Meridian Unplugged - Powered by MrTechGuy.co.uk Forums Discussion Meridian - Systems 2009 CES HH Q&A Thread

On the other hand we don't really want to turn it into a sycophantic fan club do we ? It's only whining if you're wrong isn't it ? If you admit that their documentation is crap ( though certainly less so than in previous years ) it's not whining to say so .

I think the vast majority of us are here because Meridian have/are/will enrich(ed/ing/-) our lives and we care so much about it all precisely because we DO appreciate them . Its actually a great compliment to them that a lot of customers here have been around 10-15 years or more .

I think less than 1% of the 500+ orders that they already have for the HD621 are from people here who have ever demo'd the unit . That's because , deep down , we REALLY DO TRUST THEM .

It would be nice , if , occasionally , they trusted us even if just treating us as adults with information that they are willing to pass into public domain on the phone reasonably promptly NOT because they have to , but because it's the right thing to do as it generates debate and ....


Dialogue and debate should be what a forum is all about .


Bob Stuart did say after the Hh Day that he was very impressed with the fact that the F80s inner secrets were not leaked afterwards . It is possible that a possible tweak or improvement suggested by someone here may be something that no one at HQ had considered ( like Wifi on the F80 ) .

I really hope they don't really conider it all carping as I think they would miss out on a lot of good stuff .

Best

~M~

Whining doesn't have anything to do with being right or wrong. It means to complain. Complaining doesn't accomplish anything positive.

I dont think its complaints that are the problem, its the way they are occasionaly expressed.
I like the fact we have open dialog and complaints are able to be voiced, but it can be done, with a little thought, in a way that makes the point without insulting over or undertones.
Like people, you have to accept them for what they are. On the whole I think Meridian do a great job of producing top kit that has enriched all of our lives.

When you consider that approx 50% of the world population have never and maybe never will even hear a ringtone; we aint doing so bad.

Cheers, Chris

" Complaining doesn't accomplish anything positive "

On occasion though , it can trigger a reaction or debate of some sort . Silence would be much , much worse IMO. You only have to look at history books to realise evrything starts with ' 1 ' .

~M~

chrislayeruk had it right when he focused on the importance of how the complaint is expressed. Whining is a polite way of saying bitching and moaning. It is one thing to express a complaint in a constructive manner and quite another to whine about something. Too often complaining veers off into whining. I am as anxious as anyone here to receive answers to the CES Questions. Whining about the delay will not speed things up. Patience is a virtue.

There are many good comments made above and I'm personally very happy to see it aired. I have felt for sometime (>1yr) that the tone and attitude of much on this forum has changed...and not for the better.

Nick
Would you not think that the Year to which you refer also happens to coincide with a Year in which the Tone and Attitude from Meridian has also changed.......and not for the better????

Their Products (when released) and Service are Superb. The Attitude of most of their Employees in a One to One situation is always most helpful. In these areas, they largely reflect the Personality and Approach of Bob himself

But on many other fronts, including Documentation / Brochures / Setup Guides / How To... Guides etc., they remain poor at best. This is the reason that the Q&A have become CRITICAL, not just important. These Q&A's have essentially become our Meridian Bibles (along with the Wikis and this Forum) Our Bibles are certainly not the Brochures or User Guides, especially for some of the deeper issues

Meridian Shooting themselves in the Foot at almost all Demos and Shows in the past 2 years most certainly hasn't helped their cause.

Likewise, releasing such an important product (HD621) on the marketplace with SO Many unanswered Setup questions is inexplicable in my view. Is it any wonder that BOTH Users and Dealers remain confused on how to integrate this product??

Blind and non-questioning loyalty should not be a pre-requisite for being a member or posting on this site. Meridian (like ALL Companies) should welcome ALL Criticism, constructive or not.

There is not one word above or in other posts that I havent already said and emailed to Bob and Meridian. In my view, they welcome the feedback and use it to attempt to improve.

Let's face it, everyone on this Forum is a "Picky B@stard". If they weren't they wouldn't have spent their Money on Meridian and they would have gone down a less expensive road. Meridian should (and do) recognise this. It's simply not reasonable to expect "Picky B@stards" to turn into blind fanatics

Any successful company knows that it can extract more money from the Picky Customers than the ones who are more accepting of the norm. The Picky ones are the ones you want if your are going to charge a Premium.

Most everyone here wants Meridian to be successful (none more than I) It's just that we all have different ideas on how we can help Meridian to become successful. Some think that "not complaining" is the most helpful. Fine!! However, some think that constructively pointing out a problem is the most Helpful approach. That should also be fine to the "Non Complainers"

I have to say i haven't posted in a while but have been reading avidly the developments of the HD621 amongst other things. I will make the point now that i agree with Ronnie pretty much unreservedly, it isnt going to change my Meridan buying habit but, by f***, they REALLY dont help themselves!!

3 months for Q&A answers??? why not just come out and say 'we're too busy but you'll get them by May'. I dont think anyone would be surprised, it just re-assures us anally retentives. As for the filters, well....

Anyway, keep going guys and don't stop posting, you make an hour at work all the more enjoyable for me.

James

Hi Ronnie,

good points; well made (as usual). Coincidence ? That's a good question.

I/we understand well the stress at play here for both ourselves as customers and M as the mothership. We would all hate to see them join TAG in the graveyard of hi-fi - not least because we are up to our eyeballs in expensive kit that we hope to use for many years to come.

I think the investing partners have had an influence on things. That may be great 'cos it kept M afloat, but, the cosy relationship we've enjoyed is tested however in the process. I feel that - we all do to some extent.

I think it's a very fine line between constructive feedback (call it what we will) and just off-hand web whinging. You make a point above about saying what you say here to M directly when you have the chance. I know you do that and recall your questions at HH1 doing exactly that. I think it's altogether different when criticism gets personal and almost slanderous at times from people who would never...ever...say such things to M face 2 face. This is the point that Ian was making the other day when he was in rant-mode suggesting that HH2 is most unlikely.

M do read this forum (at least last time I chatted to them about it). Well made feedback is something they should and do respond to as far as I can tell. And that starts at the top with Bob. They have however scored own-goals recently (demo's etc) and continue to be weak in other areas well documented. That needs to be dealt with.

My concern about the mood of the forum is such that if I was a prospective M customer and popped into the board to see what was going on I'd probably run a mile. That can't be right as we are enjoying the best gear around. It's not balanced.

The HD621 lands this weekend for some lucky folk, yet, one of the 1st posts is entitled "HD621 issues". I think we all do have some responsibility to play our part without becoming sychophants....this will be googled for goodness sake. Issues well worth noting and tackling but the headlines aren't good nor representitive of the positive buzz of the new toy landing at last. (MarkH - I'm not picking on you specifically but hope you understand the point I try to make).

We do have our eternal optimist Chris though.

Nick :

I'm sure that you intended to type 'Mark_H'.



Rgds .... Holtz'.

Nick
As ever, I agree completely

None of us are perfect but neither should we pretend that Meridian are!! That's all I'm really saying

Meridian's Products and People are Superb. I would just hate to see them fail for other reasons.

The amazing thing is that they get the Hard things Right (Performance and Service) and the Easy things wrong (Demo's etc.) Thank God it's not the other way round

An analogy might be Maradona's Wonder World Cup goal (hate to remind ye )

Maradona beats 7 outfield players; then he rounds the Goalkeeper and with the Goal wide open......he kicks it wide..........See, even a happy ending (for some)

The tackling was atrocious!