to be left alone to play a bass and to not continually be told why i want something else. not to be frisked when entering the store. i've actually been thrown out of a few stores for being obnoxious to them. once it began with using a pick on a Spector. i called the sales dude "bon jovi" and showed him the cash in my pocket that he wasn't gonna get a cut of.
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What would YOU like from Guitar Center?
- Thread starter xjeremiahx
- Start date
All the Chicagoland ones have a Tech from 3rd Coast Guitars in 5 days a week now. The in-house tech is an awesome tool for sure.
Coffee & doughnuts...workin on it
Coffee & doughnuts...workin on it
Well,
given I don't know the whole story, but I'm sure if you do that to ANY business, they'll ask/tell you to leave pretty soon after that.
Steal away !
Seriously - the first couple weeks it takes a bit of time, after that it's easy.
Anyway, good luck - and have a great evening !
for them to change their d**m bass strings.. pretty much the only problem with my GC. i know alot of people here either like flat wounds or dead round wounds that might as well be flat wounds for that thumpy low tone. but not everyone in the world likes their bass to sound like that.. 
the least they could do is change their strings at least once every few months or year for that matter.
that's why i have problems picking out basses to play there; 80% of the basses sound dead.. and i like to get 100% of the bass's true tone. otherwise i've never had any other problems with mine, and i've actually heard people talking good about it right here on TB. no punky, pushy underaged staff boys or anything. you actually have to have a certain amount of knowledge on the equipment there in order to get a job, or so i've heard..
and yeah, they could use a better selection. but so could every other shop in the area IMO.
the least they could do is change their strings at least once every few months or year for that matter. that's why i have problems picking out basses to play there; 80% of the basses sound dead.. and i like to get 100% of the bass's true tone. otherwise i've never had any other problems with mine, and i've actually heard people talking good about it right here on TB. no punky, pushy underaged staff boys or anything. you actually have to have a certain amount of knowledge on the equipment there in order to get a job, or so i've heard..
and yeah, they could use a better selection. but so could every other shop in the area IMO.
yeah, you should have heard Bon Jovi's mouth. he maybe should've eaten the Spector. i had enough cash to buy it on the spot, but he just wouldn't shut up about the pick. he just kept saying i was ruining the finish. i was barely playing and not touching the finish.
more recently i had a GK micro that had the extended warranty from GC. it clipped out and i took it back. i have to drive nearly an hour to the only store near me in NC, and they said i had to call a phone number and mail it to a remote locale. made the call and they sent me to another phone number/company. this went on and on. it was dudes on TALKBASS that put me in touch with Brian at Gallien. he said just bypass GC and send it to him and i did. they fixed it and it has worked great ever since. i keep telling the story to promote GK. i don't mind slagging the GC's warranty BS. Be warned.
and don't take it personally. there are some nice helpful people at GC. it has just become the Wal-mart of music stores and it's a turnoff sometimes. i grew up with tons of mom and pops in the late '80s and i miss them terribly.
more recently i had a GK micro that had the extended warranty from GC. it clipped out and i took it back. i have to drive nearly an hour to the only store near me in NC, and they said i had to call a phone number and mail it to a remote locale. made the call and they sent me to another phone number/company. this went on and on. it was dudes on TALKBASS that put me in touch with Brian at Gallien. he said just bypass GC and send it to him and i did. they fixed it and it has worked great ever since. i keep telling the story to promote GK. i don't mind slagging the GC's warranty BS. Be warned.
and don't take it personally. there are some nice helpful people at GC. it has just become the Wal-mart of music stores and it's a turnoff sometimes. i grew up with tons of mom and pops in the late '80s and i miss them terribly.
That's all fine & fair, but keep the [warranty]bashing out of this thread please. There's a lot of good info being said here, I'd hate for it to turn into a flame-fest.
I'm sorry you had a bogus/odd run w/ the warranty. I've used a few in my time, before & during my tenure @ GC and they've been pretty helpful for me & some customers of mine. Everybody's exp is different though, I know this.
Better training for the employees. and not to be told I want a fender... I have two P bass and j bass thats all i need. They seem to be way too pushy probably because of commission. if they actually want sales research what your selling so you actually know what your talking about.
I agree about better maintaining the guitars and basses. I went to a GC last Saturday and the playability on the basses I tried out was horrible. Tried three Musicman basses and the strings on all three of them were practically laying on the frets. I mean, these are basses with some pretty hefty price tags on them. You'd think they would want to show those basses in the best possible light. For something that expensive you WANT a customer to pick it up and feel like he or she went to Bass Heaven.
But I will give one salesperson credit for trying to tweak one of them a bit for me. He did what he could and did it the best he knew how. It's not his fault if he's not given proper training.
But I will give one salesperson credit for trying to tweak one of them a bit for me. He did what he could and did it the best he knew how. It's not his fault if he's not given proper training.
rick
spector
more warwicks(not a fan but im sure other people would like this)
people that acually know what they are doing
but they do give away free pizza breadsticks and soda si I aint complaining
spector
more warwicks(not a fan but im sure other people would like this)
people that acually know what they are doing
but they do give away free pizza breadsticks and soda si I aint complaining
1. Get stock of things in for people to try without requiring someone to actually purchase it.
2. Maintain the condition of stock on-hand. Dusting, replacing strings, checking intonation, etc. This is a major problem in all of the stores in my area.
3. Have tuners set out around the amps so that you don't have to hear everyone and their mom tune the instruments up through the amps. It's bad enough to hear the same old riffs a billion times without having to hear them (usually poorly) tune up to do so.
4. (probably unrealistic, but I can dream...) Remove all power supply from the amps section for both guitars and basses, seal the section for drums/percussion like they do for acoustic guitars, and make a closed room for testing amps/instruments/pedals (like, get all the used gear out of that glass room and put that space to work instead).
5. Bring haggling back. No more of this "we'll match prices" stuff. Typically, if I have to go out and look for better prices, I will usually just buy it from somewhere else in the first place.
6. Train the staff better to know exactly what they are selling inside and out and be ready to deal with all but the most technical of questions or to at least know where to find the answers.
I could probably think of more if I walked into a GC...
2. Maintain the condition of stock on-hand. Dusting, replacing strings, checking intonation, etc. This is a major problem in all of the stores in my area.
3. Have tuners set out around the amps so that you don't have to hear everyone and their mom tune the instruments up through the amps. It's bad enough to hear the same old riffs a billion times without having to hear them (usually poorly) tune up to do so.
4. (probably unrealistic, but I can dream...) Remove all power supply from the amps section for both guitars and basses, seal the section for drums/percussion like they do for acoustic guitars, and make a closed room for testing amps/instruments/pedals (like, get all the used gear out of that glass room and put that space to work instead).
5. Bring haggling back. No more of this "we'll match prices" stuff. Typically, if I have to go out and look for better prices, I will usually just buy it from somewhere else in the first place.
6. Train the staff better to know exactly what they are selling inside and out and be ready to deal with all but the most technical of questions or to at least know where to find the answers.
I could probably think of more if I walked into a GC...
At the Southfield, MI store, they have a wonderful rack of Gibson Les Pauls. A few in particular I would like, but it is merely a 'wish list' item. I like my bass rig and Precision. I am going to get a 5-string Precision of some type soon enough. Would like a Telecaster too.
Accessories? I have extra strings, cables, & all that. A Big AL 5 would be o.k. I like 'em, but I still like the simplicity of the Precision set-up better.
Accessories? I have extra strings, cables, & all that. A Big AL 5 would be o.k. I like 'em, but I still like the simplicity of the Precision set-up better.
I think they need to be more selective about who they hire. Everyone and their grandmother's brother's father's uncle's nephew wants to work in a place that has musical instruments. If they want to hire high school kids, put them in inventory so they can at least learn about the products without letting customers on to their inexperience. The people they hire should also be trained better.
They need to be able to negotiate prices again. A long time ago you used to be able to walk in there and haggle the sales person down to a decent price. I knew a manager that worked at one store who used to give me large percentages of discounts on almost everything I bought there. After a managerial overhaul a year or two ago, this has all come to an end. Now they need a manager's validation just to give a 15% discount on something.
The place has really lamed out. Not to mention that evil credit card they have there. With the retroactive interest. They might as well just become a record label with all the high school bands they send out on the road.
They need to be able to negotiate prices again. A long time ago you used to be able to walk in there and haggle the sales person down to a decent price. I knew a manager that worked at one store who used to give me large percentages of discounts on almost everything I bought there. After a managerial overhaul a year or two ago, this has all come to an end. Now they need a manager's validation just to give a 15% discount on something.
The place has really lamed out. Not to mention that evil credit card they have there. With the retroactive interest. They might as well just become a record label with all the high school bands they send out on the road.
If an item is already a good price, I'll buy it. But when I buy new, especially an inventory item, even one they have to order from a manufacturer, I name the price I'll pay.
I have not had difficulty with that strategy.
I assume that the selection of instruments in any given store is based sales volume.
These guys have a huge nut each month and I believe that they are interested in selling as many units as possible to survive in this economy. Not so sure that the mom & pop stores would come back if GC went away; if high volume and low prices can't survive I doubt if anyhting can. The demands of this board are not consistent with the majority of thier buyers IMO.
I also think it unreasonable for them to change strings on every new instrument unless a prospective buyer asks for it. I don't see how they could do set ups as the store near me does not seem to have any qualified techs.
As far as changes, I think that the educated consumer is the best customer both in the short and long term. The sales staff needs to be educated in both the instrument technical info as well as how a professional sale is made.
These guys have a huge nut each month and I believe that they are interested in selling as many units as possible to survive in this economy. Not so sure that the mom & pop stores would come back if GC went away; if high volume and low prices can't survive I doubt if anyhting can. The demands of this board are not consistent with the majority of thier buyers IMO.
I also think it unreasonable for them to change strings on every new instrument unless a prospective buyer asks for it. I don't see how they could do set ups as the store near me does not seem to have any qualified techs.
As far as changes, I think that the educated consumer is the best customer both in the short and long term. The sales staff needs to be educated in both the instrument technical info as well as how a professional sale is made.
I'd like the staff of the GC out here in the one on Gratiot to actually acknowledge my existence. I've never walked into any music store before and had NO ONE ask if they could help me. I was looking for a pedal (this is the first time I walked into a GC and I've only been there one other time to try out a bass they didn't have) and even when I went to the counter, leaned on the counter to get a closer look and let them know I was looking for something, they still ignored me. I had to ask the three guys (not young guys either) behind the counter if they had the pedal and got told off rudely that not everything on the website is in stock in the store. Sorry I've interupted your chat fella's, I hope you know I've been steering as many people I know away from your store and toward Hanson Pro Music and Huber & Breese as I can.
No, I don't want them to acknowledge my existence.
No, I don't want them to acknowledge my existence.
I understand the ma and pa shop concept and try to support it. But...you can't argue with a bigger selection at a better price.
BTW: I live in NYC and Sam Ash bought out Manny's and they have all the guitars locked up! I HATE having to ask a salesman to look at something that may not be in my hands for more than 2 seconds. And then you get the sales pitch! And they talk to everyone like they're a beginner. Screw 'em. I'll never shop there again. GC has been a pretty good alternative.
BTW: I live in NYC and Sam Ash bought out Manny's and they have all the guitars locked up! I HATE having to ask a salesman to look at something that may not be in my hands for more than 2 seconds. And then you get the sales pitch! And they talk to everyone like they're a beginner. Screw 'em. I'll never shop there again. GC has been a pretty good alternative.
