I had an interesting situation with their tech department a little over a year ago. It started out with me acquiring a Pathos Classic One MkIII from a good buddy of mine. Once I hooked it up I noticed a pop through the speakers when I shut it off. I thought it of that an integrated amp of that quality would do that. It started to bother me after a while thinking that can’t be good for the tweeters in my Sonus Fabers so I called my buddy who told me he never had that problem with it. I wound up calling Pathos and asked if that amp had a mute circuit and the person, at first, said it didn’t have a mute circuit but after a few exchanges of emails she finally admitted it did have one. Then the owner chimed in and said a slight pop is no big deal unless it gets worse? How do I tell when it’s at that point where I need to get it repaired? Not liking what I’m hearing I asked where in the US is the closest repair facility and was told it was Upscale. Great, I’m in Florida and Upscale is in California. Sure I’d love to ship this heavy integrated 3,000 miles! So I called Upscale tech support and spoke with the tech that the person at Pathos recommended I speak to. So, not surprisingly, the tech started raving about all of the amps he used to have that all popped when he shut them down and that it was no big deal. After hearing that I got a bad taste in my mouth and decided not to bother. I wound up acquiring a used Luxman 507uX Mk II and I can happily say it’s absolutely silent except for the beautiful music that comes through when I use it.
Are you having problems with Upscale Audio?
Hi All,
From memory, it seems that many are satisfied with Upscale Audio. So, I am wondering if The Times Are A Changin?
To date, I have two interactions and both have been difficult.
a.) I purchased a $4k cartridge (see my system), using a trade-in program. When I called to follow up, they told me that I needed to speak with someone who was unavailable (out of the office for a while). When I called again, I was simply told that UA customer service would get back to me with an update. That never happened. SIX WEEKS later, I called to complain. Apparently, they lost track of my order.
b.) Today, I am looking to buy a set (7) of tubes from AU and have a question or two before making the order. Frustratingly, after two calls and three emails, I am continually referred to the website for all tube-related information.
Their customer service seems to be "Don't Call Us and We Won't Call You" (just look at our website and email us). That attitude is a sale killer.
So, unfortunately AU is quickly becoming a vendor of last resource.
Anyone seen a change in AU's level of service, or has it always been this bad?
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I purchased a Feliks Envy headphone amp from Upscale Audio a few years ago without incident. The transaction took place at their “booth” at Axpona. I never had to call or email the store in California. I received my amp within a few weeks. I am very satisfied with my experience with UA and would definitely consider doing business with them again. |
I had purchased cabasse active speakers from them and had issues pairing. They basically sent me the manual which was useless. They did reach out to cabasse and got one other suggestion. I ended up figuring it out on my own. In their defense, the instructions from cabasse were unclear and lacked some key points. |
Does anyone remember crazy Eddie, an electronic dealer in the 80s and 70s, we had outrageous commercials saying that his ‘prices are insane’ Take a look at his video, very entertaining. https://youtu.be/Ml6S2yiuSWE?si=LksUKs_-UFZOa857
The company went out of business at some point later on. Kevin from UA reminds me of this guy. He’s quite a salesman on YouTube. He canmake you feel happy about buying an empty box. Everybody needs a quality box you never know when you might need a quality box, look at how well those sides are secured and reinforced, it’s not just any box. A lot of craftsmanship went into the creation of that box and it looks terrific. Maybe he’s looking to sell the business and no longer involved in the business as much. Anybody ever talk to him on the phone? |
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