VV website

[Genebaby]

It seems that http://vinnievincent.com is down.

Hopefully it's just a glitch, or part of an upgrade and will come back up.

Otherwise things are looking bleak.

[Awalkergtr]

Ughhhhhh wtf nooooooo.....

[Awalkergtr]

Worked for me...

[Genebaby]

Cool, it is back. Only gave an error message before.

[Genebaby]

Hmmm...it looks like Vinnie has nothing going on until the Kruise Pre-party in October.

Also, more alarming these days is that the site is not secure.

Chrome is reporting this sort of stuff a lot lately so it would be a good idea for whoever runs it to get it up to scratch.

[Kuron]

Also, more alarming these days is that the site is not secure.

That is definitely a bad thing, but the new price increase is likely to affect orders far more than the lack of a properly configured SSL certificate. It does go without saying that one should never order from a site that does not have a properly configured SSL certificate.

Speaking of which, I checked my site and the SSL is not working for https://www.domainname.com Grrr.. Seems it is not supported by the host and only https://domainname.com is supported... Time to find a new host.

*The above URLS are just examples and are not my site, I have no idea what is on those URLs, so please do not click on them.*

[Genebaby]

Here at the VVFF you can browse securely, or not, but it doesn't really matter as there is no commerce happening here, but it's a bit of a thing so I got it sorted.

I kinda thought some prices had gone up wasn't entirely sure.

Gee....not sure what to think lately.

[BagBoy]

Website is working and it looks like products have been relisted at a high price like phots being $100. Also looks like he took down the pic of that one young girl that is quite a fan of Vinnie in place of a lick it up cd cover.

I really hope Vinnie is doing well and that things of disorganization as it seems get sorted out for the best.

[AnkhWarrior]

Hmm wonder the reason why the prices went up..very high demand?

[Kuron]

Hmm wonder the reason why the prices went up..very high demand?

Given that Pro Tone apparently has still not sold all 25 VV pedals, I am not sure what the actual demand for Vinnie products/merchandise actually is? That said, the pricing on Vinnie's site for his merchandise is high enough that some of us who actually WANT to buy Vinnie merchandise are forced to go the bootleg route.

I bought a nice 4 foot by 4 foot VV banner/wall hanging a couple of months ago to put in my studio, and I just bought a mini VV guitar which is something I have wanted for years. An autographed picture would certainly be nice, but I balked at $50. Now it is $100. Had it been $25, I would have ordered one without a second thought.

Gee....not sure what to think lately.

I have definitely been doing some head scratching lately.

I really hope Vinnie is doing well and that things of disorganization as it seems get sorted out for the best.

Me, too. Since, he does not have anything scheduled for a while, hopefully during the down time he can relax and destress and reorganize.

[AnkhWarrior]

Hmm wonder the reason why the prices went up..very high demand?

Given that Pro Tone apparently has still not sold all 25 VV pedals, I am not sure what the actual demand for Vinnie products/merchandise actually is? That said, the pricing on Vinnie's site for his merchandise is high enough that some of us who actually WANT to buy Vinnie merchandise are forced to go the bootleg route.

I bought a nice 4 foot by 4 foot VV banner/wall hanging a couple of months ago to put in my studio, and I just bought a mini VV guitar which is something I have wanted for years. An autographed picture would certainly be nice, but I balked at $50. Now it is $100. Had it been $25, I would have ordered one without a second thought.

Yeah I was quite surprised at everything be no less than $100. $50 would be the limit for me price wise for autographs. Guess I was lucky to get my 3 free autographs in Atlanta :p

And those Pro Tone pedals still have not completely sold? Wow, quite surprised by that, actually...so hyped, figured they would be bought up.

[Kuron]

Yeah I was quite surprised at everything be no less than $100. $50 would be the limit for me price wise for autographs. Guess I was lucky to get my 3 free autographs in Atlanta :p

And those Pro Tone pedals still have not completely sold? Wow, quite surprised by that, actually...so hyped, figured they would be bought up.

Your autographs certainly mean more since you got them in person. I think the only thing I have autographed that was not done in person is Peter Criss's last CD, and only because when I was at Best Buy on the day of its release, they had autographed copies for the same price.

I am surprised by the pedals, too. With around 8 billion people in the world, one would think you could find 25 VV fans to buy them. Pricing may be a factor. For comparison, the MXR EVH distortion pedal goes for around $170 and it is a very good pedal. Contrast with the non-autographed VV pedal was listed at $269 IIRC. Those are no longer listed, Had the autographed versions been priced at $269, they would have have likely sold all of them.

As much as we may love Vinnie, his worth in the marketplace is not what it was. Had he never disappeared and continued producing music, I am sure things would be different. But, out of the spotlight for so long, and then reappearing and almost immediately angering so much of his fanbase with his treatment of Chris, he has turned off a large percentage of potential customers. We learn as children that there are consequences to our actions. Not being able to sell only 25 guitar pedals over several months may just be one of those consequences...

[Streetbeat]

Now he just grabbed two fan made images, one Prisma picture and the other one was a freddy glove / dot guitar collage someone made
and ...he is selling those for $100.00

http://vinnievincent.com/product/vinnie ... d-photo-1/

http://vinnievincent.com/product/vinnie ... d-photo-2/

[richiehaha]

A former band-mate once said that Vinnie would hang himself while someone was handing him the keys to the kingdom.
I wish I could be more optimistic for NEW BEGINNINGS, but history says otherwise.
At sixty something years old, with a bad reputation for working with others, a history of poor decision making, very little public interest outside of the few thousand fans like you and I, and several other factors working against him, something positive needs to happen soon - or by 2019 they'll be nothing left to talk about with regards to VV. Hate to sound negative, but sometimes it's just called reality.

[AnkhWarrior]

Yeah I was quite surprised at everything be no less than $100. $50 would be the limit for me price wise for autographs. Guess I was lucky to get my 3 free autographs in Atlanta :p

And those Pro Tone pedals still have not completely sold? Wow, quite surprised by that, actually...so hyped, figured they would be bought up.

Your autographs certainly mean more since you got them in person. I think the only thing I have autographed that was not done in person is Peter Criss's last CD, and only because when I was at Best Buy on the day of its release, they had autographed copies for the same price.

I am surprised by the pedals, too. With around 8 billion people in the world, one would think you could find 25 VV fans to buy them. Pricing may be a factor. For comparison, the MXR EVH distortion pedal goes for around $170 and it is a very good pedal. Contrast with the non-autographed VV pedal was listed at $269 IIRC. Those are no longer listed, Had the autographed versions been priced at $269, they would have have likely sold all of them.

As much as we may love Vinnie, his worth in the marketplace is not what it was. Had he never disappeared and continued producing music, I am sure things would be different. But, out of the spotlight for so long, and then reappearing and almost immediately angering so much of his fanbase with his treatment of Chris, he has turned off a large percentage of potential customers. We learn as children that there are consequences to our actions. Not being able to sell only 25 guitar pedals over several months may just be one of those consequences...

Oh definitely especially since they're signed to me. Much more special. People who purchase autographs like that online are those who are into collecting or feel they may not have a chance to meet their idol.

I still wish him the utmost best and hope things turn around for him. Was not expecting things to turn out like this. In Atlanta the positive energy was unreal, so I never thought things would start to go a bit downhill.
Waiting for his next move.

[Kuron]

Oh definitely especially since they're signed to me. Much more special. People who purchase autographs like that online are those who are into collecting or feel they may not have a chance to meet their idol.

I still wish him the utmost best and hope things turn around for him. Was not expecting things to turn out like this. In Atlanta the positive energy was unreal, so I never thought things would start to go a bit downhill.
Waiting for his next move.

With the exception of prints of paintings, I always get the autograph personalized. Like you said, it makes it much more special and it also reassures the signer that it is not going up on ebay.

I can't imagine how magical the Atlanta expo was in person. Just waiting for YT videos to appear, the magic and raw emotion definitely came through in the videos. I was definitely teary eyed during parts of Vinnie's interviews, as well as Robert's interview and their mini performance. I have always respected Vinnie as a musician/songwriter, but I came away from those videos with massive respect for him as a human being and empathy for what he has gone through.

One could not imagine things taking the turns they did. Hopefully, things are not too far off course to be corrected and get back on track. More than anything, I wish him the best and want him to be happy, no matter what he may choose to do in the future.

[Genebaby]

I'm not sure about pedal prices in the US for other pedals, but I did kind of figure the Vinnie one was expensive, and factor in exchange rates and shipping and it's a REALLY expensive pedal for overseas fans.

Part of the issue would probably be numbers for economies of scale, but that's business, or perhaps Vinnie had something to do with the price?

I don't know, but either way, the end result is the same, a product priced out of a lot of the market.

I'm interested in it, as a Vinnie fan and a guitar player, but I don't want or need it in my collection for the sound, just rather to have it as a Vinnie collector. I am very happy with my Marshall and no pedals for distortion sounds.

[Kuron]

I made a typo, the EVH pedal is $199. Yes, smaller runs are more expensive and a smaller company like Pro Tone certainly can't get the manufacturing deals that one of the larger companies can.

Based on how much Vinnie is charging for autographs, and how much he is marking up the guitars he is selling, Vinnie is likely the reason for the autographed version being $349. Had Vinnie been able to have them priced at $269 for the autographed version, they would have sold very well.

It appears things have fallen apart on this deal, and if so, the Pro Tone guys may be in a position where they legally can't talk about things, or are taking the high road. Either way, they did a fabulous job and they really captured the sound of Vinnie's gear from back then. I would love to hear how it sounds with a TS9 in front of it.

Here in the USA, boutique pedals tend to be more expensive, but they are usually worth it.

This would have been nice to have, but I already have a uber rare pedal that is special to me and likely has no real value. It is a prototype distortion pedal that was made for Ian Bairnson. Ian has one, my friend Gary who made them in Oz has a couple, and AFAIK, I have the only other one. But most people today, do not know who Ian Bairnson is. Plus, I have a fairly decent pedal collection and am exploring modelers.

[Genebaby]

I happily use my modeller for effects and channel switching rather than any of my pedals when playing live, which is when I need that kind of thing.

[Genebaby]

Ok, I can't get to the vinnievincent.com webiste again this morning. No idea how long it's been down, or if it's just me.

I only went there to look in the shop for the crazy price on the Chinese VVV guitars he's trying to sell.

[WizKid]

It's there in all it's unsecured glory for me lol

[Genebaby]

Ok, yes, it's back for me too now. In all its unsecure glory!!

Seems even dodgier now, that it's so hard to get it to load the few times I actually go to have a look.

[metatron]

Site should stay down for good.
With prices of items like that, it is a waste of bandwidth it even existing.
Yes VV, you somewhat saved KISS. Yes you are great Guitarist and Songwriter. and you even have a great Voice.
But still, Prices for items at those outrageous amounts are just showing contempt for your fan base.
Ludicrous.

[Genebaby]

Unless Vinnie literally saves the world from extinction, there is no justifying those prices.

It only serves to prove more how crazy he is, and is a(nother) blemish on his legacy.