slow18 wrote:Being a software guy Dave, I’d be interested to hear how much engineering goes into a software reflash to change a configuration from say a tach time indication to a carb temp indication. I don’t think anyone is arguing for free stuff as A1skinner implies. It’s merely a question of why.

The process involves much more than just a software re-flash. Our calibration engineer also recreates the drawings for the updated functions and updates our original configuration files. There is also time involved with our sales/support staff working with the customer, time involved with our administrative staff scanning the revised documents and filing them with the original order and time involved with our shipping department if any updates require new parts. The entire process can add up to a few hours. These costs are figured into the original cost of the packages, not into changes after an order ships. Additionally, performing such changes affects the lead times of orders currently in the system. You can imagine the logistics of that, especially with customers scheduling installs based on the estimated delivery times we provide. Alternatively, we could incorporate the labor costs of updates into the pricing of our instruments, but we don't feel like a price increase across the board it the right solution. We feel like being upfront about the possibility of a re-configuraiton charge being imposed with the ability of our sales staff to waive that charge being a much better alternative.

We do try to make every effort possible to ensure we have all the information necessary when the order is placed, even going so far as to specify in bold letters on the configuration worksheet that a reconfiguration fee may apply if any configuration changes are requested after the signed form is submitted. As previously stated, the fee is often waived as a courtesy to the customer.

WorkingWarbirds wrote:I'm sure they get phone calls all the time from people wanting to adjust a redline or mess with a setting that they cannot modify due to primary usage.

The stories I wish we could share...

Thanks for the info Dave. Appreciate it.

slow18 wrote:Thanks for the info Dave. Appreciate it.

You bet!

darata wrote:Hi CParker-

You and I have been corresponding via e-mail. I am sorry you feel like we have not provided the level of service you were expecting. I did ask our other two sales reps if they recalled a conversation where an offer of $100.00 was made to reconfigure your instrument and neither remembered such a conversation. Per our e-mails, the standard cost to reconfigure an instrument is $295.00, which is often waived, as was the case with your instrument.

...

Thank you!
Dave

Thanks Dave.

I was careful to reiterate on this thread that I'm not here to bash EI and I made sure to state that EI had resolved all the issues favorably. I just wish things had gone more smoothly. I'm satisfied with the end result and the product.

I truly wished it had, as well. However, we currently working on making things right and I hope to have the revision for you very soon.

Dave, it's really awesome that you take the time to participate and post up here. Thank you!

I'm way biased since I'm a EI fan after multiple installs which took some handholding from your customer service team. They were outstanding in terms of communication and service at every turn for me.

The three of us in sales/support definitely enjoy working together and working for wonderful people. We each bring something unique to the team, but all have a very high care factor. I wish I could express to the forum how important our customers are to us without sounding too "sales-y". That isn't to say we are not occasionally without fault. We're OK being judged by how we fix our mistakes, too.

Thank you for all for your kind words!

Just to throw in my 2 cents... I purchased a CGR-30P for an airplane I had just purchased. I ordered most of the options available, and the configuration was - to say the least - complicated. EI delivered it exactly as it was requested, and it worked perfectly out of the box. My A&P/IA had never installed a CGR-30P before, but said the documentation was excellent. He did have a couple of questions during the installation and setup process (one having to do with the Turbine Inlet Temp probe location, the other involving fuel flow calibration), and told me that EI responded very quickly, and the information provided was "spot on." I called a couple of times for clarification on "how to do something" and got excellent responses (and afterward being shown exactly where to find my answer in the manual - oops!).

Years later (after I sold that airplane), I purchased a Champion 7ECA, and wanted a fuel totalizer, since the single fuel gauge was very "bouncy" and virtually unusable. I found a used FP-5L that had been replaced with a CGR-30P, and purchased it. I knew going in that the backlight was broken, and what it would cost to have the light replaced by EI. I sent it in, and not only did EI replace the light, they converted it from an incandescent bulb to LED, and then the completely refurbished the unit. When it came back to me, it was functionally like new. AND they pre-calibrated it for the O-200, so that it was dang close to perfect, out of the box. All that, and it took less than a week to send, re-work, and receive back in my hands.

I've got nothing but good to say about EI's technical support team.

Dave,

Good on you and EI. FWIW I've not seen any posts from the "other company" but I've not looked either. The fact that you spoke up in a semi public forum to represent yourself and your company speaks volumes to me.

MW

I started this thread to find out if there was any pattern to what I experienced, if I'd made a naive decision to go with EI. It sounds like what I'd heard about EI and their customer service is true based on the majority of responses here, and that my experience this time was outside the norm.

Thanks, and I appreciate everyone's feedback.

CParker wrote:I started this thread to find out if there was any pattern to what I experienced, if I'd made a naive decision to go with EI. It sounds like what I'd heard about EI and their customer service is true based on the majority of responses here, and that my experience this time was outside the norm.

Thanks, and I appreciate everyone's feedback.

We acquired a Cub that had a bunch of mods and parts from a certain manufacturer. I needed to replace a fuel system component and some trim parts. They took my order and answered questions said it would be shipped in two days. Noticed no credit card charge and after a week called and inquired and assured parts were on the way. Another week no charge no parts so now I’m wondering is this common with this outfit? Am I gonna have to beg and plead to replace a part on one of their STC’s anytime something breaks? I politely vented on the guy on the phone and he was honest and apologized and flat out said it got lost in the shuffle. Eventually I got the parts through a local distributor that till then I had no idea even existed. Even good company’s have a bad day once in a while....and this is a very good company with very few complaints. I did some research on people’s dealings and 99.4% of it was excellent. Sometimes it happens.

BTW my dealings with EI have been great (CGR 30P)!

My experiences with EI have been excellent, and I recommend them all the time. They have been awesome to work with and have provided great technical assistance anytime we’ve been scratching our heads about how to make the gear that I’ve cobbled together used work. And that’s for stuff I’ve bought used - there isn’t a penny in it for them.

Easy to get a hold of, friendly, patient with our questions - I’ve always been super impressed. I like them enough that I want to stick up for them here!

exactly

I have had nothing but incredible customer support experience from electronics international. I ordered an MVP-50 from them for my 182, and had to do quite a few software changes based on the combination STC's and a bunch of unknown components like the surefly mag replacement which required a solution to read rpm. They were competent, knowledgeable quick and always available to answer my questions, every time.

I have had the opposite experience from the other guys, where I had to escalate to their sales team after 4 weeks to get something relatively simple figured out. The amount of paper pushing for their flagship product was incredible, with one phone call saying I needed to call back the next phone call saying I needed to put a form in on the web The next call saying they never got the form on the web and then eventually a call to their sales team resulting in immediate action. In addition, I've been told the opposite thing in terms of resolving a technical issue, by different members the staff.

In particular if you compare the MVP-50 to its main competitor, there is no comparison if you've used both. The MVP-50 has been designed to allow for multiple screens, while preserving the required primary instruments on the right hand side of the screen, so that you can actually read and configure what you want intelligently, and have key features, like timers for instance, or configuration changes, without requiring you to know a ton of strange button pushes. I would trade back to my MVP-50 if I could.

In addition, according to my logbook, the other guys unit has gone in for repair four times, and I just sent it back again. My MVP was rock solid.

Slo

Well, since this has now devolved into a JPI bashing thread, I'll share my experience there: I had a JPI EDM 900 installed last fall. My plane has electronic ignition (LASAR), so I was really concerned that'd be an issue, but it wasn't. Installer had a couple of questions, which, according to him were answered quickly and accurately by JPI. The thing has worked flawlessly since. No complaints. I'd do this again, I really like the functionality of this unit, which gives me far more information than I need and is very easy to operate.

As I said earlier, some time ago, I had a fuel transducer fail on a JPI unit. Called the company to order a new one, and they sent it, no charge. I even called them to offer to pay, since this wasn't a "new" unit, and those things are not cheap. They said no problem, no charge.

I went with that unit rather than an EI not because I have had bad experiences with EI--I haven't, but rather because I've used JPI equipment for around thirty years and ALWAYS have good service and excellent equipment from them. That transducer is the only thing I've ever had go wrong with one of these units.

So, I guess we all have different experiences with some vendors.

Probably shouldn't be a surprise in this COVID climate. We're all a bit testy, and frankly, I'm impressed when someone who deals with the public all day is able to remain civil.

MTV

Sometimes engine monitor installation goes without a hitch, and sometimes they don't. We generally have expectations it will work flawlessly out of the box, and when it doesn't, frustration can set in. Frustration can equate to additional dollars spent and as such we can be predisposed to take it out on the respective vendor when our experience doesn't meet our expectation.

As I mentioned, I have a JPI 930 which I have updated and reconfigured over the past 10 years as my needs have changed. It worked flawlessly out of the box. However, some subsequent updates and/or modifications have gone smoothly, and some not as smoothly. But JPI customer service assisted me to resolve any issues which ultimately resulted in a devise that is very functional that I'm more than happy with.

In regards to device preference, what I appreciate about my 930 is that nearly all of the primary and optional features can be displayed on the primary screen with bar graphs, numerical scale limits, along with the current values (for example all 12 cht/egt numerical values are displayed in relation to a respective bar graph with limits included) . . . and there is a "ticker" screen at the bottom the scrolls through the parameters manually, or at a selectable time interval. So while the 930 doesn't have as many functions as the MVP-50, more data can be displayed on the screen. For me, after 10 years, I prefer to glance at one screen for the info I need. I understand another may prefer to scroll through multiple screens for the same info, but that means more heads down time and I prefer to keep my eyes outside as much as possible.

No doubt, the end result of both units can be great, but sometimes a little patience is required to get there. User preference depends on which side of the "more is less," or "less is more" side of the fence you fall on.

I guess I should reread this thread from the beginning. Wasn't it about EI customer service or something like that at some point? [emoji2371]

Aryana wrote:I guess I should reread this thread from the beginning. Wasn't it about EI customer service or something like that at some point? [emoji2371]

Yup, full on thread drift. Like Eddie drift'n a Kawi on Mulholland or the high bank at Daytona while being chased by Wes, Freddie and Kenny

Mapleflt wrote:Like Eddie drift'n a Kawi on Mulholland or the high bank at Daytona while being chased by Wes, Freddie and Kenny

Years ago, my wife and I went to a the motorcycle races at Laguna Seca, and watched Kenny Roberts and Freddie Spencer toy with the field of AMA Superbikes and riders. Roberts won the both heats with ease, beating Spencer by maybe 200 meters. But both Roberts and Spencer lapped all but four of the other riders in the field. One guy got lapped twice, and was maybe 200 meters from getting lapped for a third time when the race ended!

KR and FS were riding their formula GP bikes, thus giving away maybe a half-liter of displacement, but they were SO MUCH FASTER than the SuperBikes - mostly in the corners - that it was almost unbelievable... I still remember Roberts passing people in the old "hairpin" turn leading to the front straight. It was a roughly 150º hairpin turn, and was a bit off-camber. On one memorable lap, Roberts passed 3 riders in that corner, blowing by them like they were sitting still – even though they were scraping their knees on the pavement giving it their all. Those GP bikes were nothing short of amazing!

Got me hooked on Moto-GP for life!