Donner's parent company is a pretty large conglomerate

[DougM]

I posted this here in the pedal forum, because that's what they're most known for, although they make guitars with the Donner name too
https://trademarks.justia.com/owners/guangzhou-rantion-technology-co-ltd-4006311
Their parent company makes a wide range of products under several different brand names, some of them also music and audio related
I found this out from a post on Squier Talk, where a member there bought a Donner pedal and posted some gut shots, and the board had the company name on it

 

[dlew919]

Interesting how Japanese companies work. Mitsubishi make everything from cars to air conditioners. Subaru is part of a larger conglomerate. Etc.

I like donner pedals. It’s interesting to know this. Thanks!

 

[Coffeemutt]

Eastar (band and orchestral instruments) and Moukey (recording equipment) are two other Donner-related brands that I didn't see listed on that link.

I agree with dlew919, it is indeed very interesting.

 

[DougM]

Interesting how Japanese companies work. Mitsubishi make everything from cars to air conditioners. Subaru is part of a larger conglomerate. Etc.

I like donner pedals. It’s interesting to know this. Thanks!

Except this is a Chinese company, not Japanese. We're all aware of giant Japanese companies that have their hands in everything, Like Matsushita (Panasonic), and of course Yamaha, who I just found out now also owns the iconic piano maker Bosendorfer

 

[dlew919]

Except this is a Chinese company, not Japanese.

my most profound and humble apologies.

 

[Frontier9]

Interesting pedal, but hard to find a good demo.

 

[northernguitar]

I had a terrible experience with Donner. Just like Chrysler, never again.

 

[dlew919]

May I ask what happened?

Yamaha, who I just found out now also

I’ve heard it said the best music company on the planet in terms of quality and range. Hard to argue.

 

[Festofish]

I had a terrible experience with Donner. Just like Chrysler, never again.

You can get timeless American made EHX classics new or used fairly cheap. I don’t need cheap Chinese pedals to save $10? Having said that...I own two that were gifts from my man.
Caline Puffer fuzz...the lightest fuzz I’ve ever heard. Sits in the drawer.
Xvive Singing Autowah...amazing for the money. I didn’t expect much. Excellent little pedal!
I had a Mooer Synth...don’t do it!

 

[Obsessed]

Yup, this is how it is done in China and probably adopted from the Japanese corporate model. Just check out Yum corporation for the fast food industry to get a better feel for how enormous these can get.

 

[warrent]

Their parent company makes a wide range of products under several different brand names, some of them also music and audio related

The fact that they make a variety of products is less interesting than the fact that they exist solely because of Ebay. I'm not sure most people realize how transformative eBay and later Amazon have been for creating new companies and a radically different style of getting product to market.
Rantion started in 2009 to take advantage of cross border e-commerce sales on eBay. By 2014 they had reached $1 million in sales after expanding to Amazon. By 2017 they had sold 2 million dollars on prime day alone and had gross sales of over 70 million. That they were able to build a relatively good sized company in a competitive market without any of the traditional marketing tools or brick and mortar retail presence is new and a definite change to the way companies used to do business.

But do note they're not that big, Yamaha's music business not the other stuff has sales of over 700 million in the USA alone.

 

[Chiogtr4x]

I had a terrible experience with Donner. Just like Chrysler, never again.

Funny, I've had the opposite!
Loved my Dodge Caravans- drove only (bought used) Caravans for work/gigs from 1990-2014. Drove a few until they died ( very high mileage & my poor maintenance upkeep...), but they were perfect for me.

Have a pedalboard with 3 Donner pedals ( yes new, so still 'on honeymoon') on it, and using at gigs.

The RevEcho, a Chorus, and Big Muff clone- they all sound very good, and seem to be sturdy ( I play sitting down and gentle on stomping), so time will tell

 

[northernguitar]

Funny, I've had the opposite!
Loved my Dodge Caravans- drove only (bought used) Caravans for work/gigs from 1990-2014. Drove a few until they died ( very high mileage & my poor maintenance upkeep...), but they were perfect for me.

Have a pedalboard with 3 Donner pedals ( yes new, so still 'on honeymoon') on it, and using at gigs.

The RevEcho, a Chorus, and Big Muff clone- they all sound very good, and seem to be sturdy ( I play sitting down and gentle on stomping), so time will tell

I had a Grand Caravan. Shall we discuss the second or third transmission replacement?

As for Donner, all I wanted was a simple pedal tuner. Easy peasy. Eight weeks later, I had two paperweights (the replacement sent was also faulty) and was out $40.

 

[northernguitar]

You can get timeless American made EHX classics new or used fairly cheap. I don’t need cheap Chinese pedals to save $10? Having said that...I own two that were gifts from my man.
Caline Puffer fuzz...the lightest fuzz I’ve ever heard. Sits in the drawer.
Xvive Singing Autowah...amazing for the money. I didn’t expect much. Excellent little pedal!
I had a Mooer Synth...don’t do it!

I have great pedals made in a variety of places. At present, nothing from China (save for the parts inside, which are likely MIC). I don't think that MIC means poor quality. Slave labour? Possibly.

 

[mrbdxmpl]

Except this is a Chinese company, not Japanese. We're all aware of giant Japanese companies that have their hands in everything, Like Matsushita (Panasonic), and of course Yamaha, who I just found out now also owns the iconic piano maker Bosendorfer

I always felt comforted knowing my guitar, outboard motor and turntable all came from the same factory!

 

[Chiogtr4x]

I had a Grand Caravan. Shall we discuss the second or third transmission replacement?

As for Donner, all I wanted was a simple pedal tuner. Easy peasy. Eight weeks later, I had two paperweights (the replacement sent was also faulty) and was out $40.

I did have a few tranny replacements, but at 175K miles or so...I just dug the Caravans, very comfy for a big guy - and perfect for gigs, so I may be a bit forgiving

 

[Festofish]

I have great pedals made in a variety of places. At present, nothing from China (save for the parts inside, which are likely MIC). I don't think that MIC means poor quality.

Awesome. As a fellow pedal fiend I’m glad you’re into it. I’d probably be right there with you if I hadn’t already been collecting for 30 years when these came along. For my money...a used Boss or EHX is better. I feel confident that they’ll last. I’ve also got a couple Tone City minis that are heavy as a Boss! Good pedals too.

 

[northernguitar]

I did have a few tranny replacements, but at 175K miles or so...I just dug the Caravans, very comfy for a big guy - and perfect for gigs, so I may be a bit forgiving

I had mine for doing live DJ'ing, and yes it was excellent for that. Big enough for subs and tops. However, my first transmission dies at 175k KM!! Then that one crapped out at 230k km. It also handled like a tank.

 

[northernguitar]

Awesome. As a fellow pedal fiend I’m glad you’re into it. I’d probably be right there with you if I hadn’t already been collecting for 30 years when these came along. For my money...a used Boss or EHX is better. I feel confident that they’ll last. I’ve also got a couple Tone City minis that are heavy as a Boss! Good pedals too.

I certainly have proof of the old pedals being bulletproof. My oldest on my board are a DOD FX65 Stereo Chorus and an Ibanex g10 EQ. They're both perfect. I even have the battery door for the DOD. In storage I also have an Ibanez AD Delay and BPL Phaser. All of these pedals work flawlessly with original parts.

 

[bendercaster]

Awesome. As a fellow pedal fiend I’m glad you’re into it. I’d probably be right there with you if I hadn’t already been collecting for 30 years when these came along. For my money...a used Boss or EHX is better. I feel confident that they’ll last. I’ve also got a couple Tone City minis that are heavy as a Boss! Good pedals too.

I love EHX pedals-cool designs and generally a good value. But, I have been gigging with two on my board for several years and have had more reliability issues with EHX than with Donner.

The two Donner pedals on my board, on the other hand--Yellow Fall and Ultimate Comp weren't just inexpensive--they sound great, have been super reliable, and have become my preferred delay and comp.