Stupid things you've been told at Guitar Center

[joelpatterson]

Sample my loop, fellas... "Head out to Albany, talk to Chris... head out to Albany, talk to Chris..."

[Jeremy Krull]

Originally Posted by joelpatterson

Sample my loop, fellas... "Head out to Albany, talk to Chris... head out to Albany, talk to Chris..."

....or you could just head up to Boston and talk to PK and never ever have to deal with the peril of conventional GC experiences ever again.

-Jeremy

[ARR1]

Thomas, I think the trade-in procedure varies from location to location. I was at the Forth Worth location a few days ago to buy a used item and was told that they have one guy whose main function was to do quality control on everything that was offered as a trade-in. The Plano location didn't offer any explanation when I returned a broken Small Stone. I asked them why they accepted it as a trade-in and the guy didn't know and just replied "Sorry about that, we'll refund it". Same thing happened with the store in Gwinnet, GA. They were very courteous and helpful, but those things should have never been accepted as trade-ins in the first place. I don't really understand that as they have a good opportunity here to be the go-to place for used stuff as big and widespread as they are. You'd think they would have consistent requirements for accepting trade-ins throughout the entire chain.

The reason I buy used stuff at GC is that there are some really good deals to be had at times and they're often cheaper than places like Daddy's Junky Music or Music Go Round. Their shipping fees are pretty low, too.

[Thomas W. Bethe]

Originally Posted by ARR1

Thomas, I think the trade-in procedure varies from location to location. I was at the Forth Worth location a few days ago to buy a used item and was told that they have one guy whose main function was to do quality control on everything that was offered as a trade-in. The Plano location didn't offer any explanation when I returned a broken Small Stone. I asked them why they accepted it as a trade-in and the guy didn't know and just replied "Sorry about that, we'll refund it". Same thing happened with the store in Gwinnet, GA. They were very courteous and helpful, but those things should have never been accepted as trade-ins in the first place. I don't really understand that as they have a good opportunity here to be the go-to place for used stuff as big and widespread as they are. You'd think they would have consistent requirements for accepting trade-ins throughout the entire chain.

The reason I buy used stuff at GC is that there are some really good deals to be had at times and they're often cheaper than places like Daddy's Junky Music or Music Go Round. Their shipping fees are pretty low, too.

You are probably right and every store has different policies.

I use to get some good deals on used equipment but lately there has not been a whole lot to chose from since they are giving so little for any trade ins. I did get a really nice JBL compressor and a really nice Tascam CD player a while back for very little but both of those were from a GC store across town about 35 miles from here, one that I do not frequent very often.

As long as you have a good salesman and he or she is willing work with you then GC is a good place to shop.

[skyshooter]

Originally Posted by mdoelger

Oh man, I'm happy we don't have those "franchised music stores" here in germany.

Yep cause if they ever get a foothold, the beer will be what they come for next, turning it into watered down swill, like coors light, keystone or some other god awful drink.

[knerd]

(I walk up to the counter with 3x db25 cables and 2x TT to 1/4" and I'm noticably in a hurry)

Pro Audio Genius: In a hurry?

Me: Yeah, I have a client I'm trying to beat back to my studio. I totally forgot I needed these.

Pro Audio Genius: Nice. I have a professional studio also. What the hell are you plugging these into?

Me: My Redco patchbay to an Aurora Lynx16.

Pro Audio Genius: (blank stare)

Me: Pro Tools.

Pro Audio Genius: I have Pro Tools also!

[Kerzwhile]

Originally Posted by the tortoise

Man, some of these are great!

I work part-time in Sound Control which I guess sounds like the British equivalent of Guitar Center (nationwide music instrument/studio equipment chain), just to level out my monthly income.

I must say that my colleagues are made up of pretty much straight-up good guys and gals who really know their stuff. If anyone gets a call or a query that's not within their realm of knowledge they simply pass it on to one of their mates who do. I know that in our store (in the heart of London) we've got a reputation of good, on the ball, friendly salesmen/women and I make it a personal mission to make your average joe's experience of going into a music store one that isn't intimidating or erroneous.

With us though, it's all about the customer horror stories. Honestly, you just wouldn't believe some of the things you hear in an average day. So many people who have absolutely no idea about ANYTHING and are too lazy to do any type of research of their own just come in and want a big red button that makes 'radio readee' music for them and costs under £100.

For instance;
Me at Mac, pissing around in Logic - foreign customer walks up, nodding head..
HIM: So, is this a synthesiser or a keyboard?
ME: Huh?
After much strangled trawling through ignorance..
ME: So you want to make music on your computer?
HIM: Yeah
ME: Do you have a Mac or a PC?
HIM: Huh and the what now?
ME: *sigh*...right, there are basically two types of computers...

or another

PHONE GUY: Do you have the Focusrite Saffire?
ME: Yep, nice unit.
HIM: Does it have what I need to record?
ME: Sure, a number of ins and outs, two headphone outs, MIDI I/O,
HIM: Yeah, what exactly is MIDI?
ME: *sigh*

or another

PHONE GUY: If I buy a copy of Reason from the Mac store, will it work on a PC?

Or the guys who brought back their MBox Pro and Mac Pro, all in their boxes, because the DVD drive wouldn't read the PT CD. I had to spend two hours registering them on the site, downloading all the updates and installing everything for them.

Or the standard;

Typical Customer: I want to build a home studio with the best possible quality equipment so I can make every type of music that's 'radio readee' quickly and easily and I want you to choose every single piece of gear for me from the CPU to the plugins to the mics so I can rent it out and grow rich in a matter of months.
ME: Okay, not impossible and I like a challenge, what's your budget?
THEM: £500
ME: *wipes tear from eye*


Believe me, I could go on and on and on.

I will never be anything but cool to music store employees again (unless of course they are clueless like the guys you're talking about - my standards are now pretty high)


Keep it up! More please.


the tortoise

Um, WOW!! I think we live a Parallel life! That is My Average Day! It Never ends. I am starting to lose complete faith in the Human Race!!
Also, Thats Precisely how we work in My store as far as delegating questions and issues to the qualified person!

[matt thomas]

There is a distinction between keyboards and synths. Typically synths have keyboards built in though. It was more of a commonly used distinction years ago when keyboards just had basic sounds, and synths (with keyboards) had tweak-able sounds.

If someone doesn't know what midi is its fair enough that they ask. If they are after a focusrite saffire I wouldn't expect them to know everything about everything

Its fair enough to ask if software bought in a Mac Shop will work on a PC, sometimes it will (when the software has a cross platform license) sometimes it does not (when it has a platform specific license), so its a perfectly reasonable question.

matt

[pinkerton]

i used to work at guitar center in the houston area about 6 or 7 years ago. anyone in texas or louisiana know if greg labruzzi is still with the company? that guy was seriously a lot of fun to shoot the sh*t with. word of advice to any potential GC employees - do not work in pro audio unless ALL the other guys are clueless, including the dept. manager. you get one or two pro audio guys who know a thing or two running all the business and you cant get your footing, so to speak. if i had to do it over i'd start out in accessories.

anyway about a year or two ago the keyboard department at a neighborhood GC had apparently acquired a micromoog in absolutely horrid condition. a couple keys were misaligned (or just plain broken) and it would produce weird squelches and bloops at normal "synth bass" or lead type settings. VCA was totally unstable dead quiet one minute then ear piercing loud the next. totally broken. the price tag was $1000. yep. a grand for what was essentially scrap for other synths (maybe the audio input still fed into the filter, which didn't sound broken). and they no doubt bought it like that and tried passing it off at a ridiculous price on brand recognition alone, hoping some idiot would pay it.

i told the keyboard/pro audio dudes i'd give them 100 bucks for it. which was incredibly generous. they said i'd have to talk to the manager as he'd brought it in. so i did. and he literally laughed in my face and asked me if i knew who made it. like moog is the apha and omega of synthesis and anything with a moog logo guarantees ^$1000 simply because of the label. it wasn't even really that great of a moog in the first place ... which are already very limited synths. all i could do was shrug it off. i wasn't really all *that* interested in it anyway.

it was gone shortly thereafter. no idea what happened to it. no way anybody bought it. i'm literally the only synthesist i know of in my area outside of your hipster-with-a-microkorg type player. maybe one of the employees in another store bought it at buyin cost and shipped it somewhere. whatever.

[PRobb]

the tortoise- I would bet that if there is a forum for GS employees, the "Stupid things you've been told by customers" thread is just as long, and just as funny, as this one.

[Chrislpp]

Me: I need a heap of different types of patch cables

Him: What colour you looking for or just plain?

--------------------------------------------------

Do you have any SM7's in stock, I need them for a vocalist

Huh? You must mean 57's they are great on vocals


--------------------------------------------------

[Purple]

Originally Posted by Chrislpp

Do you have any SM7's in stock, I need them for a vocalist

Huh? You must mean 57's they are great on vocals

Obviously too much information for him/her. Next time just say (waving exact amount of cash in hand):

S...M...7...b

[_Ludovico]

you guys are all frustrated because you get funny and silly answers and calls from GC employees but some of your posts are just ridiculous. How many zillions of employees to they underpay in these massive selling stores? Do you expect EVERYONE of them to be an expert? Experts do NOT work at GC. Just don't go there for advice, since you know most of them know alot less than you do.

I think for the most part it's your EGO that was affected because for a second someone that does not know alot in the field thought you were a newbie or whatever.

You can't expect to walk in a big chain store and be treated like a world class engineer when nobody knows you.

I've been playing guitar for 15 years and EVERY store I go I talk to salesmen giving me bullshit about crap amplifiers and such. Who cares? I know what I want, i'll just say it and be done with it.

No need to post every conversation you had with a GC employee on Gearslutz and sound like a frustrated lesbian.

Grow up guys.... If you want pro answers to pro gear, call pro stores, not chain stores...

I'll add this, I walked into a GC somewhere near Hallandale in Florida, and walked into a little room that had the most expensive guitars in the store, all locked in glass panels. There was a guy there, sitting on a stool, and he said, "Hi there, if you want to try one, just tell me, feel free to take a look".

Not as dramatic as some of you huh? Some guys are just nice, cool and respectful.

[LoopQuantum]

Originally Posted by _Ludovico

you guys are all frustrated because you get funny and silly answers and calls from GC employees but some of your posts are just ridiculous. How many zillions of employees to they underpay in these massive selling stores? Do you expect EVERYONE of them to be an expert? Experts do NOT work at GC. Just don't go there for advice, since you know most of them know alot less than you do.

I think for the most part it's your EGO that was affected because for a second someone that does not know alot in the field thought you were a newbie or whatever.

You can't expect to walk in a big chain store and be treated like a world class engineer when nobody knows you.

I've been playing guitar for 15 years and EVERY store I go I talk to salesmen giving me bullshit about crap amplifiers and such. Who cares? I know what I want, i'll just say it and be done with it.

No need to post every conversation you had with a GC employee on Gearslutz and sound like a frustrated lesbian.

Grow up guys.... If you want pro answers to pro gear, call pro stores, not chain stores...

I'll add this, I walked into a GC somewhere near Hallandale in Florida, and walked into a little room that had the most expensive guitars in the store, all locked in glass panels. There was a guy there, sitting on a stool, and he said, "Hi there, if you want to try one, just tell me, feel free to take a look".

Not as dramatic as some of you huh? Some guys are just nice, cool and respectful.

But...like....dude....this is Gearslutz man....

You're harshing the cynic buzz!!

[PRobb]

Originally Posted by _Ludovico

you guys are all frustrated because you get funny and silly answers and calls from GC employees but some of your posts are just ridiculous. How many zillions of employees to they underpay in these massive selling stores? Do you expect EVERYONE of them to be an expert? Experts do NOT work at GC. Just don't go there for advice, since you know most of them know alot less than you do.

I believe the saying is "If you pay peanuts, you get monkeys".

[jojamba]

Originally Posted by laser

Was in GC not too long ago to buy a birthday present for my nephew (Bad Monkey). As usual, I gravitated into the "Pro Audio" department.

When I noticed an EL Lil Freq in their rack, I said nicely to the saleskid (conversation below is as close to verbatim as my memory allows):

ME: "I'm happy to see you're getting some good stuff in here."
GC SALESKID: "We've actually carried some top stuff for a while."
ME (a little perplexed): "Really, like what?"
GC SALESKID (pointing at an Avalon 737, defiantly): "Like this Avalon here. Unquestionably, the greatest channel strip on this planet."
ME (even more perplexed): "Geez, I wouldn't even put it in my top five."
GC SALESKID: "Oh, come on!"
ME: "Honest. There are a lot of better channel strips."
GC SALESKID: "Then, name them."
ME (taken back): "Huh?"
GC SALESKID: "If you think there's better, then name them!"
ME: Well, um, shoot, theres the Pendulum Quartet, and the Quartet 2, and the new Fearn. Um, there's the Fairman and the Buzz Audio.....how I'm doing so far?"
GC SALESKID (slowly shaking his head and giving me that "if you were more out of it, you'd be dead" look): "Never heard of them."

Laser

TRUE - they are "better" - you are talking about a different price range though -

for the money even you have to agree it is a good purchase and offers a certain amount of versatility. i have heard you can buy new ones in NY for like $1700 - thats not bad.....what do you think?

[jojamba]

the thing that sucks the most about GC is that they are often pushy and on top of that they dont know what they are talking about because they are not recording every day - i have taken clients to GC intent on buying specific gear and the sales dudes have to start an argument with me just to prove a point......



sucks big time

[Gulliver]

Ok, I forget- since this thread has gotten so long..

WHY is anyone STILL going to GC???????

[ImJohn]

Originally Posted by _Ludovico

you guys are all frustrated because you get funny and silly answers and calls from GC employees but some of your posts are just ridiculous. How many zillions of employees to they underpay in these massive selling stores? Do you expect EVERYONE of them to be an expert? Experts do NOT work at GC. Just don't go there for advice, since you know most of them know alot less than you do.

I think for the most part it's your EGO that was affected because for a second someone that does not know alot in the field thought you were a newbie or whatever.

You can't expect to walk in a big chain store and be treated like a world class engineer when nobody knows you.

I've been playing guitar for 15 years and EVERY store I go I talk to salesmen giving me bullshit about crap amplifiers and such. Who cares? I know what I want, i'll just say it and be done with it.

No need to post every conversation you had with a GC employee on Gearslutz and sound like a frustrated lesbian.

Grow up guys.... If you want pro answers to pro gear, call pro stores, not chain stores...

I'll add this, I walked into a GC somewhere near Hallandale in Florida, and walked into a little room that had the most expensive guitars in the store, all locked in glass panels. There was a guy there, sitting on a stool, and he said, "Hi there, if you want to try one, just tell me, feel free to take a look".

Not as dramatic as some of you huh? Some guys are just nice, cool and respectful.

Probably a majority of people who work at guitar center are cool. But people who do NOT know what they are talking about but THINK they know it all and can't tell when they are wrong and will waste my time when I'm paying for a service really pisses me off! And Guitar Center seems to employ a high ratio of dumb asses!

[WVUtubadude]

Originally Posted by Gulliver

Ok, I forget- since this thread has gotten so long..

WHY is anyone STILL going to GC???????

Sheer convenience. If I need something along the lines of a cheap cable or mic right this minute, I go to the mom and pop store. If I need something in a hurry that is a bit better, I go to Guitar Center. If I need anything more than 5 days away, I go to Sweetwater or B&H....although I am going to give Zen a try with my next order.

[lowfreq33]

If you don't want to be bothered at GC just go into the bass room.

I went to buy a new amp a few weeks ago, cash in hand, and I actually had to go find someone to ring it up for me.

[Torea]

Originally Posted by rolandk

Couple years ago I went to GC looking for an acoustic bass and decided to go with a Tacoma Chief.

Salesdude is ringing it up and after staring blankly at the computer screen for a bit says "Uhh, we sold the hardshell case that your bass comes with and nobody ordered a new one. If you want we can put one on order and loan you a different brand case until yours comes in."

Me: "OK"

He goes and gets the only hardshell case they have in stock but the Chief is physically bigger than your average acoustic bass and is too big for the case.

Dude: "No problem, I'll get a gig bag"

Again, the Chief is too big for the gig bag.

Dude: "This gig bag just needs to stretch a little, thats all" and proceeds to wrestle it in the bag and yank on the zipper with all his might to get it closed.

Me thinking to myself: "This can't be good."

I get home and take the bass out of the gig bag. It now has a deep gash across the front about 4" long from the zipper.

A guy did a similar thing with my guitar back when I was first starting out.

I wanted a whammy bar because I had misplaced my original. I showed him my guitar and the guy went "No prob dude, I got a bunch of em!" He then proceeded to pull out 3 whammy bars, none of which would fit into my guitar. After re-trying all 3, he quickly attempted (and unfortunately succeeded in) mashing the 3rd one into my guitar. After getting it firmly wedged in between my tone and volume knob and way too far into my guitar, he goes "There ya go, I'll even let you have that one for free!" and shoves my guitar back in the case.

When I got home, I took about 30 minutes to remove the bar from my guitar. Luckily there was no damage done, but I never went back to that store for more than strings or window shop for (read: noodle around on) acoustic guitars.

[Neenja]

Originally Posted by Gulliver

Ok, I forget- since this thread has gotten so long..

WHY is anyone STILL going to GC???????

So they can try out the stuff they are going to guy online?

[scottrod]

>> I also use Sweetwater (Brendan Murphy has always been helpful). <<

After a $7k+ purchase of multiple pieces of computer and keyboard gear, Brendan basically brushed me off on follow-up calls where I needed some very simple help, nothing major like installation issues or problems with the gear. Basically told me to call someone else.

After the 3rd time I'd had enough and demanded a different rep. I got hooked up with Paul Rowan there who has been nothing but absolutely helpful every time, whether it's a $10 midi cable or a $3k synth.

Just my experience. I wouldn't work with Brendan again.

[Frisbieinstein]

Originally Posted by narcoman

i've got 28 bass guitars. Some cost and arm and a leg. Some super cheapies. My fave? the £130 epiphone....just works for me !! I have no doubt it's a freak - but this guitar is king!

I can beat that. My main ax cost $89 new. Instant Jaco. I'll never find another one.

It doesn't even have an adjustable truss rod. The neck twisted over time! Fortunately it twisted the "right" way.

[dibravibra]

I asked a guy if they sell native plug-ins for mixing ITB. He looked funny and answered: "No, but we've got ATB". Then he showed me Toft's ATB 16 console..

[joelpatterson]

Originally Posted by dibravibra

... mixing ITB.... "No, but we've got ATB". ..

Or you could go ATF (Alcohol, Tobacco & Firearms) and take you mix to a whole new level.

[Purple]

Originally Posted by dibravibra

I asked a guy if they sell native plug-ins for mixing ITB. He looked funny and answered: "No, but we've got ATB". Then he showed me Toft's ATB 16 console..

Did you by chance actually say I-T-B out loud? As in "native plugins for mixng I-T-B?

Coz (in my opinion) if you did then that would be as silly as saying L-O-L after a joke. He is probably writing in a thread on some GC support group forum called "stupidest jargon staff have heard at Guitar Center".

[Duardo]

Yeah, that does seem a little odd to say the letters "ITB" out loud...plus it's kind of redundant. Why would you need to specify what the native plugins are for?

[S.Filpansick]

Originally Posted by bighp

Did you by chance actually say I-T-B out loud? As in "native plugins for mixng I-T-B?

Coz (in my opinion) if you did then that would be as silly as saying L-O-L after a joke. He is probably writing in a thread on some GC support group forum called "stupidest jargon staff have heard at Guitar Center".

Seriously...

How many syllables is "I-T-B"?

Ok, how about "in the box"?

And really, was that even necessary?
How many native plugins are you aware of for mixing OTB?