why was UD Synergy so poorly received ??

[Maggot]

UD 1/2 & OPC get by without any big hits (as defined by other products) - but pretty much all other releases take a hit if they don't offer multiple hits per box.

I agree with everything you said, except this last statement. Unless I am mistaken, you are basically saying that there is only room for UD and OPC in the hit-free, low-end hockey world. I think there are enough set collectors left that if UD actually came out with a new product that was appealing, it would be eaten up. Synergy was not that product, for all the reasons stated above.
Look at Timmies and the new Canadian Tire for evidence that there is plenty of room for additional insert/parallel based products if they are appealing and priced responsibly.

[30ranfordfan]

That's a pretty big if... and I'm not sure is all that different from the point I was trying to make.

You're bang on: If they are going to make a product that is primarily an insert / parallel (and Rookie Card) based product - the appeal to set builders, and the low-to-mid price point has to be there.

Synergy has none of that.

Tim Horton's and Canadian Tire (Tim Horton's way more so) benefit from being a small set that's fairly easy to put together - and sold from a place that a ton of people go to anyway.

Suppose I'm opening my first 8 packs of Tim Horton's...... how many cards did I just pull, that I don't actually want to keep? Chances are: Very few. People love building that set.
Suppose I'm opening my first 8 packs of Synergy..... there's a decent chance I don't pull a single card I want to keep.

But Tim Horton's is a buck-a-pack venture, that's printed like crazy. I'd be willing to bet it's the biggest money maker of the year for UD. MVP doesn't cost much more, but nobody wants it.

I actually really like the idea of Compendium (on ePack), though I found last year's release incredibly frustrating. I think there is room for these kinds of sets... but that's not what Synergy was supposed to be. The base was going to be SPGU on steriods, and a bounty program to replace hits.

I agree with everything you said, except this last statement. Unless I am mistaken, you are basically saying that there is only room for UD and OPC in the hit-free, low-end hockey world. I think there are enough set collectors left that if UD actually came out with a new product that was appealing, it would be eaten up. Synergy was not that product, for all the reasons stated above.
Look at Timmies and the new Canadian Tire for evidence that there is plenty of room for additional insert/parallel based products if they are appealing and priced responsibly.

[Maggot]

Sounds like we pretty much agree on everything ;)

Wouldn't it be great if Compendium was a physical product, not just on E-pack? I love the idea of it, and try to put together the Blues parallel set by buying from COMC.
I truly think the hobby is sorely missing a Score or Collector's Choice level product, and Compendium would be a perfect replacement.

[Stryfex]

I love what you guys are saying as it's a cool reminder that i'm not the only set builder left in the hobby who likes a quality product at (thanks for the word) RESPONSIBLE pricing.

I've said this before but a friend who collects baseball recently showed me a product called "Topps Opening Day". It's $25 USD for a hobby box of 36 packs and the cards are nice with some parallels TONS of insert sets and even some actual hits if you're really lucky - it's at a price that MVP SHOULD cost but yet MVP launches at like $55 CDN which sounds cheap but is insanely overpriced for a product that is all fun no value. $25 USD for all those packs is a price that is accessible to even really young kids (or their parents buying it as gifts for them) and all the crazy inserts are just really fun to collect when they're not expensive.

I have no idea how people are paying so much for MVP or OPC because even though those products are at the lower end of the product line they still cost a fortune if you consider what's actually in the boxes.

[odjickfan]

If Synerg is discounted at like 40CAD for the black friday promotion, it might be worth a try.

[30ranfordfan]

Sounds like we pretty much agree on everything ;)

Wouldn't it be great if Compendium was a physical product, not just on E-pack? I love the idea of it, and try to put together the Blues parallel set by buying from COMC.
I truly think the hobby is sorely missing a Score or Collector's Choice level product, and Compendium would be a perfect replacement.

The one thing that e-Pack let's UD do with Compendium, is the checklist doesn't need to be finalized until the week before release date. They can be a little more dynamic with it. Ending the free packs (probably cost them too much) last year was a mistake, and cutting it to two series this year (IMO) is a bad move too. I was so frustrated trying to make golds last year (I still need 20 more Draisaitl to finish an Oilers team set) I'm not bothering this year. I kind of want to, but it'll just end up bugging me more than anything.

If they made a physical set in that style, massive checklist, make sure (almost) everyone gets a card - I think it would be a hit, if the price was right.

I love what you guys are saying as it's a cool reminder that i'm not the only set builder left in the hobby who likes a quality product at (thanks for the word) RESPONSIBLE pricing.

I've said this before but a friend who collects baseball recently showed me a product called "Topps Opening Day". It's $25 USD for a hobby box of 36 packs and the cards are nice with some parallels TONS of insert sets and even some actual hits if you're really lucky - it's at a price that MVP SHOULD cost but yet MVP launches at like $55 CDN which sounds cheap but is insanely overpriced for a product that is all fun no value. $25 USD for all those packs is a price that is accessible to even really young kids (or their parents buying it as gifts for them) and all the crazy inserts are just really fun to collect when they're not expensive.

I have no idea how people are paying so much for MVP or OPC because even though those products are at the lower end of the product line they still cost a fortune if you consider what's actually in the boxes.

OPC does really well, even at its price point, because a lot of the set is SP'd, or even SSP'd. MVP has been an awful product for as long as I can remember.... $25 a box and it would be okay value at at least.

For the record - I'm not much of a set builder anymore. I'm still chipping away at a few I've been working on for years... but no real desire to start a new one. Gave up that habit :) When I talk about set builders - I'm less talking about myself.. and more talking about the hobby philosophically. When the set doesn't appeal to many set builders, it will flop..... which is why most "geared towards breakers" products sell for 15 cents on the dollar online. The only people breaking it are those who want to rip & flip. There's nothing wrong with doing that.... but it creates WAY more supply than demand.

If Synerg is discounted at like 40CAD for the black friday promotion, it might be worth a try.

Portfolio was another one (a couple of years ago) that flopped. It's not a high end like Synergy - so different end of the spectrum - but I know I was after a Ranford Jersey card (and the #'ed parallels). It was about 5 months after the release when I saw my first copy... and I don't think I saw more than 2 or 3 copies in the first year after it was released (the base jersey card was a Group A - so it was supposed to be SP'd. I knew it would be tough to track down).

I don't think the set was a bad one... it had some neat stuff.... but obviously the masses didn't care. Once it started getting discounted, I started seeing the card show up like crazy. When it was 40% off (or whatever D&A was blowing it out for) people suddenly saw great value in it.

You're probably right: Synergy... if discounts come... will do the same thing.