no love from (and now for) Markbass

[Waterpilot]

I thought that for a long time - then I got a Gator rack bag for my ashdown - and I play fairly regularly (not so much as old TR, who is a gigging fool these days). That rack bag is crazy handy and much easier to schlep than my old rack.

But does it protect it as well if it is dropped or something dropped on it? I'm not arguing by the way... Just trying to learn.

 

[Jon Moody]

That sounds like a major design flaw and you're right, they should've fixed it based upon a defect in workmanship. This would be similar to a car recall; a part was made that can cause unintentional damage.

However, the fact that it was in a Markbass case I don't think is really important. Unless MB specifically said that "when stored in a Markbass bag, this amp has added protection over the competitor's bag," it's still just a bag.

 

[Low Class]

You dropped it. Why should they warranty a product against abuse? You might have a legitimate gripe about their turnaround time, but you're the one that didn't research the product fully before you bought it and you're also the guy that dropped it.

+1!

 

[lunarpollen]

I think one lesson from this tale is to install bumpers on your Markbass amps so that if they do take a fall face-down, the bumpers will take the brunt of the impact, sparing the knobs.

 

[Floyd Eye]

I got into it about a year ago with some folks over the constant agonizing about "tone" that we read here on TB - In the end, they admitted that they rarely hear their bass "in the mix" because they rarely play out (my argument was that all this hair-splitting over tone goes out the window on the downbeat at a gig). I've seen other threads of the like - So I'm pretty well convinced (as is my buddy NoStatic, whom I've know for 35 years) that like all forums on the InterWebs, many folks who profess expertise never leave their keyboards...

True. And only a fool would not automatically think that almost anyone you come in contact on the internet with is full of *$#@.

Be that as it may, I DO gig. My gear is nothing fancy, but it's in a heavy ass road case and it gets the job done.

 

[Floyd Eye]

Done and done

Congratulations. That looks real nice.

 

[nutdog]

Carvin is:
YouTube - Carvin Power Amps

Niiiiice.

However, I'm thinking the BX500 might not work out so well if dropped on it's knobs.

In aviation, things have to be light in order to get off the ground. This means many things on an aircraft are easy to break. It's not necessarily a design flaw as much as a trade off.

I owned an LMII. I sold it after about 6 months but I carried it around often without a bag or rack and didn't have a problem. But I never dropped it. I was concerned about protection and service. I don't put my basses in gig bags. I use a hard case. I have a Thunderfunk now and I put it in a 2 space rack case. If you gig regularly something could happen. Assuming anyone that thinks you should have to pay for your mistakes doesn't gig comes off as pretentious.

I bought an EA micro recently used. It had a slight buzz when powered up when an instrument wasn't plugged in. I emailed and Gary emailed back the same day and said send it to him and it would cost $50 max. I did and got it back a week later, no charge. He said he fixed it as best he could. It's not dead silent but better. Couldn't ask for much better service than that.

 

[hdracer]

Did I tell you about my GF opening the back door to my truck and watching my Ashdown crash to asphault? It *was* in a cheap 2-space Gator rack, but it fell front first from about 4 feet... And you khow how heavy those things are, right?

Rack ears a tiny bit bent... Fired it up, works like a charm.

Sometimes, beefy is good.

Ha! The same thing happened to me , same Gator bag but a SWR head, did not even phase it.

 

[TheBassPreacher]

I have mixed feelings about this. I don't blame markbass for not fixing it... it was dropped, the drop caused the damage. I wouldn't cry "design flaw," for one bags are added protection not 100% protection. I don't think "amp surviving a fall on the knobs with damage" is part of required design.

Now the flip side, the 3 week part wait does bother me. You can't attribute 5 weeks to Markbass' fault, because 2 of those weeks is the repair place. The place here that does 99.9% of the warranty repairs has like a 6-8 week backlog before they will look at stuff. Now they are upfront about it, I don't know if your repair place was or not.

Anyway that being said, Markbass is definitely not endearing themselves.

 

[Jim Campbell]

True but I suspect some of the "your fault you dropped it" crowd never/rarely take their amps out to gig. Those that play out regularly hope for some ability of amp and carry bag to withstand normal gigging. Where that line for abuse lies is up to the manufacturer. Live and learn.

i don't gig any more ,but i understand that companies that build amps at a given price point have to make choices....you want bomb proof...pay more,you want a warranty that covers your careless handling pay more,......normal gigging does not mean dropping gear off a cart.....trouble is you want rolls royce build/service at toyota prices.....no company can do that and stay in bid'nez......welcome to the real world....

i think green boy is right....you bend over backwards to help a customer,next thing you know every customer wants to see how far they can make you bend

 

[Freddels]

Carvin is:
YouTube - Carvin Power Amps

The UPS/Fedex test.

 

[GrowlerBox]

Done and done

I'd say you've picked up a great new amp there, and I hope it suits you even better than the MB did, recent events notwithstanding.

All evidence here on TB suggests that Genz has customer service which is second to none, and on which they seem to raise the bar for themselves at regular intervals. On those grounds, it stands to reason that you can't expect quite the same level from anyone else (not a justification, just an observation).

I also understand that the Streamliner doesn't solder its pots directly to the PCB, precisely in order to avoid your experience.

I still wouldn't like to see it dropped from 2 feet onto its knobs, though ...

 

[RCCollins]

I think others might want to know that the Markbass carry bag does not provide much protection (despite their product description).

Did you really think that little bag would protect the amp from the damage of a fall? It's "protective" in the sense that it keeps your amp from getting scratched up. that's all

 

[Deluge Of Sound]

OP, I'm glad to see you've switched to a company you prefer.

 

[nostatic]

Did you really think that little bag would protect the amp from the damage of a fall? It's "protective" in the sense that it keeps your amp from getting scratched up. that's all

Um, ok. Then why do they add padding? If it were only for scratches then it might as well be an unpadded nylon sleeve.

Bottom line is bad on me for:

1) not investigating the construction design enough
2) assuming that a padded bag made by the manufacturer for the amp would provide protection from "typical" incidents
3) dropping it

And in reality, I would have been fine if either:

a) Markbass had covered the repair as a goodwill gesture

or

b) they fixed the amp quickly

But neither of those happened, hence my "no love" status. As for dropping it, one of my regular gigs is doing multiple free shows a day at nursing homes. For those I'm usually parking a block or so away, carting my stuff in (on an R6 cart), setting up, playing an hour, tearing down, carting back, then driving to another location. Now I suppose I could get a road case for my micro amp, but that kind of defeats the purpose of being small and light and quick in/out. Everything is a compromise and evidently I chose the wrong amp and company to roll the dice with. So I'll pay for my mistake, but they won't get any more of my money. Not trying to whine or necessarily look for commiseration - I just think that people researching their next amp should have another data point and some ponder what can happen. What they choose to do is up to them. I've already made my necessary changes - ymmv.

 

[SJan3]

OK, so I can drive my Chevy Truck into a tree and expect GM to fix it for me?
FAT CHANCE... and I'd be deluded if I harbored any thoughts about it NOT being my fault.
Let's not slam MarkBass for your negligence. Personally, I LOVE MY LITTLE MARK III and I think it's very well engineered. And I'm not planning on dropping it, or any other piece of musical equipment on it's FACE any time soon. I'll bet you'd break your nose if you fell on it. Does that mean you're not properly engineered?

Can't believe you could project this problem on the manufacturer.

 

[xjeremiahx]

I don't, at least right now. But after Todd's experience, I know I won't be gigging with Markbass.



God Bless, Ray

Uh, you should probably just not DROP your markbass or any of your gear for that matter.

So, let's say you rest your bass against your amp in it's gigbag...let's say a Warwick since they ship their expensive models with gigbags, it slides off(mind you it's just a 2x10...nothing very tall) and the bass hits the dirt and the headstock snaps off. Is this a QC issue? No, this is misuse from handling.

As far as how the repair center has handled this, it could have definitely been handled a little better - based off of Todd's original post.

Where did you buy the amp Todd?

 

[pharaohamps]

Mounting pots directly to a PCB is a cost-saving decision that compromises durability. It's something worth avoiding in an amp, especially if you're carrying it in a bag.

Depending on the design, the pot bushings can be secured to the front panel with nuts. This makes the pot mounting similar in robustness to chassis-mounted pots.

That said, there are many products out there with board mounted pots that just slide through holes in the chassis with no support, and those are not really suitable for use (abuse?) by musicians. I feel for the OP, I would hate to be without my main amp for 5 weeks. My amp is an SVT-II non-pro, so if I dropped it I'd be more worried about the damage to the floor than to the amp

 

[RCCollins]

Um, ok. Then why do they add padding? If it were only for scratches then it might as well be an unpadded nylon sleeve.

Oh ok, so you DID think the padded bag would protect the amp. Just wanted to clear that up.

It's not that I'm a Markbass fan or anything. Far from it.

 

[Floyd Eye]

Um, ok. Then why do they add padding? If it were only for scratches then it might as well be an unpadded nylon sleeve.

Bottom line is bad on me for:

1) not investigating the construction design enough
2) assuming that a padded bag made by the manufacturer for the amp would provide protection from "typical" incidents
3) dropping it

And in reality, I would have been fine if either:

a) Markbass had covered the repair as a goodwill gesture

or

b) they fixed the amp quickly

But neither of those happened, hence my "no love" status. As for dropping it, one of my regular gigs is doing multiple free shows a day at nursing homes. For those I'm usually parking a block or so away, carting my stuff in (on an R6 cart), setting up, playing an hour, tearing down, carting back, then driving to another location. Now I suppose I could get a road case for my micro amp, but that kind of defeats the purpose of being small and light and quick in/out. Everything is a compromise and evidently I chose the wrong amp and company to roll the dice with. So I'll pay for my mistake, but they won't get any more of my money. Not trying to whine or necessarily look for commiseration - I just think that people researching their next amp should have another data point and some ponder what can happen. What they choose to do is up to them. I've already made my necessary changes - ymmv.

It's a drag you had such a rotten experience and I feel for you. The good new is you learned at least 2 valuable lessons and possibly helped some other people to avoid similar mistakes.


Plus it looks like you got a cool new head so....