In a world of snobs and cheats where people laugh or steal your music when it's original, I can see why so many musicians/producers stick to imitating others in their music and gear choices. That's not me though and I prefer to innovate even if it means staying underground. There's no incentive to create things that others take credit for.

In case the above sounds hypocritical with respect to gear variations, I assume Rupert Neve knew what he was getting into and the laws around his work in the same way artists should be aware of plagiarism law. It's important people understand what framework exists before they commit to projects and whether they can defend themselves.