My last ever trip to Guitar Center....

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scottboyher

scottboyher

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I think I have made my last trip to Guitar Center today.. I will never return. Service is terrible. I stood there while the employees talked about their funky town music and what they did lastnight and not a finger was lifted to come over and help. It isn't only them even the manager walked by without even eye contact..

It seems they go out of there way to avoid you if you look like you may have a question.. Even if they do manage to make time in their day for your question they never know what they are talking about..


Thats it.. I only went for a few cords and some guitar strings but that is it.. I will only go to the MOM and POP shops from now on even if it takes a week to order a cord or a string..

Screw GUITAR CENTER!
 
eh, whenever I go and don't want service, they offer to help lol...I always just want to play the 2grand les pauls :D :D but here in NJ they're really freindly and helpfull...where do youlive?
 
Dont feel bad, I had the same experience over the weekend. I went to the largest guitar store that we have here. I usually avoid this place like the plague because of what you are describing, and sure enough they did not dissappoint. They hang around together talking about their bands that are going NOWHERE, or playing some some tired old recycled 80's licks. They SUCK. You ask em a question and they look at you like you are stupid, just because they dont know the answer. Its everywhere you go.
 
I had the EXACT same experience.
I went to try an epiphone dot at GC.
No one even bothered to acknowledge me.

Last week, I went to Sam Ash to check out a fender bass.
One happened to be plugged in. So I picked it up and started playing.
Then some dickhead comes over and practically rips it out of my hands.
Then another guy comes over and plus in HIS bass.
They be to jam. These were employees.

I just do not understand why I'm not wealthy.


Sean
 
Scotty, which one did you go to? The one on The Rock Rd or the one in Crestwood? They are worthless as tits on a bowling ball.
 
Track I went to the one on the Rock Rd.. Never again though...
 
FUNNY HOW THESE THINGS WORK.........

i've never had a bad experience in there.....

i go in, i know what i want, i call in advance to get it at the counter so all i have to do is walk in, ask for the guy i talked to on the phone, he fetches the goods, i pay, i walk out.

easy as pie.

now, if i go in to browse, then all bets are off.

and i completely understand why......

the people they hire to work there are just grunts that basically don't know shit about what they're selling......

most of the time, they're newbies, and you have to start somewhere.

The best way to avoid this mess, is to get on a first name basis with someone there, that you think halfway knows their ass from a hole in the ground.

then, you always call ahead.

i will shop for the best deals on the internet, find the ones that have "no shipping" and lower costs, and guitar center has always matched the price on the same stuff......

most of the time, the mom and pop operations don't have a fraction of the available gear.......
 
scottboyher said:
I think I have made my last trip to Guitar Center today.. I will never return. Service is terrible. I stood there while the employees talked about their funky town music and what they did lastnight and not a finger was lifted to come over and help. It isn't only them even the manager walked by without even eye contact..

It seems they go out of there way to avoid you if you look like you may have a question.. Even if they do manage to make time in their day for your question they never know what they are talking about..


Thats it.. I only went for a few cords and some guitar strings but that is it.. I will only go to the MOM and POP shops from now on even if it takes a week to order a cord or a string..

Screw GUITAR CENTER!
Click to expand...

If you need service, you have to talk the "GC" talk. The proper way to get some service is to :
1. Walk into the "Pro Audio" section.
2. Find the rack of Avalons and such (high-end gear)
3. Start switching everything off and on, flip all the switches and generally play with everything at the same time.

You WILL get some service.

If this procedure fails for some reason, walk around to the back of the rack and start reconfiguring everything. Be creative.

This should do it.
 
acorec, I like the way you think. I'm keeping an eye on you.:D
 
The Guitar Museum

My work bud and I call guitar stores--especially Guitar Center-- "guitar museums." The thing Guitar Center brought to the market was a wide selection and open stock--no signs saying "Don't touch--ask first." The idea is that you can pick up a guitar and try it out without being "helped" by sales people. Like ZoSo58LP says, play the 2 grand Les Pauls. They let you play them, even if the guitar costs twice what your car cost, and your allowance will never ever be big enough for a $2000 guitar. (Bring your own ladder--the pricey vintage guitars are usually on the wall 15 feet up.) So, in a way, the corporate philosophy is to let customers look withoug hassleing them.

On my visits, I've always had someone ask if I needed any help, in stores in California, Connecticut, and Massachusetts. I don't mind if they don't know, unless they pretend that they do. (What's the difference between a $40 tuner and a $80 tuner? The guy behind the counter didn't know. The difference is, it turns out, that $40 gets you EADGBE, and $80 is chomatic over several octaves.)

For what it is, Guitar Center is great.
 
Re: Re: My last ever trip to Guitar Center....

acorec said:
If you need service, you have to talk the "GC" talk. The proper way to get some service is to :
1. Walk into the "Pro Audio" section.
2. Find the rack of Avalons and such (high-end gear)
3. Start switching everything off and on, flip all the switches and generally play with everything at the same time.

You WILL get some service.

If this procedure fails for some reason, walk around to the back of the rack and start reconfiguring everything. Be creative.

This should do it.
Click to expand...



hey i did that with bass amps and the preamp-amp-head thingys.....not sure what they are.......but i did that......and lo they all came over.....and tried to help......i said "nope i like this amp and this thingy, it sounds good, im playing now." and i played..


then they thought i was going to buy all that gear........they arent to bright over there.....





never go in the drums part........they wont even look up at you......unless you mention the fact that you need some sticks for marching, then they will help........eh i guess you just gotta know how to talk to them.






freak
 
No difference in the Netherlands at Feedback (big 3 store chain, comparable to Guitar Center).

Everyone is really busy with themselves being cool and all...:rolleyes:
Problem is, if you DO pick up a $2000 guitar, people start giving you the bad eye, like "watch it, young man, if you scratch that thing, you'll be wiping off public restrooms for the next 5 years or so"...

They have reasonably low prices, but not the lowest. And if I try to haggle, there's always some crap about it being sold for dealer-price or just a plain "no can do".

At my local 'mom & pop' store, I can haggle down to 20% off, and then I'm treading "Cheaper than Feedback"-territory. Because I buy a lot there, I always get good return-prices as well from my older gear, if I return it to buy something new.

But I'm really fed up with those losers in big stores, pretending to be big pimpin' Kid Rock, while knowing jack shit about the stuff they sell and don't treat you - the musician that knows about his stuff and music - with the proper respect that YOU deserve.
 
If I go, it's right after they open, things seem to go better then. This time of year when every retailer is starving I try to support the local music store as much as possible. I've had trouble finding a strat whammy bar online with a 12/24 thread, I went to the local store yesterday and had the pick of the litter for 8 bucks.

Sadly, and John (Aloha music) and Randy (Musician's Outlet) don't know it but I've heard from the guy that owns Pro Light & Sound that GC is coming here with a small store within the year. It'll run them out of business.
 
The best music store experience I have had was in this little independently owned place run by this old guy back home in Australia. He'd had the place for years and tried hard to provide good service which seems to be rare these days. He was really helpful and not the slightest bit condescending despite my lack of knowledge.

I guess the places here in Calgary are okay, except for Axe. That place really blows.
 
The returns girl at my guitar center is so lushious (sp?) I get all tinglely when she ask if she could have a look in my bag? Other than that I just go there for entertainment or thirty dollar banjo picks.
 
the gc in raleigh is good. the manager is friendly and i think it trickles down to the employees (in general). the guy i deal with in the pro sound dept is very cool. i usually don't deal with the guys in the guitar dept. the drum dept staff are super cool. the overall service is better than than i use to get from the local chain that was in that building before them.
 
I hate all music stores. The manager is usually a middle aged hippy loser, and the employees are young egotistic dumbasses. You have to do your research and know what you want and how much it costs in the real world before you go in there.
 
I have found that the older I get, the better they treat me. Why is this? I can only assume it is because I now have the money to buy what I want, just like a lot of people my age. People tend to make more money as they get older and I am guessing that the salespeople at these stores know this.
Another thing, I have realistic expectations when I go into GC. I don't expect the salespeople to know anything about the products. I also expect them to be irritable and condescending because they have to listen to guitarists all week long playing loudly through those crate amps they leave out for you to test the guitars. GC is great if you prepare yourself mentally for what's ahead.
 
i agree about GC in raleigh-i mean, the guys i spoke to there are far from real experts, but the ones i spoke to tried to be very helpful, and then just left me to screw around as long as i wanted. works for me. they all seemed to be happy to be there-musicians who were glad to be hanging out in a building full of nifty musical equipment. how can you go wrong with that?
 
You pretty much need to know what you want before you go into GC. The other day I was in a small store around here called Players. I was trying out a boss pedel they had on sale and when the sales guy heard what I was playing, he walked over with another pedel and said "this is the pedel for you" and he was right. I didn't buy it, I'm going to take mine up there and A/B them both.

You won't get that kind of service at GC. But, if you do know what you're looking for, they'll most likely have it in stock.
 
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