Very Bad purchase from upscale audio Acoustic Zen Adagio


This was not my first purchase from Kevin Deal at Upscale audio. I am a entry level audiophile. My PrimaLuna Dialogue Premium HP and Dialogue Premium Preamplifier have given many hours of enjoyment. I have purchased well over 1K in tubes from Kevin. This purchase took me over the 10K mark with Upscale Audio. I am not a rookie to audio or tube amplification. I have had a successful tube amp repair and design shop since 1993. 
My concern.
Here is the description of the Acoustic Zen Adagio from Upscale audio's website.
This pair of Adagio's from our demo room are also the last pair of Adagio's in our inventory. The Adagio is such a sweet sounding speaker and is perfect for those who really like to get inside the music. The pair we have are in the stunning Figure Red wood finish. The baffle style is the original (and better sounding) non-tapered baffle, as pictured. Price $2499.00 plus shipping
Ok.
I called Kevin and talked to him on the phone.  I asked him if he would entertain an offer. I told him that I had seen the same speakers offered on Audiogon and Audioasylum for considerably less.
He said I am a retail store and back my products. He also said this and I quote " Those people are just guys in their underwear scratching their asses." I am a store.
I trusted the description of the speakers and I trusted Kevin.
Total price. $2839.  $2499.00 plus $340.00 shipping to NC.
The speakers arrived and I couldn't wait to unpack them and hook them up. The packing was great. My anticipation was greater.
Left speaker Tweeter DOA. The same speaker had a shameful reject finish.  The lacquer was so clouded you can hardly see the wood figure. The back of the speaker was loaded with black specks under the lacquer. These speakers are seconds, rejects. I sent Kevin Deal 4 emails referring to the fact that this really was a bad deal.  It has been 3 days and no response.
On the other hand Robert Lee ( Owner of Acoustic Zen)  responded immediately to my email asking for help with the DOA Tweeter. I sent it off next day air to him and today responded that it is on it's way back  to me.
Somehow Kevin Deal's Train ran off the tracks so don't ask for your money back

rbogartr
Please, if there’s a merciful god somewhere, and it’s paying attention, hear my prayer and end this thread.
PS - If this thread bothers you, delete any posts belonging to you and it will not appear on your personal list. It effectively disappears for you.
I'll bump this just because Uncle Kevin deserves all the bad press he can get. Sent me two pairs of bad tubes, blamed me for installing them too forcefully (b.s. I've never broken a tube during installation and I do it twice with his tubes?), says he won't send a third pair because they are too precious. He's a condescending prick. It's obvious from the level of anger that these aren't isolated outliers, this guy seriously goes out of his way to be an asshole. 
@joegator81   I must say Mr. Deal is one polarizing dude!  There have been a few threads about him and from my observations it seems like you love him or hate him.  

It does sound highly improbable that you would break two tubes sent from the same source unless the tubes' structural integrity was in question.

Way too iffy for me to do business with him.  Sorry you got the short end of that stick.
Thanks for saying so hifiman, I believe it's important for customers to be honest about dealer experiences good or bad. HWDsound is fantastastic, Larry and son Marcus spent a couple of hours demoing a trade in table for me. They allowed me to play my table and then swapped my cart to the table that I was interested in. I didn't feel pressured by them and they worked with me on the price. 

I bought from upscale because of their rep of being the place to go for the best tubes with garunteed quality. If I had read responses like these I would never have done so. If this thread can at the very least cause potential customers to Way the pros and cons then I think that's a good thing. 

I think the best result would be a total sea change in the way upscale does business but I'll not hold my breath.