Can Artists make or break a product/product line?

[Jules]

When the Sonor Giant Step Twin Effect was released, Thomas Lang was a huge advocate and immediate expert with playing them. The uniqueness of the pedal coupled with his machine-like technique left me stunned when he jumped ship to DW. I waited with great anticipation to see what DW would release that would counter the Twin Effect in functionality, even if much different. It never came.

Without a strong Artist endorsement of the pedal, it eventually fell out of the Sonor catalog, though I don't have a feel for the timeline.

Did Thomas Lang's use and abandonment of the Twin Effect have a direct impact on the success and lack thereof of that model?

What products have been so closely tied to an Artist that ended up having a devastating impact on it's success?

[krusher74]

Those styles of pedals had been tried before and failed. Sonor were crazy to spend the time,effort and money into tooling up for that thing backed by lang or not.
I see them for sale and always in immaculate condition, as i think anyone who buys one realises that unless you are just learning the drums changing technique from standard pedal to that is like learning a new language.
I think Lang jumped to DW was because he moved to LA to be a session drummer and found it easier to deal with local DW than a poor US sonor distributor.
The only drummer I can think of with any negative press is Phil rudd but the charges were dropped and i dont think any ACDC drummer fans buying that stuff even care.

[SonorBart]

IMHO, the GS middle pedal was a much more practical/useable option than the GS twin effect. I used it as my model for building a middle pedal out of 1st generation Tama Iron Cobra parts. It's so much more ergonomic than a traditional double pedal, especially for anyone that has played two bass drums in the past. I've since built two more out of more recent IC parts. I will not play without one. I even use just the right side for non-double pedal gigs. I found a reasonably priced used GS middle pedal, but sold it after about a year because I preferred the feel of the ICs I built. I know Thomas Lang was featured in some Sonor ads with the GS middle pedal. He must not have liked it well enough to have DW make one for him. Offset makes a middle pedal and I know a couple of guys that have one, but I'm amazed that more drummers haven't gone that route.

[krusher74]

IMHO, the GS middle pedal was a much more practical/useable option than the GS twin effect. I used it as my model for building a middle pedal out of 1st generation Tama Iron Cobra parts. It's so much more ergonomic than a traditional double pedal, especially for anyone that has played two bass drums in the past. I've since built two more out of more recent IC parts. I will not play without one. I even use just the right side for non-double pedal gigs. I found a reasonably priced used GS middle pedal, but sold it after about a year because I preferred the feel of the ICs I built. I know Thomas Lang was featured in some Sonor ads with the GS middle pedal. He must not have liked it well enough to have DW make one for him. Offset makes a middle pedal and I know a couple of guys that have one, but I'm amazed that more drummers haven't gone that route.

The only way any sensible company would put that into production would be if it could be modularly built up from parts that they already produce for other pedals (like you have done with IC parts) C
Companies also won't want to make you a one-off custom as they don't want the public seeing you use something they can't buy. They want to seeing to playing what they sell so you can but it too. The "public" will also pleed to have a prototype they see being used put into production and then when you do, they dont buy it! From working in retail i know what the public want and buy are two very different things.
I wonder how many sonor endorcees use Sonor pedals, they never seem to get any promo

[Jules]

...From working in retail i know what the public want and buy are two very different things...

This is something that I think is lost on many people. I think part of it is that the dynamics totally shift when something goes from attainable to unattainable. You want it when you think you can't have it, and then when you can have it, it diffuses the element of longing for it. Been through that a few times, myself.