Beware MSS Hifi, avoid Fraud

I sincerely hope so.

MSS hifi is an out-and-out criminal -- with a mouth that was born in a toilet. I speak from personal experience with him. I got all my money back from the ba***rd -- very quickly. Synergistic Research knows he is a criminal. Just have a look at the warning on their Home Page.

Dover,
You state "Isn't it funny how you have to pay to fix a known fault in a product."

I could not agree more. And it's not so funny. Like with the tray on the EMM CDSA SE that cost $10,000. They charged $1500 for an "upgrade" to the stock tray that was a piece of plastic trash. The upgrade was also an inferior tray if you look at the parts quality. EMM lost total credibility on this tray fiasco. Not only that, look on the EMM site for a photo of the inside of the EMM CDSA SE. You will not find one. The reason is the obvious poor quality of the components when you pop the top to have a look inside. Shocking.

Years ago, I bought an EMM CDSA SE on the aftermarket at an excellent price -- to my later regret. The PC board failed one day and I sent it back to EMM in Canada, at my expense, for replacement. EMM also replaced the power supply, free of charge, which told me something was obviously up with the power supply that they knew about. When I asked them about the power supply they were tight-lipped.

I sold my CDSA SE to a very happy buyer. My loss, his gain. Although the repairs may have finally brought the unit up to spec one wonders about a supposedly top manufacturer that brings to market -- amid hoopla, of course -- a very expensive product that is seriously flawed and that has obviously not been sufficiently tested. In any case, the EMM was way too digital for my ears, which is ultimately why I decided to sell it.

Meitner "the genius" is hyped everywhere on the internet with nary a voice on the other side to contradict the plaudits. But it is well known that a number of EMM's new products have been brought to market prematurely with "issues". At the prices EMM charges for their products I think this is shameful.

Milpai,
It was also a great disappointment to me. I bought my EMM based on the reputation of EMM as a "great firm", the high esteem that Ed Meitner holds in the audio community as a great innovator and because of the positive reports about the CDSA SE.

With all that said, I would have expected a monster product in the CDSA SE, especially with a price tag of $11,500. Frankly, I feel the reports about the CDSA SE were a lot of hype -- not only with regards to the sonic attributes of the unit verses similarly priced units by other manufacturers, but also with regards to the poor build quality of the unit. I tweaked it to death to get the most out of it. But you should not have to tweak a $11,500 unit to death to get the most out of it. And, in the end, you cannot make a silk purse out of a sow's ear.

I now have the AMR DP-777 that retails for $5,000. There is absolutely no comparison between the two units, IMO. If you put them both on a scale of "dollars for results", the AMR would have to be priced at 10 times the price of the EMM. Opposite the AMR, the EMM does not measure up on any significant parameter except resolution, IMO. The AMR is in a whole other league.

I have yet to read any reports about the poor build quality of the CDSA except as relates to the tray "upgrade". I know there are a lot of people who had the same tray problem but any criticism of EMM was muted. I cannot explain the conspiracy of silence around EMM that protects it from anything but positive reports.

By the way, I believe EMM must have made a good profit on the tray "upgrade." I examined it closely. It was flimsy and the complete underside was made of plastic. Only the top of the tray and the runners were metal. I don't believe it is ethical to bring to market a flawed product at a premium price and then to make a handy profit from forcing customers to "upgrade".

Onhwy61,
I have no idea what you're referring to here.

Dcoates7020,
IMO this is a lot more serious that one experience versus another. Synergistic Research has a warning on their site about counterfeit SR cables being sold by MSS.

MSS are defendants in a court case instigated by Bel Canto. Here is the link to the court papers:

http://www.computeraudiophile.com/files/1-main.pdf

Would you purchase in confidence from an Audiogon seller who had more than 50% negative feedback -- with horror stories left and right from people who have been scammed by that very seller?