State of the union and a PSA regarding donors and amp sales

[Jaded Faith]

Effective 7/17/14, all remaining MTS donor module stock is on hold and the modded amps advertised here in May are no longer available for sale.

Before the sky starts falling and tales of Jaded Faith Mods demise are greatly exaggerated, I assure you business is healthy and stronger than ever. We are still doing MTS mods. Nothing has changed except the freezing of donor and amp sales along with a shift in our business model and priorities.

After the poor response to the MTS products the the last LA Amp Show, I focused on building the service and repair shop here in 2014. Jaded Faith Mods is now the main amp and electronics service shop for 2 local Guitar Centers, 3 local Music Stores and 2 local luthiers. We are authorized service for a number of brands and repairing, servicing and modding over 300 amps a year locally. We are cranking out more work than ever between the MTS mods, amp service/repairs/mods and all the other services we offer. Just check out the Facebook news feed daily for evidence.

The amps are on hold because quite simply they are FAR more work than I initially estimated. I am backlogged on getting the ones already sold out the door. This is absolutely unacceptable to me as a business owner and that needs to be the first priority. Once these ship, the discount pricing previously offered here will no longer be valid and any remaining stock will be sold off ala carte (read: non-discounted). I have a potential business arrangement that may consume most of my remaining donor stock. It's a big deal and the scope hasn't been fully established. As such, donors are being stockpiled until further notice. Changes will be made to the website to reflect this next week.

The goal here is to clean house on some of this MTS inventory, expand the shop, continue to grow the service/repair business and get Jaded Faith Amplification off the ground. I have multiple products in the works and need to be able to focus more time and attention to those priorities. While I appreciate this community, the modular work has always felt a bit like tracing a picture to me rather than painting a picture like a true artist. I am greatly awaiting the next chapter of my career and the new challenges that offering my own designs will bring. My best work has yet to come.

Thanks again for all of the support throughout the years and I'm always here to support this community whenever needed.

Respectfully,
Rob

 

[LunatiBSW]

Im very excited to see what configurations you use for your custom amps, Im saving as we speak. Hopefully theres a ultra high gain channel on something with some huge Uberschall like low end :twisted:

Congrats on your expanded success!
Hard work pays off

 

[davetheslave]

I can't wait to hear a Jaded Faith amp. Robs Superclean module is the best clean I've ever had. I would love to see that in a fully custom made amp. Can't wait to see what you come up with Rob.

 

[JKD]

Sorry to hear this :-/

But at the same time, you have to do what's best for your business and I wish you the best of luck!

 

[kc2eeb]

All the best!

 

[Spencer4hire]

I guess if you snooze you loose. I really wanted to get a couple of the amps but the timing of finances were not right. Rob you are good peeps and I know you will succeed with your endeavors.

 

[rblyn]

Not a demise of JF but certainly a big hit to all of us still interested in modded modules and MTS in particular. Jaded Faith, Sacred Groove, Hilligan, Trace at Voodoo- All have shut down this part of their business....Now the donors are gone- (and hard to fine anyway) Its looking to me like its time to think about moving back to Blackstar or grab an EVH.

Dont know what Mattfig has up his sleeves, maybe it will be the savior and I hope between he and Salvation they can keep the fire burning- I dont care how its framed in the original message (and I understand the reasons mentioned)- this is bad news to this particular board and group of MTS enthusiasts-

 

[rhequiem]

I agree with Rick. Sad news, even though I'm happy to hear your business is booming, Rob It was a real pleasure getting to meet you at the LA Amp show a couple years ago (though I was there for the Axe-FX FEST, I had to stop by Jaded Faith's MTS room hehe). It seems like the doors are finally closing on MTS land. I don't currently own an MTS amp, but still haunt the forums and keep my eyes on the classifieds for the right deal to get me back in. Ah well, it was a fun ride, folks

 

[mrtatemyballs]

Whoa. Not good news for MTS.

 

[MarcoR]

Um... Guys, he did not say he's not doing any more MTS mods, he just said he's not providing donors from his stock. There are plenty of stock mods floating around so no worries!

 

[Mattfig]

There are plenty of used donors but the prices just went up as they became more exclusive....Don't know how many Rob is sitting on but I am figuring he still has a stockpile for something....

All the best Rob!

 

[Jaded Faith]

In the wake of posting this, I have been FLOODED with message and emails. I'd like to make several points clear that may not have been in the original post:

1: I am not leaving the MTS community, discontinuing a single service, discontinuing modifications or support line for you or your gear.

2: You can still have all the same mods done at our shop and custom work is the same as it ever was.

3: My pricing has nearly never changed since 2007, not is it doing so now.

The only things that have changed are:

1: I have a potential deal to sell well over $12,000 of new MTS gear to a single group of buyers and it will support school children. Anyone who knows me personally knows my wife is a public music teacher and I am one of THE biggest supporters of arts education around. If I have a chance to expose hundreds of kids to great tone and teach them in the process I support that 100%. If I sell large quantities of my new amp stock to these schools I will need to load them with modules as well. Thus, I need to freeze these assets for now. Once this deal passes, there is a great chance I will make the remaining stock available for sale to the public.

2: The initial deal offered here was mildly received and in hindsight, far too cheap for the cost of parts and labor involved. Those who moved on it got one of the best deals on the finest amps available to this community, ever.

I am still here. I am still modding modules. I will still mod your amps once I can get the existing stock out the door and get some space. My business has exploded and I have no choice but to expand to at least twice the current shop space just to accommodate the MTS, service and repair work I now do. Launching Jaded Faith Amplification is going to require even more room for cabinet building, tolex, etc.

There is no need for panic, projecting the demise of anything nor to feel betrayed. There are still plenty of donors in circulation and I honestly don't sell many as a percentage of the actual mod jobs I do anyway.

Feel free to email me or give me a call Tuesday when I'm back in the shop if you have concerns. Hopefully this update serves to ease some of the panic.

Respectfully,
Rob

 

[iekobrid]

My business has exploded and I have no choice but to expand to at least twice the current shop space just to accommodate the MTS, service and repair work I now do. Launching Jaded Faith Amplification is going to require even more room for cabinet building, tolex, etc.

I hope the new facility is at ground level. I feel bad everytime I see you shlepping an amp up and down those stairs!

 

[VitaminG]

I guess if you snooze you loose. I really wanted to get a couple of the amps but the timing of finances were not right. Rob you are good peeps and I know you will succeed with your endeavors.

I hear that. Was a helluva a deal. Would have loved to pick up one of Rob's RM100s but have just sunk that much & more into car repairs. Plus it would cost another $500 PLUS customs duty to get it here.

 

[Kapo_Polenton]

I like your honesty.. it is a bit like beating a dead horse. MTS has probably reached the top of the hill in terms of development. Great amps that do the trick but ultimately, still coming up 10% short when they go up against the amps they try to copy. Has nothing to do with quality necessarily, just something you feel when they go toe to toe. Some people don't feel this.. others do. At the end of the day, although you want to do certain things to these amps, sometimes reshaping what is already there can no doubt be challenging and not cost effective. I notice the shift to modding existing amps new and old. I think this is a fantastic niche and a good business move. Furthermore, a custom amp that combines what you have seen in popular amps with your own ear and changes you made to mods, would be fantastic to offer as well. US made amps packed with features and tones you know have been successful based on how well your modules were received. Right now I am holding onto my lynch box. I think i would lose more if i sold it and it sounds good. I don't think i would be so quick to expand my MTS collection any time soon unless something earth shattering came to be.

 

[Jaded Faith]

I like your honesty.. it is a bit like beating a dead horse. MTS has probably reached the top of the hill in terms of development. Great amps that do the trick but ultimately, still coming up 10% short when they go up against the amps they try to copy. Has nothing to do with quality necessarily, just something you feel when they go toe to toe. Some people don't feel this.. others do. At the end of the day, although you want to do certain things to these amps, sometimes reshaping what is already there can no doubt be challenging and not cost effective. I notice the shift to modding existing amps new and old. I think this is a fantastic niche and a good business move. Furthermore, a custom amp that combines what you have seen in popular amps with your own ear and changes you made to mods, would be fantastic to offer as well. US made amps packed with features and tones you know have been successful based on how well your modules were received. Right now I am holding onto my lynch box. I think i would lose more if i sold it and it sounds good. I don't think i would be so quick to expand my MTS collection any time soon unless something earth shattering came to be.

Thank you sir, I always try to be to the point and upfront in all dealings. I won't sell service work in the shop that amps do not need either.

When modding amps, there is only so much you can do with the preamp alone. In MTS, you don't get to touch the first gain stage, phase inverter or power section when modding a module. That's huge! There are a lot of tricks you can do given that palate, but it's still a limited canvas.

At the end of the day, regardless of what a mod is claimed to be or do, there are only so many things you can do between 2-3 gain stages and a CF stage.

 

[Big Steve]

When modding amps, there is only so much you can do with the preamp alone. In MTS, you don't get to touch the first gain stage, phase inverter or power section when modding a module. That's huge! There are a lot of tricks you can do given that palate, but it's still a limited canvas.

At the end of the day, regardless of what a mod is claimed to be or do, there are only so many things you can do between 2-3 gain stages and a CF stage.

Rob the amount of variety you have been able to achieve, in both feel and tone, within the constraints of MTS has simply been amazing. I asked you to do some out of the box stuff, mainly 1950's and 60's Fender and Ampeg circuits, and you more than exceeded my expectations. So don't underestimate your ability to modify these amps, even when you are constrained.

I look forward to your new business model. A person with your talents deserves to be rewarded.

 

[ricky]

Has there been any modding of an RM4 done?

 

[withmittens]

Has there been any modding of an RM4 done?

I'm new to RM4, so out of curiosity, what would you have done to it? and what are it;s shortcomings. not that I need to invent reasons to mod but, curiou$

 

[ricky]

I am not sure what I would do to one as I am not very savvy with this stuff. I also would not have known what to do with a mod, an RM50,or an RM100. However people like Rob came along and started tweaking and I was blown away by what this stuff could do. So, I was curious about the untapped potential of the RM4