Fender quality control?

[cchorney]

So I had 20 minutes to kill the other night and I went into a local guitar store, I won't say the name but its a chain.

I strolled back to the bass area and decided to try out a couple random basses on a used SWR redhead combo, just to see how the amp sounded.

I randomly picked a new Fender acoustic/electric off the rack and plugged it in, only to discover that the piezo pickup had some problem, only the A D and G strings were amplified, but not the E string.

Then I picked up a new Squire Classic Vibe Jazz off the wall, only to discover that the G string tuning knob was loose to the point of rattling when I would strike a note sitting in front of the amp.

So, 2 basses in a row, both Fenders (more or less), both new, both with issues. I did report these 2 problems to the sales guy, I'll call back in a day or so and talk to the manager as well. But shouldn't problems like these not leave the factory?

I'll go back there in a couple of weeks, if those instruments are still there and still have the same problems, then I'm sending a note to Fender and to their corporate HQ - the problem might not have been their fault but having broken gear on the floor that they know about would be a real problem.

[BurningSkies]

Originally Posted by cchorney

So I had 20 minutes to kill the other night and I went into a local guitar store, I won't say the name but its a chain.

I strolled back to the bass area and decided to try out a couple random basses on a used SWR redhead combo, just to see how the amp sounded.

I randomly picked a new Fender acoustic/electric off the rack and plugged it in, only to discover that the piezo pickup had some problem, only the A D and G strings were amplified, but not the E string.

Then I picked up a new Squire Classic Vibe Jazz off the wall, only to discover that the G string tuning knob was loose to the point of rattling when I would strike a note sitting in front of the amp.

So, 2 basses in a row, both Fenders (more or less), both new, both with issues. I did report these 2 problems to the sales guy, I'll call back in a day or so and talk to the manager as well. But shouldn't problems like these not leave the factory?

I'll go back there in a couple of weeks, if those instruments are still there and still have the same problems, then I'm sending a note to Fender and to their corporate HQ - the problem might not have been their fault but having broken gear on the floor that they know about would be a real problem.

Most chain instrument stores take such little care of the instruments on their floor that it's a good bet that when they left Fender's hands they were fine.

[kingpin2512]

My guess would be that it isn't all Fender here. The knob could easily be from people who don't treat the bass like they should. The piezo might be them but then again maybe not.

[portlandguy]

I agree, those instuments get a lot of abuse. Fender QA is top notch

[GeneralElectric]

+1 what Burning Skies said.

Chain stores usually just unbox them and dump them on the floor. Things get knocked around in shipping as well

Fender's quality control is just as good as the other large manufacturers. There are however a lot more Fenders floating around and I bet that there are more Fender/Squier basses than every other make and model of bass combined in just about any big box music store so its a lot easier to find a dud. Also, it seems to me, that a lot of people want a Fender (or Fender copy) and they're the ones that see the most abuse.

[adk teleman]

I will be straight and tell you it is not fender. I have ordered 4 Fender Basses and Guitars from MF and they have been perfect, no issues whatsoever. I took my son into a GC .....total crap! All the instruments we played were total garbage! They do no maintenance on their instruments.

[darkstorm]

It should be the practice of every store to have someone check and tighten as needed, any loose screws, nuts, knobs, etc. When the instrument is unpackeged. Abuse on the floor by customers can of course take its toll to. If theyre are any loose screws, nuts, etc on it when it goes to the floor, thats only going to get worse from customer handling.

[Duuuuuuuuuude]

I read this thread a while back and it gave some explanations about Fender QC

Fender Custom Shop vs MIA standards