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Eden, really?

TSanders

TSanders

Oct 23, 2004
2,733
86
42
Columbus, Georgia
#1
I know they were bought out many moons ago, but Im kinda floored by them right now.

I just read that their new all tube amp, the E300T is just a cheap tube amp design, made overseas, and used by VARIOUS different companies after some rebadging.

I dont care where the amp is made, or any of that. What is sad is that Eden is OKAY putting their name on a product thats not even really their product.

What gives?
 
#9
Dave M said:
The Sadowsky amp is not made by Sadowsky, right? I'd be interested in seeing inside of one, but they contracted and rebadged a product.
Click to expand...

Right, but that was contracted from Roger and he had that amp built to his specs. When you seek the assistance of Koch and Bergantino for your amplification line youre working with some of the best of the best.

Seems the Eden is a mass produced tube amp that is being marked as three or four other brands, that IMO dont compare anywhere close to the Sadowsky offering.

please tell me you see the difference there.
 
#10
Yep - important distinction. Rebadging is taking an existing product and putting your name on it...with or without subtle changes. Think Isuzu/GM small pickups or Pontiac Vibe/Toyota Matrix. Designing something of your own and contracting the build is totally different. Think Sony sensors in Nikon cameras. Or Sadowsky amps. :D
 
#11
But the VT-300 thing happened when Eden was still privately held :confused: This company called Koch I believe figured out how to make a 50lb 200 watt tube head. Eden worked with them, changed the EQ stack a little, and released it under thier label ... since having a light 200 watt tube head is a pretty rad thing.

The fact that the new company is cost cutting and offshoring on current designs is disappointing though.
 
#12
TSanders said:
Right, but that was contracted from Roger and he had that amp built to his specs. When you seek the assistance of Koch and Bergantino for your amplification line youre working with some of the best of the best.

Seems the Eden is a mass produced tube amp that is being marked as three or four other brands, that IMO dont compare anywhere close to the Sadowsky offering.

please tell me you see the difference there.
Click to expand...

Relax man, why is it such a horrible thing that Eden is trying to make a few bucks? You work for a paycheck right? It's no different. If the amp is as cheap and crappy as everyone says it is, it will eventually work its way out of the Eden product line.
 
#14
It's interesting that a company like Carvin which is US based and all their manufacturing is done in the US can offer high quality stuff (I don't own any of their products at the moment, but a DCM1500 may be coming in the near future) at very competitive pricing. It may be partially because they sell direct and consumers don't have to pay the markups for distributers and retailers. But still, they've managed to avoid the overseas manufacturing / generic rebranding stuff. Peavey could arguably be classified similarly although they do sell through retail chains. Last I knew they were privately owned and did all their manufacturing in the US (still true?). I'm not doing a direct compare to Eden (I do own older Eden stuff), but I wonder if the quality and performance that Eden has been known for can be maintained. I'm not sure I'd want to pay Eden prices for something generic with Eden branding. If I want a Chevrolet or Subaru, I'll buy a Chevrolet or Subaru. Don't try to sell me a Chevrolet or Subaru that is rebranded as a Saab and expect me to pay more (in case anyone wonders what I'm talking about, check some of the car forums).
 
#15
Just to clarify things a bit, the Eden VT-300 was designed in cooperation with Dolf Koch, who also built the amp. Dolf had certainly made numerous tube heads prior to this, but the VT-300 was certainly designed with input from Eden.

The Sadowsky SA200 was also designed in cooperation with Dolf Koch, and Dolf's shop did, indeed, build them. Roger Sadowsky was very involved in the design process, and the preamp is totally different.

In neither case is the VT-300 or SA200 a 'rebadged' Koch amp. They are Eden and Sadowsky amps, respectively. It just happens to be that Dolf Koch was contracted to help design and build them both.

I have not checked out the new Eden tube head, though.

Tom.
 
#16
gerryjazzman said:
Peavey could arguably be classified similarly although they do sell through retail chains. Last I knew they were privately owned and did all their manufacturing in the US (still true?).
Click to expand...

While Peavey still does some manufacturing in the US, they also do a lot overseas, both with amps/electronics and guitars/basses.

That isn't necessarily a bad thing, as it allows a company to have a range of products at different price points.

As far as Eden, are they considering this amp their flagship product or is it just another product in their line? This type of stuff happens all of the time. It could be that they didn't have the in-house R&D talent to work on a tube amp, wanted one in their product line, and instead went out and bought one. I'm assuming that they are the sole importer to the US of this particular model, right?

It just seems like Eden is moving away from being an innovator with in-house R&D, at least with this product. That happens all of the time in companies, especially when the bean counters see how much a good R&D department costs...
 
#17
I'm a big fan of Honda. Back when honda wanted to get into the SUV market the simply rebadged the Izuzu Rodeo. Oh, and they charge 3-4k more that Izuzu. What's amazing is that people bought the Honda version just for the Honda name. Heck, I even remember reading a syndicated auto columnist review the passport. He didn't even know it was an Izuzu.

This happens all of the time; especially with appliances.

This reminds me of a quote from one of my favorite movies..."What the American public doesn't know is what makes them the American public."
 

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