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Odd Guitar Center Experience (Sire Marcus Miller Content)
- Thread starter selowitch
- Start date
Or I could rethink the whole idea of a five-string. Although the extra string comes in handy (I love having notes available below the kow E), I find that I dislike the added size and weight. For that reason, it would be mostly a bass for recording or playing while seated. If I'm doing a gig, I will reach for my light, medium-scale Traveler baaa every time—especially if I am standing up to play for two hours.
Ok need to put my experience with GC to you, on August 5th I needed a strap button for my Gretsch, called my local Guitar Center who informed me that they had it in stock. When I arrived spoke to the guy I had phoned who promptly gave me a packet of Fender buttons. So we ordered the correct one, which I was told were on back order and would be shipped within 21 days. A month later I called the shop and was told that he had only just placed the order as he was waiting for them to become available and that they would be in on the following Saturday. I went to the shop and was handed a packet of Fender buttons, which the guy told me is what I had ordered. I explained that this was not the fact and was told I needed to talk to the guy who had ordered it for me but he was unavailable until Tuesday. Well I spoke to him and he apologized and said he would order them for me. September came and went followed by October eventually in November I received a call that my buttons were in. So of I went to GC told them my name and off our guy went, 10 minuets later he returns hands me my buttons which once again was a packet of fender buttons the same ones as befor. My patients was now gone and with much muttering I left. Thanksgiving weeek GC called and asked why I had not collected my Buttons. I explained the whole sordid details and was assured that the buttons were there sitting in the cage. So off I went back to GC and low and behold there they were 3 months later numerous 30 mile round trips, I don't know how may phone calls for 1 $12 button. There loss big Time as I have brought a new guitar and a bass since that point which has lost them well over $3000.00. I for one will never use them again
It happens, everyone is different and feel is very subjective. I actually really understand the feeling because so many people on TB love Squier but I've rarely ever played a Squier that felt like a real instrument to me. To each their own, and for me Sire is a steal of a deal though I understand if not everyone feels that way. Edit: or its possible you just tried a lemon.
Any things possible. The bass didn't seem defective, though. Just...under built.
Hmm, maybe our standards are different? Mine came in with an evident very high build quality. Maybe in the future you'll try another one that'll change your mind. Or not, either way is ok.
Was this before the Internet?
You might think that in an increasingly tough marktplace that GC would try to survive and thrive by creating a top-notch customer service experience to keep sales and revenue flowing. Unfortunately, more often there seems to be a culture of indifference, rumors of store closures, and a label as the ”Wal-Mart of guitars.“
That's a good question. The times that I've been to guitar center it wasn't uncommon to see basses or guitars with completely busted output jacks, non functioning knobs, ten year old rusted strings, and in dire need of a neck adjustment. I've seen expensive basses there with these problems like over $1000. I've also attempted to play through amps that would cut out immediately or not produce sound at all. Yet they were still availible for purchase on the floor with no discount. Who the hell is going to buy something in that condition? What kind of business would allow someone to buy that? Especially with an amp, if it's not working it could be very expensive to repair. I would never make a purchase other than strings in a pinch at guitar center. There are way too many local shops that actually care about their products and customers.
No this was last year and yes I could order them from many sellers, which I did and received. I know I should have given up with GC after the 1st cock up. I live in Texas after moving here from the UK and had not brought any Guitars since my arrival and was looking at that time to purchase a Made in the USA Strat. I was hoping to have a good experience so I had somewhere to trust but this did not happen.
One of the more useful things I have ever done is to stop expecting people to make sense.
The first rule of negotiation is there are no rules. The second rule Is that, well, maybe there are some rules. The third rule is, okay, if there is one rule, it's that everything is negotiable.
Unfortunately, that's simply not true in this situation. If they have a hard and fast rule, no employee is going to risk his job just to make you a deal.
They didn't realize that the preamp was gone. They don't do a very good job of checking their instruments when they buy them. The German Corvette $$ NT with bubinga top can go for $3000 new, so that was probably their logic. All I had to do it play it for 2 seconds, realize the controls didn't work, and pop off the back plate. It was a terrible wiring job too. The preamp controls were unwired and everything else was just vol-vol-vol. I offered them $1000 since it would take a lot of work to make the bass playable again, but they said no.
Sam Ash has done this too. They had a used Streamer Stage 2 for $3000 that was wrecked! Scratches, corroded hardware, so badly set up that it was unplayable. You can get those used on Ebay for $2k in good condition. I don't know what they were thinking.
Oh well.
Well, firstly, you should talk to someone who has the authority to give you that kind of discount.
Things may be different now, but when I worked at Sam Ash, we only had the ability to discount things up to 10% without manager approval. And doing so would wreck our commission on the item.
Also, the used price that's listed is based on the amount that the store paid. Sometimes, salespeople will value trades way too highly because they're hoping to help their customer make a big purchase. This screws the store over, because now it has to price the used item too high in order to protect margin. It's possible that the guy who took in the Sire gave the trader $300 - 400 in credit, making it tough to mark it down so much.
Things may be different now, but when I worked at Sam Ash, we only had the ability to discount things up to 10% without manager approval. And doing so would wreck our commission on the item.
Also, the used price that's listed is based on the amount that the store paid. Sometimes, salespeople will value trades way too highly because they're hoping to help their customer make a big purchase. This screws the store over, because now it has to price the used item too high in order to protect margin. It's possible that the guy who took in the Sire gave the trader $300 - 400 in credit, making it tough to mark it down so much.
I have purchased 4 used basses from GC online, and have not paid asking price on any of them. You just need to pay attention to what has been in stock the longest and pursue those. Let them know that you are aware it's been sitting there for a period of time. Just recently picked up a bass that was reduced $300. It happens, just need to be patient.
As has been said, GC puts a lot of restrictions on the sale and pricing of used gear. You can't just go in there and haggle like a pawn shop. They hang stuff up with a tag, but they have a two-week wait policy while they check for stolen goods. And they use company price guidelines to determine street value, and (most importantly) what % they will profit from the resale of a used item. Only the manager could possibly alter the price once it's set, and they usually won't.
That being said, sometimes they have something that's relatively rare and worth the price, and sometimes they really goof and tag an item far below typical used street value. It's worth checking them out.
The Sire bass in the OP may be re-tagged once the waiting period is over. They hang stuff up during the two-weeks to display and generate interest.
That being said, sometimes they have something that's relatively rare and worth the price, and sometimes they really goof and tag an item far below typical used street value. It's worth checking them out.
The Sire bass in the OP may be re-tagged once the waiting period is over. They hang stuff up during the two-weeks to display and generate interest.
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