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Whats the latest with DP??
- Thread starter odie
- Start date
seems that people forget this, every customer that has a problem, Dave is ready to help out any way he can.
it just seems that this discusion has turned pretty ugly at times, and I don't think it needed to be. I can't think of any bussiness that has stood behind their product, or has had the personal communication with the customer like DP custom.
remember the what Luis said about the different woods and how they react differently in different climates. wood is sometimes unpredictable. Luis had a Warwick and the neck twisted on him, so maybe the people at Warwick need to pay more attention? that kind of logic doesnt' make sense.
A friend of mine made a gazebo type thing in his back yard, about a month after he built it, one of the main support beams twisted up like a pretzel. it's just the nature of the beast when it comes to wood working. he had many of the same boards, but only one twisted, go figure...
There's different reasons a fingerboard will de-laminate. Obviously woods will move and can move in different directions causing seperation. But another reason is that it was laminated together poorly. The neck shaft and the bottom of the fingerboard need to be perfectly flat so that they make good and complete contact between each other when glued. The laminate needs to be very stable and not have pockets of air in between them. I'm sure there are other reasons not all of which would be the luthier's fault but certainly not every fingerboard that has seperated can easily be explained away by the nature of wood arguement. Also, if a luthier uses wood before it is properly dried then a lot could happen and whose fault would that be? The nature of wood? The luthier?
- Aug 13, 2000
- 2,016
- 19
- 46
- Disclosures
- Audio Pro - Ecuador
My logic doesn't make sense? Are you a wood worker? If you know what you're doing, you can tell if wood is going do funny things many times. It's when people either don't know what to look for, or do not take the time to look for it that these things cause problems.
Again, I don't care who you say builds a bass. If they have gross problems, that person needed to pay more attention. I believe Warwicks are machine made, which puts it in a different class.
-Spiff
Again, I don't care who you say builds a bass. If they have gross problems, that person needed to pay more attention. I believe Warwicks are machine made, which puts it in a different class.
-Spiff
well, so much for that promise ...
I just love these "armchair quarterbacks" with the simple solutions to every problem.
Apparently the non-woodworkers out there have never heard of the fact that if you clamp two very flat, perfectly mated boards together with just a little too much clamping pressure, you end up forcing too much glue out of the seam between them, as there's no place for it to reside. You end up with what's called a "glue starved joint", even tho you started with ample..
That's what happened unfortunately in Gusto's case, which did not result in the fretboard "falling off" as PP likes to put it, but in a separation at a region along the middle of one side.
(Of course I corrected this with different jigging when I fixed his bass)
DAve P.
Dave, nowhere in my post did I comment on the quality of your work. I made a general statement that would relate to anyone building an instrument. So promise kept, of course I don't remember making a promise
Dave I think you've handled all this very well. You obviously stand by your build quality, you offer a lifetime a guarantee, and have worked out problems with customers. No one ever argued that you didnt try to fix a problem. You seem to be a stand up guy and I applaud you for it.
I plan on figuring out what I want and will be sending you an email to get a quote.
I plan on figuring out what I want and will be sending you an email to get a quote.
If memory serves, and it may not, when gusto's bass had the problem you said it was the wood itself that had a problem and that's why you suggested a different fingerboard wood. Which in turn gusto was unhappy with because he didn't like the tone. Am I wrong?
p.s Still I did not comment on your work, just asking a question. my promise is still well kept.
I checked into this thread in the middle of Thursday night. Minds are made up, and it's time to move on. Best of fortune to you all!
you are wrong. I did not say that. I suggested upgrading to macassar ebony (at no cost to him) purely as a nice thing to do, as I thought it would add clarity to the bass's sound. Turns out tho that Gusto actually preferred the mellower lows that the Pau Ferro gave.
Which is why we've gone back to Pau Ferro for his next bass. Sometimes working with an artist is an iterative process. We are working together to achieve a design and components that work with his desires and style.
DP
I am ordering my third DP custom bass, a 4 string fretless
with 2 SD Basslines Jazz Bass pickups with a 2 band active eq. 3 piece neck and a 3 piece body...dark , light dark wood sandwich. I will post pix as it comes along.
with 2 SD Basslines Jazz Bass pickups with a 2 band active eq. 3 piece neck and a 3 piece body...dark , light dark wood sandwich. I will post pix as it comes along.
I recently sent in a deposit to have dave build a custom for me. Today I found this thread and read every single post on all six pages....
Hmmm... for a few moments I became concerned... thinking that perhalps I may have made a mistake. (a few butterflies in my stomach)
As I read further and looked into some other threads I realized the only serious complaints were with people who did not wish to give dave an oportunity to make things right with defects. (which he offers to do for free) I assure you that the customer service side of dp custom guitars makes these instruments an excellent value alone.
When working with customers in a service related industry one must allways "under-promise and over-deliver" Dave has never claimed his basses to be anything more than "a good looking instrument as well as a great sounding one" and he only claims to "provide the craftsmanship of handmade, solid hardwood electric guitars and basses at an affordable price." I truly feel that nobody here can claim that he has done otherwise.
I now feel that I will get nothing less than what dave claims (and for a $600 bass price this is not bad at all.) EVERY review here.. even the bad ones say that these basses sound great. Even if there are some flaws that become apparent after a while, I have every confidence that dave wants me to be happy with his work and is willing to work with me to ensure this.
Hmmm... for a few moments I became concerned... thinking that perhalps I may have made a mistake. (a few butterflies in my stomach)
As I read further and looked into some other threads I realized the only serious complaints were with people who did not wish to give dave an oportunity to make things right with defects. (which he offers to do for free) I assure you that the customer service side of dp custom guitars makes these instruments an excellent value alone.
When working with customers in a service related industry one must allways "under-promise and over-deliver" Dave has never claimed his basses to be anything more than "a good looking instrument as well as a great sounding one" and he only claims to "provide the craftsmanship of handmade, solid hardwood electric guitars and basses at an affordable price." I truly feel that nobody here can claim that he has done otherwise.
I now feel that I will get nothing less than what dave claims (and for a $600 bass price this is not bad at all.) EVERY review here.. even the bad ones say that these basses sound great. Even if there are some flaws that become apparent after a while, I have every confidence that dave wants me to be happy with his work and is willing to work with me to ensure this.
There seems to be a lot of heated discussion over the quality of Dave's basses, so I wanted to tell my story. I ordered my DP Custom 6 string in the first week of March, 2001. My arsenal at that time was a Pedulla Thunderbass T-6 and a Warwick Corvette 4 fretless. Previously, I had a 95 Stingray (with hybrid Bartonlini hand-wound by Bill himself, according to legend), one of Stu Hamm's fretless Kubicki Factors (the seafoam green one), any many many others. I point that out because some here seem to qualify players based on their gear -- I'm a former session guy who now does the cover gig because there's something to be said for playing to rooms full of bouncing flesh.
First, I will qualify this: I am not a patient man. Dave told me it would take six weeks to make this bass, and when eight weeks hit, I was the most annoying cat in the world. Dave shipped the bass and I was 90% ecstatic. Sure, there were minor flaws and dings in the body and fretboard. Some of the electronics didn't work properly. The pickups could not be adjusted at all, so the strings were hitting them -- but it was impossible to lower the action to where I like it (I like it low...) even with the bridge already routed deep into the body. But, overall, he did a great job building it and it sounded great -- really.
A few months later, I was going to Europe on my honeymoon and had talked to Dave about a few things that I'd like to have done with it -- he was now installing graphite stiffening rods, which I thought would be really groovy for making the six string neck (which was SUPER thin and comfortable, the most comfortable I've ever played). He sent it back a little while later after puting the rods in and it was, well, ruined. The neck was not the same -- it had big, thick bands of epoxy all the way down the neck. Cosmetically, it was a mess, but I don't care what the back of a neck looks like -- it made my hands stick to the neck. Frets were now beginning to pull up, and I could not adjust the neck at all where I like it without getting any buzz -- there were signs of pretty bad warping.
I tried playing it. I'd put it down and try again later. Eventually it never came out. I sent it back to Dave with a letter telling him that it just didn't work out -- he made exactly what I asked for, and we took a chance by retrofitting the graphite rods. I just find it a little sad that I never heard from him again after that, no acknowledgement that he received it or that he work with me to try to rebuild it. I know he's busy and maybe I hoped in the back of my head that maybe he'd work on it here and there, maybe get the neck back. Now it's just about been a year. I still think Dave does good work, it just didn't work out so well for me.
First, I will qualify this: I am not a patient man. Dave told me it would take six weeks to make this bass, and when eight weeks hit, I was the most annoying cat in the world. Dave shipped the bass and I was 90% ecstatic. Sure, there were minor flaws and dings in the body and fretboard. Some of the electronics didn't work properly. The pickups could not be adjusted at all, so the strings were hitting them -- but it was impossible to lower the action to where I like it (I like it low...) even with the bridge already routed deep into the body. But, overall, he did a great job building it and it sounded great -- really.
A few months later, I was going to Europe on my honeymoon and had talked to Dave about a few things that I'd like to have done with it -- he was now installing graphite stiffening rods, which I thought would be really groovy for making the six string neck (which was SUPER thin and comfortable, the most comfortable I've ever played). He sent it back a little while later after puting the rods in and it was, well, ruined. The neck was not the same -- it had big, thick bands of epoxy all the way down the neck. Cosmetically, it was a mess, but I don't care what the back of a neck looks like -- it made my hands stick to the neck. Frets were now beginning to pull up, and I could not adjust the neck at all where I like it without getting any buzz -- there were signs of pretty bad warping.
I tried playing it. I'd put it down and try again later. Eventually it never came out. I sent it back to Dave with a letter telling him that it just didn't work out -- he made exactly what I asked for, and we took a chance by retrofitting the graphite rods. I just find it a little sad that I never heard from him again after that, no acknowledgement that he received it or that he work with me to try to rebuild it. I know he's busy and maybe I hoped in the back of my head that maybe he'd work on it here and there, maybe get the neck back. Now it's just about been a year. I still think Dave does good work, it just didn't work out so well for me.
Vando:
Actually, I've completely rebuilt your bass from scratch ..I'm just getting to putting the electronics back in. I've tried as much as possible to re-create the ultra-thin neck profile you liked. I'm sorry it's taken a while, but I have tried to work on it in between other projects since it arrived back on my doorstep.
(As for the graphite rods in the previous version, well in fairness I warned you what it would look like to fit them into the back of the neck...sorry it also didn't feel good...)
I'm hoping you'll find this version more to your liking.
DAve P.
Actually, I've completely rebuilt your bass from scratch ..I'm just getting to putting the electronics back in. I've tried as much as possible to re-create the ultra-thin neck profile you liked. I'm sorry it's taken a while, but I have tried to work on it in between other projects since it arrived back on my doorstep.
(As for the graphite rods in the previous version, well in fairness I warned you what it would look like to fit them into the back of the neck...sorry it also didn't feel good...)
I'm hoping you'll find this version more to your liking.
DAve P.
As a DP Custom owner I suppose some tbers out there would like to read about my DP experience.
I ordered my DP Custom 5 in June of 2001 while I was in Tokyo for summer break (I go to school in Virginia). All of my correspondence with Dave was by email. He was a first class guy to deal with and his responses were very quick. Sometimes we'd send three emails back and forth in one day. Being young and naive (not that I'm any better now
), I thought I knew what I wanted, so I sent in a deposit with my specs for Dave to start building my bass. Even after he started acquiring parts for the bass I asked Dave to change the specs, and he complied without so much as a hint of displeasure.
When I ordered my bass Dave said it would take about two months. It ended up taking over four months (I got the bass in October), but there were multiple reasons for the delay. Suppliers taking their time sending Dave (wrong)parts, me changing the specs, increased business, and some personal issues that Dave had (which were more than reasonable). Oh yeah and then there was that whole 9/11 thing. I was in no hurry to receive the bass, and I told Dave that. I'd rather have him take his time if it meant I would be getting a better instrument.
When I got my bass I was ecstatic. It was pretty much everything I expected. It didn't do the "old school" thing as well as I'd like, but I don't think anyone can really expect a 5 piece maple/wenge neck through with a mahogany body to sound like an old Fender. Structurally the bass was great. The biggest imperfection was the nut, which was not "perfect" by my standards, but it's good enough that I haven't bothered getting a new one. Cosmetically, there was a glue line showing in a couple places. It was definitely worth what I paid for it.
The next spring I noticed that the fretboard had developed a kink on the G string side around the 5th fret and up high around the 22nd fret. I had to raise the action a tiny bit so the strings wouldn't buzz when played at those positions. I took the bass to a local luthier and asked him what he thought about the fretboard, and he said that all the humidity changes we had been having were messing with the unfinished maple board and caused it to warp. I'm not an expert on wood, but chances are he was right, as when the bass was new the fretboard was straight. The problem only developed 8 months after I got the bass. The local luthier said he'd seen similar things on other instruments, so I wouldn't blame the warping on Dave. He also suggested contacting the builder, so I emailed Dave and explained the situation. He said to send it back to him and he'd see what he could do. I knew I was going back to Japan in August for about a month, so I waited until I was going to be out of the country to send the bass back to Dave. I arranged for Dave to ship the bass back to me so that it would arrive when I got back, and sure enough it got there the day I got back. Dave even picked up the return shipping charge.
I opened the case up and the repairs Dave had made were flawless. He had pulled all the frets and completely replaned the fretboard. No small task if I may say so, and he did it all for free as he guarantees all his instruments. The fretboard was, and still is, in great condition. It's my main axe and it gets compliments from everyone who sees/hears/plays it. One of my friends has a Ken Smith and seriously wanted to trade basses, but I turned him down.
All in all, I am a very happy camper. Is it as good as a Sadowsky/Fodera/other multi-thousand dollar instrument? Maybe not. But I could have gotten three of my bass for the price of one of those. And Roger Sadowsky wouldn't have built a bass to my specs. Compared to other basses in the same price range as my DP (Fender MIA jazz, Stingray5) I'd take my DP any day of the week.
I ordered my DP Custom 5 in June of 2001 while I was in Tokyo for summer break (I go to school in Virginia). All of my correspondence with Dave was by email. He was a first class guy to deal with and his responses were very quick. Sometimes we'd send three emails back and forth in one day. Being young and naive (not that I'm any better now
), I thought I knew what I wanted, so I sent in a deposit with my specs for Dave to start building my bass. Even after he started acquiring parts for the bass I asked Dave to change the specs, and he complied without so much as a hint of displeasure.When I ordered my bass Dave said it would take about two months. It ended up taking over four months (I got the bass in October), but there were multiple reasons for the delay. Suppliers taking their time sending Dave (wrong)parts, me changing the specs, increased business, and some personal issues that Dave had (which were more than reasonable). Oh yeah and then there was that whole 9/11 thing. I was in no hurry to receive the bass, and I told Dave that. I'd rather have him take his time if it meant I would be getting a better instrument.
When I got my bass I was ecstatic. It was pretty much everything I expected. It didn't do the "old school" thing as well as I'd like, but I don't think anyone can really expect a 5 piece maple/wenge neck through with a mahogany body to sound like an old Fender. Structurally the bass was great. The biggest imperfection was the nut, which was not "perfect" by my standards, but it's good enough that I haven't bothered getting a new one. Cosmetically, there was a glue line showing in a couple places. It was definitely worth what I paid for it.
The next spring I noticed that the fretboard had developed a kink on the G string side around the 5th fret and up high around the 22nd fret. I had to raise the action a tiny bit so the strings wouldn't buzz when played at those positions. I took the bass to a local luthier and asked him what he thought about the fretboard, and he said that all the humidity changes we had been having were messing with the unfinished maple board and caused it to warp. I'm not an expert on wood, but chances are he was right, as when the bass was new the fretboard was straight. The problem only developed 8 months after I got the bass. The local luthier said he'd seen similar things on other instruments, so I wouldn't blame the warping on Dave. He also suggested contacting the builder, so I emailed Dave and explained the situation. He said to send it back to him and he'd see what he could do. I knew I was going back to Japan in August for about a month, so I waited until I was going to be out of the country to send the bass back to Dave. I arranged for Dave to ship the bass back to me so that it would arrive when I got back, and sure enough it got there the day I got back. Dave even picked up the return shipping charge.
I opened the case up and the repairs Dave had made were flawless. He had pulled all the frets and completely replaned the fretboard. No small task if I may say so, and he did it all for free as he guarantees all his instruments. The fretboard was, and still is, in great condition. It's my main axe and it gets compliments from everyone who sees/hears/plays it. One of my friends has a Ken Smith and seriously wanted to trade basses, but I turned him down.
All in all, I am a very happy camper. Is it as good as a Sadowsky/Fodera/other multi-thousand dollar instrument? Maybe not. But I could have gotten three of my bass for the price of one of those. And Roger Sadowsky wouldn't have built a bass to my specs. Compared to other basses in the same price range as my DP (Fender MIA jazz, Stingray5) I'd take my DP any day of the week.
Dave,
You're beautiful -- Don't let anyone tell you otherwise.
"Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of our own mind."
-- Ralph Waldo Emerson
Thank you,
Vando
You're beautiful -- Don't let anyone tell you otherwise.
"Nothing is at last sacred but the integrity of our own mind."
-- Ralph Waldo Emerson
Thank you,
Vando
