FYI at least in California a manufacaturer must be given a "reasonable opportunity" to attempt to repair the defect (which you have given Mesa) and then must either replace the defective unit if the problem persists or give you a full refund. You bought a particular speaker with a particular speaker configuration to produce a certain sound. That's not what you have. Time to request a replacement and/or a refund (be sure to ask kindly but be firm -- I've learned the hard way that getting belligerent just puts out negative energy and does no good anyway). You paid good money, and for Mesa to tell you that replacing the speakers with speakers that don't sound as good is "all they can do" is absolutely ridiculous.
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Big Problem M Pulse & Powerhouse 1000 cab
- Thread starter vegasfan
- Start date
Joe Beets said:The problem now is, what to do after spending $3100 for a rig that sucks. Guitar Center, and probably Mesa as well, will say that they fixed the problem and if you are not happy then it's YOUR problem. I've been in this situation many times with gear that didn't work out or broke down on the road. What I have always done is just give the gear away to the roadies, which they always dumped immediately at the nearest pawn shop to get money for drugs. Other times I have put the gear on consignment and got back 30 cents on the dollar for like-new gear. Neither one of these is probably a good alternative for you. But you might consider taking the rig back to Guitar Center and having them sell it on consignment. Since they consider the set-up to be in good condition they won't have a problem selling it to some poor schmuck. They will mark it down 50% for being used and then take 30% of that for their cut. Take a big loss on the gear and move on. I know at a time like you you don't want to hear this........but next time......Aguilar.
The Guitar Center in my area (Las Vegas,NV) does not handle used gear. Yeah, go figure, with all the musicians in this town that makes no sense, so they won't take it on consignment. I asked if they could ship it to the Hollywood, CA branch and they declined.
It looks like a lot of bass players are fooled into thinking a big ticket price of Mesa equates to big reliability and it certainly isn't so in this case.
I think you need to get back on the phone with mesa and talk to as high up a person as you can.
Someone should take care of you. You're still well within your warranty and you are dissatisfied with your product due to an under-warranty malfunction.
Someone should take care of you. You're still well within your warranty and you are dissatisfied with your product due to an under-warranty malfunction.
Genz-Benz has the best service in the world, you end up talking to Genzler, himself. Eden is up there too. this is disappointing that mesa would handle this, Avatar has better service and stand by their cabinets better then this, and Mesa is how much older/bigger. Tell Mesa you are a talkbass member, show them this thread, it will scare the crap out of them, because now you just made how many talkbassers second guess Mesa.
ajb said:
Mesa said this is all they can do and the rest is up to Guitar Center.
Oh I asked Guitar Center nicely for my money back, I even asked if I could switch to Ampeg, which I really didn't want to do but I need a rig that will hold up. Ampeg would have been hundreds less. Guitar Center declined on both options. I wanted the decline in writing and they said their standard policy is on the back of the sales receipt. 30 days!
I've spent thousands and thousands of dollars in Guitar Center and this is how a valued customer is treated.
I think Sanctum has hit on a winner......Ebay. Most defective electronics that doesn't go to a landfill ends up on Ebay. Around here we have these Ebay stores called "iSoldit" who will sell the stuff for you. You don't have to deal with a disgruntled buyer or worry about them trying to send it back. They will put in the description things like, "excellent condition, like new, sounds great" and then at the end it will say something like "no returns on electronics". Take a bass with you when you drop it off so you can prove that it does work. Then just go home and wait for the check to come in the mail. They take 30% plus the Ebay and Paypal fees, so it comes to about 35% total. You wouldn't believe the garbage that they unload on Ebay. Good Luck.
Joe Beets said:
Sadly if everyone ripped off by Mesa, took their stuff to ebay, Mesa makes big money, ebay makes big money and all of the consumers get hurt.
Many years ago, there was a used car dealer here in Las Vegas who ripped off all of his customers. He knowingly would buy the worst cars from a local auction (cars nobody wanted), he turned around and sold them to consumers for outrageous interest rates without fixing them up. The consumer didn't know they were crap, because all of the cars looked good.
Not unlike struggling musicians, the public thought they were buying a reliable product so they could get to their jobs. Unfortunately they would suffer towing fees, blown engines, transmissions, etc. It took years but eventually there were so many complaints against this seller, the city got involved and the word got out. Finally no one bought a car from that dealer. He went out of business.
I bought what I thought was a first rate product, from a reputable dealer and paid top dollar...Mesa doesn't give discounts. I know a lot of musicians and most of us are working 2 jobs to make ends meet. This was a rig I thought I'd have for a long time to come. There is no reason that Mesa should not be held accountable for their product. I don't have that kind of money to throw away and neither should any other customer of Mesa Boogie.
Thanks, but ebay is only pushing a problem on to someone else, and we all loose. Only Mesa and Guitar Center come out on top.
I totally agree. Unfortunately, Mesa's grown into quite a large company so their customer service probably isn't what it used to be. Sometimes the only way to get what is fair is to bother them until they comply and get your issues resolved. Sorry to hear about your bad experience with them. That is a lot of money to pay for a rig that doesn't just "blow your socks off". Keep at 'em, they'll at the very least, send you a replacement cab. I can't imagine that their 410 cab can't handle their own bass head. There has to be something wrong with your drivers or something.vegasfan said:
I've had nothing but wonderful experiences with my PH1000 (RR) cab. But it's the older style......
I have played the newer (non-EV loaded) Mesa cab's and, with the exception of the 4x12 cab, they all leave me wanting a lot more.
On a side note, I've dealt with Mesa directly a few times and found them to be wonderful in their help with me. I also think a well placed, very unsatisfied customer-type call to them couldn't hurt.
I would think that Mesa wouldn't want bad press with the masses on this board who use/advocate their products, aside from the high dollar amount you're gonna be out given the problem!
I have played the newer (non-EV loaded) Mesa cab's and, with the exception of the 4x12 cab, they all leave me wanting a lot more.
On a side note, I've dealt with Mesa directly a few times and found them to be wonderful in their help with me. I also think a well placed, very unsatisfied customer-type call to them couldn't hurt.
I would think that Mesa wouldn't want bad press with the masses on this board who use/advocate their products, aside from the high dollar amount you're gonna be out given the problem!
Your problem sounds all too familiar to mine. I bought a 400+ and a mesa 6x10 from GC. I've blown 3 of the tens so far, but I'll have to admit it is mostly my fault. We tune down to low A, and those freq's are well below the the rated 50hz that box is tuned to. On the other hand, if your using a 5-string bass with active pup's, I would not rule out some over-excusion occuring on/in the tens. 600 watts is no where near the enough to over power that cab, and that low chunk of the EQ can be turned down to 32hz, which tens don't like to see.
I could be wrong, but I feel your pain.
I could be wrong, but I feel your pain.
Tualatin said:
I'm not using the parametric EQ. I'm just using the standard tone controls on the amp. I'm running a Fender American Jazz Bass, 4 string.
Regular standard tuning. Yeah, I agree I don't see how that 600 watt
amp can blow a 1000 watt cabinet. It just doesn't make sense.
Thanks again for all the valuable input.
I had issues with a mesa product also,but they totally took care of me..my (first edition)bb750 was a lemon,had it in the shop a number of times for repairs and eventually they gave me a brand spankin new head..I don't know what GC's policy is,but the store I went to "bent over backwards"for me and was in constant contact with Mesa until the problem was fixed.(or in my case,replaced)...I can't say enough good things about their customer service and Parkway Music(where I bought the head)for doing all the "leg work"...thats why I like to shop\buy local with the small "mom-n-pop" store...my advice to you would be to contact Mesa and the MANAGER of GC and have (civil) open discussion with both parties..I'm sure the situation will be handeled properly...good luck
About the second guessing, I dont think everyone will do that. I am a happy mesa user and I never had any troubles with my cab. I feel sorry for the troubles you've had, but I know the people at both shops in my town and I know that if I had any troubles they will sort it out immiediately. To bad the service over there is so poor.
Thanks for your input.Siggy_Bass said:
Second guessing is a natural process, don't you think? A friend in the music industry, suggested I try Ashdown. Only one place in town carried it and it was a mom-n-pop store. All the speakers were blown. So I asked when I could play through one that wasn't destroyed they said, it takes over 6 weeks to get a new one. If it took the retail store over 6 weeks to get a replacement what chance did I have if mine broke down? After seeing what I've been going through with Mesa, I couldn't imagine trying to deal with a manufacturer over seas. Also, after reading the other posting here on TalkBass, regarding Ashdown, there might be a problem with their product and the U.S. power difference. I know every manufacturer can have a lemon now and then, but come on fix it or give the consumer a new one.
For all you electronic experts. One person having been in the electronic industry for a long time suggested that putting a capacitor across the input of the speaker will protect the speaker from the coil shorting out at resonance. (LRC filter) This person worked on computers for NASA. Would this work???
This might sound crazy, but could it be the head itself? EQ values could be off or the power section may not be putting out a clean signal, thus distorting/blowing the speakers. And you are running a heavy-guage speaker cord, not a shielded instrument cable into the cab, yes? (I don't know how many rigs I've seen with puny little patch cables powering the cabinet)
Give Mesa another shot. Explain (nicely) that you bought the rig based on their reputation of putting out dead-reliable, tour-ready gear and it's not living up to that standard. They should offer to take a look at the entire rig to make sure it's right.
I do recommend Eden cabs, but even my D410XLT has turned muddy and farty when I let someone else use it to open for me. When my set came up I checked the EQ--sure enough, the "Bass" knob was dimed on my Ampeg SVT-III. That is only a 450W head into a 700W cab and it was enough to make the Eden sweat. Somehow the cab gradually cleared it's throat through my set & has been perfect ever since.
(I've since switched to a Bass 400+ if that tells you anything.)
Give Mesa another shot. Explain (nicely) that you bought the rig based on their reputation of putting out dead-reliable, tour-ready gear and it's not living up to that standard. They should offer to take a look at the entire rig to make sure it's right.
I do recommend Eden cabs, but even my D410XLT has turned muddy and farty when I let someone else use it to open for me. When my set came up I checked the EQ--sure enough, the "Bass" knob was dimed on my Ampeg SVT-III. That is only a 450W head into a 700W cab and it was enough to make the Eden sweat. Somehow the cab gradually cleared it's throat through my set & has been perfect ever since.
(I've since switched to a Bass 400+ if that tells you anything.)
vegasfan said:
Actually a 600 watt amp could blow a 1000 watt cabinet. The phenomenon that can cause this is called "clipping". Driving an amp beyond it's abilities causes it heat the coils of the drivers. If this continues for any length of time the result will be blown drivers. When clipping occurs you can usually tell because it will sound like crap.
