Ok so I visit the evil empire online. I load the Guitar Center site and see a coupon for 12% off any single item over $149. Next I check the exclusions, which are hard to find because it is not a clickable link and you have to type it in manually. The exclusions to the coupon (not explained on the coupon of course) are:

65amps, A Designs, ADAM Audio, AKG, Allen & Heath, Alvarez, American Audio, American DJ, Ampeg, Antoine Courtois Paris, Aphex, Apogee, Apple, Armstrong, ART, Arturia, Audio-Technica, Audix, Auralex, Avalon, Avanti, Avid, Azumi, B&S, B3 Guitars, Bach, BAM, BeatKangz, Bedell, Behringer, Belkin, Benchmark, Benchmark Media Systems, Benedetto Guitars, Besson, Bixonic, Black Cat, Blackheart, Blackstar, Blue, Bogner, Bosch, Bose, Boss, Breedlove, Bricasti, Brio, BSS Audio, Buffet Crampon, Bugera, Bundy, Carl Martin, Casio, Cerwin-Vega, Chameleon Labs, Chandler Limited, Charvel, Chauvet, Cleartone, Cloud, Conn, Cordoba Music Group, Courtois, Crate, Crown, Cusack, Daking, Dangerous Music, dbx, Dean, Death By Audio, Diamond, DigiTech, Disney by Washburn, DLS Effects, Drawmer, Dunnett, Drum Workshop, EBS, Eden, Edirol, Elation, Electro-Harmonix, Electro-Voice, Elysia, Emerson, EMG, Eminence, EMMA Electronic, Empirical Labs, Empress Effects, Engl, Epiphone, ESP, Euphonix, Eventide, EVH, F. Loree Paris, Fano Guitars, Fender, Fishman, Focusrite, Fox, Fuchs, Fulltone, Furman, Gallien-Krueger, Galway, Gator, Gemeinhardt, Genz Benz, Getzen, Gibson, Gibson Custom, Gibson USA, Giffin Guitars, GNI Pedals, Godlyke, Gold Tone, Golden Age Project, Grace Design, Great Divide, Great River, Gretsch, Guild, Guyatone, Hagstrom, Hans Hoyer, Hao, Harden Engineering, Harman, Haynes, Hercules, HHB, Hohner, Holton, Ibanez, ISP Technologies, J Puchner, Jackson, JamHub, Jasmine by Takamine, JBL, Jet City Amplification, Jody Jaz, Jupiter, K&M, Kanstul, Kawai, Keeley, Keilwerth, King, Koll Guitars, Korg, Kramer, KRK, Kurzweil, Kush Audio, Langevin, Leblanc, Lexicon, Line 6, LovePedal, LP, LsL Instruments, Ludwig, Luna Guitars, Mackie, Mad Professor, Malekko Heavy Industry, Manley, Mapex, Markbass, Marshall, Martin, Martin-Leblac, Maxon, Meinl, Meinl Weston, Mesa Boogie, Millennia, Miraphone, Mixosaurus, Mogami, Mojave Audio, Moog, Morgan, Music Man, MusicXPC, N-Tune, Neumann, Neve, Nord, Novation, NS Design, Olympus, On-Stage Stands, Option 5, Orange Amplifiers, Ortofon, Ovation, P. Mauriat, Pacific Drums & Percussion (PDP), Paiste, Parker Guitars, Pearl, Peavey, Pelonis Sound and Acoustics, Perris, Phonic, Pigtronix, Pioneer, Powell, Prelude by Conn-Selmer, PreSonus, Propellerhead, PRS, Purple Audio, QSC, Quik Lok, Radial Engineering, Rainsong, Randall, Rane, Reunion Blues, Rickenbacker, Rivera, RME, Roc-N-Soc, Rockbag by Warwick, Rockbass by Warwick, Rockcase by Warwick, RockStand by Warwick, Rode Microphones, Roland, Royer, Rupert Neve Designs, Sabian, Sample Logic, Schecter Guitar Research, Scherzer, Schilke, Schreiber, Schroeder, Schroeder Guitars, Selmer, Selmer Paris, Sennheiser, Serato, Shure, SKB, SM Pro Audio, Softube, Solid State Logic, Sonare, Soul, Soundcraft, Squier, Stanton, Steinberg, Steinberger, Stephanhouser, Sterling by MusicMan, Summit Audio, Sweet Sound Electronic, SWR, T-REX Engineering, Takamine, Tama, Tapco, Taylor, TDK, Tech 21, Telefunken, Thermionic Culture, Toadworks, Tobias, Tone King, Tortuga, Traveler Guitar, Traynor, True Systems, Tube-Tech, Two Rock, Ultimate Support, Universal Audio, Vestax, Violet Audio, Vito, VMI, Voodoo Lab, VOX, W. Nirschl, Waldorf, Wampler, Warwick, Washburn, Weber Speakers, Western Digital, Xotic Effects, Yamaha, Yamaha Band & Orchestra, Yanagisawa, Zildjian, Zoom, ZVex Effects

What is left that costs over $149? Nothing I can find. What a bunch of hooey! If I don't buy anything then I save 100% don't I?

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you can save the world with your guitar one love song at a time it's just better, more fun, easier with a fender solid body electric guitar or electric bass guitar.

Holy crap! That has to be the most long-winded all-inclusive list of exclusions I have ever seen. What brand names are not included in this wonderful 12% discount offer?

This list is now well beyond silly...

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Dennis in CR
Rockin' since 1963

They should have listed the ones that were available.

_________________
Being able to play and enjoy music is a gift that's often taken for granted.

Don't leave home without it!

I admit that list is ridiculous, but I use their coupon they send me by email, with the same list, almost monthly, and I've never had them not take it. If I were going to buy a new guitar, they might not take it, but you can usually dicker the same discounts anyway.
The only thing I haven't liked about the GC coupons is they couldn't apply it towards an item that had to be ordered, because it has to be a separate transaction.

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'10 American Deluxe HSS Sunset Metallic
'10 JA-90 Thinline Telecaster
'15 Music Man JP-15 Blueberry Burst
'07 Les Paul Standard Faded LCPG #82
'14 Carvin ST300
'12 Carvin CS424S
'66 Guild Starfire IV w/Bigsby
'14 Warmouth Partscaster Daphne Blue

And don't forget! That coupon also does not apply to used gear, vintage gear or discounted or clearance gear!

Yeah, if you have a buddy at GC you can usually get 12% off of something... it just never seems to be what I am wanting...

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Dennis in CR
Rockin' since 1963

Looks like an invite to me Brotherdave which you should accept, visit you local GC ask them to rig up their biggest and best and give them a couple of hours of mmm lets think........... a Stairway to Heaven / Smoke on the Water medley, they'll end up paying you to leave

I have used the coupons in-store before for excluded items. Even certain manufacturers (that shall remain nameless ) that run a certain internet forum we all frequent. Ask and you shall receive!

Once again I am so reminded why it is SO important to support your local Mom & Pop shops ..even if it might cost a bit more in the long run it is so well worth it!!

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Mona
"Music is What Feelings Sound like"

Unfortunately, that's a pretty standard list of exclusions for online retailers. Check Musician's Friend, and you'll see it's just as long. As far as I understand, the exclusion is the doing of the companies being excluded, and not the doing of the retailers. It's done to give brick and mortar/mom and pop shops a level playing field (or level selling field, in this case).