Well i think this is the last time i order from Musician's Friend.

[Annaxes]

Nothing like starting the night off with a rant. Over a moth ago i bought a ZM SE using the 20% deal going on, sweet deal for a awesome guitar! said it would ship the 19th of December since there was a small backorder. Cool, no sweat as long as it gets here. after that i call up wondering where my guitar is? They said i would get it in before the year ends.... So i call up for a second time on the 2nd. Well they it's shipping soon call back the 5th. Then they told me to call back the 9th because that was for sure the day its coming. Call again the 9th and they told me to call back that night to make sure it ships. Then they tell me to call Monday so i called today and ask to speak to a manager after explaining the situation. He said he that couldn't talk to one. I was pretty upset so i went to the online chat where the rep kid you not she gave me the ultimatum of speaking to the manager or house credit. Vary displease of the service and i did finally speak to a manager a little bit ago and he wasn't much help guess its time to take business somewhere else.

 

[Blues Trucker]

You know what, thanks for posting. Musicians Friend just lost a prospective customer.

 

[C&M Music - Lafayette]

That is typical of these big box online retailers. On a better note, I see in your other thread on the subject, a mom and pop shop (imagine that) may have what you want ready to go!

 

[Kynlore]

Were you able to get a refund?

I try to stay local when I can. When I can't, I use Amazon. They don't know anything about guitars but I've had very good experience with returns and with any damaged items.

 

[Annaxes]

Were you able to get a refund?

I try to stay local when I can. When I can't, I use Amazon. They don't know anything about guitars but I've had very good experience with returns and with any damaged items.

they want to wait because it should be coming in "any day now"

 

[Kynlore]

Good luck! Hope it makes it to you.

 

[rugerpc]

Your first hint should have been "small backorder."

If the deal is killer, I can be patient. Otherwise, if I really want it soon, a firm delivery date is part of the deal or 'no deal.'

MF owes you a full refund, but stuff like this happens all the time to almost all retailers when it comes to popular items at huge discountes.

Not really a case for the pitchforks and tar.

 

[sergiodeblanc]

 

[Annaxes]

I LOL'd just dying to get that guitar in my hands

 

[solacematt]

They weren't always bad, just this past year things have gone downhill. I think a big part of it has to do with their deal with synchrony. I bought a mic and a phantom power box back in August. The one they sent me turned out to have a factory defect so they told me to just send it back and they would send me a new one. Okay. So they sent me back a very obviously used one that was pretty scratched up. So I sent that back and they never sent me a brand new one. Apparently the mic never made it to them and unfortunately when you use their shipping label you can't get ay type of tracking or confirmation. So I payed for a mic that I don't have :/
The customer service used to be a lot better as well, now they're like comcast and just toss you from person to person.

 

[MichaelC24]

I have experienced a very similar situation with musicians friend. I ordered a Gary grainger bass last July, and after 2 weeks of waiting for them just to "approve" my card, I finally got fed up and canceled my order and ended up purchasing a 25th sas and a Hughes and kettner grandmeister. I called nearly everyday asking for updates, and I was treated very poorly as if I was inconveniencing them. Finally after 2 weeks, I spoke with a manager and he pretty much said if I didn't like it, I could cancel. So I did...also, for Christmas I ordered a set of studio monitors, and when the 10% discount that was not showing up in my cart, I called. The guy I spoke with gave me an attitude, and told me not to be mad about the 10% discount that didn't apply to that specific set of monitors, and that he spent way more money than me on a better set of speakers, and I should not be cheap and do the same.. I was shocked that he said that.. and will
Never shop their again

 

[Jmartin]

I'm not defending MF, but I've always received exceptional customer service from them, especially in the Private Reserve department. I hope your experiences are not a sign of things to come.

 

[Drew]

I hate threads like this because it flames retailers for no good reason. Any time you order something that isn't currently in stock, you take your chances. Simple as that. MF can't control when the guitar is going to arrive. What they are telling you as far as dates go is more than likely what someone is telling them. There is a known issue with the ZM bridge which is delaying orders. I've bought more than one guitar from MF over the years and everything has always been a smooth transaction.

 

[wardog]

There is a known issue with the ZM bridge which is delaying orders..

What is this issue, I am unaware of an issue with my bridge.

 

[rugerpc]

Also curious about this known problem...

 

[drdoom8793]

I hate threads like this because it flames retailers for no good reason. Any time you order something that isn't currently in stock, you take your chances. Simple as that. MF can't control when the guitar is going to arrive. What they are telling you as far as dates go is more than likely what someone is telling them. There is a known issue with the ZM bridge which is delaying orders. I've bought more than one guitar from MF over the years and everything has always been a smooth transaction.

But that's still bad Customer Service. If they don't know when they're getting them, they need to be willing to admit it. It's one thing to say "This guitar is backordered. We're expecting more on X and as soon as we get more, we'll be able to ship yours." Don't make statements like "It's definitely going to ship on X" if you clearly don't know. When you start making statements that something will "definitely" happen, that's when you start digging yourself a hole, especially when it comes to product availability. It's just bad business and make you/your employees look like they don't know what they're talking about and can't be trusted.

 

[andy474x]

I'm not going to burn MF any more than they already have been. Aside from saying, I think a lot of people, especially young people, start out wanting or needing that great deal that the big retailers can offer. But they will eventually have a frustrating experience, and learn that paying a little more to buy from a dependable shop is worth the few extra dollars. Maybe you can only afford that first SE when it's on Black Friday sale at MF. But then it arrives damaged, or is back ordered, and what's the value of that savings to you now? Did you expect to save $200, but end up wasting $400 instead?

You just don't see the veterans here ranting about their great service at those big stores, because at some point a big retailer probably screwed them. I know I tried to give multiple locations of a certain retailer a chance, and they all screwed me eventually. There are good people at the big stores, but there are plenty of others that just want to be lazy and get a paycheck, and the few good apples can't keep you from them all the time!

Ranting aside, sorry for the bad experience.

 

[CoreyT]

This is why I deal with the same mom & pop shop since 2012.
Have bought eight PRS through him now, and the cool part is the shop is by my work, and only 12.5 miles from my home.

 

[László]

There are so many reputable, knowledgeable dealers who advertise here on the Forum, I don't understand why ANYONE would order a guitar from MF, who are owned by GC.

Big Box stores are fine for appliances. That's it. They suck at being guitar dealers.

Why would anyone want to deal with them in the first place? Call a guy like Jack Gretz, you get personal, individual service, and on top of that, he has a close relationship with PRS and Paul Smith specifically. I just don't understand why anyone would go anywhere other than one of the top notch dealers who posts here.

 

[andy474x]

This is why I deal with the same mom & pop shop since 2012.
Have bought eight PRS through him now, and the dangerous part is the shop is by my work, and only 12.5 miles from my home.

Fixed.