Maurice, since this is the only thread you have ever posted to on FM i can understand your passion and zeal for resolution.
i'm sure you also understand that differences of opinion about character and business models are some of the most difficult differences top overcome. in this context, DoogieH's plea for patience is probably the best final word. i have enough gear to have all the fun i can conjure til Einstein ships weather thats March April May or June as long as the delivered product is sound. if you know of any other monolight that meets or exceeds Einstein for $439 or less please share that with us. otherwise relax and enjoy the fact that you are living at a time that does offer such amazing tools at such affordable prices.
photomarvin wrote:
I would like to add that I think the responsible way to react to this situation would be to do everything in one's power to get a working product out the door as promised and spend much less time on online forums defending one's ego. This is after all about Paul Buff brand lights not Paul Buff. As stated before this is not the kind of company I would like to continue doing business with. Customers need to come before ego.
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You won't do business with this company? Then why are you posting on this thread. I don't think Pauls ego is the problem.
This and a few other posters seem to delight in baiting Paul. The obvious question is why do it? I guess it's a form of anarchy.
Like a days production, a months worth ? 3,000 days ?
AB.
3000 is probably about a month or so if we press the robotic assembler - we have a lot of pull with them. We're scrambling for parts but believe we have them all. Just placed purchase orders for 5000.
As for ego and "I wouldn't buy from Buff" - I really don't care. I believe my ego, whatever amount I might project, is well earned. Let me add some ego here: In 1985 I brought the cost of pro lighting down by 50% and the precision and usability up by 100%.A Bowens 800B (300WS) at that time was about the only game in town, was bigger than a breadbox, cost $1300 and didn't compare the the $599 Ultra 1200 (600WS). Photogenic was the first copy cat 2 years later. Most everything on the market is a knockoff of the Ultra in some form. In 2001 I brought the price down to $225 to $359 with AlienBees and brought pro lighting into the range of 300,000 new generation shooters.
I really don't know or care what was going on in Europe during this time . . . I remember MultiBlitz and Balcar monos came in during the 80s and that , Hensel and Visatec and Elinchrom monolights were designed to compete, after the fact, with WL Ultra. You tell me when Profoto came into the monolight biz. Now the D Lites and all the Chinese lights are designed to compete with AB. Bowens and Balcar are about the only companies I know off that deserve much credit for monolight history innovation and advancement.
What are they all going to do about Einstein and Cyber Commander?
Now the Buff haters can really have some ego to talk about . . . all they do is push more users my way. You get bullet proof when you get attacked all the time. Life is tough at the top.
What I care about are my customers, my employees and whatever contributions I can and have made to the industry. By the way, I am considered in many pro audio circles as the father of the modern multi track computer controlled recording studio - at least a member of about three companies that did this. Ray Dolby presented me a lifetime fellowship in the Audio Engineering Society in the 70's. Brag brag - bitch bitch
Someone want to give me the history of price and performance for the Euro monolight industry if I'm wrong about something here?
BRYAN - I posted because I was originally very interested in this product. My studio uses a lot of Paul Buff stuff and thought this would be a much better product for our needs.
I personally don't like the way this whole thing has been handled...guess what that is for me to decide and I have. I take no delight in 'baiting' Paul as you described it. I just think it's absurd that we are discussing a thread titled Einsteins 640...Dec? and it's March 8th.
I do hope these lights are the killer product we are told they are. But, my money is going elsewhere.
Paul - I'm really happy for your past achievements. Not sure what bearing that has on the current conversation though.
Nice post Paul. For everyone else, you can't ignore the truth behind what he just laid out in his post. The man deserves respect even if he has hit a bump in the road. If you can't seem to wait for the product, then so be it but he still deserves respect for what he has done.
I ran across what I thought was a deal on some Profoto stuff and it got me excited on the inside. Everyone always raves about it for their favorite reasons but after having it for awhile I quickly found out this doesn't fit me. The prices are absurd! A new flash tube is a how much!? Then my pack went down...Crap! I know I hit a streak of bad luck but man. You don't get nickel and dimed with profoto. When you lose a flashtube, it is nearly like buying a new light! That is insane. I guess what I am saying is we should all be grateful for what Paul has done for us. The einstein is real. I have seen it with my own eyes at PPA in Nashville and yes, I even touched it. Without someone like him helping out with prices, we would all be shooting natural light and not by choice.
shaunmlavery - really? You are that much of a fanboy? I mean yes Paul had done some great things in the PAST. That has nothing to do with the discussion at hand.
A prototype of the Einstein is real...sure, great...so where is the real thing?
photomarvin wrote:
I do hope these lights are the killer product we are told they are. But, my money is going elsewhere.
Towards what competing product? It's a real question. I don't see anything else on the horizon with the Einstein's range of features in a monolight or near this price point.
E-Vener - I've decided to invest in Profoto. I had been looking at Elichrom, but decided I liked the Profoto system as a whole. 3 months ago I was seriously considering the Einstein though.
And kept thinking one of these days it will be here and I can at least give them a try.
