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AMS / CLF woes...no sleep tonight

goodformetal

goodformetal

Feb 17, 2015
642
1,901
43
Oregon
#1
Months ago I fell in love with the sound and feel of the g&l wunkay and decided I should own one. Soon after, I grabbed a 1982 (great year btw) L-1000 that showed up at a local GC, but returned it because it had some issues. So I figured why not treat myself and spring for a new CLF Research unit. After searching the depths of the web, it seemed I would have to wait until May 6 to get one in the elusive natural ash finish, based on the backorder arrival date on Zzounds. That day came and went with no assurance as to when they would actually arrive, so I started to ponder which color would be my second choice - ugh.. On a whim this morning I called AMS and lo and behold, the sales guy says one had literally just arrived and their website had not yet been updated. *Side note: I’ve since learned that AMS and Zzounds are essentially the same company. So, I excitedly whipped out my debit card and ordered the bass I’ve been gassing for so hard over the phone. Icing on the cake- the guy says it’s likely to ship today and I’d have it before the weekend. Yay. Fast forward to this afternoon. I check the website looking for a tracking number and the order status has changed from ‘in-progress’ to ‘backordered’. ***. So I call to get the scoop and they tell me that either the warehouse hadn’t put the item into inventory yet, in which case it still may be working it’s way through their ‘system’ and on its way to me, OR, that someone else had actually purchased it online ahead of me. You’d think that if the latter were the case, they would have made sure of it before taking half the cost of the bass out of my bank account. What the actual f....hoping for good news in the morning. Thanks for letting me sob on your shoulder.
 
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#3
Slaphound said:
Where do you stand now? Did you ever get the bass?
Click to expand...
No. I cancelled the order late in the 3rd day of waiting. I still really want one, but I’m losing patience and am very disappointed with both g&l and their online dealers at this point. My local dealer has been trying to get one ordered for me ever since, but g&l has failed to commit and deliver after three promised dates so far, first was the 15th of May.
 
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#5
I have a feeling, after watching a number of videos posted by a UK retailer in conjunction with Andertons posted numerous videos, that G&L has embarked on a massive attempt to expand their distribution rapidly. AMS and Zzounds became dealers earlier this year.

As a result, G&L (a company of under 50 employees) has been overwhelmed with demand. I’m pretty certain that accounts for a lot of the issues surround supply of the product at these new retailers.

That’s why, when I noticed on the Zzounds site that they were down to their last Pharaoh gold L1000, I bought it. That was on May 2nd. I’m in CT and usually get my orders from Zzounds the next day. With the G&L it was shipped from their facility in Mississippi (didn’t even know they had a warehouse there) and it took three days to arrive.

Now, it seems like the delivery dates for new stock keeps getting pushed further out in time. Again, I think it all comes down to supply and demand. As G&L expanded to new sellers, the demand caught them by surprise. My biggest fear in all of this is that it may affect the quality of the product. I mentioned in one of my posts that me bass came with a G tuning peg that rattled. The good thing was that both Zzounds and G&L got to it and a new tuning peg was in my hands in days.

The bottom line, if you don’t have a particular allegiance to a local retailer, give Rocket a call. There’s also a G&L dealer on Reverb who usually has a couple of dozen G&L’s listed for sale. Maybe they might have what you’re looking for.

One last note about Zzounds. I bought an item that had listed as a return. I paid using my credit card and received an order confirmation. That was on a Friday. On Monday I was told the item had already been sold. I was annoyed that they charged my card and confirmed my order yet didn’t have the item. After a quick phone call to customer service, I received an email from Zzounds offering to sell me a brand new version of the item that had been returned for the exact same price. In this instance, Zzounds went out of their way to satisfy their customer. I’m sorry they haven’t been as good in their treatment with you.
 
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#6
goodformetal said:
Months ago I fell in love with the sound and feel of the g&l wunkay and decided I should own one. Soon after, I grabbed a 1982 (great year btw) L-1000 that showed up at a local GC, but returned it because it had some issues. So I figured why not treat myself and spring for a new CLF Research unit. After searching the depths of the web, it seemed I would have to wait until May 6 to get one in the elusive natural ash finish, based on the backorder arrival date on Zzounds. That day came and went with no assurance as to when they would actually arrive, so I started to ponder which color would be my second choice - ugh.. On a whim this morning I called AMS and lo and behold, the sales guy says one had literally just arrived and their website had not yet been updated. *Side note: I’ve since learned that AMS and Zzounds are essentially the same company. So, I excitedly whipped out my debit card and ordered the bass I’ve been gassing for so hard over the phone. Icing on the cake- the guy says it’s likely to ship today and I’d have it before the weekend. Yay. Fast forward to this afternoon. I check the website looking for a tracking number and the order status has changed from ‘in-progress’ to ‘backordered’. ***. So I call to get the scoop and they tell me that either the warehouse hadn’t put the item into inventory yet, in which case it still may be working it’s way through their ‘system’ and on its way to me, OR, that someone else had actually purchased it online ahead of me. You’d think that if the latter were the case, they would have made sure of it before taking half the cost of the bass out of my bank account. What the actual f....hoping for good news in the morning. Thanks for letting me sob on your shoulder.
Click to expand...
I've never had any problems with AMS.
Regardless, I always check Reverb first.
There's one on there right now.
 
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#7
I guess with a company like G&L that is a small manufacturer, it's hard to get into the Sam Ash or Guitar Centers. I'm in staten Island. Im very close to parts of New Jersey, Brooklyn, Manhattan and Long Island. I can drive Upstate too. So after looking at the G&L web page at their US dealers I called around looking for L1000, M2000, Kiloton, Jb, JB2....nothing. it seems like there are only a few dealers Nation Wide who have a bit of G&L stock. There used to be a couple of dealers right in Manhattan but they either stopped selling them or in one case, went out of business. The last guy was a G&L enthusiast like Rocket Music and he was awesome. I miss them days.
 
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#9
armybass said:
Rocket Music - GLCLFL1000PharaohGold
Click to expand...
Thanks but that one is out of stock, I had already checked with them. I was hoping to get one in the elusive natural ash finish.

jd56hawk said:
I've never had any problems with AMS.
Regardless, I always check Reverb first.
There's one on there right now.
Click to expand...
The only one I see in ash is from AMS.

Thanks to everyone chiming in with your experiences.

I would have considered giving AMS a second chance, BUT they claimed that part of the delay was because the warehouse had to “serialize” the instrument before it could be released. Serializing means that they open the case, take pics and weigh the instrument. They claimed to be doing this but then they also refuse to send said pictures or weight of the instrument you’re buying prior to purchase. What the heck? Is a $1700 sale not worth 15 minutes to send a picture? I have also considered getting an l-2000 as theres a couple of those floating around the web but at this point I don’t know. I’m happy for them if they are swamped at the g&l factory, but their sales reps making promises they can’t keep - that really bothers me to the point where my brand allegiance is shaken.
 
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#11
So the two CLF L1000's in ash on the Zzounds website are not actually in stock?

Invalid Link Removed

I can understand them being a couple of days out of date with current inventor but I know when I bought the last gold L1000, they updated the inventory to show nothing on order with a day or so.

I hope by posting the link to Zzounds, I haven't broken any of the forums rules and regs. I'm just trying to help a fellow bass player out.

And, I am aware that AMS and Zzounds are one and the same.
 
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#12
Spupilup said:
So the two CLF L1000's in ash on the Zzounds website are not actually in stock?
Click to expand...
They likely are in stock. When I ordered, the website hadn’t been updated to show them in stock yet. I just happened to call on the day they received them but then got the runaround for three days and cancelled the order. I was told that part of the delay was due to the instrument being serialized (see above post). During another follow up call, a different sales rep told me that they do not serialize these instruments and therefore pics or weights aren’t available, it was at this point I decided to cancel and try and take my business elsewhere.

I really appreciate your efforts to help, thanks!
 
#13
I think the problem might be that when you call, you speak to someone in New Jersey but, from my experience, the basses are actually down in Mississippi. I don't know why the G&L's are there and not in NJ because when I bought other guitars from them they were shipped from NJ and arrived in CT the next day.

The other thing is while AMS provides serial numbers and weights, Zzounds doesn't. That's another oddity considering, for all practical purposes, they are Siamese twins.

I wasn't that concerned about weight, I just wanted to make sure I got the last L1000 in Gold that they had because I knew there just didn't seem to be a lot of them out there. I missed out on a Fender American Original 50's P bass in white that Zzounds had, brand new for $1500 for awhile this past winter (the ideal bass for flats). It was at least $250 less than anywhere else. It was probably one of the basses from their first delivery of American Original series that they had still left in stock. Someone bought it, now the very same bass is $1850. I didn't know if that kind of price increase might occur with the G&L's.

I should add that my bass weighed in at 8 lbs, 4 oz and is lighter than my Les Paul guitar and only a tad bit heavier than my AO Tele which tipped the scales a 7 lbs. 15 oz.
 
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#17
I hear you. I still check Reverb regularly in the hopes of seeing my transparent blue L1000 up for sale. I'd love to find that instrument. It was one of G&L's first basses. I bought it in a music shop in St. Louis in late 1980. Hang in there and the right bass for you will turn up.
 
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#20
I’m hoping you’re digging your bass as much as I am mine. Aside from a loose tuning peg that G&L replaced in no time, this bass has been flawless. I have yet to ditch the stock strings for my favorites (Thomastik Power Bass) because I’m having too much fun playing the damn thing. I’ve picked up a lot of instruments in the few years since I started playing again and by far and away, this bass is my favorite instrument. Despite owning a Bass VI, a Les Paul, a Casino and a truly magnificent AO 50’s Tele, this G&L has confirmed for me that I really as a bass player, first and foremost.
 

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