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no love from (and now for) Markbass
- Thread starter nostatic
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Regardless of any warranty/repair business, how big was the fall exactly, sounds like a flimsy piece of kit, I wonder are all Markbass amps as weak?
*Scratches Markbass off of potential gear list*
*Scratches Markbass off of potential gear list*
Sometimes fixing something like this under warranty can have more goodwill attached to it than the little bit it would cost the company. How many people will avoid a product when they hear that it's not supported or poorly supported by the manufacturer. Now, this is a Markbass decision but . . . I'm just sayin'
Heaven forbid anyone question TB's beloved Markbass.
I tried one, didn't like it, took it back to GC. When I bought it, though, the GC reps told me that the 2yr replacement warranty covered everything, including accidental damage. They didn't charge me for an extra warranty, but indicated that it was part of the deal as they (GC) are the only Markbass dealers in the US and the 2yr warranty was standard on MB products. Of course, they were quite possibly mistaken, as they often are.
My brother-in-law dropped his 5+ year old Yamaha keyboard and some of the keys quit working. When he called Yamaha about it, they told him to take it to an authorized service center and the ENTIRE key bed would be replaced for FREE. This on a discontinued, 5+ year old keyboard - that my brother-in-law damaged. Turns out that a design flaw that made the key bed susceptible to damage in a fall and thus Yamaha had decided to replace all key beds free of charge.
Unfortunately, the authorized service center he took it to (here in Albuquerque) was backlogged about 2 months, so we're still waiting for it to be replaced, but still - it is free of charge.
Was Markbass right? Maybe. Could they have done better? Probably.
I tried one, didn't like it, took it back to GC. When I bought it, though, the GC reps told me that the 2yr replacement warranty covered everything, including accidental damage. They didn't charge me for an extra warranty, but indicated that it was part of the deal as they (GC) are the only Markbass dealers in the US and the 2yr warranty was standard on MB products. Of course, they were quite possibly mistaken, as they often are.
My brother-in-law dropped his 5+ year old Yamaha keyboard and some of the keys quit working. When he called Yamaha about it, they told him to take it to an authorized service center and the ENTIRE key bed would be replaced for FREE. This on a discontinued, 5+ year old keyboard - that my brother-in-law damaged. Turns out that a design flaw that made the key bed susceptible to damage in a fall and thus Yamaha had decided to replace all key beds free of charge.
Unfortunately, the authorized service center he took it to (here in Albuquerque) was backlogged about 2 months, so we're still waiting for it to be replaced, but still - it is free of charge.
Was Markbass right? Maybe. Could they have done better? Probably.
Hardly a fair assessment. I played through a couple MB rigs. Didn't like them a bit. Personally, I think the OP should not have bought a crappy product in the first place. He certainly shouldn't expect them to fix something he clearly broke for free though.
Isn't a $100 repair pretty cheap all things considered.
I agree with most of the posts here, as I see both sides to the issue. I wouldn't call it a design FLAW, I'd just call it a flimsy design. If it's supposed to be lightweight or something of that nature, you're gonna have to cut corners somewhere if you're gonna keep the price point in an accessible range.
All things being equal, I feel for you buddy and sorry you're going through this. No matter who's at fault or what the situation is, losing $100 just to get something back to operable condition stinks. Be thankful it wasn't more!!
All things being equal, I feel for you buddy and sorry you're going through this. No matter who's at fault or what the situation is, losing $100 just to get something back to operable condition stinks. Be thankful it wasn't more!!
I don't know anyone that has had to deal with MarkBass customer service or have a head repaired that was happy with the experience. Unfortunately, Markbass is just now building the product support infrastructure needed to handle repairs in the U.S. After my LMK died and spent 2 months in a shop awaiting a new board, the head was promptly sold, and I will henceforth continue to excersise my freedom to purchase products with much better support infrastructures. Things break, and machines fail. 2 month turnarounds...now that can be easily improved upon.
I tend to agree with the OP.
If it was in the supplied gig bag and the pot pushed in breaking the board, it should be warranty repaired due to a manufacturing flaw.
That said, we're not sure how slight the fall was and the amp had a bit of help in becoming inoperable so it might be hard to argue it.
If they're attaching the pots to the board then I'd avoid it like the plague. If a fall in a gig bag breaks a preamp by pressure on the the knob then how will it possibly stand up to the rigors of gigging over time?
I'll be avoiding the smaller markbass gear from now.
If it was in the supplied gig bag and the pot pushed in breaking the board, it should be warranty repaired due to a manufacturing flaw.
That said, we're not sure how slight the fall was and the amp had a bit of help in becoming inoperable so it might be hard to argue it.
If they're attaching the pots to the board then I'd avoid it like the plague. If a fall in a gig bag breaks a preamp by pressure on the the knob then how will it possibly stand up to the rigors of gigging over time?
I'll be avoiding the smaller markbass gear from now.
No love for you, TR!!!
Love #3, by the way - and I wholly agree. MB + GC + PRC = B A D
- Dec 21, 2007
- 15,233
- 45,131
- Disclosures
- Lark in the Morning Instructional Videos; Audix Microphones
Is it Markbass' right to stick to the letter of their warranty?
Absolutely.
Is it the OP's right to look at the overall robustness/reliability of the amp and the CS of the company, and make a decision not to purchase any more of their products?
Equally absolutely.
BTW, I've seen the cart in question - we're talking about a 2 foot fall.
This (pots mounted directly to the board) is a design flaw. Not really dissimilar from the Yamaha case, above.
Would the goodwill (or lack of bad will) generated by better CS likely have kept this customer at least interested in Markbass products? I'd say it probably would.
If you're a small company, satisfied customers are your best marketing tool, and dissatisfied customers are each a small, bleeding cut. Enough of them and you WILL bleed to death.
Absolutely.
Is it the OP's right to look at the overall robustness/reliability of the amp and the CS of the company, and make a decision not to purchase any more of their products?
Equally absolutely.
BTW, I've seen the cart in question - we're talking about a 2 foot fall.
This (pots mounted directly to the board) is a design flaw. Not really dissimilar from the Yamaha case, above.
Would the goodwill (or lack of bad will) generated by better CS likely have kept this customer at least interested in Markbass products? I'd say it probably would.
If you're a small company, satisfied customers are your best marketing tool, and dissatisfied customers are each a small, bleeding cut. Enough of them and you WILL bleed to death.
JAUQO III-X
Inactive
Some people here are blaming MB for owners error.
90% of the amps on the market, no matter how micro or larger will have some type of damage after a fall. Just different levels of damage. Damage after a fall doesn't necessarily constitute bad qaulity in a companies product.
The problem with a lot of musicians today is that because a few companies seem to have a great customer service rep they think every company should.
MB puts it all in writing, the stipulations of their warranty. And the customer signs on the dotted line..
90% of the amps on the market, no matter how micro or larger will have some type of damage after a fall. Just different levels of damage. Damage after a fall doesn't necessarily constitute bad qaulity in a companies product.
The problem with a lot of musicians today is that because a few companies seem to have a great customer service rep they think every company should.
MB puts it all in writing, the stipulations of their warranty. And the customer signs on the dotted line..
Fwiw, $100 is just parts. I haven't got the labor charge yet but it is at least 1ht. I admitted to dropping it unlike others I've seen/heard who claim they didnt doing anything ("it just quit working all the sudden"). In the end it isn't that big of a deal to pay for my accidental drop. However I think others might want to know that the Markbass carry bag does not provide much protection (despite their product description). Also people may want to know about the knob mount design and my 5 weeks and counting downtime. I'll pay my dues for my drop (unlike some here I actually gig out regularly with my gear but I sure won't buy anymore MB gear. Ymmv.
Oh my, this is America as stereotypical as it gets, is it?
There was no "Do not drop unit" sign on it? --> The company has to pay.
Cigarettes make you addicted? --> Sue the company.
Microwave hurts my cat? --> Sue the company.
Seriously now.
I'd understand the OP if it would be like when your cellphone brakes: You bring it to the shop and four weeks later you get a letter from some company that tells you to pay 300 bucks to get it fixed or 50 bucks to get it back - unfixed.
If the fixing would cost 500 I'd say "okay something is not fair". But 100 dollars? Are you kidding me?
My 0.02 dollars: Pay it, get it back and live happily ever after
Edit:
Hm... your post came while writing. That already sounds different. What would be the overall cost then?
And you're right about all those carry bags, especially concerning the knobs they're really nothing at all. The small GK's have those things that protect the knobs. However, if you can buy products like this from GK then I don't know about that company aswell as you don't know about Markbass.
There was no "Do not drop unit" sign on it? --> The company has to pay.
Cigarettes make you addicted? --> Sue the company.
Microwave hurts my cat? --> Sue the company.
Seriously now.
I'd understand the OP if it would be like when your cellphone brakes: You bring it to the shop and four weeks later you get a letter from some company that tells you to pay 300 bucks to get it fixed or 50 bucks to get it back - unfixed.
If the fixing would cost 500 I'd say "okay something is not fair". But 100 dollars? Are you kidding me?
My 0.02 dollars: Pay it, get it back and live happily ever after
Edit:
Hm... your post came while writing. That already sounds different. What would be the overall cost then?
And you're right about all those carry bags, especially concerning the knobs they're really nothing at all. The small GK's have those things that protect the knobs. However, if you can buy products like this from GK then I don't know about that company aswell as you don't know about Markbass.
JAUQO III-X
Inactive
"pots" mounted to a PCB is NOT a design flaw, IMHO. an amp is a stationary device and not a basketball. i have several very different electronic appliances that have this design and they work great,.... until i bounce one and take the game winning shot to win in Over-Time!!!
yayyyyy,... we wön! oops
anyway, i love my MB and handle it like a new born chimpanzee.
yayyyyy,... we wön! oops
anyway, i love my MB and handle it like a new born chimpanzee.
I don't know in the US how long the warranty lasts for Markbass products, but every brand new electronic device that is sold in Italy MUST be sold with a 2 years warranty, also for products that are imported from abroad, 1 years for used products but the warranty doesn't cover for damages that are not due to design errors.
And PCB solded pots are not a design error (it is done to minimize the electric noise).
Regards,
Roberto
And PCB solded pots are not a design error (it is done to minimize the electric noise).
Regards,
Roberto
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