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Happy Holidays all!
As the end of the year approaches and work continues on a few new amp models/revisions, along with the 2ch Integrated amplifier coming out as well, it's that time where I prod the community for some suggestions/input.
The big one that has always been brought up: new cases.
I have been exploring new cases that would be much like the one we plan on using for the Integrated Amp (which is similar in construction and looks to what other competitors use for their amps). However, after a lot of thought, I believe the best course of action at this time is to continue using the case manufacturer I currently contract with (Protocase) and tweak the existing designs to dress them up better.
There are a few reasons for this:
1) Protocase is a North American company (located in Canada) and all manufacturing takes place at their headquarters....I have always liked trying to keep as much of our amps "homegrown" as possible (aside from the obvious internals that are manufactured elsewhere)
2) Protocase turn around time is very quick: manufacturing is 10-14 days and shipping is overnight (free of charge)...if I changed to a different case manufacturer much like others use, it would carry lead times of 4-6wks AND shipping would be at least another 4wks as they would have to go by sea freight.
3) Protocase minimum order quantity is very low, which allows me to make changes or fulfill certain custom requests without surcharges...this is not possible if I switch, as minimum order quantity would be 50-100.
4) While the utilitarian look rubs some the wrong way, the truth is the case construction is very durable and strong...the U bent model we use (where the Front/Back/Bottom are one piece of bent Aluminum) has no "give" to it so when we attach our input boards to both the bottom of the case AND the back panel, there is no risk of stress to the XLR connectors on the board, among other benefits. The same goes for the Cover (Sides/Top are one piece of bent Aluminum), which allows stacking of multiple units (with somethin like an AC Infinity Aircom between each) with no concern of sag/bending of the top panel.
With all that said, the plan at least for 2024 is to employ some modifications to our existing Protocase case design to make them more appealing.
Perhaps THE BIGGEST change coming in 2024 are brand new binding posts. They are much higher quality in terms of construction and also larger and easier to twist lock down on wire.
Another big changes is switching to recessed screws that hold the Cover to the Base (so no protruding screw heads).
We are also adding more silk screening to the rear panel to better label all connections and also label '+' and '-' as the new binding posts will be Red/White colored.
A few other things that can be changed:
1) Stock powder coat...we currently use a Flat Black (no gloss) finish. However, one of the finishes I am looking to change to (no extra charge) is a Low Gloss Black Sandtex. This finish is virtually fingerprint smudge proof and even more durable than the Flat Black. It has a slightly rough texture to it, much like the side of the Anthem AVM 70/90 series processors.
2) Change the design of the ventilation cutouts...our prototype Integrated amp has diagonal cutouts to give it a more aggressive look. We can do something like this on our amps as well to match.
3) Case sizes...I am already making changes in anticipation of some exciting amp model revisions and new offerings (such as a new Purifi model along with possible stock SMPS changes for other models) so modifying the size of cases is on the table.
I know there are always going to be the few who absolutely will not buy from us unless we adopt some very fancy/nice case. That is understandable. And perhaps when the day comes that Buckeye Amps grows into it's own business location that has a lot more inventory space and buying power, this will come to fruition (or at least be offered as an upgrade).
Feel free to share thoughts/opinions/input.
As the end of the year approaches and work continues on a few new amp models/revisions, along with the 2ch Integrated amplifier coming out as well, it's that time where I prod the community for some suggestions/input.
The big one that has always been brought up: new cases.
I have been exploring new cases that would be much like the one we plan on using for the Integrated Amp (which is similar in construction and looks to what other competitors use for their amps). However, after a lot of thought, I believe the best course of action at this time is to continue using the case manufacturer I currently contract with (Protocase) and tweak the existing designs to dress them up better.
There are a few reasons for this:
1) Protocase is a North American company (located in Canada) and all manufacturing takes place at their headquarters....I have always liked trying to keep as much of our amps "homegrown" as possible (aside from the obvious internals that are manufactured elsewhere)
2) Protocase turn around time is very quick: manufacturing is 10-14 days and shipping is overnight (free of charge)...if I changed to a different case manufacturer much like others use, it would carry lead times of 4-6wks AND shipping would be at least another 4wks as they would have to go by sea freight.
3) Protocase minimum order quantity is very low, which allows me to make changes or fulfill certain custom requests without surcharges...this is not possible if I switch, as minimum order quantity would be 50-100.
4) While the utilitarian look rubs some the wrong way, the truth is the case construction is very durable and strong...the U bent model we use (where the Front/Back/Bottom are one piece of bent Aluminum) has no "give" to it so when we attach our input boards to both the bottom of the case AND the back panel, there is no risk of stress to the XLR connectors on the board, among other benefits. The same goes for the Cover (Sides/Top are one piece of bent Aluminum), which allows stacking of multiple units (with somethin like an AC Infinity Aircom between each) with no concern of sag/bending of the top panel.
With all that said, the plan at least for 2024 is to employ some modifications to our existing Protocase case design to make them more appealing.
Perhaps THE BIGGEST change coming in 2024 are brand new binding posts. They are much higher quality in terms of construction and also larger and easier to twist lock down on wire.
Another big changes is switching to recessed screws that hold the Cover to the Base (so no protruding screw heads).
We are also adding more silk screening to the rear panel to better label all connections and also label '+' and '-' as the new binding posts will be Red/White colored.
A few other things that can be changed:
1) Stock powder coat...we currently use a Flat Black (no gloss) finish. However, one of the finishes I am looking to change to (no extra charge) is a Low Gloss Black Sandtex. This finish is virtually fingerprint smudge proof and even more durable than the Flat Black. It has a slightly rough texture to it, much like the side of the Anthem AVM 70/90 series processors.
2) Change the design of the ventilation cutouts...our prototype Integrated amp has diagonal cutouts to give it a more aggressive look. We can do something like this on our amps as well to match.
3) Case sizes...I am already making changes in anticipation of some exciting amp model revisions and new offerings (such as a new Purifi model along with possible stock SMPS changes for other models) so modifying the size of cases is on the table.
I know there are always going to be the few who absolutely will not buy from us unless we adopt some very fancy/nice case. That is understandable. And perhaps when the day comes that Buckeye Amps grows into it's own business location that has a lot more inventory space and buying power, this will come to fruition (or at least be offered as an upgrade).
Feel free to share thoughts/opinions/input.
