My First Ever Sweetwater Order...

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Joeybear

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This past week, I placed my first ever order with Sweetwater, and needless to say, I'm disappointed.

1. Despite my being very clear about what I needed, and what my objectives were, the salesperson gave me erroneous information. As a result of that, my first venture into MIDI and sequencing is off to a less than ideal start.

2. Despite the above, the same salesperson did a helluva good job of e-mailing me to offer me a Sweetwater credit card. :mad:

3. The items themselves both look like repackaged return items. I saw the writing on the wall the moment I pulled the first item out of it's box. And even more than that, I've had to spend a great deal of time getting the items back to their default settings. It's obvious that someone used these items before.

I normally don't post in message boards about a bad buying experience, but considering how much we all pay for audio stuff, it's enough to make anyone want to blow off some steam.

I don't know what Sweetwater's overall reputation is in here, but my first experience with them has been a real disappointment. :(

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go get some cheese to have with my whine. LOL
 
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I was looking at reviews, and zzound reviews are not much better. I'm glad you posted this information (whine or not) it's good to know the good & bad. Next time you may want to try musiciansfriend.com or bhproaudio.com or any other number. My first purchase for equipment on-line was from e-bay and I'm not dissapointed at all.
This guys is the guy I bought from, and although he may not have the best prices, it was easy and I got exactly what he advertised.

http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQfgtpZ1Q...QQsassZ1darb1QQssPageNameZSTRKQ3aMEFSQ3aMESOI
 
It's funny that you mentioned Musician's Friend, because I've ordered from them before with no problems. I figured I'd try Sweetwater because they're only two states away; and thus, shipping would be faster; which it was.
I also like to have more than one source when it comes to buying audio; or anything else for that matter.

The part that ticks me off the most is the bad info that the salesperson gave me. It seems like a trend these days, because it's the same deal here in the local music stores. Nine times out of ten, I know that I had better have my facts straight and know exactly what I want before going in; otherwise I'm gonna choke from the salesperson blowing so much smoke in my face.

If this were nickel and dime stuff, I might not give a rat's ass. But we're talking pricey stuff here. If you're gonna sell high end stuff, at least know what the hell you're selling.
 
:cool: Yo Joe:]

Long time ago I got into a argument with a Sweetaqua sales' rep and did not order anything from them for even a longer time. Seems as though some sales' reps are very egocentric and if you're not buying big, they tend to not want to talk to you. One guy at Sweetaqua would even pawn me off to a newer person as "he was too busy to talk to me." So, that adventure cost Sweetdrippings a good piece of change as I bought gear from other vendors.

Question? Why didn't you send back ALL of the gear? Sweetwater does have a return policy. And, once when I sat down to write the President of Sweetwater a letter, he called me personally in four days and settled my problem immediately. I was impressed. However, I need to tell you that I used to teach College English so I have a way of using words minus swearing that is very effective.

I am now in touch with a pretty cool Sweetwater rep who has done nothing but try to make me happy. However, his prices are often higher than my main vendor. I have bought a few items from him because he did come up with some good prices when I threw the competition's price at him. Once the Sweetwater rep told me he would send me six different mics and I could try all of them and buy the one I liked best and then I could send back the rest. Impressive offer to say the least.

Well, I guess the best thing to do is really understand what you want to buy. And then call all of the 800 numbers. I recently got a new synth from my main vendor for almost 400 dollars less than the best price from Sweetwater. I didn't even call Sweetflow back for a challenge price--I bought it from the other vendor.

But, whenever or wherever you buy anything substantial, make sure you know the return policy. Most of the time you will lose the shipping costs and sometimes there is a 10% or more restocking fee. And, if anything looks used that is supposed to be new, SEND IT BACK IMMEDIATELY.

Happy Spring
Green Hornet :D
 
To add to Hornet's thoughts... I agree that we, as consumers, need to be firm about our needs and not accept less. I've used at least five popular retailers in the past few years, and I always insist on a couple of things before I order: (1) double-boxing and (2) factory fresh.

When I ordered my Yamaha aw16g a couple of years ago, I received the first two shipping attempts in just the scruffed up Yamaha box, with the end flaps loose or open. Both times, I refused acceptance and stated the reason clearly. After the second failed attempt, I tried another vendor), informed him of my prior problem, let him know my specific needs, and finally received a nicely double-boxed unit, even packed with heavy foam between the boxes. The rep (Music 123 or Zzounds, I can't remember) informed me that he could always do this if I specify these requirements. From that point onward, I have. "Send it to me in this condition, or I'll refuse acceptance."

Consumers unite--let's be strong.

J.

P.S. I've never tried Sweetwater, but their catalogues, at least, are certainly the sweetest.
 
Yo Jeff:

Make sure you check out gear prices at Full Compass too.

They also double box gear.

And, you are certainly correct to refuse ANYTHING delivered, gear or beer, that looks like it has been dropped from the loading deck to the basement. The stuff is insured so send it back.

Sometimes, if you get free shipping and send something back, you only get stuck for the one-way return shipping.

Also, you can take returning gear to a UPS/FED-X store and have them reinforce the boxing for a reasonable price. We have one of those mail-it-here shipping stores in my neighborhood--it is also a place where you can drop off unwanted cartons/boxes, that terrible plastic pop-corn and they will recycle it.

And, Jeff, I haven't seen ANY new SIABs from NAMM reports--anything new coming along that you know about?

Green Hornet :D
 
Joeybear said:
The part that ticks me off the most is the bad info that the salesperson gave me. It seems like a trend these days, because it's the same deal here in the local music stores.
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I grew up with a salesman, my father, and while a good salesman will sell anything, it does not make him/her a reputable one or a trustworthy one. All the salesperson is interested is in meeting his/her quota and the stores quota for the month.
If you be-friend someone at the store (because you hang out there or whatever) then you may want to start considering the salesperson opinion. When a salesman starts giving you the "you have to get it now, 'cause this sale is ending today", you have to remember how many times you have seen that same item or similar item on sale at that very store or other stores. I'm not saying that every salesman is bad, just that you have to be aware of what a 'salesperson' is suppose to do, which is sell you stuff.
 
I use Sweetwater a lot, because they are local. Their personal service is pretty good. My rep's Brian Conn and he's a good dude, a bass player. Try him.
 
The Green Hornet said:
Make sure you check out gear prices at Full Compass too.
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Hey Green Hornet - Thanks for remind me the name. I was trying to remember last night, what the heck they were called.
 
Hey there, Hornet. You raise good points in this thread. Personally, I've never actually paid any return shipping on these returns; I've refused the shipments right at the time of delivery and then promptly notified the retailer.
I guess the moral here is to be sure of the return policy *before* ordering, including the possibility that it might not arrive as specified.

No, I haven't heard anything from Namm yet, other than what I'm seeing in the recording mags. There's a cheap new Tascam 8-track out there, but there must be something more in the works. I'd say that the biggest new "deal" out rhere in SIABs is related to the discontinuation of Yamaha's poplular 4416. Over at the yamaha 16g forum, folks are seeing them at retailers for as low as $399 (new). Wow. A hell of a 24-bit machine for that price. Locally, I myself recently ran across one at Guitar Center in Ventura, CA, for about $800 (store display unit). I almost bought it in a knee-jerk reaction, but then decided that I'm comfortable at home with my 16G, which is easy to use and fits my tight studio desk space. When I need more, I prefer to hit a local studio anyway. But folks looking for a better SIAB should begin searching the sites and local stores for deals on this great machine. (Is there a new Yamaha 24-bitter on the way? Or has Yammie moved its focus to computer rigs? Change comes so quickly these days, eh?)

Best,

J.
 
zzsounds...bagged

Dracon said:
I was looking at reviews, and zzound reviews are not much better. I'm glad you posted this information (whine or not) it's good to know the good & bad. Next time you may want to try musiciansfriend.com or bhproaudio.com or any other number. My first purchase for equipment on-line was from e-bay and I'm not dissapointed at all.
This guys is the guy I bought from, and although he may not have the best prices, it was easy and I got exactly what he advertised.

http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQfgtpZ1Q...QQsassZ1darb1QQssPageNameZSTRKQ3aMEFSQ3aMESOI
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damn I just ordered a blemished Whafs 8.2a.$259..and ZZsounds said it was in the bag...

..3days later...email saying CANCELED- INVENTORY ZERO.

Called 'em---All they have are $339 Whafs.

hope they don't fhkng charge me and mess that up...
been there done that.

fhkrs. oh well. Maybe better off in the end.
 
I've made most of my purchases on-line and it's generally been a favorable experience; some more favorable than others. I have never received what appeared to be used/repackaged equipment (B-stock) in place of what I thought was supposed to be new, but would not hesitate to send it back if I did. Normally any return is the buyers responsibilty but in the case of receiving used as opposed to new I would think any reputable company would recognize their error and replace the item at their expense.
Whine or not, I think it's good to post on-line purchase experiences, good or bad so that we know the ones to deal with and those to avoid.
 
:D

Yo Dracon: Glad I mentioned Full Compass--it a pretty good place to do business.

Jeff:

Wow! The 4416 getting dumped. It's a difficult box to learn. Lots of musicians have the $$ to buy a SIAB but avoid buying because of the learning curve. Yamaha and others ought to learn that soon.

Boss has two new SIAB out there. The bigger one, 12 tracker, looks pretty cool and has some type of bass and drums built in.

I've been using the 2816, the little brother of the 4416. One thing that I'm just beginning to grasp is the multiple routing this box has. The "Patch" menu is kind of amazing as well as cloudy to understand. But, I mess with it everytime I turn on the box. Can't quite understand why Yamaha built in a quick record menu, [who the hell wants to waste time patching this and that?] and then has another method of arming tracks that is slower?

Someone told me once NOT to use the quick record menu. That's all I use because it is fast and easy. That's what new SIABs ought to be. FAST AND EASY. All this routing stuff ought to be replaced by a push button that clearly defines its purpose.

Ahh, well, lots of good infomation from our collegues in this thread.

Green Hornet :D
 
The Green Hornet said:
:D

Yo Dracon: Glad I mentioned Full Compass--it a pretty good place to do business.
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Yeah! Just wish they list the price instead of the list price and me having to call them M-F 9-5 (while I'm at work) to find out a price.

I haven't tried bhproaudio but they also seem like a good outfit. It's a store out in NY (actual store not some warehouse) and they seem to have decent prices (except the shipping to Washington State on some items is high). Shipping from NY to the east coast or the great lakes should be OK.
 
OH! There is also an outfit out here in Tacoma which sells audio stuff. Except all their warehouse is out in Chicago somewhere. I tried buying from them, but what's the use when the shipping is from Chicago? I'll try to find their website again.

Here is that outfit in Tacoma which ships out of Chicago

http://www.bswusa.com/main.asp
 
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Cat, I'd ask to speak to a supervisor (can make sales folks nervous) and press your case for the Wharfies. As I've gotten a bit older, I have to admit that I seldom accept a switcheroo like that without a major fight.

"You accepted my order for the lower price; now deliver it. If you had an internal screw-up, then you'll need to eat the difference if you want a future customer. I'd hate to have to spread this story far and wide in the forums I visit each day, but I'm a man of principle. And so forth." Get 'em, Cat.

Hornet, I've heard your 2816 is a great box. The Boss SIAB line is an interesting one, isn't it? Reviewers seem to generally like it but nearly always
point out the many limits and non-standard operating procedures. The bottom line for the Boss SIABs seems to be this: an easy-to-use, good quality machine that produces solid recordings--but one whose quirks and limits, usually designed to make the machine simple to use, will frustrate more experienced folks with a basic understanding of traditional recording techniques. I've already read this about the new 16-tracker, in particular, a couple of times recently.

I do like that the Yamaha line, which isn't the easiest to learn initially, operates in a pretty standard way with a surprising degree of flexibility. True, the bells and whistles are few (e.g., no drum/bass machines), but the basic recording chain works rather predictably and well... at least for me.

Thanks for the Full Compass tip. I get their catalgues--and have also been frustrated by the lack of basic pricing--but I'll give them a call before my next purchase. Like us all, I'm always looking for respectable retailers.

Best,

J.
 
Joeybear said:
This past week, I placed my first ever order with Sweetwater, and needless to say, I'm disappointed.

1. Despite my being very clear about what I needed, and what my objectives were, the salesperson gave me erroneous information. As a result of that, my first venture into MIDI and sequencing is off to a less than ideal start.

2. Despite the above, the same salesperson did a helluva good job of e-mailing me to offer me a Sweetwater credit card. :mad:

3. The items themselves both look like repackaged return items. I saw the writing on the wall the moment I pulled the first item out of it's box. And even more than that, I've had to spend a great deal of time getting the items back to their default settings. It's obvious that someone used these items before.

I normally don't post in message boards about a bad buying experience, but considering how much we all pay for audio stuff, it's enough to make anyone want to blow off some steam.

I don't know what Sweetwater's overall reputation is in here, but my first experience with them has been a real disappointment. :(

Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go get some cheese to have with my whine. LOL
Click to expand...
I like "FULL COMPASS". :)
 
DJL said:
I like "FULL COMPASS". :)
Click to expand...

I use both Sweetwater and Full Compass. You'll get better selection on-line, but I still prefer brick and mortar stores for price.
 
DigitalSmigital said:
I use both Sweetwater and Full Compass. You'll get better selection on-line, but I still prefer brick and mortar stores for price.
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There are good things about brick and mortar and bad things. Good they need to maintain a good rep, hence better service or they go out of business fast. Bad, usually it costs more for them to run their business (percentage wise) than a big company with no store front.

Good thing about a store that's on-line (cheaper prices) bad thing is they have millions of customers. If you do a search on reviews you'll hear good things about musiciansfriend and music123? or is it 123music I'm having CRS right now.
 
The best thing ever got out of Sweetwater is the candy they sent along with the $5000 worth of gear I purchased. I find their prices over the top :eek: and the salespeople can't give you no advise without trying to convince you to buy buy buy. :eek: :eek: :eek:

I'm not mentioning any names but one guy there sure thought he knew it all, it was nauseating! Do we have an ICON for nauseating?
 
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