(Doctor Bass) Dr. Bass - Customer Service Thread - Complaints & Concerns

[ChrisB2]

Originally Posted by DrBass

Hey Everyone. . . .

Woo hoo! Nice update, I'm sure everyone waiting on a cab is glad to see it. Nice looking shop, too.

Maybe there's one of those airhead 15s in my future after all....

[Jim Campbell]

Originally Posted by Armbruster

At least we're seeing progress!

Originally Posted by DrBass

You are correct, and that is why I enlisted the help of a retired consultant with close to 40 years exp in managing wood/cabinet making shops.

Originally Posted by ChrisB2

Woo hoo! Nice update, I'm sure everyone waiting on a cab is glad to see it. Nice looking shop, too.

Maybe there's one of those airhead 15s in my future after all....

what you're seeing here is damage control...no doubt he has heard the angry rumblings and now we will see in print the same lame excuses that one gets when he feels like answering the phone........

progress would be tracking numbers,deliveries,refunds to those who cancelled,with some sincere apologies and a sea change in business practice....anyone who has read even a fraction of the previous 30 pages would be a fool to pay up front for anything from drb.....trust is an easy thing to lose and a very difficult thing to regain.....

i bought some gear recently from a tb guy.... if he had told me he would personally deliver by dog team to alaska i would be outside building a kennel right now.....if marc was standing on the street handing out dollar bills i would be suspicious.....

a decade of missed deadlines,broken promises,and outright lies is the dr bass legacy,and i don't see him accepting one bit of responsibility...

some guys are lining up to give him money even now and in the face of everything that has been posted here i find that insane......

[UncleFluffy]

Originally Posted by Jim Campbell

some guys are lining up to give him money even now and in the face of everything that has been posted here i find that insane......

I've run small businesses on and off and know how it feels when things fall apart - it's hard to get out of the spiral, and out of that understanding I'd like to be able to reward someone who manages it by giving them a fair shot at earning my business. However, from what I've read here, I'd be hesitant to consider Dr Bass as a supplier unless I saw that the backlog had been cleared and there'd been at least six months perfectly smooth sailing after that point.

One thing that gives me some hope is this: It's Dr Bass, LLC. At any time, Marc could have just folded the whole operation and walked away. He didn't. That's worth something. (How much? ... up to you).

[rpsands]

One thing to keep in mind also is that Marc HAS taken responsibility - he's come out and said "hey my business practices were jacked up, I got someone to help out and am trying to fix it."

May or may not be just damage control but I would lean toward not.

[Jim Campbell]

Originally Posted by rpsands

One thing to keep in mind also is that Marc HAS taken responsibility - he's come out and said "hey my business practices were jacked up, I got someone to help out and am trying to fix it."

May or may not be just damage control but I would lean toward not.

i understand,believe me,and i have worked for some small operators who were under the gun ..........some folded under the strain,some fought their way out...but this guy just takes the cake.....perhaps you are a more forgiving soul than me,but from what i've read i'm not sure he deserves it.....

[rpsands]

Originally Posted by Jim Campbell

i understand,believe me,and i have worked for some small operators who were under the gun ..........some folded under the strain,some fought their way out...but this guy just takes the cake.....perhaps you are a more forgiving soul than me,but from what i've read i'm not sure he deserves it.....

Honestly if you just wrote him off because of bad experiences I think that's alright; I've written companies off for less frankly. But people are saying things that just aren't true (e.g. "He's not taking responsibility" ) and so on.

[Jim Campbell]

Originally Posted by rpsands

Honestly if you just wrote him off because of bad experiences I think that's alright; I've written companies off for less frankly. But people are saying things that just aren't true (e.g. "He's not taking responsibility" ) and so on.

with all due respect perhaps a re-read of the previous 30 pages is in order.....and to set the record straight i have no dispute beyond the fact that guys here are being treated unfairly....and i am going to assume that many of them can ill afford to have that kind of money tied up for that long while they listen to excuse after excuse......

[rpsands]

Originally Posted by Jim Campbell

with all due respect perhaps a re-read of the previous 30 pages is in order.....and to set the record straight i have no dispute beyond the fact that guys here are being treated unfairly....and i am going to assume that many of them can ill afford to have that kind of money tied up for that long while they listen to excuse after excuse......

I've been through it; he's without a doubt screwed up and mismanaged things. I'm aware of that and have experienced a six month wait on a cabinet myself. But apologizing, and saying, "I am not doing a good job at running a business so I've hired someone to help," is not really making excuses so much as explaining what he's doing to fix things.

I think it'd be wise to keep in mind that it would probably be financially preferable for Marc to bug out of the business and get a day job and leave people who ordered cabinets holding the bag. If he folded up shop and went home, chances are good no one would ever see a dime of money or their cabinets.

Since he's not doing that and is attempting to make things right, I think it's a good idea to consider the reality of the situation. His business is a very low profit margin in most cases and if he actually ships all of the cabinets he's been paid for and pays all his employees, it's not like he's making a crazy amount of money doing this.

The time to cut and run was during a glut of orders not after spending all your money on a new shop, a sprayer, and all that, then shipping all the cabinets you have out there.

Please bear in mind that I don't speak for Marc in any way and am just putting my view of things out there, as a former customer who has been through all the same things you guys have.

[ChrisB2]

Originally Posted by UncleFluffy

I'd be hesitant to consider Dr Bass as a supplier unless I saw that the backlog had been cleared and there'd been at least six months perfectly smooth sailing after that point.

Oh, I hear you. Just because I want one of his cabs doesn't mean I'm sending him a blank, signed check today.

Yeah, it's possible for him to earn my business. Will it take a miracle? Maybe. But it's not out of the question. However, it will take a long history of impeccable service after this mess is cleared up.

I, too, have experienced being in a tough bind as a small business, and working my way out. And people who stood by me and continued to work with me were not insane... and they didn't get screwed.

People have been getting screwed here, but maybe it will all work out. I'm an optimist.

Good luck to everyone involved.

[gus1894]

I have to hope - b/c I've been down - and ther is a path back. Has there been an extended track record of this kind of business behavior? Definitely. But he's working at it, he has reached out for help, and while his communication may not be 100% improved, it is in fact better. There is a long, uphill battle. But I for one hope that a small business here in the states can set it right and earn back the public's trust. We've definitely seen and heard the bad, maybe this is a turning point. Tracking #'s will be a big step in the right direction. And before someone else decides to post about how he's been screwing all of us over again and again, and how it's a pattern and how it's poor business conduct --- yea, all true, I've said some of it myself along the way. But a recovery here is better than another business going down for the count.

[Commreman]

I am personally hoping that Marc gets back on track. I have had my 2460 since January of '08, and it is a killer cab.

I understand everyone's frustration. Hell, it took me over a year to get my Valenti! I did not take to the internet to trash Nino or Tim (who were jointly working on the project). We worked it out privately to everyone's benefit.

I run a small business as well - at this point, it's just me and my business partner. It is currently a very rough environment for all businesses. Credit lines are getting yanked left and right. The regulatory environment is hell, and getting worse. Both customers and suppliers are defaulting. Bankruptcies are at a record high. It's no fun right now!

While this whole situation could have been handled better, I applaud Marc for hanging in there and making good on his promises. I can speak from experience as to how good his product is. I am one of the guys here who are rooting for his success and his turnaround, and for you guys to be as happy with the product as I am.

[milkman-27]

it's easy to see why everybody thinks that bass players are stupid!!

[ChrisB2]

Originally Posted by Jim Campbell

some guys are lining up to give him money even now....

I haven't seen any evidence of this. I did state that I might ... someday ... buy a cab from him. Maybe. I am certainly not in line to give him money.

Who in this thread has stated that they are in fact placing new orders now?

[My name is Mudd]

Originally Posted by UncleFluffy

One thing that gives me some hope is this: It's Dr Bass, LLC.

A few pages back, the 'LLC' was also being questioned.

[agplate]

Are these cabs really that good to warrant all of this? I'd have been done with it a long time ago; there are certainly comparable cabs made by more reliable companies...??

[Jim Campbell]

Originally Posted by ChrisB2

I haven't seen any evidence of this. I did state that I might ... someday ... buy a cab from him. Maybe. I am certainly not in line to give him money.

Who in this thread has stated that they are in fact placing new orders now?

if you care to read back....if you buy a cab,you will have to give him money,which will put you in line.......just farther back...

on another note i just got two pm's from drb saying that i should just but out...

..really,you don't need to read anything personal into this.......it's your dough,you earned it,and if you want to spend it that way you are certainly not obligated to take my opinions to heart....

[Jeff Scott]

Originally Posted by Jim Campbell

.....on another note i just got two pm's from drb saying that i should just but out.......

Just curious, what cab(s) do you have on order with Marc? Sorry, but I am too lazy to read through all the pages to find out what or if you do have a stake in this issue, currently. I find it interesting that Marc told you to but[sic] out, which, to me, implies you have no stake in this.

[Jeff Scott]

BTW, IIRC, that would be considered trolling according to the moderators, something not allowed on this board.

[Armbruster]

Trust me, Marc's working hard, and the back-ordered cabs will be out soon.

He's just slow. And that's fair, he didn't steal your money. Let's just see how it works out.

[nortonrider]

So....I have read this thread and have found that there is a market for high quality cabinets delivered in a respectable amount of time.

I have built cabinets (kitchen / bath) for years. I have access to a very nice shop and I also already have a LLC.

Maybe I ought to start producing speaker cabinets.