Your not the first to report bad service and ill will toward customers with them. Id say just say no to that company, they dont deserve to sell anything untill they change their staff to reasonable one imo.
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
Dragonfire - TNT Guitars - guitarpartsonline.com - Ken Aguilar
- Thread starter bssist
- Start date
Guitar parts online. I placed an order and got it promptly . BUT The j bass pick up has a little piece of copper wire hanging out of the tape covering. A little bit suspicious. I called and the dood replied with an "OK". Like he didn't give a damn. Told me if it did not work he would replace it. Whoopie..
So the jerk wants me to install it to see if it works
This is very very poor PR. Won't be ordering from them again!!!!
So the jerk wants me to install it to see if it works
This is very very poor PR. Won't be ordering from them again!!!!
This post may not be 100% relevant, but it is at the end.
I ordered an unfinished J-Bass body from them Oct 13th, received on the 24th. The body is very light for Ash, and the grain was "meh" so a transparent or burst job was out of the question. It was advertised as sanded and sealed - that was not the case. I didn't leave negative feedback because I was going to sand it down anyway for a slimmer profile. The neck pocket doesn't fit the lefty SX neck I ordered, nor did it fit an unused P neck I have sitting around - the neck pocket also needed to be widened 1/16" on the bass side. Just a heads-up for anyone who wants to buy one of their unfinished bodies. A picture of the body is below, as well as a picture of where you will have to enlarge to accomodate an "F" neck.
I will be ordering a set of their pickups (still deciding on active or passive) in the next few days. The drop-in I described from THIS post still works and hasn't had any issues, still sounds awesome as all heck. Hoping their bass pickups are alright. I will post back when I get and install them. It may be awhile, as this is a custom build and I still need hardware.
I ordered an unfinished J-Bass body from them Oct 13th, received on the 24th. The body is very light for Ash, and the grain was "meh" so a transparent or burst job was out of the question. It was advertised as sanded and sealed - that was not the case. I didn't leave negative feedback because I was going to sand it down anyway for a slimmer profile. The neck pocket doesn't fit the lefty SX neck I ordered, nor did it fit an unused P neck I have sitting around - the neck pocket also needed to be widened 1/16" on the bass side. Just a heads-up for anyone who wants to buy one of their unfinished bodies. A picture of the body is below, as well as a picture of where you will have to enlarge to accomodate an "F" neck.
I will be ordering a set of their pickups (still deciding on active or passive) in the next few days. The drop-in I described from THIS post still works and hasn't had any issues, still sounds awesome as all heck. Hoping their bass pickups are alright. I will post back when I get and install them. It may be awhile, as this is a custom build and I still need hardware.
So no one seems to have been able to tell us...how do the pickups sound?
I'm going to replace a P and add a J to a cheap MIM Squire Series P I just picked up, I'd love to pay $30 instead of $160+. This bass is just for some dive bar cover band job...it's not like the drunk slobs listening (or that I'm playing with) are going to be able to tell the difference between Seymor Duncans or Dimarzio's, etc. so if I can get a good sound for a fifth of the price, I'm all over it.
As far as the customer service is concerned, I'm a crabby bastard so it sounds like I'd get along with Ken just fine. What the hell do you expect for $15 pickups? Anyway, it seems like the more cheerful and helpful someone is over the phone, the more you can be assured they don't know what the hell they are talking about.
I'm going to replace a P and add a J to a cheap MIM Squire Series P I just picked up, I'd love to pay $30 instead of $160+. This bass is just for some dive bar cover band job...it's not like the drunk slobs listening (or that I'm playing with) are going to be able to tell the difference between Seymor Duncans or Dimarzio's, etc. so if I can get a good sound for a fifth of the price, I'm all over it.
As far as the customer service is concerned, I'm a crabby bastard so it sounds like I'd get along with Ken just fine. What the hell do you expect for $15 pickups? Anyway, it seems like the more cheerful and helpful someone is over the phone, the more you can be assured they don't know what the hell they are talking about.
- Aug 21, 2008
- 10,386
- 253
- 68
- Disclosures
- Owner, SGD Music Products
That's swamp ash. it's light weight and doesn't have a lot of contrast in the grain as hard ash does. But it sounds very nice.
You are used to the look of hard white ash like Fender uses.
Ok, after purchasing a set of Dragonfire p-bass pickups 5 months ago, I finally installed them today.
Oh wow! These things rock! At this low price, I'll be purchasing some more sets and putting them in other basses as well.
I had a junker Stinger bass sitting around that the factory pickups were pretty awful. I liked the feel of the bass, so thought I'd eventually do something with it. It's now has a great full range sound, with deep lows. It's very responsive...thumps hard, and punches right through. I'll be looking for excuses to use this bass I've abused (it's real ugly).
Oh wow! These things rock! At this low price, I'll be purchasing some more sets and putting them in other basses as well.
I had a junker Stinger bass sitting around that the factory pickups were pretty awful. I liked the feel of the bass, so thought I'd eventually do something with it. It's now has a great full range sound, with deep lows. It's very responsive...thumps hard, and punches right through. I'll be looking for excuses to use this bass I've abused (it's real ugly).
Web sites go down, there is no reason to panic and send an email questioning their integrity. When a site goes down you just need to be a little patient and try the web site later. Seems like a huge overreaction to me.
I had a horrible experience with this company - Guitar Parts Online - aka TNT guitars - dragonfire. I bought one of those BYO kits from them, an SG kit. The cost was 249.95. It's a set neck kit. When I got it, I opened to check it out and found the neck was bent in a sideways direction that would have string very close to edge of fretboard if not off the fretboard around mid neck if the project was to be put together. I sent an email and explained the issue. They exchanged the neck and body with one that had the same issue with the neck bend (dog-leg) in the opposite side direction. Over the next few days I sent about 3 emails of which I got 0 responses. I called them, and finally got someone on te phone after 4 attempts. Over the phone he told me it would be corrected with basic set-up. I told him this was not a bend that would be corrected with truss rod ajustment/string tension. The neck would have to be reshaped which would drastically reduce neck width at nut area. Now I know building a kit takes work, but this type of alteration would make the final product unplayable for me. I asked if I could return or exchange it for different merchandise. I also offered to exchange it staright across for a TL or ST kit which cost 109.95. I was willing to do that and take a loss because they are bolt on necks and figured that I could probably at least salvage the body if I found similar quality issues with the neck. I was told they did not take returns and he refused to do anything for me other than the basic I'm out luck responses. BTW, he also told me he put the original kit back out to re-sell!
I've been building alot of guitars lately as it is my new addiction. I won't be purchasing from this supplier in the future. I would suggest avoiding this place as they do not stand behind what they sell and have a 'oh well, #@&*% you attitude when you call.
I've been building alot of guitars lately as it is my new addiction. I won't be purchasing from this supplier in the future. I would suggest avoiding this place as they do not stand behind what they sell and have a 'oh well, #@&*% you attitude when you call.
KEN AGUIAR does have a horrible attitude towards his customers and their delivery time a prices suck. Why are they like this? who knows. But, these days there are sooooo many other suppliers out there for the Musician, that there is absolutely no need to bother with that rude and unprofessional man, Ken Aguiar and his company.
Three years go by and I see nothing had changed with this companys customer service. I even decided to give them a chance and send an email inquiring about the measurements of their pickups, because Ive read how they don't fit standard fender type pickup slots.
Guess what? No response to 3 emails and its been over a week. Emailed a different supplier of pickups (also a small run independent company), and I got emailed right back 10 hours later.
TNT/dragonfire doesn't care about treating customers well. Low prices cant negate poor service. I understand they dont have many employees and get many emails...but its been a week and Ive heard nothing. Oh wells
Guess what? No response to 3 emails and its been over a week. Emailed a different supplier of pickups (also a small run independent company), and I got emailed right back 10 hours later.
TNT/dragonfire doesn't care about treating customers well. Low prices cant negate poor service. I understand they dont have many employees and get many emails...but its been a week and Ive heard nothing. Oh wells
As long as this thread is back, I'll add my 2 cents.....today I tried to order online a wiring harness from Dragonfire and got a message back that my IP address is associated with fraudulent activity and it won't let me order or even send a message at their contact page. Huh? I have been a customer of theirs in the past. After reading all the posts I hope this is not payback for returning and complaining about a defective pickup. Like he says he doesn't want any problems. Hmm. In fairness, I'll give them a call later. I hope for the best but if he gives me any grief, so long Dragonfire. Life is too short.
All things considered their behavior pales in comparison to a luthier I dealt with in Florida. What a nightmare that was.
All things considered their behavior pales in comparison to a luthier I dealt with in Florida. What a nightmare that was.
Tried calling the DF number but it does not allow you to leave voicemail. R they on the West coast by chance? I don't remember. I am on the East Coast and it's the AM. Regardless voice mail would be nice.
I have been fortunate not to have to email them but I have ordered pickguards from the Dragonfire website on two separate occasions. I had no problems and received them in less than a week.
I've ordered guitar parts from them a few times-
Quality was very good for the price, always got what was ordered, everything fit well,
and everything was packed good enough that it arrived (less than a week) as it should.
I think they are on the west coast, and small companies (with comparatively) good pricing don't have people avail 24/7 for email/phone calls- may take a little longer. Also, sometimes business is busier than others, and trying to keep things timely may mean temporarily swapping priorities.
Those that don't understand this should feel free to support larger suppliers with more resources and pay the price for the convenience.
BTW- I'm in no way affiliated with them, just a satisfied customer.
Quality was very good for the price, always got what was ordered, everything fit well,
and everything was packed good enough that it arrived (less than a week) as it should.
I think they are on the west coast, and small companies (with comparatively) good pricing don't have people avail 24/7 for email/phone calls- may take a little longer. Also, sometimes business is busier than others, and trying to keep things timely may mean temporarily swapping priorities.
Those that don't understand this should feel free to support larger suppliers with more resources and pay the price for the convenience.
BTW- I'm in no way affiliated with them, just a satisfied customer.
Hopkins
Commercial User
I have ordered a few pick guards, some Strat pickups and other small parts. I have never had any problems with them. Quality is great for the price and delivery was always quick.
