[Aether Audio]

Friends,

It’s been a while since I’ve “poked my nose” in here at AC, so I thought it would be good to give everybody a bit of an update.  My “absence” has surly been a bit conspicuous in that it may have suggested to you all that something might be “going on” at SP Tech.  Well… in fact… it has.  So here’s the “skinny.”

In all actuality, SP Tech has struggled with production issues since the fall of 2005.  This was primarily the result of a sudden and totally unexpected cut-off of anticipated funding from our primary investor.  To say that this was a bit of a “train wreck” would not be an understatement.  At that point we were forced to start up whatever small level of production possible… just to remain afloat.  The greatest struggle was due to the fact that significant investment had already been made with regards to heavy equipment - amongst many other pieces, most notably a 6-ton CNC.  This investment required a suitably sized facility that provided 208V, 3-phase power and therefore only an industrial setting.  That then meant significant overhead and no possibility of returning to a garage-based setting.

Since that time until the end of this summer, the bulk of our income was dependant mostly on whatever sales we could generate.  Now with no budget for advertising, we were left only with whatever sales could be generated by “word of mouth” and that of the free Internet forums such as AudioCircle.  Cash flow became the source of virtually all problems that ensued.  As a result, we were not able to secure the manpower needed to expedite any reasonable level of throughput.  Simultaneously adding to this, much engineering work needed to be done that also did not generate any direct income, thereby adding further to the overhead.  Simply put… we were surviving “hand to mouth.”

Aside of these troubles, the manpower we did have was simply not up to the task.  A year ago last summer, one partner essentially “threw in the towel” and simply quit working.  Although he was only working on a part-time basis to begin with, that then left only 2 full-time workers (myself being one of them) and an occasional part-time employee.  With the limited sales volume that we did have, we could not afford to add on any new manpower.  Specifically, what we needed was an expert woodworker/cabinet maker.  Unfortunately, such skills come at a premium, which we could not afford. 

Finally, the other full-time worker found himself essentially “thrust” into a woodworking position that coming into the business, he did not actually “sign up for” and consequently, did not want to do.  Well, for all intents and purposes, that was the “straw that broke the camel’s back.”  This individual simply did not perform at a level needed to even come near meeting the needs of such a distressed situation.  The commensurate attendance and overall work ethic simply was not present in this individual to meet the challenge.  It was bad enough that he lacked appropriate training, but worse yet was his lack of enthusiasm for the job.  His skill levels were very great in “potential” and his intelligence level easily up to the task.  Nevertheless, the commitment needed simply was not there, so production levels suffered well beyond what even would have been expected due to the other challenges we faced.

At some point it became obvious to me that the situation was going nowhere but “down hill.”  Regardless of my ability to withstand the pressures of such a situation, I determined that it was simply not possible to operate anything resembling a legitimate business under such ongoing conditions.  Therefore, I contacted our original investor and advised him that if new funding could not be arranged, there was no alternative other than to shut down the business and dissolve the corporation.  Were that to have been the case, we would have stopped taking orders, completed the ones we had to the best of our ability and then closed the doors.  This would have been very unfortunate as at that point in time we had worked through most of the engineering issues and were poised to begin what one might call a “realistic” production run.  It seemed we were just a “day late and a dollar short.”  If only new funding could be found, there was now more hope than ever before that we could actually produce product at a reasonable level.

After assessing the situation (which took all of 5 micro-seconds) it was obvious that we needed one primary resource… a skilled and committed woodworker/cabinet maker.  Everything else was pretty much in place, so now if we only had the money to employ the help we needed, we would soon be “on our way.”  Well, thanks to the “powers that be” in Denmark, the funding arrived and we are proud to say that Tim Shelton is now officially a full-time member of SP Technology.  Simultaneously, the former “disgruntled” full-time individual is now no longer with the company.  It seems this “parting of ways” is of mutual approval to all parties involved as well.

Consequently, a major transition has been taking place here at SP Tech over the last 3 months.  Beginning in September, Tim began working with us and not surprisingly, decided the place needed to be “turned upside down.”  His reorganization of the place was of such an extensive nature; it was essentially necessary to shut down all production during the interim.  By default that delayed every order we have by approximately a month and we sincerely apologize for this delay to all of our customers that are waiting on their speakers.  Nevertheless, this was vitally necessary as in all likelihood, at the rate enclosures were being produced in the past, many of you would have been waiting that much longer anyway.

Besides… there is a secondary benefit to this added delay.  You will ALL be benefiting from Tim’s quality workmanship.  Believe me, that’s not a trivial matter.  I’m sure you’ll agree once you see his work.  On top of this, the addition of Tim to SP Technology constitutes nothing less than the effective establishment of a whole new company.  For once this company has the resources it has needed from the very beginning.  Were any of you to actually be here and see for yourselves the difference Tim’s involvement has already made, you’d be just as amazed as I am.  In one week’s time we have more enclosures ready for final paint and assembly than what would have been accomplished in a month prior to Tim’s involvement.  Oh… and the quality level?  These new enclosures are so much nicer than those that have come before, it’s not even fair to compare.

Finally, those of you that have been tempted to make a purchase but were reluctant because of our slow delivery reputation… you may want to reconsider.  We do have a backlog now that will be mostly completed before Christmas, but after that…  I can now honestly say that 6 weeks from order to shipment is a realistic number – depending on the model (the big ones take longer to make than the smaller models).  For those of you that are waiting… hold tight – they’ll be popping out of here, one pair after the other within the next few weeks.  As much as all of this may be a relief to you, I guarantee that you can’t imagine how much more so to me! 

Gee… maybe God doesn’t hate me after all.

Take care,
-Bob

[IronLion]

This is great news Bob, glad to hear things are coming together and that Tim's now on board full-time. 

[mcullinan]

YEs definitely. Full Steam Ahead! Sp Techs are really special speakers... and buy that man a drink! 
Mike

[synchronousmosfet]

I totally sympathize, been there, done that. Investors can be angels...or devils...and guys that think nothing of dropping 100K in Vegas will suddenly freeze an investment because their astrologer told them it was a bad month to invest...or whatever; they can be completely irrational or downright manipulative...it sounds to me, from my own experiences, like the investor was "grinding" you, trying to get more profit from less investment.

I'm glad you survived, and I just hope you don't end up with post-traumatic-stress-syndrome....find an RC co-counselor, or take a week off in the wilderness, or go kill a bear.

Best, Charlie

P.S.: do you sell drivers to DIY'ers, or just the whole speaker? I was directed over here when a forum member mentioned something like 560 Hz to 22 KHz from a single driver...but I think he mistook me for a rich person.

[Double Ugly]

Hi Charlie,

P.S.: do you sell drivers to DIY'ers, or just the whole speaker?

AFAIK, SP Tech only sells completed speakers.  Bob used to have a DIY option for a HT series, but the time necessary to prepare the waveguide and other features which make SP Tech speakers special proved too much, effectively eliminating any potential profit.

I was directed over here when a forum member mentioned something like 560 Hz to 22 KHz from a single driver...but I think he mistook me for a rich person.

Thanks to Bob's waveguide, the KHz range for the tweeter is true.  Actually, I'm pretty sure the tweeter goes out to something like 30 KHz, but I believe Bob's test equipment is only accurate to 22 KHz.

As for the idea that one needs to be rich to afford a pair, the highly-touted Timepiece Mini retails for $2995.  We all have a different take on what is and isn't expensive, but I don't personally know of anyone who believes the Mini is overpriced.  Most comments I've read indicate the opposite may be true, even at full retail.

[mcullinan]

And now that all the kinks are out, 6 weeks is no wait at all! 
Mike

[richidoo]

Really glad to hear the good news - and to see you so enthusiastic about the future! I rode to airport with one of your Danish cohorts after RMAF, and we had a ball talking about all things SP Tech, you are fortunate and deserving to have that energy in your camp. Glad things are finally coming together for you.
Rich

[RandyH]

Just curious...What is a typical waiting period for speakers now?  I ordered mine in early August 08.  Still waiting.

Randy

[IronLion]

What kind of speakers did you order?  And have you spoken to Bob recently about their status?

[RandyH]

Minis.  I spoke with him back in November.  I sent him an email a couple of days ago.  I have not heard back from him yet. 

[Goosepond]

Bob's building me a pair of TP 3.0's. Our deal was made just about the middle of Nov. with a promise of completion maybe at the start of the year. I contacted Bob by email a week or so ago for an update and he said "almost". 

Gene

[Goosepond]

What year, indeed. 

How 'bout this year. 

Gene

[RandyH]

When I spoke with him in November it was about the same time that he posted hi 11/14 update....the content of which pretty much explained the delay up to that t ime.  I apparently placed my order right before he did the major re-design of his production process.  However, both the 11/14 and his personal email to me indicated that these production issues had been largely corrected and that my speakers would be ready in about 3 weeks...which would have been before Christmas.  Since that date has passed...by nearly two months I was just curious to see what other people are experiencing with regard to delivery of their speakers.

[IronLion]

I think the consensus here (and my own experience as well) has been that the speakers generally take significantly longer (months) than projected deadlines, but also that they're worth the wait. 

[BobM]

Just keep swimming, swimming, swimming (waiting, waiting, waiting) ...

[ooheadsoo]

If you need speakers in a hurry, these hand assembled to order hand matched speakers are not the way to go.  The wait will be long, but the reviews indicate that they will definitely be worth the wait.  Bob is as forthright a guy as I have ever met.  If I weren't waiting for new TPs, I'd have snatched some of these used deals floating around in a heartbeat.

[RandyH]

"The wait will be long, but the reviews indicate that they will definitely be worth the wait. "  Yes, I understand.  That seems to be the mantra around here.  I am not in a hurry for these speakers.  I've waited 6 months to even ask a question on this forum. Just curious about others experiences...especially since his 11/14 production status update.

[Aether Audio]

Friends,

Seeing that there have recently been some inquiries regarding our status, I thought it important to fill everybody in on what’s been going on here at SP Tech.  I’m certain that the following is more detail than many are interested to know, but I am also just as certain that there are a handful that do want to know.  For those that are interested, the following has been provided.

As I’m sure most of you are aware from my last update, through the end of last year we had received some added funding which was to be used to complete our backlog of orders and also to reorganize our enclosure production department and processes.  The largest portion of that investment was to enable us to secure the assistance and involvement of Tim Shelton, who was responsible for most of that effort.  I must say it has been quite a “blessing” to have Tim here as he has made a tremendous difference and I cannot even begin to estimate the level of education I have received from working with him.  Not that enclosure building was (or should be) my main area of responsibility, but I have helped in the process along the way and am well aware of how things were done in the past.  Thankfully those days are now long gone such that with Tim in charge, we now have the human resources needed to really transform not only our production capacity, but also our image in the market.

I feel it is also important to share with you all the fact that the funding we received last fall had a secondary and even greater purpose.  You see, it was also intended to finance what amounts to a “feasibility study,” the outcome of which would determine whether or not much greater funding would be made available at the end thereof.  Several pairs of speakers in that “batch” were to be used as examples of our market potential and for the purpose of demonstration to new potential investors in Denmark.

Well… the results of that effort did not quite turn out as we had planned or hoped.  As a part thereof, my responsibility was to make projections as to how much we could accomplish and how long it would take, along with the needed financial resources.  Even though I had performed a detailed time study/estimate and then multiplied the time needed by 2.5, we still missed the mark by a considerable margin. 

The detailed reasons for this failure were manifold, but the fundamental reason falls back one last time to the “former employee” mentioned in my previous update.  At the earliest stage of the project, we had one of the investors from Denmark visit us for a month to help in whatever ways he could and also to act as a “scout” to see just what all was involved in building speakers.  While he was here he naturally wanted to see “progress” being made, and this was at a time that the former enclosure builder was still involved.  Therefore, in order to “impress” the investor, the former employee foolishly took it upon himself to run all of the hardwood we had in stock that was slated for this batch of enclosures... on our CNC.  Unfortunately, unbeknownst to either Tim or I, the part programs written by this employee for our CNC had numerous defects.  As a result, over 60% of these parts had one form of defect or another, and some had to be completely replaced.

As it turned out, it would have been easier to write new programs and order replacement wood enabling us to make new parts, rather than to repair all of those defects.  Unfortunately, Tim was not up to speed on programming our CNC and we didn’t have the finances or time to replace the wood.  Had we been able to do so, our job would have been easier, but doing so would have taken even more time.  Therefore, Tim had no choice but to repair the defective parts by removing and then reattaching new wood, build hand fixtures and then re-machine them by hand.  Needless to say, this all took an enormous amount of time and completely destroyed any time estimates that I had made.

Only after Tim began his attempts at assembling these enclosures was this discovery made.  As I said, neither he nor I had any idea these parts were in such a state before we made our time estimates.  We have since come to realize that the former enclosure builder had been using these defective parts all along, and then “fixing” them during the finishing process.  I suppose, knowing the tendencies of the former enclosure builder, I might have “guessed” that such may have been the case, but prior to Tim’s involvement I had little to do with the enclosure fabrication.  I had always wondered what took so long to build them, but not doing the “hands on” work myself, I honestly had no idea.  I would often ask, “What the holdup was,” but was given a multitude of excuses.  As many and varied as these “reasons” were, it was never made known to me that the root cause was the CNC programs.  Had I known such, THAT would have exposed where the real responsibility lied and implied additional work for the enclosure builder to correct those programs.

In the end, the previous enclosure builder was able to do the repairs such that for the most part, the enclosures looked fine, but now we know WHY it took him so long to build them.  Tim told me that while it is possible to do these repairs at the “end of the line,” the difficulty level and time involved to do so is far greater after the enclosures are assembled than to do so ahead of time on each individual part.  Nevertheless, regardless of where the repairs take place in the process, to do so takes far more time than if such repairs were not needed in the first place.  Had our former enclosure builder been committed enough to take the time to write corrected programs, he would have saved himself much work over the last several years and everyone else involved a lot of unnecessary wasted time and wait.  What a difference one person can make!  It seems that before he left, our former enclosure builder’s poor decisions severely derailed things one last time.

In any case, despite the above Tim and I found ourselves in a situation where we were forced to concentrate on the Danish orders above all else.  You see… the new investment that they alone have the potential to generate is vital for our continued operations.  This is not only true with regards to expansion of our business, but also for the expedient delivery of the orders we already have.  Unfortunately I must advise everyone that if this new investment does not transpire, SP Technology will be forced to “downsize” our operations significantly.  Even though we are severely behind on orders as it is, such a downsizing will delay delivery far more than were things to remain essentially as they are now.

But… we have great hope that such will not be necessary.  In contrary, we have every expectation that new investment will be forthcoming in the relatively near future.  As it stands, we have what amounts to the most important pair of speakers destined for Denmark on a pallet – ready for pick-up.  That pair is going to a very “high profile” individual that is key to the whole process and who has great influence in securing the new investment.  He has been informed that his speakers are ready to ship and has now expressed renewed enthusiasm for our future business objectives.  I have it by his word directly that as soon as the speakers arrive, negotiations with all parties will commence with determined sincerity and high expectations.

In the mean time, we feel the need to announce to everybody that our ongoing efforts here will be focused solely on completing our existing orders while we await what the future holds on the larger front.  As such we have decided to announce that we will not be accepting any new orders for the next 2 or 3 weeks.  Should the new investment be forthcoming, we feel the need to “clean up” as much of the older orders as we can without concerning ourselves with processing new orders.  In the remote chance that the anticipated investment does not transpire, we feel that the prudent and honorable thing to do is not to expose any new customers to what would become an even more unreasonable wait to have their orders completed.

Please excuse the length of this message, but we felt the need to inform everyone interested, as you all have been such good and loyal friends throughout the years.  We also felt the need to inform any potential new customers regarding our decision to suspend new sales.  We should know the outcome of our situation within just a few weeks, so stay tuned.  I will inform everyone as soon as we get word as to our future direction.  Thanks in advance for your understanding and patience.  Rest assured that no matter what the outcome, SP Tech is not “going away.”  For all of our customers still waiting for their speakers: You can rest assured that no matter how long it takes, as long as there is still breath in me I will continue to work until every last individual has received their speakers.  In a “worst case” scenario, all of us may have a few more gray hairs on our heads before you get them… but “get them” - you will.  Only then would I even consider “giving up,” as every other issue pales in comparison to me.  There are a number of other things I can do to earn a living… but to be effective at any of them I first need to be able to sleep at night.

Finally, for those of similar “persuasion”… if you believe in the power of prayer… we’d greatly appreciate it.  For the handful of you that know me a bit more intimately... there's more at stake than "just" a speaker company.

Take care,
-Bob

[Aether Audio]

Friends,

Just a quick update.  That "special" pair of speakers are now in the possesion of their new owner in Denmark and according to the feedback, he is very "happy."   Trust me... that's a good thing.  It's still early in the process, but the first of several meetings is reportedly taking place tommorrow.  There are no "guarantees" of course, but rumor has it that attitudes are generally positive and the signs are looking good.  For those of "parallel dimensional persuasion,"    that have been helping... thanks "eternally" for the "up-linked" communications... and don't stop now!!! 

Take care,
-Bob

Praise Note:  My son Britton is back from Iraq on leave and here for a visit!!!  

[ted_b]

Great news....still sending good Karma and prayers (helps to have multi-persuasional effects).