guitar center and markbass--%$@#!!

[JimmyM]

Thank you, Rod. About time someone stuck up for me a little

 

[Son of Sanford]

Well then don't refer to me as a "shill" and I won't refer to you as a "baby." "Shill" offends me just as much as "baby" does you, and I resent that just because I stick up for GC and Sam Ash because I've had nothing but good experiences with them and play Markbass that I'm a shill. That's the argument of last resort.

Argument of last resort? You started the argument and brought both the terms "baby" and "shill" into it. I stated that I used to live near a good Guitar Center and when I moved found myself next to a turd that I gave a fair chance and now will not shop at. It has been downhill since then. I am happy you've had great experiences with Guitar Center and MarkBass, but that doesn't translate into a purchase on my part any more than my crappy experience should stop you.

 

[brian v2.0]

I agree with you on all points actually. Each of those scenarios has been going on for ages, but i just thought it necessary to point them out for those who may not be completely aware of them. I try to support my local shops, but when it comes down to it, sometimes the big box stores have what i want and are selling it for what I'm willing to pay for it. I have no qualms with going to GC and buying anything, in fact i drove out there today hoping to buy a bass only to find that they were closed (oops, guess i should have called first ).

Thankfully for me the at least one guy working in the bass secton at the GC near me is a gear geek as well and has actually steered me toward products they don't even carry. While that may not have made him any money it did garner my respect and a certain amount of trust. Since then he's always the guy I go to when buying anything there because I feel he deserves it.

As for the bait and switchers, they're at all levels but just more pronounced in the big box stores because they can afford to have TV ads and full pages in the sunday paper with their bait products. I suppose it is not very common in music equipment because after a player reaches a certain level he or she knows what they like and are less likely to be swayed from that by a smooth talking salesperson.

Lastly, I agree with not basing the gear I buy on the company that sells it. In fact, I have an old Acoustic 370 and if GC ever has the 301 cab to match i'll definitely be picking one up.

We can't change the way big box stores do business and often times can't avoid doing business with them, however an informed consumer is much less likely to be taken advantage of the system. This thread is a prime example of that. I won't be buying a Markbass amp anytime soon (I like their amps, but not anymore than i like my Eden) but it's nice to know about the pricing problems ahead of time rather than just forking over my hard earned cash to pay for the same service plan twice.

You're absolutely right. There are land mines for small businesses that the big box stores don't even have to think about. It's been that way for centuries and nothing will ever change it in a free enterprise system.

And while I have had the bait and switch attempted on me at Best Buy, I never have at a music store. And I have been baited and switched far more at mom and pop home AV stores than I ever have at the big retailers. You have the unfortunate distinction of working in a business famous for bait and switch, and I've seen it go on at the big box store level and the small business level. Not so much at music stores. Once in a while you might get someone plugging Monster cables a little too hard, but I have usually not been hassled that way when buying at a music store. But bait and switch is another thing that's gone on for centuries and won't go away.

Any business that offers goods and services for money is only as good as the people running it. I've seen extreme competence at GC and Sam Ash and I've seen complete morons as well. Hey, seen 'em all at mom and pop stores, too! I once had a guy say he can work on my bass, then when I brought it in, he asked me what the heck these EMG pickups were. Needless to say I left with my bass. That business is now closed. It needed to be closed.

I don't know, I just think it's real easy to lump all stores in a chain as being horrible just because your local store is horrible, but it isn't like that. A store is run by people, and people are all different and all at various levels of competence. And you are free to shop at any store you want and not buy from people you don't trust. But if it's a piece of equipment I really want and it's only available at one place, I'm not going to hold it against the manufacturer. They just want their products to be sold. I'll suck it up a little and walk in with my guard up, but I'll still buy it. 10 minutes in a store with an irritating person vs. a lifetime with a great piece of equipment sounds like a good trade to me.

And it has nothing to do with Markbass, either, and it's pretty irritating to keep being called a shill when I paid the exact same price for my Markbass stuff as anyone else. Yeah, I love it. Sue me. Has nothing to do with anything. I'd say that about any equipment with an exclusive. The new Acoustic stuff is going to only be available at GC, too, and I don't like it. Never have. But if you really want a 370 reissue and there's only one place to get it, why should you let the salesman ruin your dream of owning it?

But hey, I can say that because my local GC and Sam Ash stores are pretty good with competent people who don't lie to you much. I know it can't be fun to shop at a store with people who creep you out, and all things being equal, I wouldn't shop at a store that creeped me out. But all things are not always equal and we don't have a chance in hell of changing it.

 

[rodl2005]

Anytime!

 

[alexofc69]

Its seems GC cannot get their Markbass pricing straight.

The Markbass head should show up as $470, plus $129 for the 2 year warranty since the factory warranty is void due to Markbass being new in the US.So, GC uses their in house warranty.

I bought an LMII and Two 121H Traveller cabs. The sales people were so confused on the pricing. The other GC I went to was confused as well.

 

[BassmanPaul]

You know foolish business decisions are made in any store. Case in point: Here in Toronto we have Long and McQuades, astore called Cosmo Music and Another right downtown called Steves. I was visiting Steves on my way home from work. I was dressed in a suit and an trench coat and carrying my briefcase (locked) with confidential documents in it. I was standing by the PA counter waiting for the salesman to finish up with a previous customer Gold card in hand, I was ready to buy my first Mackie 1400W power amp. Someone grabbed my arm and demanded that I check my briefcase with "security" a pimply faced youth I had never seen before. I asked why I should risk my job and relinquish my briefcase and I showed him it was locked. He told me that I could steal a microphone (all locked away behind glass) or an effects unit (also behind glass). I showed him my gold card ready in my hand and asked him if I was going to steal something why would I have my credit card ready? His reply: you could be trying to fool us about your intentions. I was escorted out of the store with every other customer watching and I was horribly embarrassed!

Next day I went into L&McQ's who sold me the same amp at less than Steves sale price so I did OK in that regard. However I have not entered the store since. I did email the owner in Montreal and received an apology and a request for me to give them another try. Had he offered a percentage off my next purchase I would have accepted his apology. Thing is every time I went in there I bought something. A magazine, a tuner, strings, effects units even a Mackie CR1604 mixer.

Not really on topic but reading this thread brought it all back. Sorry.

Paul