Why Isn't MTS Huge?

[GtrGeorge!]

Why doesn't anyone hear me (except maybe Bruce a few days ago...) when I post stuff?

Again for the hard of thinking:


Demand all you like, if a store has non-compete clauses in place,YOU CAN'T GET THE PRODUCT THRU THEM.



PS: You could have Jenna Jamison on the front of every MTS module in a 3D Hologram, and it wouldn't matter...because the product would never be placed in your local store.

GtrGeorge

 

[frodgemo]

I hear, understand, and agree with what you're saying very much. I was just saying something else.

 

[BigBrewtus]

Brewtus,,,
so let me understand this: You were surprized when minimum wage employees knew nothing about what they were selling?

That sounds typical of ALL stores that follow that formula...GC,Best Buy, etc etc

Sorry man....I just EXPECT it now.
GtrGeorge

Guess I shouldnt be. hahahaha Another story I have is being at Sam Ash. When I stated to a emp. that I was looking for modules he said they only had a used RM100 and didnt sell modules. I look directly at a glass counter a few feet behind him and there sat a new module for sale. Bahahahahahahaha.

 

[Nightdare]

Then also the question is: why would shops/salesmen try to sell MTS stuff when other bigger names in amplification offer a bonus/discount (= larger profit) if a certain target has been met at the end of the year?

 

[wyd-open]

Music Go Round is a smaller national chain that specializes in used and factory B-stock stuff. They always have a few MTS heads and modules in there. I know that it doesn't help the manufacturers any because it's not a "new" sale, but it's good for us as consumers to have a place to get the unwanted ones. I have only been into guitars for a few years, but I try to keep myself knowledgeable about what is available in the market. Until I researched the purchase of my RM100, I had never even heard of the concept. I do agree though that if you are not Fender, Gibson, or Marshall, you will have a hard time getting into the big chain stores like GC. Every time I go to a GC, I am disappointed at the selection on the wall. There are soooooooo many other great products (guitars especially) that they don't carry. I have no interest in any Fenders or a Les Paul so GC for me is just a place to get pedals and strings. My local store does have a couple of knowledgeable people, but most are dimwits just like anywhere else.

 

[GtrGeorge!]

Nightdare, you are soooo correct. I have personally sat in the employee breakroom at Sam Ash and seen the certificates of who had "met goal!!!!!" at $26,000 sales of Fender product or whatever
it is exactly as you say
add that and then add in non-compete contracts....and then contracts that require the retialer to stock XXX amount of product (thereby requireing you to use up as much shelf space as possible...

it squeezes new companies and bold ideas out.

GtrGeorge

 

[Caine]

Another thing is that having only three channels is sort of being a step behind the competition. It would be much more competitive if the 100 watt heads had four slots (and the 50 watt head, three) in order to compete with amps like the four channel Marshall JVM and the Mesa Boogie Road King and Roadster. And those amps have mode switching for each channel as well which makes them VERY competitive against the MTS stuff even though the modules are swappable. Having four slots AND being able to swap them would have been much better.

 

[GtrGeorge!]

To much, to little, to late

 

[webrthomson]

I agree with the vast majority of comments above, but from a UK perspective it?s very simple ? COST

Even if you can find a shop with an amp in stock (I live in Glasgow, say 6 big music stores and zero MTS) here is the cost for an RM100:

Amp - ?1000 ($1600)
3 Modules (clean, SL+, Ultra) - ?477 ($780)

So the question is this would you spend over $2000 for an amp that you can even try or would you go to GuitarGuitar and buy a Mesa / Marshall / Engl / Bogner / etc.

I pray that now Bruce has the Egnater name up and running in the UK (and is getting very, very good reviews ? see the Vengeance and Armageddon in this month?s Guitarist, gold award and choice award respectively!!!) that we will see the line getting the attention, respect and distribution that it deserves once it?s back under the Egnater banner ;-)

 

[nomad100]

then add the fact you can barely carry the rm100 Head due to weight vs a mark v combo i can pickup effortlessly.

 

[GtrGeorge!]

I still really feel bad about the MTS problems...

it's such a great idea...and it SHOULD have worked. Hell, for many of us..it still works...
but it would be great if the originators were still carrying the torch,

We never got the 3 channel rm50 combo with a usable loop.
We never got the rm100 at a reasonable weight.

Meanwhile, the competition carries on...stronger everyday. Kinda makes me feel sad to want this line to succeed when for so long it looks like the originators were only half hearted about it.
am I wrong here? Id love to know the truth.
It leaves me puzzled.
GtrGeorge

 

[nomad100]

Your right, with the age of forums it would be cake for manufactures to see what their customers want / need. Bruce has been asking questions so I'm not sure it's over, just over for Randall. Still the best idea out there on amp modeling probably only needs a big boost in marketing to take a big share of the market.

 

[Mattfig]

I know it's been said but they gotta get it into people's hands to try and on magazine pages to gawk at...With Guitar Center possibly closing doors in a year or two - I don't know where else they should move it...At least gracing the pages of the Sweetwater, Musician's Friend, AMS, etc catalogues would get the buzz going...???... It's gotta be somewhere besides this forum to work...

This whole thing still blows my mind...This is what I truly believe to be the greatest amp system created for any guitarist...Yet it's totally under the radar all these years later...I would have thought it would just get out by word of mouth by this point...

In the end, I'm quite happy personally as I already have several "perfect" setups for what I need and, even if the whole thing stopped tomorrow, I'd still have something great...I hope it continues mainly with our modding community but I of course wish Bruce the utmost success with the re-release...New MTS products would be the bomb...I don't know how it can get better but I'm sure interested in the attempts...

If you ever shoot an infomercial, I'd pay to be your pitch man...I could scream about MTS all day!

 

[m0jo]

Just a little side note: Randall has discontinued MTS so there's no use in whining about it anymore really.

What could help is giving Bruce insight in how to do it right, where he could find oppertunities and where there are pittfalls.

This tech can endure, but it needs a revamp IMO. New gear with new functionality. It needs to go up to a JVM or Roadster and win. This isn't hard, if Bruce takes the Tourmaster and modulifies it .. that's basically half the work.

 

[Kapo_Polenton]

We never got the 3 channel rm50 combo with a usable loop.
We never got the rm100 at a reasonable weight.

THIS

Seriously, get with the program and have a selectable loop for line or instrument. Randall was smart with the 100w lynchbox (hardwired edition lb103) in that they put a selectable loop but that was far too late. I'd love to be able to use mine with a delay pedal. I don't want to bring this rack everywhere i go you know? Bruce make sure you have instrument level loops!!!!!!!!!!

 

[MarcoR]

modulifies

And that is the word of the day!

 

[Jaymzrock]

It blows my mind that it isn't bigger, but at the same time I feel extremely lucky to have stumbled upon such a remarkable idea brought to life. My first modded module (Chupacabra) blows my mind every time I play it and my second (S1SO) is on the way. The best part is: it's actually the amp I was going to buy before meeting Dietrick from Salvation Mods who quickly turned me on to the concept. So now I'll actually have the tone I was about to invest in, with 2 slots left open! The idea I had after hearing about it...okay, kinda like modeling with tubes. I bet it's a little better than the SpiderValve HD100 I had at the time. "But I want the 6505+!!" (stomping my feet). After getting my RM100, I knew at the first A Chord that I had made the best decision as a guitar player I've made yet. The forum is great for module reviews, demos, sales, trades, troubleshooting, you name it. But I digress...it blows my mind that something this friggin' versatile and spot on isn't bigger, but I'm glad it didn't sneak under my RADAR. I tell all my buddies about it and I'll plug MTS from this day on. Long live MTS, Bruce and most definitely, our modders. (maybe a team up would really kick this beast in the ***)

 

[wesarvin]

The problem with Randall's incarnation was that it was simply butt ugly and marketed poorly.

MTS amps don't have the stage appearance of a Matchless, /13, or Morgan. Shoot, even the hip look of a Marshall. Let some marketing guys and product designers churn out something that looks hip, and those looks alone could turn heads and help sell the product.

They just looked cheap, and the sticker price seemed too high for the cheap impression of their appearance. The MOD series however, was simply too expensive (though it looked decent).

They sound like a million bucks though!

 

[SteelDragon]

You guys keep saying,"Poor marketing...", yet Randall MTS was endorsed by a couple of the biggest names in guitar. They carried one page ads in Guitar World. They reached me in this way. Is anyone actually buying from Guitar Center anymore? I buy my guitars/amps on-line stores or from Ebay. So, MTS is on a level playing field as far as the internet. Yet, still it hasn't taken off after several years. I think the Randall folks gave it their best go and the market said "No!"
After further thought, either the market doesn't like the Randall brand, or most guitar players dig the digital, rackable units for modeling. With Kemper now providing profiling, and others sure to follow, I feel and worry the future is bleak for MTS-style modeling. Modules are too expensive compared to the free modeling amps you get with the AXE or Kemper. If only Randall could make a Tube amp with a profiler, a cabinet that could be modeled, and downloadable profile content!
That said, I'm still staying with Randall(& Kemper) unless some other brand picks up on and improves the technology,

 

[wesarvin]

Marketing isn't just artist endorsements and ads. It also lies in product design and placement. No offense to Randall, but it has gone the way of Peavey, Dean, and BC Rich. It is great equipment, but the company has catered towards a demographic of metal players and beginners for so long that they have a tough time earning respect in an ever-changing marketplace. The trend for this decade lies in Botique amps and small low-wattage budget tube amps.

I'm in the process of re-tolexing my MTS rigs, just because they are embarrassing to look at. They sound amazing, but a plain RM50 combo looks worse than a Gorilla practice amp on stage.