Fender Customer service: All I wanted was some info, why are they s o hard-nosed???

[meev991]

I've tried searching the forums for maintennance tips for Fender 9120 Nylon tapewound strings...and didn't find much. So I just wipe them down now; I'm guessing the tapewound makes the metal inside impervious to outside contaminants.

So I decided to send an e-mail to customer service, and all they said was "We reccomend that you just buy new strings."

That's not fair, I'm pretty much buying these from now until the day I die because I love them so much. Has anyone else had bad customer service experience with Fender?

[guy n. cognito]

Originally Posted by meev991

I've tried searching the forums for maintennance tips for Fender 9120 Nylon tapewound strings...and didn't find much. So I just wipe them down now; I'm guessing the tapewound makes the metal inside impervious to outside contaminants.

So I decided to send an e-mail to customer service, and all they said was "We reccomend that you just buy new strings."

That's not fair, I'm pretty much buying these from now until the day I die because I love them so much. Has anyone else had bad customer service experience with Fender?

Other than wiping them down, there really isn't much maintenance you can do on strings. Fender is right on here.

I've had nothing but great service from Fender.

[meev991]

It just feels weird, not having to do anything else.

I dormed with a whole bunch of other musicians, and I did daily maintennance on all of the basses and guitars...

call me crazy, i'm just a little anal-retentive about instruments

[SundanceChile]

Originally Posted by guy n. cognito

Other than wiping them down, there really isn't much maintenance you can do on strings. Fender is right on here.

I've had nothing but great service from Fender.

+1 on all accounts. Fender was very helpful when it came to general info on their instruments. Strings, you should be replacing them every now and then, it's just kind of common sense IMO.

[meev991]

Originally Posted by FretlessFreak

+1 on all accounts. Fender was very helpful when it came to general info on their instruments. Strings, you should be replacing them every now and then, it's just kind of common sense IMO.

It's just that, these were tapewounds, and I was never really sure about all the ins-and-outs of owning them.

[lamarjones]

Personally, it kind of does sound like you are trying to make it more work than usual?!? That aside.....

Wiping them down helps with retaing the initial luster, if that luster is not something you are looking for then NOT wiping them down sometimes is good thing. I have a p bass, and thought about throwing on flatwounds on it, but I had d'addario xl nickels up there, and after a while it got that really dead sound i love on a pbass. So, now I don't do anything, and it yields the sound I want. Past that, soaking in indentured alcohol can bring luster back into strings.

Howver, back to the original point, maybe I lack education, always possilbe Past wiping down and using a string cleaner (or alcohol) or possibly soaking to regain luster, what 'maintenance' are you aware of that helps with strings?

[meev991]

Originally Posted by lamarjones

Personally, it kind of does sound like you are trying to make it more work than usual?!? That aside.....

Wiping them down helps with retaing the initial luster, if that luster is not something you are looking for then NOT wiping them down sometimes is good thing. I have a p bass, and thought about throwing on flatwounds on it, but I had d'addario xl nickels up there, and after a while it got that really dead sound i love on a pbass. So, now I don't do anything, and it yields the sound I want. Past that, soaking in indentured alcohol can bring luster back into strings.

Howver, back to the original point, maybe I lack education, always possilbe Past wiping down and using a string cleaner (or alcohol) or possibly soaking to regain luster, what 'maintenance' are you aware of that helps with strings?

I meant with "Nylon Tapewound" strings specifically. I was told that harsh cleaning fluids or alcohols should stay far away from anything that's nylon...so then my usual regimen of wiping down my strings with my cleaning fluids...suddenly dissapeared.

so does anyone know what effects denatured alchol has on nylon?

or how about "petroleum distallates", that's the stuff that's in my Gibson cleaner/string lubricant

[62bass]

I have used alcohol to clean tapewounds and it hasn't hurt them at all. It's not on there very long anyhow. I've also used Fast Fret, which makes them slicker and helps keep them clean and no damage from that either. I don't know what the petroleum distilates are in the Gibson product. I've got all sorts of solvents, paint additives and oils at home which all contain petroleum distilates but don't say which ones they are. I can't see them damaging the nylon wraps although I wouldn't use them on the strings because they wouldn't do anything beneficial.

Beyond cleaning strings there's not much else to do. Sorry about that, but it'll give you extra time to worry about your intonation, set up, deterioration of finish, amp quality degrading, speakers getting creased, improper line voltage and scores of other things to get obsessed about.

Or, you can just play music.

[meev991]

hahha yes i do realize, some day, my rig will die and have to be replaced

that makes me extremely sad

[lamarjones]

Originally Posted by meev991

hahha yes i do realize, some day, my rig will die and have to be replaced

that makes me extremely sad

As long as its a natural death! This kid at a multiband show recently INSISTED on using his head (gk 1001rbII) when I had a seperate channel available on my epifani ul502. Didn't unplug my head from the cabs when hooking it up though! Luckily my backup is a gk1001rbII so I wasn't out of my comfort zone when I realize I had no juice.

It's been resurrected since, I have no idea what a power amp card is, but new fangled producs these days scare me....I am but a simple caveman......

Let's ROCK

[meev991]

Originally Posted by lamarjones

It's been resurrected since, I have no idea what a power amp card is, but new fangled producs these days scare me....I am but a simple caveman......

Let's ROCK

haha indeed we will rock.

Since I'm young, I naturally had a comfort level with the many electronics and DI boxes available....

and i especially like working with computers and midi...

but if I even mention the word "computer" at the vintage shop, they'll send me right out, hahhahaha

[62bass]

Originally Posted by meev991

hahha yes i do realize, some day, my rig will die and have to be replaced

that makes me extremely sad

If you want something to really worry about buy a Mesa Walkman Scout. There are so many scare stories around on the internet that, if you paid attention to them, you'd get an ulcer. Stuff like "the neo speaker will demagnetize in 2 years". "There's a recall on them and it'll blow up", "You have to change out the preamp tubes or it'll sound like crap", "a guy I know had one and he took it back", and all sorts of horrors lurking just around the corner. I feel for the guys who own Carvins with what they must have to put up with.

I've also been informed that my Thomastic flatwounds are going to break because I've got them strung through the body, that they're so floppy I won't be able to play them, they won't work for that type of music, and a lot of other nonsense. This is after 6 years with them.

I've got nice reliable gear and all it takes is a certain amount of care with it and a small amount of maintenance to keep it that way. It gets easier with experience. Don't pay attention to the horror stories and find out for yourself.

[Blavelle]

Originally Posted by 62bass

If you want something to really worry about buy a Mesa Walkman Scout. There are so many scare stories around on the internet that, if you paid attention to them, you'd get an ulcer. Stuff like "the neo speaker will demagnetize in 2 years". "There's a recall on them and it'll blow up", "You have to change out the preamp tubes or it'll sound like crap", "a guy I know had one and he took it back", and all sorts of horrors lurking just around the corner. I feel for the guys who own Carvins with what they must have to put up with.

I've also been informed that my Thomastic flatwounds are going to break because I've got them strung through the body, that they're so floppy I won't be able to play them, they won't work for that type of music, and a lot of other nonsense. This is after 6 years with them.

I've got nice reliable gear and all it takes is a certain amount of care with it and a small amount of maintenance to keep it that way. It gets easier with experience. Don't pay attention to the horror stories and find out for yourself.

you should read outside of just bass stuff! did you know the U.S. didnt really land on the moon?

[meev991]

Originally Posted by Blavelle

you should read outside of just bass stuff! did you know the U.S. didnt really land on the moon?

lol,

Elvis is still alive too

[62bass]

Originally Posted by Blavelle

you should read outside of just bass stuff! did you know the U.S. didnt really land on the moon?

I was getting a bit suspicious about that claim.

[62bass]

Originally Posted by meev991

lol,

Elvis is still alive too

Yes, I saw him in downtown Hamilton recently. He's not looking too good these days.