Mission pedals - experience/quality report

jkstraw

jkstraw

Inspired
I just wanted to throw out a report on my recent interaction with these guys. I ordered an SP-1 in the metal finish a couple of weeks ago. It arrived today - a black finish with a loose battery inside. I am pretty surprised given the generally positive reviews I have read about these products.

The finish might be explained by a small hiccup in the ordering process (I originally ordered the standard black finish and within minutes emailed them to change it to metal finish. I have the paypal invoice for the $9.00 difference to prove it). They were good about reimbursing my $9 and really - no big deal.

What I was really surprised about was the loose 9v battery?? Did anyone else experience this? I would have thought there should be a battery clip or holder of some sort. I had to fashion my own to keep it from flying around inside the pedal.

All in all - I wasn't left with a very good impression - to the point where I thought I would share my experience.
 
While I love the feel of the Mission pedals, there have been at least 3 instances now where I have been less than happy.

I ordered a pedal and afterwards (through e-mail) added a spring option. It arrived without the spring.
I ordered a pedal in a particular color but it arrived in another color.
I received a XPB (with a long delay) but it works in reversed order.

I'm also slightly irritated about the frequent need to tighten the screw under the expression pedals to make them stay in position.

I live in Europe. No use sending stuff back.

Also on several occasions emails were not answered. Still waiting for an answer to my email about the XPB, a week ago.

Sorry James, but things gotta improve.
 
Similar experience with me, yek, although I've found the pedals to be excellent in use. I do believe they're good people working hard to deliver a basic but quality product. Usually they get it right, but they do seem to struggle with emails and ordering systems.
 
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I'd also agree - the pedals are great and I would certainly recommend them to anyone. As far as delays/comms etc - although its never really an excuse, I'm sure it's never done intentionally and you know what, sometimes shit just happens.

Hope you get it worked out dude.
 
yek said:
I'm also slightly irritated about the frequent need to tighten the screw under the expression pedals to make them stay in position.
Click to expand...

I've noticed this as well. Have you noticed you have to tighten the screw to the point where the bracket it is attached to is bending?
 
+1 on Mission Pedals.. I have two (one with spring...Waw, one with a switch....vol/efx)..

Bought direct from Mission... I'm a happy customer/user

I'm sure they will correct what they can... my tension on vol has stayed the same (though I use it in a sitting studio mode, not live).
 
I've gotten three pedals from them - all were exactly as ordered. One went back for an update/change (early one needed the switch moved) and it was done in a timely manner and returned promptly.

They've been responsive to me; and the pedals themselves have been outstanding in daily use for years now.

I'm not denying there haven't been issues for other folks, nor am I am making light of it. I am testifying that my experience has been worth mentioning because it's been 100% positive.
 
I agree the pedals work great, I just have an EP-1 I need to keep tightening the tension screw on and no matter how tight I make it, it slips. I think I've bent the bracket that holds the tension screw...
 
quality issue

I ordered one of the chrome pedals from ME. The chrome trim on the pedal was irregular in its uniformity and looked like plastic, not metal. I called Mission and provided my input on the product I received; they said that they were unhappy with the finish of late and have gone to a new processes. They asked me if I wanted to exchange mine for a pedal produced via the new process, but I was not inclined. Given the quality of the finish, I didni't feel like the additional $s were worth it.

I told them I wanted to return my pedal for a credit and order a plain black one instead. They said no problem---but they wanted me to pay for returning the chrome pedal. I told them the only reason I was returning the pedal was because of the fact that the coating was defective. I had 3 seperate engagements with them (email and 2 calls) and in the end, they agreed to pay for outbound shipping.

With all of the accolades on the site for Mission, I was dissapointed with the fact that the initial product received was poor quality (cosmetically) and their customer service. The fact that they paid for the outbound shipping mitigated my negative feelings somewhat. I have to purchase a second expression pedal; will probably go back to them depending on what other issues are communicated on this forum.
 
I have 2 Mission pedals which arrived exactly as ordered and function perfectly. They also arrived in a timely manner with no hitch at all.

So from that viewpoint, there's no issue. I've also sent some emails to Mission that have gone unanswered.

Communication is, in any business, model, one of the most crucial elements. There's very little more frustrating for a customer than not knowing whether he is heard or not. Which is why the recent auto response system FAS set up for the waiting list is such a relief for everyone on the waiting list, I'm sure.

In my neck of the woods, communication is SO valued and important, that an entire department is dedicated ONLY to communication and we have a policing function for any stale email or other communication. It keep the organization real to its public. You could say that a company becomes less and less "there" the less it communicates.

So Mission: Speak up and tighten the lines!
 
I've been considering Mission pedals, but my two gutted Dunlop pedals I bought for next-to-nothing are working great. The Mission looks really slick, but I don't want to have to periodically tighten anything.

Can you get the Mission without the logo on the rubber treadle pad? I've seen pictures both with and without the logo.
 
I picked up one from a seller on eBay. I have had it for about 2 weeks. So far, I think it is a great pedal. I like it much more than the Boss it replaced.

-Phil
 
I've had two SP-1 for a bit over a year now. One needs tightening on a semi-regular basis, the other I've never had to tighten. I got the switched ones in case I wanted to do the traditional wah type thing.

On the downside, the switches are very 'soft' -- it doesn't take much pressure at all to engage them, and both of the pedals had felt pads that were too thick (or the switches mounted too high) with the result that getting anywhere near full toe-down flipped the switch. I ended up just taking out the pads and using auto-engage.

On the upside, they are very solid and feel comfortable if you are used to the typical cry-baby type pedal size and throw.

As far as the ordering process went, it took a while but it was okay.

TT
 
I have 2 I ordered earlier this year and love the build quality of them. But I can't get them tight enough to stay in position - they travel down. Trying to decide if I send them in or not, but I guess I need to. On one of them the bracket is bent and you can't get access to the allen key to tighten it. I'd probably order again from them, but wish they had checked these over a bit before sending them out.
 
I like how many people think that near-perfect communication is the standard for companies of this type or size. Mission Engineering has this kind of story. Fractal Audio has this kind of story. LiquidFoot. I am sure a lot more could be named from boutique pedal, amp, & cabinet companies. I think people doing business with these kind of companies generally have the bar too high. When you look at the history it really is par for the course and you have to know that going into a deal.

I am not saying it isn't frustrating, it is, but you have to know going in you are probably going to have to "work it" to get the updates you need. And I think if you are polite about it things in a majority of cases work out.
 
bkrumme said:
I agree the pedals work great, I just have an EP-1 I need to keep tightening the tension screw on and no matter how tight I make it, it slips. I think I've bent the bracket that holds the tension screw...
Click to expand...

This happened to me when I got my SP-1. I emailed support and they suggested that the tension screw might not be threaded properly. They had me unscrew and then re-thread the tension screw. My bracket is still bent which makes tightening the screw awkward, and it still doesn't get tight enough to feel totally secure to me. Nevertheless, since this adjustment I haven't had to re-tighten it, so it seems to have worked for me so far. Give it a shot!
 
sam said:
This happened to me when I got my SP-1. I emailed support and they suggested that the tension screw might not be threaded properly. They had me unscrew and then re-thread the tension screw. My bracket is still bent which makes tightening the screw awkward, and it still doesn't get tight enough to feel totally secure to me. Nevertheless, since this adjustment I haven't had to re-tighten it, so it seems to have worked for me so far. Give it a shot!
Click to expand...

Thanks! I'll try that tonight. I can always bend the bracket back if I need to.
 
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