So, Is This Repair Quote A Rip?

[BassGod]

I called the local instrument repair shop yesterday, asking them if they could replace the input jack in my bass. I asked them how much they thought it would cost. The guy quotes me ten bucks for the part, and twenty for labour. I thought it was steep, but I'm desperate to have this done...

He asks me if the bass is active or passive. So I tell him it's active and he says "Ooh, sorry man, that's gonna make the labour cost about twenty dollars more."

So this is a rip right? After all, active just means one more wire to be connected.

How much should this be going for?

Graeme

[Rattman]

"..He asks me if the bass is active or passive. So I tell him it's active and he says "Ooh, sorry man, that's gonna make the labour cost about twenty dollars more."

So this is a rip right? After all, active just means one more wire to be connected.."

Gee, too bad you are in Canada.. You could bring me that bass, jack and the twenty
and I'd do for ya..active or not!

Have replaced input jacks on instruments and amps..it is not rocket science, just have to
pay attention to the original routing of the wires before starting the job..

[Introvox]

Sounds like he's charging $20 more to solder one or two more wires...


Go get the part....$10 is fair....install yourself...not that hard and we will help you here...

I just had my passive bass jack replaced, and he did my action/intonation AND cleaned my bass and actually vacuumed my case and gave it a wipedown (hehe)

$60 cdn

Funny, he asked you if it was passive or active AFTER he gave you the quote...if it was a main issue, he would have asked you BEFORE right?...sounds like he might be makin it up as he goes...

[bassmonkeee]

Ask him why it costs twice as much if it's active, and let us know what he says.

I'm curious.

[vindy500]

ring him up, say ill bring it in if you do it for 20 bucks for all of it, fact is for a 5 minute job is is charging far too much

[jwymore]

An input jack costs $2.00 and should be able to be replaced in about 10 minutes. Padding things a bit for profit I'd say $15.00 US including parts would be a fair price for a jack replacement.

When I do it for people I normally charge $10.00 to $15.00 depending on how hard it is to get at the jack.

[bassguitar]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but he probably won't even have to take the strings or pickguard off to replace the input jack?!?!

I'll do it for 28.75. Parts included!

[parkerd]

A jack would cost about $2 AUS... I'd do the job for $10 AUS.

Still, better to do it yourself. I took my cheapo bass to a tech, and they said the input jack needed replacing. They did it for a good price, but the soldering was pretty crap. I ended up doing a better job myself!

[Nick Ioannucci]

hes takin you for a ride 20 bucks maximum parts included, if you lived close to me, i would do it just for parts money, it would take all of 5 minutes.

[markjazzbassist]

Originally Posted by Joshua

Firstly, get a firm quote before worrying about what-ifs. Is it $30? $50?

A quality switchcraft jack can easily cost $10. Perhaps the shop also has a $20 minimum on labor?

And I would add that it seems high, to some extent you need to let the repairer make some $ so that he/she is there the next time you need a repair.

$50 is high, but $30, while not a bargain, does not seem out of the question.

+1

if youre really worried about cash, do it yourself.

[beyondhairy]

my friend has to get the jack on his guitar replaced, and they are charging him $10 for the jackand $20 for the labor. they never asked him if it was active or passive so it shouldnt matter. hes "jacking" you for the other $20


no pun intended lol

[JustOpenYourMind]

Ok listen, what you are going to do is go to a radio shack, then you'll buy a soldering iron, and a jack then you'll go back to your house and solder it yourself it'll take about 10 min to do it. seriously anyone can solder it's really easy and quite fun to do, that guy is laughing in your face.

If you need a special jack that radio shack doesn't sell you can go to a music store and buy it from them, seriously, for someone handy it's a less than 5 minutes job. that's 480$ an hour for soldering jacks :P

[Rockit]

It's like going to the mechanic to get a 10 dollar belt installed for 300 bucks in your car. They're charging you for the labor and I didn't know that a different input jack was needed for active electronics considering I had a EMG's in a Pbass I owned and did the installation myself. The guy has to make some money but he's really being a dick about it.

Seriously, learn how solder and wiring diagrams are not hard to follow. I do a lot of my own work but more serious things like neck/trussrod stuff I leave to the professionals.

[BassGod]

Alright well I decided to go somewhere else, this time for twenty bucks for everything. Next time I believe I will do it myself, because I'm thinking of purchasing a soldering iron, hopefully to save money in the long-run.

Thanks all.

Graeme

[Lorenzini]

I've been quoted $10 for parts and labor.

Take it somewhere else!

[beyondhairy]

wana hear about a rip off?

first time i got a ne set of strings when i first started playing bass, i didnt know how to switch the strings so i made them do it at sam ash and they charged me $10 to do it

[vindy500]

Originally Posted by beyondhairy

wana hear about a rip off?

first time i got a ne set of strings when i first started playing bass, i didnt know how to switch the strings so i made them do it at sam ash and they charged me $10 to do it

thats a reasonable price

[Nick Ioannucci]

they do have to make money about the strings thing. glad you found somewhere else to go.

[bassmann50]

If the shop that you are at is a professional place with qualified guitar techs with experience and they can take care of your needs then go for it. I dont know about you but I can't imagine feeling "RIPPED" over a 20 spot. Get it dont or do it yourself. I dont know about you but my time is worth way more then 20 bucks. As for the dude that felt ripped by Sam Ash $10 is cheap to spend 30 min in a shop showing you how to do something so simple. You are paying him to teach you which takes more time. Just learn and save the $10 on the next 1000 string changes that you will perform yourself over your lifetime. I am lucky enough to have talented friends that do all my work for me and I pay over a local shop wage to get my work done, but its done correctly, never any problems, always with care, always quickly, and I know I am helping to support a talented individual in his chosen craft. Bottom line is you get what you pay for. If you want a crappy job done just nickel and dime a professional and see what you get...problems!

[morf]

Just buy a cheap soldering iron on eBay for small repairs like that, itll cost you 20 bucks.