What's With Shadow Hills

[gtole]

Hi All,
I've just recently placed an order for a Shadow Hills Quad Gama with Vintage King but I have been unable to get an answer to when it might be shipped. I have emailed and Called Shadow hills but still no answer. My concern is if this is what their customer service is like should I think about canceling my order. I love the pres. but in this business customer service is also important. Vintage king has been great but their hands are tied too. What happens if I need service on this piece of gear? Opinions?

Gary

[stryker]

Why don't you just have your salesman from vintage king ask Peter? I never had a problem talking with Peter and when I dont feel it's needed I just ask Darrin to do it and it's done. I have an answer within 24 hours I just bought a dual optograph, they told me 6 weeks, it was 7 but but they always were updating me on the status

[James Lugo]

Hey Gary what's Shadow Hills website I can't find it?

[gtole]

You must know The secret handshake because my guy at Vintage King can't get a hold of him and i have left messages on their(Shadow hills) answering machine and several emails.



http://www.shadowhillsindustries.com/contact.html

Originally Posted by stryker

Why don't you just have your salesman from vintage king ask Peter? I never had a problem talking with Peter and when I dont feel it's needed I just ask Darrin to do it and it's done. I have an answer within 24 hours I just bought a dual optograph, they told me 6 weeks, it was 7 but but they always were updating me on the status

[gtole]

Hey james,
See above for the website

Originally Posted by James 'LA' Lugo

Hey Gary what's Shadow Hills website I can't find it?

[gracesystem]

I agree with the lack of customer service on shadow hills' end. I have advised a studio on purchasing an 8 channel Gama, which ended up takng three months to get there, with one channel out completely, and a non functioning magic eye. To my knowledge it has still not been taken care of because of a lack of four months of down time at the studio to deal with the mail in repair. In the end, I am the one who looks bad because of this.

Even at AES this year I felt as if the head honcho from Shadowhills (the guy in swing dancing outfit) was too good to talk to anyone except industry names and hangers on. Pretty annoying. I was planning on buying one of their summing 2-bus models right there. Still on the fence.

Seems to me like its all based on politics. I know for a fact that secret handshakes exist in this industry. Its a shame but I guess thats life in the clicked out world of pro audio.

IMHO of course...

[gracesystem]

I just want to reiterate how much I LOVE Shadow Hills gear. That's where the source of all this frustration comes from. I'm sure people out there can relate.

Cheers all.

[stryker]

[QUOTE=gtole;3743517]You must know The secret handshake because my guy at Vintage King can't get a hold of him and i have left messages on their(Shadow hills) answering machine and several emails.

I guess, I do a lot of business with Darrin and if I say I need to get a hold of peter he just does it? I had a couple lights out and talked to peter and he sent me what I needed(like a half a circuit board for a light??!!) And up until recently I could just call peter and he would talk to me but I think he is over his head all of a sudden.
I am just a regular joe, but when I pay that kind of money for something I demand service and I am a little persistent and forward about making that happen.
It did take about 3 weeks to get a set of rack ears for a power supply but I called 2x's a week for 3 weeks and they get the point. F*** it. I payed, I have the right.

[gtole]

I totally agree. That's why i'm wondering if i should cancel and find something else that sounds good but I can at least get service when i need it.

[QUOTE=stryker;3743941]

Originally Posted by gtole

You must know The secret handshake because my guy at Vintage King can't get a hold of him and i have left messages on their(Shadow hills) answering machine and several emails.

I am just a regular joe, but when I pay that kind of money for something I demand service and I am a little persistent and forward about making that happen.
It did take about 3 weeks to get a set of rack ears for a power supply but I called 2x's a week for 3 weeks and they get the point. F*** it. I payed, I have the right.

[Empire Prod]

Honestly if it were me I would cancel the order. I don't care who you are, you have time to take a quick phone call, and if you don't, then you are not managing your business. If record execs and presidents and CEO's of major corps can take the time to return phone calls, so can owners of gear companies. To be frank, if they don't think their customers are important enough to at least answer and return phone calls, then they (no matter how good their product is) don't deserve customers. There is no excuse for the inexcusable.

[James Lugo]

I called SH's. maybe they will return my call or post, I told them about the post.

[Recycled_Brains]

I'd cancel for the reasons others have mentioned. Especially if it's a cornerstone piece of equipment that you NEED everyday that you go to work.

I've been fortunate enough to deal with exceptional CS from people like Oliver Archut, Dave Pearlman, Mike Demming at Charter Oak, Jon Ulrigg at Shinybox.... all awesome dudes, all answer the phones themselves, return emails promptly and voicemails promptly, handle repairs in a timely fashion, ship fast, etc.

That's how every type of customer service should be, not just audio gear.

At the very least, you should be getting updates on your order's status.

FWIW, I've never used any SH gear, but nowadays, I don't think you'd have too hard of a time finding a suitable replacement.

[TEMAS]

I had a problem with my GAMA 8 once - no power going to the unit. I called and left a message. Peter phoned me back within 12 hours, identified the problem (a screw had come loose on the mains cable) and was courteous enough to ask about me, even though I'd wasted his time.

He's running a small operation; you know that already. Some small outfits don't take calls at all and I don't blame them. There are a million reasons why he may not be able to get back to you immediately.

Shadow Hills gear is SO worth the wait.

BTW, anyone tried the new opto comps?

[whitepapagold]

Can you possibly imagine how much BS email and phone messages they get from people who really AREN'T going to buy the product... Or who have a problem cause they saw it on GS and its their first piece of gear?

The amount of people who know shadowhills VS the amount of people who buy and use it has to be a sizeable gap.

I like customer service too but these small boutique companies are just that- SMALL boutique companies.

That said, theres enough great gear out there where if you are waiting months to buy something- youve bought into the hype... I personally wouldn't wait months for something I bought just because of the internet and super bitchen packaging... Unless its custom, you are getting jerked around by the nature of the beast.

The only thing worth waiting for is mics- service and mods. And thats ONLY because there are so few good options. With preamps, comps and eqs- there a crapload of brilliance to choose from...

[dhiltonlittle]

just curious, when did you place the order? how long did VK tell you the wait was going to be when you ordered it? when did you email SH?

[stryker]

I understand both sides. My experience is different then everyone who feels shafted.
I own three pieces of SH gear and never waited longer then 6 or so weeks for any one item.
I have talked to peter on numerous occasions ( one time he even spent 30 min tracking down a prob in my equinox) . I think 6 weeks is about as long as I would ever wait and personally I don't even think the company should even remotely reveal they have a product for sale unless they are ready to sell it. Months on a waiting list is ******** but I suppose it helps a small boutique company like SH able to have funds to keep making gear and inventing for us until they are stable?
I do have to agree though, nothing is more sweet then good CS and I have actually bought gear on that premise alone

[sevendaysoff]

proud shadow hills user here. ive got some of his 500 comps coming too. i talked to peter acouple weeks ago. hes very busy with the opto500, tweaking to get it as close to the mastering comp opto section as possible.

this is boutique audio gear. Its a small operation creating the best build quality out there (imo) VK isnt shy about lead times w/ shadow hills so you should know what youre in for when you place your order. if you have a real concern talk to Jeff or Rebecca at VK and tell them to have peter contact you. If you've already purchased I can guarntee that VK will get Peter to contact you regarding your order.

[midnightsun]

I have a Gama 8 that I really like. I have had to talk with Peter for some minor issues one of which occasion was I needed a longer cable from my power supply to the preamps. A custom cable was made for me as no charge. I never had a problem getting ahold of the company. In terms of time, I would say that the company is operating off a different clock. Totally the opposite of fast. If a person needs a preamp "right now" SH is not the place to look. It a person needs a great, well crafted piece of gear that someone put their heart and soul into then consider SH.

ShadowHills creations are truly works of art made by a guy who apparently is not running in the fast lane. Unfortunately, some of the most talented, creative people are tardy more often but that doesn't mean they don't care or are indifferent. If anybody tires of his SH gear and wishes to sell it PM me-- I'm ready.

[hakanai]

have had my equinox for almost two years now and love it. when i met peter at AES NYC last year he immediately remembered my box. "oh yeah, yours was one of the last boxes out of the old shop" i was pretty impressed, just introducing myself and he knew who i was. after that i had called him once or twice for various little questions and he was always easy to get hold of. now i know my answered call doesn't change anything for someone else's unanswered call, but what i think all the positive responses are trying to get at is, don't misunderstand a good company's temporary growing pains as a shitty company's poor customer service.

[gtole]

Well lo and behold I received a call from Vintage King just now and guess what...That's right My Gama is on it's way.. Funny, coincidence or not?
Anyways doesn't matter now I can't wait to start putting it to good use. Thanks for all your replies. I never did get a phone call from shadow hills hmm. I hope I will never to bug Peter about repairs.
Thanks again guys

Gary

[whitepapagold]

Originally Posted by gtole

Funny, coincidence or not?

Considering this place has gone from a forum to a swap meet, its no coincidence.

At least its good to know the pimps and wh@res are reading these posts but its too bad you often need to go public to get proper service.

I will say Ive had good and bad experiences with VK. I bought an M300, that went well- except the part where they lied about shipping (but they redeemed that by overnighting it so I still got it in time). I tried to buy an ssl comp and after negotiating price and everything was told I would need to wait at least 6 weeks to get it so it could be serviced. Of course they waited till the end to mention that- literally the LAST thing mentioned... That was shady and 100% on purpose. Lead time should ALWAYS be one of the FIRST things mentioned... Unless they are ok with giving YOU gear and waiting 6 months for payment as well because your CD hasn't matured yet... Of course, no, the contrary isn't true ever, yet we are all willing to pay upfront???

So I would say between VK and Shadowhills, a bunch of waiting would not be a huge surprise...

At least now you are finally getting what you paid for and Im sure you will enjoy it so alls well that ends well I guess!

[Audio Hombre]

Originally Posted by gracesystem

I agree with the lack of customer service on shadow hills' end. I have advised a studio on purchasing an 8 channel Gama, which ended up takng three months to get there, with one channel out completely, and a non functioning magic eye. To my knowledge it has still not been taken care of because of a lack of four months of down time at the studio to deal with the mail in repair. In the end, I am the one who looks bad because of this.

Even at AES this year I felt as if the head honcho from Shadowhills (the guy in swing dancing outfit) was too good to talk to anyone except industry names and hangers on. Pretty annoying. I was planning on buying one of their summing 2-bus models right there. Still on the fence.

Seems to me like its all based on politics. I know for a fact that secret handshakes exist in this industry. Its a shame but I guess thats life in the clicked out world of pro audio.

IMHO of course...

well look at the brightside. they sure ain't the only game in town and you have a ton of equally as good options. i say sod em.

[Shadow Hills]

Hi Peter Reardon here. First off, I would like to apologize for missing anyone's phone messages. My email address is peter@shadowhillsindustries.com. This is the best way to contact me. I respond to e-mail messages the same day. If you call (512) 719-3161 during our business hours, 7am - 3pm Austin time, you can usually get someone on the phone directly. In the future, no phone messages will be missed. I apologize for the lapse.

Secondly, I assure you there is no Shadow Hills secret handshake. If there is one pertaining to our industry, I am not in possession of it. Our equipment however, is handmade. I hand engrave every front panel, and oversee the build of every piece. We are committed to craftsmanship.

Shadow Hills is dedicated to all of our customers, and to building the best equipment possible. We hope that our gear can play a role in your recordings. We appreciate your investment in our equipment and we will support you in any way that we can.

[Rep]

Originally Posted by Empire Prod

Honestly if it were me I would cancel the order. I don't care who you are, you have time to take a quick phone call, and if you don't, then you are not managing your business. If record execs and presidents and CEO's of major corps can take the time to return phone calls, so can owners of gear companies. To be frank, if they don't think their customers are important enough to at least answer and return phone calls, then they (no matter how good their product is) don't deserve customers. There is no excuse for the inexcusable.

Actually that happened to me Too ,
after may calls about the compressor and questions that never got responded to, or answered / return call
... i said Screw it to the whole product line

Originally Posted by Audio Hombre

well look at the brightside. they sure ain't the only game in town and you have a ton of equally as good options. i say sod em.

I agree, there are many great options for gear out there without the headache
of a manufacture that thinks the customers need to kiss up to them in order to get service
Don't waist time on manufactures like that

[ELI-173]

Saying that one has to kiss up to Peter to get service and that he has a God complex is simply untrue. It seems you had a negative experience and you drew certain conclusions and that is unfortunate.

I've dealt with Peter a lot. He is one of the most humble and friendly people I've dealt with in this industry. To say he has a God complex is insane. I can assure you that he does not.

The first time I dealt with Peter was when I bought a one off custom monitor section that he had built. I called him just to introduce myself and say 'hey I bought the monitor section you made for so and so" and he couldn't have been cooler. He offered to give it a tune up and listed some other features that I could add if I wanted to. I ended up having him re-build the whole thing and add many features. It was a real challenge to fit everything in the case and to get the parts to play nice, but he did it and did it really well.

That service is what led me to buy the mastering compressor and (2) mono gamas. He's always answered any questions that I have had, and even explained audio design concepts to me in great detail, something he certainly didn't have to do.

I know he's been insanely busy getting the new products finished and maybe he's dropped off the radar for a bit, but give the guy a break. He's making awesome products. It takes something like 120 hours to make a mastering compressor for example.


Anyhow, I hope anybody thinking about buying an SH piece will understand that there is a wait, and to consider waiting. You'll be happy that you did. Time flies. Seriously, wasn't I just in 4th grade listening to 'Shout' by Tears for Fears on my Sony sports walkman? Now it's 2009? Holy crap.

[raal]

spoke to peter for at least an hour once just shooting the shite and thinking out loud about what new SH products may be coming down the pike, what features i'd like to see, etc. and i only have two measly Gamas. he treated me like a rock star, what can i say?

definitely not your run of the mill pro audio company. nothin' but praise for SH here.

[alexkemp]

this thread is pretty well beat, but I'll add my own experience FWIW.

I own a shadow hills mastering comp (sn#43) and have had some problems with the lights and meters. Sonically, its been perfect, and I totally love it. It's had to go back to the shop two times, and each time I talked to Peter about it he's been very thoughtful and focused. Unfortunately, I still to this day have problems with led's and meters going out, turning back on, etc.

He offered to build me a new one, and I said that I would like that-- its important to me that the equipment work properly, top to bottom. So far I've emailed back and forth with my guy at VK several times, and sometimes I get some kind of an update (they're building a new run now, should be in soon etc), but no firm dates. The total amount of time that this has been an issue is a little over a year. So, I have to say that for the price of this piece, this level of service isn't quite on the level I'd expect.

That said, I think the picture is pretty clear: Peter's a mad genius and he has nothing but the best possible intentions, but he's obviously slammed. I hope Shadow Hills figures out a strategy for the long run, because the gear they make now will be classics, and the gear they'll make in the future will probably be inspiring.

EDIT:
I should add that I've emailed anamod and pete's place saying hi I want to buy your gear and gotten no response at all. Maybe this whole boutique audio thing is a 'buyer beware' kind of world.

[gtole]

Hi All,
I just wanted to update and apologize publicly to Peter for an negative comments this thread may have produced . That was not my intention!
I received my Gama yesterday and I'm thrilled, it looks and sounds wonderful.
Actual turnaround time was less than 2 weeks from purchase to delivery.
I also received 2 emails and 2 phone calls from Peter letting me know when It was coming. i spoke with Peter for a bit. He is very humble and sincere about his product and apologized for any miscommunication that may have happened. I can't speak highly enough of his professionalism. And i have no doubt his customer service will exceed his reputation.
Thank you Peter

And Happy holidays

PS: Any thoughts About An EQ?

[Kronos147]

Originally Posted by alexkemp

Maybe this whole boutique audio thing is a 'buyer beware' kind of world.

It is a lot different than going to GC for a Presonus, that is for sure. I have a lot of respect for the process of developing something from the ground up.

Good luck Mr. Reardon!

[alexkemp]

I was going to let this thread fade away, but since its back I'd like to point out that Peter called me himself to let me know again that he would be getting me a new SHMC from the latest batch, and that he'd be keeping in touch so I wasn't left in the dark.

I continue to have the utmost respect for Shadow Hills-- its products, its design, and its ethics. I'm sure that if they continue to grow-- as they should-- they'll have a bit more of a system in place to deal preemptively with customer service situations.

In Peter's case, I was able to talk to him several times when I first dealt with my issue, and except for when he was first moving the company to texas, he's pretty much been reachable. The head of the company (and designer) has been available for me to talk to -- I can't say that about most other brands! If that means the process is a little bit slower... I can deal with that.

Great work Peter, as always, and merry xmas everyone.