Does anyonw know if Brian is still selling his Button kits?
I read somewhere on the BBS that he is busy but I expected at least a short email back about my order status.

Greetings!

Yes, he is still making the kits. To quote his web site:

As kits become available, I will reply to each email request
on a first-come-first-served basis. You will only receive an
e-mail reply with ordering details when I am ready to fill
your particular order. These button sets are cast one at a
time, by hand, so there will be a delay between the time you
email me and the time you get a reply.

im also in your boat - emailed him months ago and no word yet. i did not want to re-email him as i dont know if that emaill address is flooded with orders - didnt want to cause additional problems. will just have to wait i guess

Same here. If I knew he had a waiting list this long I would've e-mailed him several months ago.

Well, I got my neon lens from DarkStorm and now waiting for...

Well I think I will be one of those who will never have those nice buttons... I am still waiting for any sign from Brian.
What happened to him?

If anyone else has some buttons I am happy to buy them (I don't really need the LED's...)

Greetings!

Brian is still around, and the kits are really worth the wait!!! I would assume that the delay is in the casting of the buttons - that takes time and is being done by hand.

Got mine about three month ago. I think you have to wait. First comes first serves.
Am I the only one in Switzerland with the famous buttons until now?

Of course it is worth the wait - but I have NO idea if he really got my eMail... I mean I could wait forever if there was an eMail problem. If only I would have a confirmation about my order - I don't mind waiting half a year if I know that the order went through!

Good point. I have had email that I sent disappear before (presumably the same place socks disappear to from the dryer).

Brian should set up an auto-responder of some sort to let the customer know that their order has been recieved.

And a number in the queue - so we can try to work out what year our buttons will be ready :-)

Heh,

I wonder if he's working on the '4 button' version. I believe he got quite a few requests to integrate that.

I have 2 emails in to him. Been waiting over 6 months for a response. I'm wondering if I should just stick some christmaslights back there and call it a day.

Greetings!

"Four button version"???

If it helps, all of the new ones have 4 LEDs around the knob. Looks really quite nice.

Right, I meant 4 led. My bad.

Greetings!

If you want, there is a shot I made of the four LED variations. They work extremely well, look very slick, balanced, and are somewhat harder to install than the three LED version.

This may seem like a stupid question, but how can I actually order those button kits?
There is not mention of it on Brian's page.

Is a simple email to him with what you want sufficient? How does the payment work?

Greetings!

A simple email will suffice. You will not get a reply back, though, and there is a fairly long queue at the moment. Payment is through PayPal. I do not know if there are other payment methods available if you do not have a PayPal account.

Paypal is fine, no problem.

It would be nice if I sent him the email to get a confirmation email. I mean, I don't have to know my exact spot on the list, but I would like to know if I'm even ON it.

Thanks for the info Paul!

Hi,
so I sent my mail MONTHS ago and didn't pay so far - I hope this won't mean that he will not contact me.
I don't really want to send a mail again to upset him so finally he won't ship...
What should I do... Everybody shows those nice pictures of their LED's on the empeg and me I even don't have an idea if I would be able to get one of those one day.
I don't really care about the LED's - all I really need are the buttons!

... or is there anyone who will sell his buttons ???

Brian: I hope you are alive...

Greetings!

From my own experience:

I sent in email as soon as they were announced. I was not certain I would actually implement the hack (this was really before Mark volunteered to install as a service), but I knew I would rather have the kits and worry about the installation later.

I waited. I was impatient, too, but I knew I had three players (four at the time) to worry about. I sent in a message from another account, just in case.

Out of the blue (I wasn't expecting it) I received an email that the kits were ready. This was about the time when the molds began to break down, and he could not provide a Mark 2_ knob, just the 2a. I let him know that I only had 2a's, so I did not need the extra. He provided me a quote for the knobs and kits at that time, I sent in the money via PayPal. Soon after, I received the buttons and asked Mark about installation.

Do not worry that you haven't paid or anything at this point. When your email comes up, you will be contacted, asked if you are still interested and quoted a price. The four LED knob kits were slightly more expensive than listed on the web site, due to their being more components. It is worth it!!!

Brian sent out a mail to all his people in the queue.
Just to inform others that he is still selling his button kits.

Probably now would be a good time to order as he restarts producing buttons ;-)

And for continuity...

Date: 9/8/2002 21:50:58 -0500

From: Brian Mihulka <buttons  @  hulkster.net>

To: buttons  @  hulkster.net

Subject: Button status  



Hello everyone,



I just wanted to send a little update due to the emails I have been 

receiving.  The effects of my new job are subsiding and I plan on starting 

production up again.  All kits will come with the 4 LED knob board and dimmer 

fix capacitor.  The price will be going up to $75 plus S/H due to the new 

design.  I appreciate all the interest and will try my best to get kits out 

as fast as possible.



Thanks,

Brian Mihulka

 

The price for the kit was $45 plus S/H and now it is $75 plus S/H. That is hefty price increase.

Don't like it, don't buy it. Your empeg isn't going to stop working because it doesn't have backlit buttons...

I think Brian has a right to charge whatever he wants for doing these things. Supply and demand...

No kidding. From the demand outweighing the supply by this much, people should be happy it isn't ~$300 / kit.

I'm sick of all this talk about supply and demand. There are other factors in economics, you know. (Which is not to say that he doesn't have the right to charge what he wants, nor that $75 is outrageous.)

For example, let's assume that the Beatles were to reunite (and that John and George were still alive). They would go on tour and the demand would be phenomenal. But if they charged $3000 for a ticket, how many people would buy them?

In reply to:

---

But if they charged $3000 for a ticket, how many people would buy them?

---

Didn't you just state a perfect example of supply and demand? I'm rather confused. If the beatles reunited, and said they were only going to play one concert, demand would be high, and they probably could get close to $3000 a ticket. Some people out there would be willing to pay, but not a whole lot... That's what supply and demand is...

Now, if you take a look at the steel market in the US, or rent controlled appartments in NY, you'll find some examples where supply and demand isn't everything...

Matthew

Supply and demand doesn't even apply in this situation anyhow. Considering that he hand-casts each set of buttons, and organizes/packs/ships each kit by hand, Brian's kits are easily worth the $75.00, or even more than that. I know that when I first saw his photos of the kits, I was ready to write him a blank check. Brian is the man.

No kidding. From the demand outweighing the supply by this much, people should be happy it isn't ~$300 / kit.

Well, I'm happy it's not $200!

I might make Bitt cringe by mentioning "S and D" again, but this seems like a case where, if not for Brian's efforts, there could be a lot of demand and zero supply.

I don't want to put words in Brian's mouth or pretend to know what is involved, but I can imagine that there have been considerable numbers of hours consumed in trial-and (dare I say?) error developing these buttons and that, if measured under a cold, steely accountant's microscope, what Brian has done in producing these is not a very lucrative business (and is probably a pain in the ass to have taken up as a sideline sometimes, too!)

Yes, it's a chunk of change, but I'd hate to be reading a thread that says "Dang, can't anybody make illuminated buttons?"

Whoa whoa whoa.

I think you will find that before it was
$45 for the button led kit (all buttons + plus leds for the 4 buttons)
$20 for the knob led kit (just the LEDs and board behind the knob)
=$65

It's now $75 for the two. i.e. for a complete kit is now $10 extra.

Well that's how I read it anyway and I reckon fair enough. I know what this sort of thing is like to do.

Greetings!

And I would also add that Brian is now including the cap for the dimmer fix, a new four LED board and the added resistor and LED to make it work. Also, the LEDs for the buttons were swapped with ones that diffuse the light a little better. Lastly, as before, all of the major parts are custom: hand cast buttons and specially designed knob boards that reflect a great deal of time and effort on Brian's part.

If you don't think it is worth the price for the kit, Brian published the exact electronics you need for the button hack on his web site. You could always cast your own buttons, or modify your existing buttons.

Trust me, the kit is worth it!