Fraud by Chan, owner of Pachanko Labs

I was no longer able to edit and add to my initial post, so I am adding my progress here.

Due to the ongoing legal restructuring procedure, instead of terminating the contract and requesting a refund, I have sent an email to Chan requesting payment of damages for Chan's personal fraud, as follows.

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While I do sympathise with your predicament, I have to ask:-

Why did you decide to buy direct from Chan rather than through your local dealer/distributor?

I have no respect for manufacturers who have a distribution network and yet still sell direct to end users.
 
While I do sympathise with your predicament, I have to ask:-

Why did you decide to buy direct from Chan rather than through your local dealer/distributor?

I have no respect for manufacturers who have a distribution network and yet still sell direct to end users.
This is because Japanese distributors were still dealing only with LAN and USB cables.

Japanese distributors did not sell Pachanko Labs music servers, nor did they sell the maniacal TAIKO DC-ATX power supplies.
 
This is because Japanese distributors were still dealing only with LAN and USB cables.

Japanese distributors did not sell Pachanko Labs music servers, nor did they sell the maniacal TAIKO DC-ATX power supplies.
If CSR is the Pachanko distributor but don’t sell their servers, what DO they sell from Pachanko?

Are you saying they ONLY sell cables?
 
If CSR is the Pachanko distributor but don’t sell their servers, what DO they sell from Pachanko?

Are you saying they ONLY sell cables?
Yes.

CSR sell only Pachanko Labs USB and LAN cables.
Perhaps there were plans to sell music servers in the future, but as of February 20, 2025, when I contacted Pachanko Labs, they only sell USB and LAN cables.

 
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So any Japanese-based Pachanko Labs server owner most likely bought their new server direct from Chan, not through a local distributor or dealer?
 
So any Japanese-based Pachanko Labs server owner most likely bought their new server direct from Chan, not through a local distributor or dealer?
I have never heard of anyone using Pachanko Labs music server in Japan.

At least, I have not seen them on X or other SNS.

Therefore, it is possible that there are no users in Japan, but even if there were, they must have purchased it directly from Chan or from an overseas audio store.

When I showed him the URL of the following TAIKO DC DC-ATX power supply from an overseas audio store and asked if the correct price was 3190 euro instead of 4000 euro as Chan explained, Chan replied that the information from the audio store was out of date and had already been removed from the catalog.

Therefore, I was forced to order a power supply for TAIKO DC DC-ATX from Chan.


20250220-1.png20250220-2.png
 
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So any Japanese-based Pachanko Labs server owner most likely bought their new server direct from Chan, not through a local distributor or dealer?
Information was provided by a user of the Pachanko Labs server in Japan in the comments section of the Japanese audioblog.

The person ordered the server directly from Chan since it was not available at the Japanese distributor, sent the money in May 2024, and managed to get the server in October 2024.

This informant also stated that another Japanese victim wired money to Chan this year after receiving a discounted offer from Chan for a top-of-the-line server (presumably the CONSTELLATION Masterpiece).

The victim also appears to be unable to contact Chan.
 
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This is really unfortunate and does not present well for any company.
I hope this gets resolved with fairness and integrity.
 
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Lucas Domansky of Lucas Audio lives about 100 miles from me, though it's nearly all water in between. He brought his server over to demonstrate it for me, then custom-built exactly what I wanted and installed and tuned it himself. I made the bank transfer whilst he was in my sitting room and the server was already operational. I know that if my server gave problems that could not be fixed remotely, he would get on the boat and come and look at it, and he and I have become good friends.

There's customer service, and then there's Lucas Domansky.
Amen.
 
Now that the cat is out of the bag, I might as well add my 32 cents. I suspect this post will all but guarantee that I will never receive a refund. But if Chan truly is a man of his word, he will still honor my request... even when I tell the uncomfortable truth. Let's find out, shall we?

TL;DR
- Girand Michel Chan King runs Pachanko Labs.
- It is highly likely this company is insolvent.
- It is highly likely that Mr. King has committed fraud.
- If you have an open order with Pachanko Labs that has not yet been filled, I urge you to file a dispute with your payment processor immediately!
- If you were affected, please add your experiences and information to this thread so others may benefit.

DISCLAIMER: I refrained from making a similar post over a year ago because I didn't want to hurt Chan's business or my chances of getting a refund (mostly the latter, if I'm honest). I was selfish and should have warned others' sooner. Please accept my sincerest apology and consider the following offer as penance for not coming forward earlier; I will build a music server for anyone affected by this AT COST (just buy the parts and ship them to me. Then, I will built it, tweak it and ship it - easy peazy!). I don't possess the knowledge or experience of someone like Chan. However, I can probably achieve approx. 50-70% of what he, or another legit vendor, can do. Alternatively, I'd be glad to offer some free enterprise IT consulting (multi-vendor networking, virtualization, security, zero trust, branch/campus/data center architecture, cloud, etc.) as this is what I do for a living working for a fortune 200 multinational. I will also be happy to begin recording and tracking all unfulfilled order information with Pachanko Labs. Again, I apologize to the community for not coming forward sooner. I really should have.

With all of that out of the way, let's get to the pile on.

Unfortunately, I had a similar experience as @ralda when dealing with Chan and Pachanko Labs. I ordered a custom power supply approx. 2 years ago, then requested a refund approx. 1 year ago (after it became clear that Chan was either unwilling or unable to deliver what I ordered). To this day, I haven't received a single euro in return. Throughout my dealings with Chan, I received all sorts of lies and excuses as to why he couldn't deliver my order or refund my money. His emails usually stated his desire to make things right, but his actions always told a very different tale. Consequently, I DO NOT recommend buying a stick of bubblegum from Chan, or Pachanko Labs, until all of his existing customers are made whole.

Unfortunately, I've witnessed similar scenarios play out with other vendors and I am less than optimistic that any of us will ever see a dime.

I have now been on the unfortunate end of three different "situations" like this and learned they are usually caused by very smart engineers being either horrendously bad businesspeople or straight up con artists. The fatal mistake is often continuing to extract funds, assets or value from a business without first ensuring it's solvency. Eventually, they dig themselves in so deep they need fresh capital from new orders just to buy enough materials to fulfill previous orders (or to pay reoccurring debt for things like gas/petrol, electricity, supplies, webhosting, etc.). Obviously, this is an unsustainable business model and the whole thing eventually collapses like a house of cards. At this point, I'm pretty sure that is what is happening here.

So... if you have an order with Pachanko Labs that is still awaiting fulfillment, I recommend contacting PayPal, or your credit card company, to file a dispute or issue a chargeback. Again, experience has taught me that filing a dispute/chargeback is the best chance you have of getting your money back. Your time to file is often limited, so do it NOW! I also learned that filing disputes/chargebacks is usually the fastest way to stop a business from continuing to take orders and money from unsuspecting new customers, as this forces payment processors to stop processing transactions for the business to limit their own exposure (fun fact: PayPal is not an actual financial institution and therefore not subject to the same regulations as regular banks. You are 100% at the mercy of their ToS and have almost zero legal recourse, regardless of the circumstances. Speaking both legally and ideologically, using PayPal is akin to paying a random hot dog vendor 3.49% to broker a transaction. Credit cards are the only legally protected means of consumer fraud protection in the US. The more you know!).

Something else I learned is that light always scatters the cockroaches. So, perhaps it is time to find out if Chan really is a down-on-his-luck audio engineer that just so happens to be terrible at running a business...or if he is a legit con artist. Or both. I suggest we pool our notes and information publicly, then see what scatters:

- Ordered a custom power supply for a DIY Taiko server for €4,089 in June 2023
- Order was placed directly through Chan's website (I reside in the USA).
- Ordered a second custom PS for €2,300 in September 2023.
- Received countless lies and excuses.
- Requested a refund in April 2024.
- Received countless lies and excuses.
- Still no honey or money.
- I can obviously prove all of this with emails, payment receipts, etc. But I'd rather not spend time redacting things, unless it can legitimately help someone in a court of law. PM me if you need it.

The point is to hopefully separate fact from fiction and either prove or disprove fraud. It is obvious that Chan has been lying to some of us for years. But fraud is different than lies and delay tactics. Lying to people about trivial things can be forgotten. Defrauding people cannot. Unfortunately, the latter is looking more and more likely by the minute.

I hope this post will inspire others to come forward, just as OP's did for me. If you have been similarly screwed over by Chan and/or Pachanko Labs, please consider contributing to this thread and include what you ordered, sums, dates, and circumstances. If you feel more comfortable PM'ing, please do so. I will keep all information obtained strictly confidential.
 
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Hello, i own a pachanko Unregulated Power supply and wonder if not the only one that has been sold. I thought it was designed and produced in Pachanko. What I should understand is that Pachanko was subcontracting design and production to Mr Kenneth Lau ?
 
Hello, i own a pachanko Unregulated Power supply and wonder if not the only one that has been sold. I thought it was designed and produced in Pachanko. What I should understand is that Pachanko was subcontracting design and production to Mr Kenneth Lau ?
I inquired and was told that all Pachanko’s PSUs are designed and made by Mr.Kenneth Lau.
And he told me that there was only one unregulated power supply that Pachanko has requested him to manufacture.
He also sent me a photo of it being manufactured, so I am sure of it.

And I have a cruel fact to inform you.
Your power supply ordered from Pachanko is actually a copper wire transformer.
If you ordered an unregulated power supply from Pachanko, as I did, because you were attracted by the silver wire transformer power supply, you have been defrauded by Chan.

When I learned that a power supply with the same specifications as Pachanko's was available from Mr.Kenneth Lau for HKD14500, I was surprised at the difference from Pachanko's selling price.
Various upgrade options are available, for example, Secondary Silver wire Transformer at an additional cost of HKD7000 and Primary & Secondary Silver wire Transformer at an additional cost of HKD18300.
Chan ordered a copper wire transformer power supply from Mr.Kenneth Lau, which he falsely advertised and sold as a far more expensive silver wire transformer power supply.

Since I could not get an unregulated power supply from Pachanko, I ordered a power supply from Mr.Kenneth Lau.
Mr.Kenneth Lau was very honest, quite different from Chan, and I received the power supply I ordered in about 3 weeks, the delivery time I was initially informed.
I was defrauded and damaged by Chan this time, but it was my only good fortune to learn about the OEM manufacturer, Mr.Kenneth Lau.

If you want a silver wire transformer power supply, I recommend you contact Mr.Kenneth Lau.
 
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Thanks, I must say I’m very surprised about all this. Perhaps I need to go through Kenner Lau to have his own feedback. I requested this unregulated power supply to Pachanko as I was not able to build one as it was described on other forum. I was thinking all was designed and produced by Pachanko in La Reunion.
You can see some pictures and descriptions (based on what Patchanko told me) here : link.
 
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Thanks, I must say I’m very surprised about all this. Perhaps I need to go through Kenner Lau to have his own feedback. I requested this unregulated power supply to Pachanko as I was not able to build one as it was described on other forum. I was thinking all was designed and produced by Pachanko in La Reunion.
You can see some pictures and descriptions (based on what Patchanko told me) here : link.
To tell the truth, your review made me interested in Pachanko Labs' Unregulated Power Supply.

I have no doubt that Chan is dishonest, but regardless of Chan's personality, the quality of the Pachanko Labs power supply, designed and made by Mr. Kenneth Lau, is excellent.

I hope you will consult with Mr. Kenneth Lau and upgrade to a higher quality power supply.
 
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Quick update: I've received a handful of (anonymous) messages anecdotally confirming that Mr. King has exhibited the same fraudulent behavior on the dealer side as well. We now have an established track record of fraud and willful deception that extends to nearly every facet of Mr. King's business - not just the end-user space.

This is no longer a case of, "where there's smoke, there's fire." The house is engulfed in flames and publicly burning straight to the ground. It is likely time to refer this matter to the authorities in France and/or the EU. This person and his business need to be shut down asap to prevent this from happening to anyone else. To that end, I urge anyone reading this that has not yet filed a dispute or chargeback with their payment processor to do so right away.

Unfortunately, I am not a resident of the EU, so I assume my ability to file criminal charges will be limited.
 
Dear all,

I also go public now, because I was waiting if Chan is replying and he still does communicate as he is in business.


I can tell you, that it is official he is in finacial restruction phase and not yet insolvent. So there is a slight chance that he recovers. Unfortunately he did some pretty bad business *communication moves*, which destroyed his reputation quiet heaviley.

So anyone who has open purchase request, mine is over €12k Euro (waiting over 6 month now for delivery), I highly doubt those will be delivered. I was going through his responsible insolvency laywer, which contacted me last week to provide my Pachanko Labs claim details.

It is really sad, some such highly amazing tech stuff he created is gone, because he is not able to take care of business. I also hope at one point @pachankolabs will make a Statement here, else his reputation is gone.

I was waiting until this Le Reunion laywer contacted me to see if the case is running and can confirm: it is.

Kind regards and very said to see this kind of business behaving, which destroys faith in good-will to supporting smaller hifi manufactures!

Gerald
 
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I am genuinely very sorry for everyone who has lost money dealing with him.
 
The following (1) through (3) is my understanding of the legal claims process (redressment judiciaire) for NEXT STEP COMPUTING SOLUTIONS (Pachanko Labs).

(1) On March 21, 2025, an order of commencement of proceedings for judicial reorganization (redressement judiciaire) was issued.

(2) Payment of the debt of NEXT STEP COMPUTING SOLUTIONS (Pachanko Labs) incurred prior to the March 21, 2025 order is prohibited, except for setoff.

(3) If a creditor fails to notify the trustee of his claim within two months of the order of March 21, 2025 (extended by two months if the creditor resides outside France), the creditor forfeits his rights.


If my understanding is correct, I will forfeit my rights to NEXT STEP COMPUTING SOLUTIONS (Pachanko Labs) if I do not file my claim with the trustee within 4 months of March 21, 2025.

Here, I leave aside the issue of Chan's personal liability for damages related to his fraudulent acts.

At least in Japan, it is common that only a few percent of claims are recovered by participating in bankruptcy proceedings.

In the same way, it is clear that if I entrust a French lawyer with my case, I will have a legal fee collapse (i.e., legal fees will greatly exceed the amount of claim recovery).

From reading the following document with a translation tool, it seems to say that it is possible to file via the electronic portal.
Is it possible to easily file claims from overseas?


Or do I have to fill out the following form (I don't know how to fill it out or what address to send it to...) and mail it by registered international mail to the trustee along with the prima facie case?

I would like to know if anyone is familiar with the French legal restructuring process.

 
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To tell the truth, your review made me interested in Pachanko Labs' Unregulated Power Supply.

I have no doubt that Chan is dishonest, but regardless of Chan's personality, the quality of the Pachanko Labs power supply, designed and made by Mr. Kenneth Lau, is excellent.

I hope you will consult with Mr. Kenneth Lau and upgrade to a higher quality power supply.
Hello @ralda, I finally contacted Kenneth LAU. Kenneth confirmed that he built my URPSU and the transformer is a copper one and not silver as expected from the different messages and specification.
In one way I’m pleased to know that the design and the assembly is coming from Kenneth I know since he was starting PSU for the Lumin A1, in the other way I’m very disappointed by Pachanko I was interacting a lot in the past years through messenger. Discovering that this person was only duplicating some designs and subcontracting while he was arguing « handcraft in La Reunion » is really a bad surprise.
You can imagine that he does not answer any more on messenger.
 
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