I read this thread in its entirety with some trepidation since I use a SMARTractor for setups I do for customers and have exchanged quite a few emails with and have met Kevin Wolff of VANA Ltd., the US distributor of Acoustical Systems. In our interactions Kevin has demonstrated time and again he is a stand up guy and a true professional. I asked him about these serious allegations of fraud leveled at Dietrich, not only because anyone who knows me knows I am all about honesty and integrity but also because sometimes reality varies quite a bit from what may be posted online.
Some may recall that Michael Fremer wrote about Dietrich and the SMARTractor quite a while ago. The distributor learned of the allegations from Michael and found out from Dietrich that it was all about a person to whom he never delivered a tonearm and also never took money from. Apparently there were many changes and misunderstandings, from which a smear campaign started. You can see the latest of this campaign above, due to misunderstandings and passing of false rumors assumed to be true. And as we know, once it's out there on the Internet, it stays there.
Although I am not one of Kevin's dealers but may be at some point since I know for sure he's a good egg, an open book and the kind of person I want to do business with, I felt an obligation to set the record straight (pun intended). I respectfully ask all reading this to take my comments to heart and give Dietrich the benefit of the doubt. If you have further questions please feel free to contact Dietrich or Kevin.
Brian Walsh
Essential Audio