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Post subject: Fender QC - Seeking answers
Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2016 9:35 am
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Not trying to rage here, but I wanted some perspective on this, maybe others have had similar luck, but it seems like I'm about the bottom of the barrel on this one and I'm becoming really frustrated at this point. I've literally never bought anything significant from Fender that I haven't had to replace immediately upon opening it. I sincerely hope that this is just me, but that kind of thing is all over gear page and their forums in the past 5-6 years.

I bought a brand new Eric Clapton Signature Stratocaster a few months back, and the head stock had a huge crack in it and literally was missing the Stratocaster logo, I kid you not. Then, last night, I bought a new Fender Twin Reverb, and it was broken out of the box as well. Was extremely quiet on both channels, and was actually absolutely silent at 10. I bought both of these at Guitar Center.

I understand that taking it out of the box before you leave is a good option, but that wasn't available to me in these scenarios for multiple reasons, and that is a huge hassle for something like a Twin Reverb. That is not something a customer should have to do imo with something that's worth $1,500. I can't think of a single industry other than instruments where that is the case. I don't take a video card out of the box and try it out for fear of it not working right, and they're far more complex to design and produce. If products are truly checked from the factory, this kind of thing should never happen.

I love the sound of Strats and a Twin, but if this is the case, I don't think I'll ever buy from Fender again, period. Has anyone had a similar experience or knows of a way that I can get in touch with someone who actually cares about these kinds of things at Fender who is a native English speaker? I'm at 100% failure rate at this point with their products.


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Post subject: Re: Fender QC - Seeking answers
Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2016 10:47 am
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Foobucket wrote:
I understand that taking it out of the box before you leave is a good option, but that wasn't available to me in these scenarios for multiple reasons, and that is a huge hassle for something like a Twin Reverb.


Jesus Christ, would you buy a brand-new $45K luxo-touring SUV without first driving it???

FMIC certainly has its share of self-inflicted problems but you stepped in this steaming pile all by yourself.

If you cannot take the time to ascertain that a product performs as advertised, you're as lackadaisical and careless as the company that built it.

:roll:

Arjay

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Post subject: Re: Fender QC - Seeking answers
Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2016 11:19 am
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Hey man, cmon', no need to be rude about it...Do you feel vindicated in your reply or something, did you gain anything from it, why would you do that dude? I was seeking help, advice, information, etc.

I don't think it's unreasonable to expect a $1.5k item to work out of the box, do you? Certainly, Fender's shareholders don't. I guess we view the issue differently. And no, I wouldn't buy a new $45k SUV without driving it, but generally cars don't come in boxes Arjay, you drive them home, and yes, I would absolutely expect a car to go through QC properly, just as anything else, like the amp and guitar.

Please, don't compare a $45k car to a $1.5k amp or guitar that are literally 3% of the price. That's a fairly ludicrous comparison, not even the principle applies.

If you have any positive comments, I'd love to hear them so I can try to better process the situation, if not, please don't comment further, it's just a forum, no need to belittle others. All the best, man.


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Post subject: Re: Fender QC - Seeking answers
Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2016 3:07 pm
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Personally I buy off the internet from reputable dealers who return ship anything defective, one reason is because Sweetwater ships free and no sales tax so I save money.

Now to answer your question, I would never buy anything out of a store that I did not try out in the store. Or at least have the sales staff demo the exact one that I am buying while I tweak the knobs on a amp while it is being played.

I have had a lot of Fender amps, and I have never had a defective one yet. So I would guess it was damaged in shipping. Return the twin immediately for a replacement which I would insist they demo on the floor before taking it out of the door. The shipping companies are not gentle with heavy items so I would assume it is the shipper to the GC store that is to blame on both the strat and the twin. If you return it to GC for a refund, try Sweetwater, they are excellent in customer service. And they return ship anything defective on their dime. I have never been in a GC store that I liked......

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Post subject: Re: Fender QC - Seeking answers
Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2016 3:35 pm
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This is the age of internet buying. Trying something out in the store is the selection process, to see if that’s the one. Then go home, think about it, order it online. People don’t always have the in-stock store option. Anyway, I like to get things new in the box. Not some floor demo model. I’ve had good luck except the last order:

I bought new a ML Deville, (it’s one heavy amp). Upon arrival I unpacked it. Well packed, so I assumed it was not a return. Decided to look in the back, to check for loose tubes. With my inspection light, I noticed one speaker lead (wire) was not connected. Hanging in the air. The wire and speaker connection was tinned with solder, just no or a bad solder connection. Ironic, that’s one of the features of this amp was soldered speaker connections per Michael Landau. The Amp is too heavy to return. I wouldn’t make something like that up. An example of poor soldering plus shipping issues. The box is good shape, but I think shipping takes a toll. Some amps are heavy.


Last edited by jackhammer on Mon Aug 29, 2016 4:00 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Post subject: Re: Fender QC - Seeking answers
Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2016 3:44 pm
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Deficient factory Quality Control before packaging is entirely different than possible shock or other shipping damage. Neither should create a burden on the purchaser!

Dealing with Guitar Center, Sweetwater and other reputable dealers that provide Customer Satisfaction assurances with return shipping and liberal return duration privileges is a benefit!

I bought a factory sealed New In Box Fender Mustang IV v2 from a local Guitar Center on a late Sunday Winter afternoon. The carton showed no signs of damage nor wear. It had the original large brass staples and factory clear tape. The exterior of the carton showed Muatang IV v2. I had demoed plenty of these amps and already bought a Mustang III v2 a few weeks prior. I did not open the carton until I got home. When I did, there was no wiring, cables, nor 4 btn footswitch unit packed in the top cardboard section. Moreover, when I removed and uncovered the amp from the transluscent plastic wrapping, it immediately became evident that the unit was an original Mustang IV with carbon fiber like textured vinyl, older font on the control plate! It was not a v2 model. Additionally, the rear of the chassis had no serial number printed nor stickered on the amp and there was no adhesive residue!? I immediately returned it to the store and they had a new unit shipped out immediately. When that arrived at the store, I did open it to be sure it was 100% ok. The Fender factory had apparently boxed an older trsde show or demo or in house v1 Mustang IV amp in a V2 box and it got shipped to Guitar Center's distribution channel.

When I subsequently bought the matching EXP-1 expression and volume pedal, and it had a noticably dim green led as compared to those on the 4btn fsw, Fender TSL in Arizona promply handled it ans sent me another they personally tested to confirm it was fully operational before shipping it out. The entire turn around was within a week.

I bought an Epi Sheraton-II Pro from Sweetwater. When it arrived the Neck Pickup was DOA in all switch selector and Pot positions!? There was no evidence of any damage to the double boxed cartons by FedEx nor to the guitar. Sweetwater asserts their multi-point pre shipping Quality Control is exceptional. Well the guitar I received arrived ddin't work. Either it slipped past their QC, or it failed due to shock during shipment. Either way, they took care of return shipping and expedited shipping of a new guitar when inventory came in. They were terrific!

Stuff happens....

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Post subject: Re: Fender QC - Seeking answers
Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2016 4:29 pm
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Two years ago, I bought online a brand new Twin Reverb and American Standard Strat with the expectation of quality that I remembered from my long ago departed 60's Strat and Super Reverb.

They both arrived well packed from the dealer/factory. The Strat was as perfect as anything I had ever seen or played. This was great. The Twin Reverb was not so great. It sounded wonderful with the new Strat, but had a noticeable hiss, even when nothing was plugged in and everything turned to zero. I lamented about this for a couple of months. It was usable, but this was just no good and I couldn't reconcile myself to it. Fortunately, with the help of the forum, the culprit was only a bad preamp tube. I replaced it and all has been well.

I read these forums for information and I read about the myriad of problems people are having with new Fender equipment. One poster tried 4 Deluxe Reverbs before he finally got a good one. I wonder if what we read about are just the 1% problems and the other 99% are great. I can't blame it on shipping alone because everything has to be shipped sooner or later. This has been my experience and as of this moment, I have been very happy with my Fender products (knock on wood). However, I have to wonder if I'll ever do this again. :?


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Post subject: Re: Fender QC - Seeking answers
Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2016 4:34 pm
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Sure, 100% fail rate.
Unfortunately, only two data points.
I'd blame GC before Fender. In case no one has noticed, they (and everyone else), now has a 30-45 day, no-questions-asked returns policy. That "brand new" item you paid full price for may actually be a return.

The moral of the story being: *always* insist on a factory-sealed carton.

Open it up and test it at the store, because, yes, it's entirely possible to seal it up so it looks brand new from the factory.

Finally, I'm sorry, but yes, you can blame a great deal on shipping damage.

Everything gets dropped. Everything.

Stuff falls off unattended conveyor belts, sometimes from a height of four feet. Tubes often don't survive, because they are basically light bulbs, i.e., a vacuum inside a glass bottle. Glass. Bottle.


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Post subject: Re: Fender QC - Seeking answers
Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2016 6:00 pm
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Foobucket wrote:
Has anyone had a similar experience or knows of a way that I can get in touch with someone who actually cares about these kinds of things at Fender who is a native English speaker? I'm at 100% failure rate at this point with their products.


Lo siento pero no hablo ingles. :shock:

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Post subject: Re: Fender QC - Seeking answers
Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2016 6:30 pm
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¡Que lástima, viejo!

:wink:

Arjay

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Post subject: Re: Fender QC - Seeking answers
Posted: Mon Aug 29, 2016 9:52 pm
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8) :D

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Post subject: Re: Fender QC - Seeking answers
Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2016 6:26 am
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Common Sense
Lesson One

There is absolutely nothing reasonable or normal about buying something sight unseen and then complaining when it doesn't meet your expectations.
There is only one way to ensure a product meets your expectations.
Examine it thoroughly before you buy it.

End of Lesson One.
No questions will be taken at this time.


Common Sense
Lesson Two

Mass production is no guarantee of of product consistency.
There can and will be differences from one item to the next.
Please go back and review Lesson One.
Repeat as necessary.

End of Lesson Two
No questions will be taken at this time.

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Post subject: Re: Fender QC - Seeking answers
Posted: Tue Aug 30, 2016 10:01 am
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"Taking it out of the box is one option" Are kidding me? You have a problem with your local Guitar Center NOT Fender. My local GC would never sell me a guitar or amp and not unbox it right in front of me! You got poor customer service from GC.

Shipping can do LOTS of things to an amp even under the best conditions, but I could almost understand not unboxing it if the shipping carton looked near perfect and you were in a hurry (For a dang good reason), but a guitar? WTF? It could be the wrong color, finish could have cracked due to cold weather during shipment, any myriad of things could be wrong and maybe none of it due to Fenders QC.

I got to agree with most here, you, GC, and probably the shipping company are at fault and venting here won't solve your issue. Take the amp back and this time do it when you have time to have them take it out of the box, play it, and then have them repack it back into the box for the trip home. Odds are HIGHLY in your favor you won't have the same issue again.

T2

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Post subject: Re: Fender QC - Seeking answers
Posted: Wed Aug 31, 2016 10:38 pm
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Yep, definitely a problem at GC, not Fender. And frankly, it sounds as if both items discussed here were damaged in shipping. UPS definitely sucksass, and IME, are the cause of the majority of problems with any gear shipped.

So, you skipped shipping, and skipped GC not inspecting before sold, and lept right to the assumption that Fender ships broken items. I don't think so!

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Post subject: Re: Fender QC - Seeking answers
Posted: Thu Sep 01, 2016 1:22 pm
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Retroverbial wrote:
Jesus Christ, would you buy a brand-new $45K luxo-touring SUV without first driving it???


I did exactly that, $50k cash, delivered to the door.
I could try similar cars, so I knew what I was buying, but to get the exact engine/color/outfit combination I wanted, it had to be ordered. The first one lacked a feature I had specifically ordered, so I refused delivery. Second try was fine.
I can't understand why one would buy a pre-built lot car instead of choosing what to order. Unless time is critical and you need something to drive immediately.


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