New Raven Audio CeLest Monitor coming this fall.

My experience dealing with James is just the opposite. I’ve talked to him a few times on the phone and visited his house to audition a few amps and speakers. He was very nice, knowledge, and accessible. Maybe he was having a bad day? Whether you like their products or not, there’s no question their service is top notch. 

@erangel -- My last post was not meant to cast doubt on the validity of your complaint. I have no reason to believe you were anything less than truthful. I was just presenting another data point which was very different than yours obviously. As you know, the cost of almost everything has gone up due to supply chain issues. It is entirely possible that Raven could not have built the speakers at the price they quoted earlier due to increased cost of parts. The US manufacturers are at a greater disadvantage due to higher transportation and logistics costs. I guess that’s what you get when you outsource everything to another country.

With the onslaught of lower priced Chinese audio, I feel that US audio manufacturers are a dying breed. It was hard enough to compete due to higher labor costs in the US, and unfortunately the recent supply chain disruption can be the final nail in the coffin, especially for little guys like Raven Audio. There is no excuse for how James behaved with you, and I’m with you on that. But we don’t know what kind of pressure these folks are under. We are all human, and sometimes stress can make us behave in ways that don’t reflect who we really are. The James I dealt was a nice guy willing to go out of his way to accommodate his customers. I’m just surprised how he behaved with you. Again, not doubting your side of the story.

I sincerely hope that James or one of the other folks at Raven can find a way to make this right for you. Good luck and thank you for your service!

@erangel -- sorry to hear about how Raven Audio is behaving towards you. It's bad enough to treat regular customers this way, but to have this kind of attitude towards our service members is just unacceptable. I have no idea what's going on with James.