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Unprofessionalism at Sam Ash astounded me.

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(@joehempel)
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I had to return my Yamaha FG-1 Jr today due to the fact that it just hurt me to play for an extended ammount of time, so I went to pick up another travel guitar....the Ltd. Edition Epiphone Expedition. Great guitar with Solid spruce top mahogeny back and sides, rosewood fingerboard. Seems that guitar is sold to limited number of dealers and isn't even listen on their website (this came from Epiphone cust. support)

I digress, anyway, I'm working with the sales guy (let's call him John) I always deal with him or the guitar sales manager, and another sales guy comes up and says that I dealt with him when I bought the Yamaha. I distincly remember dealing with John when I bought it, however this other guys name is on the receipt (he did at one point hand me an $800 travel guitar when I was playing them and say this blows them out of the water, you need to buy this one...yeah right.)

When I told him that I dealt with John he said no, I didn't. Even John remember dealing with me and said so. Well the other guy said "I don't know how you could mistake us, we look nothing alike!" at that point I just said, you know what, I'm going to just go ahead and leave, I'm not getting in the middle of your sales disputes. I few minutes later I came back and bought the guitar from John. Wow. I think I'm done for a while there.

In Space, no one can hear me sing!

 
Posted : 05/09/2009 4:49 am
 KR2
(@kr2)
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Well, on the one hand, it must be nice to have sales people fighting over you for a customer.
On the other hand it, it sounded like they were getting ready to each grab you by the arm and pull you apart . . . and that would have been . . . awkward.
Good thing you left when you did.
I have a question about the guitars.
What was it about the guitar that was hurting your hand?
And how is the new one you're getting different?

It's the rock that gives the stream its music . . . and the stream that gives the rock its roll.

 
Posted : 05/09/2009 7:01 am
(@joehempel)
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Yeah it as kind of cool until the guy stared being a bit snide about not being able to tell the difference between them.

The guitars frets just were too close together I think. It took alot of work to keep them so close together and the strain in my wrist from the small size was just killing me. Oh, and the tuners are terrible...terrible....terrible.

The Epiphone Expedition is a bit larger, it's true 3/4 scale, the Yamaha was like 3/4 mini scale or something. The frets are a bit farther apart, and the action is just phenominal.

I just switched out the strings for some Martins to try and find a bit mellower tone, but it just feels great!

In Space, no one can hear me sing!

 
Posted : 05/09/2009 7:07 am
 KR2
(@kr2)
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Hmmm . . .
I have a close friend that lives in Cincinnati . . . retired coach type guy . . . and I might be visiting him later this year.
And I'm thinking about buying my first acoustic.
Maybe you could take me to this place and have those guys fight over me.
I think I could deal with that type of service.

It's the rock that gives the stream its music . . . and the stream that gives the rock its roll.

 
Posted : 05/09/2009 7:17 am
(@joehempel)
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I would be hornored. Let me know when you come on up!

There's a Sam Ash Music and Guitar Center in the same shopping plaza LOL.

In Space, no one can hear me sing!

 
Posted : 05/09/2009 7:34 am
(@trguitar)
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I hate pushy sales people.

"Work hard, rock hard, eat hard, sleep hard,
grow big, wear glasses if you need 'em."
-- The Webb Wilder Credo --

 
Posted : 05/09/2009 8:15 am
(@joehempel)
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I hate pushy sales people.
And they weren't even pushy about selling something...it was already sold :lol:

In Space, no one can hear me sing!

 
Posted : 05/09/2009 10:36 am
 Bish
(@bish)
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Sounded like Non-John wasn't having that great of a day.

Probably just had a big return in the last hour. :roll:

Bish

"I play live as playing dead is harder than it sounds!"

 
Posted : 05/09/2009 4:42 pm
(@twistedlefty)
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At the MusiciansFriend here there are ususally around 5 or more customers to a sales person,
sometimes you end up waiting quite a while.
being rude isn't very smart tho, i would have just said "yea, if you don't mind i would prefer John"

#4491....

 
Posted : 05/09/2009 5:03 pm
(@urbancowgirl)
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Joe,
I live in Cinci as well and I hate Sam Ash. I bought a new guitar from them and I swear it is actually a used one. After I got it home I saw that it had wear marks on the back and on the fretboard. They said it wasn't used, that it must have just been played a lot in the store. Um...ok. Wouldn't that still make it used then? Also, when they set it up they set the action so low that the bottom strings buzz like crazy. What a rip off. I will never shop there again.

All my life I wanted to be somebody. Now I see I should have been more specific.

 
Posted : 06/09/2009 12:49 am
(@joehempel)
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I live in Cinci as well and I hate Sam Ash.

Really? Where about? I'm in the Blue Ash area.

As far as the used guitar situation, I know what you mean. That's why if I buy a guitar and they don't have another one, I take the one home and make them order me a new one. I know for a fact they sell used equipment as new, I returned a guitar a while back because it sounded like a toy at the higher frets, and then saw it on the shelf marked as new, a couple dings and all. But I think that's just the nature of retail.

The guitar are not setup at all, they are just tuned out of the box. They want you to buy the set up plan...and that's the best deal you can find. $20-50 depending on the price of the guitar for 8 setups in 2 years. Yeah I buy it with all the guitars.

When I bought my traveler the other day, the sales guy went to the back and got a new one and said here you go, I know you don't like to buy off the rack. I didn't even have to ask this time. That's why I like dealing with that one particular sales guy.

In Space, no one can hear me sing!

 
Posted : 06/09/2009 1:40 am
(@urbancowgirl)
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I live near Milford but I worked in Blue Ash for nearly 13 years. :)

Yeah, I paid for the "set up". The thing played better before I took it in to have it set up. :| Ah well, live and learn. Hopefully the pushy guy will be gone soon if he keeps doing that to people.
Smart move to take one and make them order a new one. Might have to try that with any future purchases.

On a side note, I bought my Telecaster from Guitarcenter in Forest Fair and they were great. Fresh out of the box, they set it up, no problems at all.

All my life I wanted to be somebody. Now I see I should have been more specific.

 
Posted : 06/09/2009 4:19 am
(@rparker)
Posts: 5480
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There must be something about that organization or simply a coincidence, but our local Sam Ash is somewhat like that as well. I had someone give me crap about a return once, but it was short lived as the young feller saw the steam start to come out.

My favorite story is when I wanted to try out a guitar and asked for a cable. The guy walks around the counter with cable in hand instead of handing it to me and starts to set me up on some $1,200 Fender amp. I told him I wanted to try it out on an amp like mine (which they rarely ever have, but did that day) to see what it would sound like. He proceeds to argue with me that this guitar really shines on the $1,200 amp and that's the proper way to see if you like it or not. I wasn't rude with what I said, but I did win the little spat. :D

Where they blow the Guitar Center across the street out of the water is that they put new strings, check and adjust set-up before putting it on the wall. They've got a little card they string on it with who, when and what strings including guage. I've even seen them do it. The GC display was a rather impressive one armed motion from the box to the hanger. That, and the strings and plectrums at SA are where you can get to them to peruse and read packaging, etc. Oh, and store music volume is such that you can play something and hear what it sounds like.

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

 
Posted : 06/09/2009 7:59 pm
(@joehempel)
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Yeah, I paid for the "set up". The thing played better before I took it in to have it set up. :| Ah well, live and learn. Hopefully the pushy guy will be gone soon if he keeps doing that to people.

That's odd. Doug Frye is a great tech if that's who set it up (he's not an employee of Sam Ash but works in the back.) I watched him do complete restorations that look phenominal. That and he will show you how to do things free of charge for the most part if you ask him. He loves to talk LOL. I've got to go there Saturday to pick up my Classical guitar. I got it setup and hope that it will be even better than before. It generally is after he touches it.

As far as Guitar Center, I guess there are good and bad about every big box store.

In Space, no one can hear me sing!

 
Posted : 07/09/2009 2:20 am
(@urbancowgirl)
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It was a few years ago, so I have no idea who did it. Definitely not better afterwards, though. I plan to have it fixed once I have some spare cash.

All my life I wanted to be somebody. Now I see I should have been more specific.

 
Posted : 08/09/2009 5:14 pm
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