• 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.

Guitar Center would sell more basses if....

S

sawzalot

Supporting Member
Oct 18, 2007
3,414
5,041
#1
...they changed the strings on them when they went dead. Seriously, my two local GC's have a few nice basses on the walls, but absolutely none of them have anything close to good strings on them. I mean, they are dead. As a doornail. It makes the basses sound terrible. If they'd just put some decent strings on their basses once in a while, I bet they'd sell a lot more.

End of rant.

Tom
 
#4
I remember going into GC to look at EBMM Basses and the strings were dead, batteries were dead, the setup sucked, I left without buying one and it made me not like that brand for a while since I didn't like the way they sounded in the store. I have a much different opinion now!
 
#6
Forget the strings.
How about actually setting them up properly?
As opposed to pulling them out of a box that just traveled
halfway around the world and doing a quickie tune and hanging it on the wall.
By my most recent count, one out of ten is even remotely close. The rest have enough curve in the neck to fit a copy of War and Peace under the strings.
 
#10
CrewsControl said:
Maybe they could get one of those people who glance at your receipt as you leave the store to do it.
Click to expand...

As irritating as I find that practice, there's a reason they do it.



Re. strings: Every GC would have to hire 3 full time people. One to change strings, one to do setups, and one to walk around the store checking every single guitar and bass to make sure that the stings and setups were ok. The customers would probably appreciate it enough to thank GC before they walked out the door to go home and buy the bass they were checking out on ebay.
 
#11
Yea unfortunately the cost benefit isn't there. Most people aren't walking in there to buy an expensive bass. I'll go in there to play something if I want to see how I like the feel of it understanding the strings aren't brand new and set up isn't always amazing but more than half the time I'm gonna look on here to find one used before I drop full price in a store.
 
#13
I've found it to be a mixed bag. I actually used to work at one of the GC stores in my area as a guitar/bass/amp salesman. We had one of the greatest and most highly skilled in-house techs ever there, but it was up to the sales staff to bring him guitars that were out of whack to sort out. Problem is, he's actually a schooled tech, not some 19 year old so his paid services are in high demand and he's usually pretty busy with paying jobs. Also, most of the salespeople couldn't care less or wouldn't notice if a guitar wasn't properly set up. They're too busy swimming around the shark tank...

Sometimes he'd have some downtime and go out onto the floor looking for guitars that needed attention and do the proper setup. What was good for us bassists is that he actually was a bassist himself so the basses were usually his first priority.
 
#14
DiabolusInMusic said:
They cannot do basic setups, most players are awful sloppy players, and will then think the bass has tons of fretbuzz and is a cruddy bass, proper setups would actually sell LESS basses...
Click to expand...

By proper, you must mean low set ups. I think the smart thing to do would be to dedicate about four hours a week before opening time to just maintaining straight necks and intonation. The action should be medium, not high or low. The other thing that GC should do is to have humidifiers among solid body instruments, instead of just acoustics.
 
#15
sawzalot said:
...they changed the strings on them when they went dead. Seriously, my two local GC's have a few nice basses on the walls, but absolutely none of them have anything close to good strings on them. I mean, they are dead. As a doornail. It makes the basses sound terrible. If they'd just put some decent strings on their basses once in a while, I bet they'd sell a lot more.

End of rant.

Tom
Click to expand...
I think you probably aren't thinking this through, understanding what the cost is to change the strings (materials plus man-hours) and equating that with what their profit margin would be on these instruments if they did that. Let's say it costs them $20 to change strings on a bass. That's $20 knocked of their margin when they sell it. If they have to change it again a month or two later, that's another $20 out of their pocket.

Multiply that times thousands of basses in hundreds of stores. This would not be a smart move at all.
 
#17
Eublet said:
I think you probably aren't thinking this through, understanding what the cost is to change the strings (materials plus man-hours) and equating that with what their profit margin would be on these instruments if they did that. Let's say it costs them $20 to change strings on a bass. That's $20 knocked of their margin when they sell it. If they have to change it again a month or two later, that's another $20 out of their pocket.

Multiply that times thousands of basses in hundreds of stores. This would not be a smart move at all.
Click to expand...

This x a million
 
#18
Really, do you really believe that if the people at GC thought that they could make more sales by doing this that they would not do it? Of course they would. People buying equipment at these lack luster GC's DON'T KNOW the difference! If you have a good GC, we have a couple in Chicago, this is done and most instruments are fairly in tune also. Of course even in the good GC's there are so many kids and hacks that play the instruments that it can be a nearly impossible task to keep them all in decent shape...
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back