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GK MB 212 II Rant. Not Happy

#61
What should have been done was to call GK first and ask them what to do. I had a problem with my silver face and one call resulted in offers of several solutions, one was to return the amp and they would send me a replacement. You have a repair shop issue. Every amp maker is going to have lemons - you got the short end of that straw..

I can offer this - My GK will cut out ( the safety protection cuts in) when the amp is overloaded, overdriven, or the wall power isn't up to standard. If you are diming the amp, yep, it's going to go into self protect and shut down...
 
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#62
azureblue said:
What should have been done was to call GK first and ask them what to do. I had a problem with my silver face and one call resulted in offers of several solutions, one was to return the amp and they would send me a replacement. You have a repair shop issue. Every amp maker is going to have lemons - you got the short end of that straw..

I can offer this - My GK will cut out ( the safety protection cuts in) when the amp is overloaded, overdriven, or the wall power isn't up to standard. If you are diming the amp, yep, it's going to go into self protect and shut down...
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I have the MB212-ii, gig regularly for over a year......I have yet to even push this thing past 25% of its capacity, its capable of tremendous volume. For most of us weekend warrior/bar band types, pushing this combo to any where near its capacity would be extremely over the top loud:).
 
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#66
azureblue said:
What should have been done was to call GK first and ask them what to do. I had a problem with my silver face and one call resulted in offers of several solutions, one was to return the amp and they would send me a replacement. You have a repair shop issue. Every amp maker is going to have lemons - you got the short end of that straw..

I can offer this - My GK will cut out ( the safety protection cuts in) when the amp is overloaded, overdriven, or the wall power isn't up to standard. If you are diming the amp, yep, it's going to go into self protect and shut down...
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10 o'clock volume is where it cuts out/static occurs. I don't think that qualifies for "Diming" it.
 
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#69
Any update on the progress of the solution? The OP mentioned some emails back and forth from GK.

I had a silver face GK 210 combo and loved it. So much so that I purchased an MBF800 (pairing with a different cab) but I love the sounds. I'd hate to think the company that sold me this is just hanging you out to dry.
 
#70
Interesting thread. About 10 years ago I bought some GK backline cabinets from Guitar Center. They blew up in about a month. Essentially, entry level gear.

Guitar Center in Rockville took 'em back after some hemming and hawing and gave me a full refund. I applied the refund to "upgraded" GK cabinets - the 212 NEO's which (thankfully) never let me down. Since then I've purchased much of my gear from Guitar Center - even though their staff are not always knowledgeable. By taking care of their customer GC got a repeat customer who has spent over $9K on GC gear since then - 5 basses, 3 heads, 2 cabinets, rack gear, wireless system, and so on.

Sounds like Victor Litz or Guitar Center is the place for you. Good luck getting it resolved.
 
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#71
I didn't care much for my mb212 version 1. It just didn't have what it takes for 100 gigs a year. And yes it broke down on me and was never the same so I sold it and the guy that has it loves it. Just wasn't for me but I still use GK gear and it's fantastic! Also their customer service is second to none. I have many good experiences with their personal touch!!
 
#72
og61pbass said:
And then a lot of these Mom Pop shops with bad customer service bitch and cry because there customers are buying online or at the GCs, Sam Ash etc.:rollno:
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We only bitch and cry over here when one of us wants a burrito for lunch, but the guy going out to pick up lunch wants to get sandwiches. :meh:
 
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#76
two fingers said:
That is awful customer service. Based on what I have heard about GK over the years, my gut tells me you got the wrong guy on the wrong day when you called them. At least I hope that's what happened.

Maybe @rag will swing by and help make things right.
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I hope that's right. I've historically been a GK guy ... but mostly older stuff. I have new MB series head paired with older cabs. Honestly I've never had an issue ... but it pains me to hear they don't support their stuff better when purchased new!
 
#77
StudioGC said:
The reason I purchased a GK combo amp last October was because of the great customer service and dependability of the product I had heard so much about.

Well, I've had the amp 6 months and I've only been able to play it for about 3 months. Half of its life has been spent in the repair shop.

It started cutting out on me during band practice in March of this year. Took it into the store where I bought it (Chuck Levins Washington Music Center) and they said, wrong place to bring it in for repair. You need to take it to our repair facility (about 10 miles away, but ages in DC traffic). Bummed out since I called ahead and asked where to take the amp for warranty work and they said back to the store. Oh well.

The big issue I have is it took them 3 months to get the amp back to me. They claimed lost parts, amp didn't get put into repair rotation etc. etc.

Two months into this ordeal I wrote to GK to see if they could light a fire under the butts of the repair facility. Jason simply said the repair facility's are independently owned and operated and they have nothing to do with them other then to supply parts.

This brings us to last Friday when I FINALLY picked up my amp. Plugged it in at band practice and same damn problem. It's like they didn't even test it.

Can you imagine how tee'd off I am at this point?

I took it back to Chuck Levin's the next day to see if they could exchange it for a working amp or atleaast talk to GK. They said nope, you're only choice is to take it back to the repair facility. So here I wait again.

My local mom and pop store hooked me up with a cab to get me through gigs I've had and I've since purchased a Markbass since I will be selling this GK lemon.

I would be inclined to keep it if there was some concern on the part of GK or Chuck Levins for the crappy service and disregard for customer service. I really feel left out in the cold on this and it has REALLY turned me off of GK and Chuck Levins Washington Music Center.

Rant over.
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Unfortunately bad service from Chuck Levin's doesn't surprise me. They have an attitude like they're God's gift to us lowly musicians. It's really off-putting. Which is a shame because they have great stock and some knowledgeable people working there, but the attitude you have to put up with is nearly unbearable. It's exactly the kind of attitude that would lead to terrible service on GK combo. If it's not Marcus Miller's amp, forget it, it's beneath me to work on it!
 

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