I've bought a couple $1000+ basses at GC, and on both I told the sales rep I'd buy them if we (read:i) could adjust the truss rod a bit and quickly intonate them and they played well. A basic setup before purchase, not after. Point out the idiotically high action by wiggling your Amex Black between strings and neck. You'll never see a set of hex wrenches appear faster. Most of the GC sales guys aren't that bad if you dont act like a total rookie.
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Guitar Center would sell more basses if....
- Thread starter sawzalot
- Start date
free_Bassd said:
Interesting..nothing pisses me off more. } realize some folks have personal preferences but a new or used bass with used strings is an insult sorry
There is a bathroom with hand soap and a towel just to the side of my jam space. It's there for a reason.
This, tragically sums up many of my experiences at music stores. I want to sit and play something to get the feel for it, how it sounds when I do different things. Then along comes some kid with a Rise Against t-shirt and starts pounding away. It often makes me wonder if the dude behind the counter realizes they will likely lose a sale because I have the cash to buy the thing I was playing whereas the kid does not..
I can get past the crappy setups (they usually do a quickie if I'm serious about buying) and youngsters rocking out at full volume (they eventually run out of riffs), just don't treat me like a dope. No, I don't want the damn warranty and no, I'm not paying extra for the case that comes with it.
This is how I will win the thread, and you will all say, "wow; that's SO obvious."
What everyone has said about the beginner and moderate basses is true. There's no need to set them up properly, and sloppy beginning players would find them buzzy. So here's the deal: EXPENSIVE, HIGH END BASSES should be properly maintained, and it wouldn't be that hard to do. You could set up ten a day easy, and how many basses do they actually have?
Changing out strings? How often do you need to change bass strings? C'mon; it's not like you'd have to change each bass once a week or something! The Deans and the Squier Affinities; we all know those are marketed for the young/beginner bass player, so there's no need to screw with all them, but once again, if you have any bass over about $500.00, it's worth quite a bit of your cheap man labor and stock strings to sell any ONE of them!
Do the math! Guitar Center could be far more profitable as a high quality store, but today, a lot of business people are simply lazy.
Imagine how much better of a store it would be if they just spent a little time TRAINING THEIR STAFF!
I'll ask a seventeen year old kid at the counter about some different strings, and he'll tell me the kind of strings HE always uses!
I'm like, "c'mon, man; what makes you think a guy like ME wants to sound like YOU????" I was asking you specific questions!
Of course, nowadays, we have the internet, and I can come onto one of these forums, and find out more about strings in 1/2 hour than any Guitar Center clerk will learn in a lifetime, but it wasn't always that way.
I came very close MANY TIMES to being arrested for assault and battery in the Guitar Center back in Minneapolis, and I wouldn't even have been all that ashamed.
DOES ANYBODY REMEMBER ROCK AND ROLL?????
BEFORE Disney took over????
What everyone has said about the beginner and moderate basses is true. There's no need to set them up properly, and sloppy beginning players would find them buzzy. So here's the deal: EXPENSIVE, HIGH END BASSES should be properly maintained, and it wouldn't be that hard to do. You could set up ten a day easy, and how many basses do they actually have?
Changing out strings? How often do you need to change bass strings? C'mon; it's not like you'd have to change each bass once a week or something! The Deans and the Squier Affinities; we all know those are marketed for the young/beginner bass player, so there's no need to screw with all them, but once again, if you have any bass over about $500.00, it's worth quite a bit of your cheap man labor and stock strings to sell any ONE of them!
Do the math! Guitar Center could be far more profitable as a high quality store, but today, a lot of business people are simply lazy.
Imagine how much better of a store it would be if they just spent a little time TRAINING THEIR STAFF!
I'll ask a seventeen year old kid at the counter about some different strings, and he'll tell me the kind of strings HE always uses!
I'm like, "c'mon, man; what makes you think a guy like ME wants to sound like YOU????" I was asking you specific questions!
Of course, nowadays, we have the internet, and I can come onto one of these forums, and find out more about strings in 1/2 hour than any Guitar Center clerk will learn in a lifetime, but it wasn't always that way.
I came very close MANY TIMES to being arrested for assault and battery in the Guitar Center back in Minneapolis, and I wouldn't even have been all that ashamed.
DOES ANYBODY REMEMBER ROCK AND ROLL?????
BEFORE Disney took over????
This is my main issue with GC. The guys at my local one are great to deal with. And I wouldn`t expect them to set up every Squier they run through there. But on a 1k + instrument ? Yeah, I expect some effort put in to showing off it`s craftsmanship / playability. If you find an instrument with a dead battery, replace it immediately. As for the string issue, if a bass has hung on the wall long enough / been played enough to go through a set of strings, can you still consider it "new" ?
My friend Tony was just hired for the GC in Indianapolis
Purely to do setups on new arrival instruments first and then on old stock.
They flew him to LA to certify him and now thats all he does all day every day.
So they are aware of the issue and I see a positive step towards fixing it.
Purely to do setups on new arrival instruments first and then on old stock.
They flew him to LA to certify him and now thats all he does all day every day.
So they are aware of the issue and I see a positive step towards fixing it.
I agree a basic setup on their display basses would be nice. When I tried to audition cabinets and amps with cash in hand, I had to try five different basses until I found one that was at least playable. I know I shoud have brought by own bass, but I was in a hurry. The salesman who wandered by the "Bass Room" didn't even seem interested and said if I buy a base he can ask the tech to set it up afterward. It just seems hard to sell equipment when sound quality can't be compared. The less than helpful attitude of the employees made me give up and drive the 30 miles to Bass Northwest instead.
You may be surprised to know that the cheap Deans and Squiers often make a higher profit than the higher end basses.
Let's face it, the majority of general music instrument stores treat the bass guitar section like their bastard step-child. The big stores don't care about us; we are too small of a market for them. Bass is always shoved over in the corner of the store, with the least amount of room to move, with all the good product suspended 10 feet off the floor, most of the amps not plugged in, not a single sales person in sight. Behind the counter a big rack of strings, one row for bass where you can hardly see it, D'Addario XL, EB Slinky, GHS Boomers, Roto 66s, DR something or other if you're lucky, all in standard gauge, that's all you'll ever find. Lots of aftermarket and replacement parts for guitar, but for bass? Nothing. Guitar pedals filling a display case 10 feet long. Bass pedals? Maybe a Big Muff on the bottom shelf, maybe a couple MXRs.
Luckily we have the bass specialty stores and good online bass gear and string retailers.
Luckily we have the bass specialty stores and good online bass gear and string retailers.
- Jan 21, 2012
- 665
- 2
- Disclosures
- endorsing artist hard luck king guitars and knuckle head strings
I have no idea what guitar center's you guys go to, but the one near me (which is an hour away) RARELY if never has top-of-the-line basses.
Most of their inventory are schecters, dean, laguna, bc rich, ephiphone, squiers, lower end ibanez's and you will occasionally have a nice fender jazz or precison.
But I never see any Wicks, Spectors, Carvins, Lakland, or Ken Smith's anywhere! I even ask the guys in a persuasive voice "whatcha got in the back room??" Their typical response is "we dont carry those kinds of guitars."
Even though its a drive for me to get there, I would love to be able to go into GC and play some fancy high-end basses. Its not even worth going there if I'm looking at getting an expensive bass because they dont have any.
I dont live by any mom and pop shops so going there isnt an option either. Usually thats where the good stuff is, but since GC is trying to be the predominant seller in music equipment I would expect them to appeal to all kinds of buyers and even collectors, not just little 10 year old Jimmy over here who'se getting his first Fender bass starter kit.
Most of their inventory are schecters, dean, laguna, bc rich, ephiphone, squiers, lower end ibanez's and you will occasionally have a nice fender jazz or precison.
But I never see any Wicks, Spectors, Carvins, Lakland, or Ken Smith's anywhere! I even ask the guys in a persuasive voice "whatcha got in the back room??" Their typical response is "we dont carry those kinds of guitars."
Even though its a drive for me to get there, I would love to be able to go into GC and play some fancy high-end basses. Its not even worth going there if I'm looking at getting an expensive bass because they dont have any.
I dont live by any mom and pop shops so going there isnt an option either. Usually thats where the good stuff is, but since GC is trying to be the predominant seller in music equipment I would expect them to appeal to all kinds of buyers and even collectors, not just little 10 year old Jimmy over here who'se getting his first Fender bass starter kit.
