide nor hair!

What happened to Outlaw's communicative style of customer relations? What happened to the monthly news updates?

Fixing production issues and bugs is necessary but you should never leave your customers completely in the dark.

I would liken the updates to walking into a restaurant and having someone acknowledge your presence, saying "I'll be right with you." I don't know about you, but I am probably willing to wait a little longer if someone lets me know that they are aware of my existence and that I will be helped next.

I am am becoming increasingly underwhelmed!

Outlaws, please let us know what is going on! You are jeopardizing your hard-earned customer goodwill! Nothing is more valuable than that!

[This message has been edited by santaclarajim (edited June 13, 2002).]

[This message has been edited by santaclarajim (edited June 13, 2002).]

Maybe some of you bunch should start telephoning. Could get you some answers quicker...

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Matthew J. Hill
matt@idsi.net

I did just call and spoke with Scott, who informed me that they will be getting more stock early next week. He said that shipments to customers "should" resume by the end of next week.

As for the suggestion to call, Outlaw should be proactive about this issue instead of reactive. They can easily use this forum to keep a large block of their 950 customers up to date on what's happening. After all, that's part of the reason for its existence. Waiting for upset people to call in about a delayed order is bad customer relations, plain and simple.


[This message has been edited by dpippel (edited June 13, 2002).]

From the last Outlaw mailing with the shipping estimates in it:




brianca.

Folks keep saying that Outlaw is doing a good job of keeping the posse informed. I have grown weary of the way I have been strung along. If someone says that I will get something on a certain day, I expect it. A month ago we got an email that stated Jan orders filled by the end of May and Feb and March orders by mid June. Neither deadline met. Question: Has Outlaw met a published date during the 950s introduction? Surely this astute group can find a published delivery date that was met. I can't find one.

Yet we support the delays and misinformation. I know I am gullible and a glutton for punishment, but this has gotten ridiculous.

I still do not think that Outlaw is that badly mismanaged. I think they really do not care about those on the list. Sorta like, "If you don't want to wait, fine, someone else will order".

I know I am venting again.

mjh

The people who own Outlaw have been in the audio business for years. They might know exactly what they're doing. The missed dates is a repeated pattern. Maybe accidental, certainly repeated.

I agree; this is way beyond accidental.

Even though I already have my 950, I'd still really like to know why they haven't been shipping any for the past three weeks, and I'd even more like to know why they've been so silent about it.

Seems VERY fishy to me. Don't know if I'd go so far as to say dishonest, but I'd certainly say inconsiderate.

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Matthew J. Hill
matt@idsi.net

I don't blame anyone for venting. I also own my 950 but I got that like 6 weeks ago. What is the deal? All I can say is I feel bad for those of you still waiting and I don't know if I could handle the teasing nature of how the 950 is being released. Just when you finally think you have it they yank it away. This has gotten strange.

I am on the waiting list too, and, like most of you, I feel extremely bad about the delivery uncertainty. People say Outlaw's service is excellent, but it is definitely NOT in this case. The May newsletter has not yet come out. I would like to suggest that Outlaw informs their customers what is going on even they have QC issues and they are working on them. We live in the reality and know there is no perfect world. People want some expectation instead of walking in the completely dark aisle. Put your customer first. Otherwise, your competitors will.

James

There's the key phrase right there...

"unanticipated issue"

Since shipments stopped pretty much immediately after that shipping update went out, this delay wasn't unanticipated for them...they just haven't bothered telling any of us about it.

There's another thread stating that the clones can't ship until Outlaw fills all pre-orders. Don't want to accuse Outlaw of this, but that sounds like an easy way for them to have 'delays', keep building pre-orders, and put off their competitors from being able to sell their own units.

Oh yeah.... I'm going out to listen to a 1066 today... I wouldn't mind waiting and waiting for a 950 if I had some (any) idea of when I might get one. With no news, it's gonna be a lot easier for me to pull the trigger on something else.

bigmac



Sounds like a pretty malevolent theory, since the first company to announce a clone was Atlantic Tech, a company that has long-standing ties to Outlaw. I don't know what the situation is with 950 shipments (haven't talked to any of the Outlaw crew in a while), but if there has been a decision to slow things down it was not done to zing some other companies at the expense of Outlaw and Outlaw's customers. Hopefully we'll hear more specifics soon...

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gonk -- Saloon Links | Pre/Pro Comparison Chart | 950 Review

Yo President Gonk,

What is your theory on the latest delivery scandal? Why do you think Outlaw stopped delivery at the same time they sent out an email promising delivery? Can't be a parts supply issue, could be trying to fix-a-hiss or could be something else.

I am at a loss as to what is going on.

In the immortal words of Michael Enoelroc (the Michael Corleone of the Backward Universe):

"Everytime I try to get in, Outlaw pulls me back out."

My sympathies to those on the eternal waiting list.

I'm not really sure what the story is. Aside from some off-topic discussion with Mike back in May I haven't talked to the Outlaws in a while. I would not be surprised at all if they stopped to check on (and try to resolve) the hiss / noise issue. The estimate of fulfilling orders did crop up around there, though, which I can't explain.

("President Gonk" reminded me of a former co-worker who once had a sign on his cube wall with the title "Project Engineer Of Note" after his name -- "P.E.O.N." I guess Friday is "random association day." )

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gonk -- Saloon Links | Pre/Pro Comparison Chart | 950 Review

Predictions:

Outlaw is fixing the problems.

When the problems are rectified, they will tell the world.

Expect to be excited about their silence.

The majority will be satisfied with the 950.

Those who purchase something else will regret not waiting, or at least will have haunting doubts about their decision to spend hundreds more.

I will get criticized for my predictions.

LQQK

I beg to differ. I reserved on Jan 16th, which means I'm probably at the top of the waiting list right now since the last known shipment was for somebody who reserved on the 14th.

But you know what, I'm actually thankful for the delays, because while I was waiting I heard more and more from people who had actually compared the 950 and the 1066 in their homes, and I came to the conclusion that the 1066 would be better suited to my needs. So I bought a 1066 and have no regrets at all. Meanwhile, if I hadn't gone with the 1066 I would still be waiting...

-- LQQK-radamus!



I would say that's a pretty reasonable prediction.



This one may be a stretch. As much as I have been extremely satisfied with my 950, I get the impression that the Rotel 1066 is a very worthy equal in general. I'd guess that most who chose to go with Rotel in lieu of the 950 will be fairly satisfied, even with the extra few hundred dollars on the pricetag. And anybody who steps up to something above a 1066 (AVM20, for example) will probably choose to do so more for the added tweakability and upgradeability than anything else.



LOL! Yeah, I'd expect a little of that, too...

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gonk -- Saloon Links | Pre/Pro Comparison Chart | 950 Review