New Fortin Killer Kali module is... well, KILLER!

[Desertdweller]

So good I sorta got yelled at! LOL! To be clear, the guys at Synergy dialed this in, not me! LOL! THEY set the volume! LOL!

Let’s be clear. If I was at NAMM and heard this playing coming from the Synergy booth, and I had a guitar company I was trying to promote, I would seize the opportunity a little differently, I’d:

1) Ask if you’d like to do the same thing with one of my guitars.
2) Ask you to pull the module out of the 20watt shell and throw it in the Syn2 going into the Syn5050 for some more beef in the sound.
3) Ask if I could also video you for my guitar company’s social media, and pay you at least a nominal compensation.

IMO - missed opportunity.

 

[Boudoir Guitar]

Context is everything. If I was running a booth mostly aimed at trying to find new dealers, etc., was located in ear shot of the Synergy booth, and this is how Synergy had been handling their booth throughout the whole event, frequently turning things up to "loud-enough-to-annoy-the-neighbors" level, all through NAMM, and I look over and I see them doing it again for a YouTube guy to make a video, I proooooobably wouldn't have been at my best, either. Not pointing fingers at OP at all, just saying I can feel for the guy and am not gonna assume the worst.

 

[Enchilada Jones]

Kevin at Iconic Guitars - “Mans gotta do something to make a living these days”
JerEvil - “Dying ain’t much of a Living, Boy”

 

[norminal]

The guy could’ve and should’ve handled it differently, and that’s on him. For all he knew, Jer could’ve been a potential Iconic dealer. No sense in losing a customer over it.

As a consumer, I know I wouldn’t want to order a guitar from a guy like that. I’m sitting here imagining having to deal with him in a customer service situation.

Bad tastes can linger. This whole thing just gives me Jeff Kiesel vibes.

 

[Byrdman]

I cant believe there's loud guitars being played at a Guitar trade show!

I did see a video the other day about some saying there were a lot of vendors complaining that there are too many end users and YT-ers at NAMM now vs dealers only. That could be part of the issue as well, but the market place has changed where most people find out about new gear on YT.

Shit happens and sometimes you just have to suck it up and deal with it. I wonder if he will request that his booth be somewhere else for next year.

 

[Rock Chalk]

I cant believe there's loud guitars being played at a Guitar trade show!

No shit......get over it!

 

[JerEvil]

Let’s be clear. If I was at NAMM and heard this playing coming from the Synergy booth, and I had a guitar company I was trying to promote, I would seize the opportunity a little differently, I’d:

1) Ask if you’d like to do the same thing with one of my guitars.
2) Ask you to pull the module out of the 20watt shell and throw it in the Syn2 going into the Syn5050 for some more beef in the sound.
3) Ask if I could also video you for my guitar company’s social media, and pay you at least a nominal compensation.

IMO - missed opportunity.

The thing is I have done vids for him before from NAMM and for his overdrive pedal. We have good history. I feel like he felt it made it easier to come “make an example out of some nobody” because he felt comfortable around me, which makes it more fucked up. I also have some history with his new partner John Cruz that I’ll leave alone for now, but I assure you, he was across the aisle with a smug look on his face.

The fact that he acted like this in public, to me who he has a relationship with, in FRONT of customers is an issue. It wasn’t my volume that I did NOT set by the way (if you watched the vid you’d see) that lost a potential customer. It was disrespectful on a bunch of levels.

Context is everything. If I was running a booth mostly aimed at trying to find new dealers, etc., was located in ear shot of the Synergy booth, and this is how Synergy had been handling their booth throughout the whole event, frequently turning things up to "loud-enough-to-annoy-the-neighbors" level, all through NAMM, and I look over and I see them doing it again for a YouTube guy to make a video, I proooooobably wouldn't have been at my best, either. Not pointing fingers at OP at all, just saying I can feel for the guy and am not gonna assume the worst.

Sure. But there is proper recourse. There are NAMM employees there to deal with this stuff. He could have spoken directly to the Boutique Amps crew. Hell he built the Friedman Guitars for a time as far as I know. It’s not like he doesn’t have a relationship with BAD.

The simple truth is he knows me, and decided he was going to make an example out of ME! He acted like a bully and tried to intimidate and embarrass me in a public setting AND he did it in front of his “potential new business”

 

[norminal]

tried to intimidate and embarrass me in a public setting

And failed miserably IMO. “It is my concert.” Love it!

 

[GTR37]

The thing is I have done vids for him before from NAMM and for his overdrive pedal. We have good history. I feel like he felt it made it easier to come “make an example out of some nobody” because he felt comfortable around me, which makes it more fucked up. I also have some history with his new partner John Cruz that I’ll leave alone for now, but I assure you, he was across the aisle with a smug look on his face.

The fact that he acted like this in public, to me who he has a relationship with, in FRONT of customers is an issue. It wasn’t my volume that I did NOT set by the way (if you watched the vid you’d see) that lost a potential customer. It was disrespectful on a bunch of levels.


Sure. But there is proper recourse. There are NAMM employees there to deal with this stuff. He could have spoken directly to the Boutique Amps crew. Hell he built the Friedman Guitars for a time as far as I know. It’s not like he doesn’t have a relationship with BAD.

The simple truth is he knows me, and decided he was going to make an example out of ME! He acted like a bully and tried to intimidate and embarrass me in a public setting AND he did it in front of his “potential new business”

He was probably lucky it wasn’t Reinholds booth

 

[JerEvil]

And failed miserably IMO. “It is my concert.” Love it!

Yeah that just kinda came out naturally… my wife loves that kinda shit about me! lol. (She actually hates it)

My buddy is making me a shirt that says that as we speak for me to wear in a vid.

 

[Elric]

Really liking the sounds in the vid. Definitely feeds my GAS for it.

 

[maddnotez]

I will say this yelling guy is going to get eviscerated for potentially just having a bad day.

Not making excuses but we've all been there. Don't need to tank his company over this

Ehhh, he's at freaking Nammmm...what was he expecting? Clearly he's another one of those guys who has zero business with public relations and statistics show those are not the type of companies you want to do business with.

Guy seemed pretty hard up to sell a guitar as well. Lots of red flags going on but Jer's response and playing were both awesome.

Never had any interest in synergy but this one is pretty appealing.

 

[maddnotez]

I see damage control showed up lol..man fuck these guys.

His business partner here covering his ass. Guy couldn't even do it himself, lowlife person.

Maybe an apology to Jerevil and the damage control statement coming from himself directly sure, but this ain't it.

 

[Alex Kenivel]

 

[2dor]

I see damage control showed up lol..man fuck these guys.

His business partner here covering his ass. Guy couldn't even do it himself, lowlife person.

Maybe an apology to Jerevil and the damage control statement coming from himself directly sure, but this ain't it.




View attachment 37594

What an a$$h0l3 type of a statement is that?
Be upfront & apologize to the guy you jerks insulted in the first place.
I hope they get to feel the burn for this.

 

[TheTrueZoltan!]

As someone with annoying neighbors who constantly get on my nerves with loud parties and music, I kinda understand both sides of this story. Sometimes it is simply justified and necessary to complain, and then unfortunately you quickly find yourself in the position of the spoilsport. Honestly, people. I find it absolutely ridiculous how hate is now being poured on Iconic Guitars from all sides without anyone except JerEvil actually being part of the dispute (if you can even call it that). There are always two sides to a story and I don't think any of us is in the position to pass judgement.

 

[2dor]

As someone with annoying neighbors who constantly get on my nerves with loud parties and music, I kinda understand both sides of this story. Sometimes it is simply justified and necessary to complain, and then unfortunately you quickly find yourself in the position of the spoilsport. Honestly, people. I find it absolutely ridiculous how hate is now being poured on Iconic Guitars from all sides without anyone except JerEvil actually being part of the dispute (if you can even call it that). There are always two sides to a story. I don't think any of us is in the position to pass judgement.

I understand being pestered by loud noises but there are other ways to go about it than the way Iconic decided to do. In their statement, there's not one word of apology to Jer for instance. Why is that when it's clear as day that he wasn't the one fiddling with the knobs & stuff.
I'm not saying they were wrong to ask for the volume to come down, I'm saying they were wrong in how they did it & even not coming forth with an apology to the guy they kinda trashed in front of an audience y'know.

 

[TheTrueZoltan!]

I'm just saying that this story is being blown completely out of proportion. But it seems that's just what people do these days instead of minding their own business. That being said, JerEvil did a great job with his demo.

 

[2dor]

I'm just saying that this story is being blown completely out of proportion. But it seems that's just what people do these days instead of minding their own business. That being said, JerEvil did a great job with his demo.

Well it sets a precedent in a way. It's a show where music gear is demoed first & foremost right so some noise is to be expected. The thing I wonder is if someone with a larger following would have been in the driver seat trying that module out while the BAD guys fiddled with the knobs, would they have received the same treatment? Or was it enabled by the fact that Jer was considered an easy-enough case to make an example of?
In any way, if people don't stand up to this sort of BS it'll simply enable more of this bullying.

 

[TheTrueZoltan!]

Well, constantly overpowering other people noise-wise could be called bullying, too. I'm not taking any side in this, all I'm saying is that there are probably two sides to this story, as well as a backstory, and we only know a tiny little part of it. And for me, this small excerpt is not enough to dump garbage on an entire company.

JerEvil was simply unlucky to have been innocently caught between the front lines. Both sides could have handled this better.