By September 29th I submitted a ticket requesting refund for my Caladan preorder due to the lack of updates this year. Also I could no longer afford to keep more than $1,000 tied up indefinitely.
I got a quick initial reply saying the request would be handled ‘shortly’, but then heard nothing for three weeks. Followed up on October 21 and was told the request had been forwarded to Brad again. No more updates or replies to the first ticket since then.
I opened a second ticket earlier this month and was informed Brad would contact me personally shortly to discuss, which never happened by the time I’m writing this post after another 12 days.
I do understand the current circumstances from recent updates but can’t justify more delays after seven weeks without progress. This left me with no choice but to post here, since Brad was active on the forum earlier this month. Apologies for the negativity.
I understand your frustration. And I apologize.
All funds from the 100 or so Caladan pre orders are tied up in physical parts that I have already purchased to make the first batch.
Pre-orders have not fully funded this and proceeds from the sales of vintage gear and my own funds are what will finalize the production of the first run of Caladans.
The money just isn’t there for refunds right now, sorry.
That said, when you get your Caladan, it will be worth a lot more than what you paid for it, as were the first batch of s2400s
mid next week I will be setup with a desk, a computer and a new workspace.
I’ll be dredging through my mile long list of tasks that I need to get to. You’ll be in there!
I’m in the same situation. Sent my refund request the same week as you. I figured he didn’t have any funds to refund money at this time due to the fact I have received no reply from Brad. I have emailed multiple times also and contacted Brad once regarding this directly on Facebook. I am no longer interested in the Caladan at this time and my confidence in how Isla instruments conducts business has been diminished. I’d rather just take this money and pay off some debt which would be more beneficial to me at this time. Brad please refund my money ASAP. I’ve already waited long enough.
Dude, you can’t squeeze water from a stone. Brad made it pretty clear the funds were used on hardware that was already purchased. Part of the risk of pre-ordering from a company is that they may not deliver. Unless you just ordered and are within the window of credit card chargebacks, you aren’t owed your money back legally. Brad is obviously going through some shit so the best we can do is hope he can get settled and put in the time to finish the product. Not only is it futile at this point to try and badger Brad for your money back, it would actively harm the chances of everyone else from getting theirs. Brad has already said that he isn’t abandoning this as his entire reputation within the industry is on the line and I fully believe he wants to retain that and thus turn this around and get through this rough period.
Just to make it clear that the reason of me posting this is not that I’m not getting my money back, but zero actual response from Brad to the request after almost 2 months and multiple follow-ups.
I did see the October update and that’s why I was willing to discuss further in private, after Brad acknowledged the matter. I wouldn’t have waited this long after months without any updates if I didn’t trust in this project in the first place, but my situation also changed over the year and honestly I might have sold the Caladan for money if it was delivered before this.
I don’t really think people will change their opinions if they read through the post, but I guess the admins can always remove this if they consider this to be harmful.
First, you can literally and figuratively squeeze water from a stone.
Second, in the United States a company legally has to issue a refund if a product is not delivered within the promised time if a customer request one. While I’m sure we all understand Brad is going through some difficulties, so are many other people. At the end of the day this is a business that made a commitment of delivery and has not yet fulfilled that. So if a customer request a refund two months ago, an ethical Business has an obligation to respond in a timely fashion. If there are no funds to issue a refund, that in itself is a problem with the business.
I’m not sure how many other customers have inquired about refunds but regardless it just needs to be figured out and handled. If a line of credit needs to be taken or a loan, any refund request should be acknowledged and fulfilled in a timely manner.
Two months is far too long. My circumstances have also changed and grand I payed could be used to help me take care of a medical debt I’ve recently incured.. Speaking for myself I’m not interested in receiving the Caladan and then take the time to sell it. I personally would just like my money refunded.
I’m going to be the devil’s advocate here: would the debt have not been incurred if you had the Caladan? The money wouldn’t have been there to cover the debt regardless…
And to sit here and be like, “my faith in how Isla conducts business is diminished” because you now have a debt and are in some sort of desperation for funds to cover the debt (by recouping your money from the Caladan) is just a little extreme…
Nonetheless, it’s your money and your right to recoup your funds. Brad, give these guys back their money.
I was an early adopter of the s2400 and took a risk on a small independent company trying to make a boutique unique instrument. i paid a pittance for the masterpiece i got back in the mail looking back.
Isla isnt Roland, or Korg or Yamaha, this is a small operation giving us what the big companies cannot.
Give Brad some time. He will deliver. He does good work. The S2400 is a solid workhorse and it is testament to what Brad can and will do with the Caladan.