- Feb 12, 2006
- 61,070
- 5
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- Disclosures
- Development Engineer-Mesa Boogie, Development Engineer-Genzler (pedals), Product Support-Genz Benz
A big part of it is designing the pedal to be easily manufactured using highly automated machinery and processes without having to resort to surface mount components. We use all traditional through-hole components, name brand pots, switches and jacks.
In short, it's with sophisticated automation, and this is unfortunately where China has an edge on the US. Their auto-insert machinery (with auto-verify of each part prior to insertion) is far superior to what we typically use in the US because they assemble so much of this technology. While labor is part of it, there's very little traditional assembly labor in each pedal the labor is mostly for supporting the high tech manufacturing infrastructure and 100% computerized testing of all features on each pedal.
The savings went into the better parts and a real savings to our customers (which is what most have pleaded for since the market for a $400 preamp pedal is pretty small by comparison). I suppose we could have sold it for more, but the powers that be actually considered the customer's clearly asking for something like this... it's also somewhat of an experiment to see if we can expand some of our products (or ideas for new products) to players who don't have "unlimited" disposable income.
I hope this helps, and in fact the housing is indeed "aluminium".
