I've had a Gibson SG for about 4.5 years now and it's been my only guitar. I bought a Epi G-400 deluxe that goes for about $430 or so. I got a good deal with it from a music shop out in the suburbs of Indy, IN for $318 including shipping.
I was so excited to get such a good price on an instrument that was new (although listed as used per Epi's terms with the dealer). I got the thing and it had so many defects. All the fret wires looked like someone chopped the binding ends (had no binding) with a dull pliers resulting in nastiness. I found a chip around the 13th fret E string by the binding. The neck joint looked ugly. Oh man, there are many more things but we'll leave it like that.
In the ad on Ebay it said I could return it if I emailed w/in 12 hours which was on the weekend. Emailed the dealer and no response. Emailed two more times and nothing. I called and found out when the owner would be in. Talked to him and he said I could not return it. I offered to send it back shipping my cost and give him whatever profit margin he had on it and he refused.
Here is the name of the music store:
Guitar City
owner Kimble Gagos
1609 Cottage ave.
Columbus, In. 47201
(812) store 378-3008
(812) fax 378-3330
You must understand, he's the largest Midwest dealer for Epi/Gibson so I'm really pissed. Anyway, after he said he wouldn't take it back, I detuned the guitar (as I had bought it to detune it to Eb for flat songs). Did that and since the guitar has still sounded terrible (besides cosmetic problems). I figured I'd have to try it out since I seemed to have no recourse.
So I'd play my Gibson on songs the switch to that rotten Epi for 2 detuned songs. The P/Us are not even close to the Gibson (less volume and muddy). Traditionally, the neck on SG's are heavy and drop to the ground. I've mastered that problem on my Gibson but the Epi must have double the weight in the neck and that totally changes how I play.
I've played that thing a few times for 2 songs and I'm quite disgusted. And the Deluxe is suposed to be better than the others! On the surface it's a really sexy looking guitar but on the inside it can't put out the sound and feels uncomfortable. So I could kick myself for thinking I could buy this instead of the 1K Gibson. I figured I'd only use this for a few songs per show so why spend huge cash.
So mine may be a lemon and others may be better. Further, my best friend bought a $200+ Epi LP starter pack and his guitar actually sounded/played decent. Another reason I thought I couldn't lose. Okay, sorry for the rant. Anyway, now I have to put this on Ebay and list all its faults and lose at least $100. :evil:
"Nothing...can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts."
Wow, sounds like a really sorry situation for you.
I hope you don't take too big a loss on it. :?
Bish
"I play live as playing dead is harder than it sounds!"
Hi Dennis,
Such things keep happening with all of us. There are unscrupulous idiot people out there who just want to rob others for money. They have nothing to do with music, whatever.
You just had a deal with that kind of a person. I have read some reviews on the internet, where people were not satisfied with there 2200 $ Gibson guitar and they couldn't return it either.
Hope you get more lucky next time. (A Hint : Buy from a recognized online store like MF or simply visit your local music shop).
Good Luck.
At the very least, you should report them to Ebay with the ad # and try to get them delisted for not honoring the terms of their ad. Also if you paid with Paypal you may have recourse.
"Everybody got to elevate from the norm."
The P/Us are not even close to the Gibson (less volume and muddy).
I bought one on sale last year when my favorite music store went out of business. I'm fine with it, but even when I bought it I knew that I was going to replace the P/Us. It's at the shop right now getting a couple SDs installed.
Sorry to hear you got a raw deal. That's one of the dangers of used or eBay I guess.
Roy
"I wonder if a composer ever intentionally composed a piece that was physically impossible to play and stuck it away to be found years later after his death, knowing it would forever drive perfectionist musicians crazy." - George Carlin
At the very least, you should report them to Ebay with the ad # and try to get them delisted for not honoring the terms of their ad. Also if you paid with Paypal you may have recourse.
I'd also report it to the BBB! (better biz bureau).
Then I'd fill up Craig's List and Trash and Thrash on the jerk! (instruments and Rants/Raves section.)
Research is what I'm doing when I don't know what I'm doing. - Wernher Von Braun (1912-1977)
I never bought anything (absolutely nothing, believe it or not) on eBay, so please pardon my probable ignorance, but...don't you have any recourse if the seller said it was returnable? That totally sucks! It seems that even if they didn't answer your emails, you could prove that you tried to return it within the specified time.
Good luck, corbind, and I hope you get something good out of this mess. I would try fighting it if I were you (but then I've never had experience with eBay). Anyway, I hope things look up for you soon! :D
Love and Peace or Else,
CC
Ouch. That sounds like one lousy experience all round. :(
In theory you should be able to get some redress, but sometimes the cost and effort of following it all through is more than the return you get. As others have already said above, I guess that why I've never bought anything from E-bay, or any on-line store. Especially with musical instruments, I'll only buy one that I've inspected and and played.
I have two Epi SG400s that I'm very happy with (one made in Korea and one in China), and the build between the two is noticeably different. However, they're both still well made for the price and I found no flaws on either. In the past I bought a couple of guitars that turned out to have minor problems, and I've also read bad stories about individual instruments from just about every maker and every country of origin, including expensive US made models. So I'm now pretty fussy about checking them out before I'll hand over any cash.
As for the Epi SG sound, that's exactly what I expected - because I played them before I bought them. Also, the match-up between guitar, amp and player can make a big difference to the sound outcome. My Epis sound great through the type of amp I'm using and seem to suit my style. One of the great benefits of buying from my local stores is that I can try out the guitars with a variety of amps and find the best match for my style. I made the mistake when I bought my very first electric (a Yamaha 'Strat') of getting the store guy to demo it for me. It sounded great. But in my hands, and through my amp, it sounded nothing like it had in the shop!! :roll: It's still a reasonable guitar, but it still doesn't really suit my style, or my amps - even though I can now play reasonably well.
I guess I didn't really expect an Epi to sound just like a Gibson, at a fraction of the price. But like rparker I figured that if I later wanted to get closer to that sound a pickup swap would be simple enough, and should provide an intermediate solution at a reasonable cost.
Hope you can salvage something from it all. That must feel really sour right now.
Cheers,
Chris
Although I once bought a guitar off Nick (well if you can't trust Nick, who can you trust!) I'd never buy anything on-line - I'd want to see and play a guitar before I forked out cash for it.
It's a sad state of affairs when a guitarist can rip off another guitarist like that - I hope you manage to get something out of this, Dennis, you must have some legal recourse.....the guitar was totally mis-represented to you, so therefore the contract you entered into with the seller should be null and void.
:evil: :evil: :evil:
Vic
"Sometimes the beauty of music can help us all find strength to deal with all the curves life can throw us." (D. Hodge.)
Yea, I would have loved to simply repackage it and send it. I literally packaged it back up 2 hours after I got it and inspected it. When I finally got a hold of him I was refused. So now I'll have to sell it on Ebay and let a buyer beware of all the faults I find. Certainly there is a buyer out there for it at a much reduced cost. Oddly, I thought about just mounting it on my wall as decoration. Yet that passed thinking about the sound it has made, LOL. :shock:
"Nothing...can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts."
Just Curious, what was his reason for not allowing you to return it?
Roy
"I wonder if a composer ever intentionally composed a piece that was physically impossible to play and stuck it away to be found years later after his death, knowing it would forever drive perfectionist musicians crazy." - George Carlin
Would it it be poor form to post his e-mail addresse.
Maybe a few e-mails with a link to this post, would at least show him that poor customer service is not appreciated nor unnoticed. If he is a large Gibson dealer maybe a note sent there way would help.
Very sorry to hear of your misfortune.
I've ordered one guitar online, the first I recieved had a ding it, but a replacement was sent and at my house within three days at the sellers expense this was Sweetwater.com I would recommnd them good service!
David
Just a thought, Dennis, but why sell the guitar at a loss when you could possibly modify it and end up with a better guitar for not much more outlay? I was looking at the Squier 51 mods thread last night - look at the jobs Greg and Mitch did! Maybe with a bit of work it'll be worth more than you paid for it!
I like Dqar's suggestion, but then I'm plain EVIL when I've been ripped off.....
You must understand, he's the largest Midwest dealer for Epi/Gibson....
He won't be for long if this is how he treats his customers!
:D :D :D
Vic
"Sometimes the beauty of music can help us all find strength to deal with all the curves life can throw us." (D. Hodge.)
Sorry to hear that. I'm always fearful of going through that scenario when purchasing online. Hope you work something out.
Teamwork- A few harmless flakes working together can unleash an avalanche of destruction.
He pretty much said he didn't think I was due a refund. I just checked the ad again and am more mad:
"Condition : Lightly Used, original box and paper work included , No tarnish, New Strings, Perfect neck, Perfect frets, factory second but can not find the cosmetic imperfection they are speaking of. This baby is clean !! Fast and low action with no string buzz"
Perfect frets? They are jagged and not even sanded at the ends! The binding from the 3rd-13th fret on the "eye" side is messed up.
His refund policy in the Ebay ad:
"Item must be refunded within 3 days. Refund will be given as money back.
You may return for a full refund including shipping refund if the item is different than stated. To return , we must be notified within 12 hours of delivery of the item , and must receive it back in identical condition...Shipping damages will be handled by the buyer. If a replacement is available one will be sent. If no replacement is available a refund will be issued.......Thank you Guitar City"
Here's the kicker! Here's what he said 4 days before I even bid on it when you send questions to the seller. And this got posted in the ad as well as my other 3 questions for all buyers to see:
Is that a picture of the actual guitar you are selling or a stock picture you use each time you list one of these SGs? Jun-27-07
"A: they look identical..same pics though.If you are not happy or feel it was a mislead auction you can have a full refund including freight..I am the owner of guitar city and stand behind our sales..Thanks !! "
:evil:
"Nothing...can take the place of persistence. Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent. Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb. Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts."
