Core Audio Server Ryan Mintz


Has anyone had any experience with Core Audio (Ryan Mintz)?

Or, has anyone had any good experiences, with either product quality, or customer service?

I purchased a server from him over a year ago.
For the limited amount of time I have been able to listen to it,
it has displayed no real sound quality difference compared to a stock Mac mini.

After hundreds of emails, shipping the server and/or power supply back and forth, and exchanging it for several different units, none of them will run for an hour without crashing...

Ryan has only made absurd claims, saying the warranty was void.

Is this an isolated case?

Frustrated consumer
snuffaluffagus
Ripped me for $500.00 saying I tampered/opened a demo dac and messed it up. He would not refund my 30 day demo $$$. Made me sign a disclaimer that I would not write bad about him and Ben Mojo Audio. After signing it they said FU.

The dac sucked.

So you are another that he has ripped.
Look here: http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?icomp&1358211310&openfrom&1&4#1
About 2 year ago, I tried a linear power supply and a prototype DAC from Ryan and his Core Audio partner at the time, Ben from Mojo. Neither product met my expectations or that of other audiophile friends who heard them. I was able to get a refund but not before being accused verbally of having opened up the units (thereby voiding the right of full money-back return).

Neither I nor my friends ever opened the units.

I sympathized with Glory's problems with Core Audio because he had recommended me to use Core's products, so to see him treated so badly left a very bad taste in my mouth.

That said, Ryan Mintz was always very helpful to me in terms of phone support and email support.

I only wished his products matched in practice his claims.

Moreover, I find perplexing the fact that months and months later, Core Audio only has 1 positive feedback comment on Audiogon. That makes me wonder how they are treating others.

Glory has hundreds of positive comments and not a single negative one. That should speak volumes.

What else do we have to go by on this site?
Robert,

If you want to post a bad review about my products you are welcome to, but do so with the whole story and sign your name. Otherwise there's no way for us to course correct.

I sold no servers over a year ago. The server is a new product and you will see that our servers are only offered with our ATX linear power supplies. We do not offer them with a standard linear power supply.

We had a customer who received a mac mini system and had a friend of his open the power supply up to look at it when the mac mini was shutting down. He modified and spliced in some wires and changed things around resulting in a computer that no longer worked. I know this because I spoke to the tech directly on the phone. I had them send the unit back and I repaired it. I repaired the power supply several times at my cost, but the damage done to the mac mini initially by their mod was what was causing the failure rate.

So finally we just offered to build a basic server. This is not a product we offer. It was to be an alternative for him to the Mac Mini. He had an issue with fan noise so swapped out a fan. Then he sent the entire system to Mojo Audio to take apart. Beyond that we know nothing else.

Understand that opening and modifying our products or sending our products to competitors to open is voiding the warranty. I have made zero claims to him since that first email I sent over a year ago letting him know that by having his friend open the unit that he would be voiding the warranty. He understood and continued to send units back to us.

We have hundreds of customers now who love their mac mini systems and music servers as well as all of our other products. The only customers who have had issues with us are the ones who are dishonest about the fact that they opened our systems and broke something. Try and break a system and bring it back to Fry's, see if they'll take it or repair it this many times at their cost.

If anyone has any questions or concerns about our products they are welcome to call us. As per his response you will see that we never ignored him or refused to work with him.

Courage,
Ryan Mintz
Core Audio Technology
818 971 9209
A phobia about consumers opening Core gear and tampering. Very sick little puppy. 3 of use broke open your units and tampered? Ding Ding!!

Finally what you have sown you are now reaping.