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Guitar purchase nightmare


briremo
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So we were up in the mountains of NC skiing over the winter break and as usual on a rainy day i decided to look up any local music shops to check them out. Found a place called Appalachian Music in Boone near the ski area and decided to go check them out.

 

I'm a Martin player so I was really surprised to see some great guitars at great prices, like really good prices. I've been pining over (and saving for) a GPCPA4 with a shaded top and they didnt have one but he offered to order one for me and have it shipped. He offered me a killer deal neither I (nor even my wife) could refuse. The guy's been in business a long time, serves the diverse and thriving local music scene and college and he was rated very well by newspapers etc.

 

Well, you see where this is going. He received the guitar from Martin on the 23rd of Jan and shipped it back out to me the next day. But then it disappeared. Gone! Poof!

 

Tracking shows it left the sorting facility in NC last Wednesday, the day he dropped it off, and it hasn't been seen or heard from since.

 

In all honesty he's been very on top of it and helpful, and yes, he purchased insurance for it but i just know someone snatched this thing from the mail room and its in someone's living room. It's gonna take weeks before anything gets settled from it.

 

Question is: Do i order a new one from him? Just get my money back? what would you do?

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If you order again, will there be any addition cost to you?

 

No, I've already paid for it in full over a month ago. and shipping. I just don't wan to go through this again. The funny thing is, he's already made his margin and I do this again he'll be selling me another guitar! Hahahaha Talk about repeat customer base! LOL

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yeah, I hate giving money to big stores and since this guy was a small shop I was happy to give him the sale. I can buy it again from some of the internet whores but i don;t like doing that. Maybe he'll over night the next one.

 

Maybe I'll upgrade to the New Taylor 614CE which is boner inducing...

http://www.taylorguitars.com/guitars/acoustic/series/600/story?utm_source=Insider+-+Jan+2015+-+600s+V2+&utm_campaign=2015+600s+Insider+-+Grp+B&utm_medium=email

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yeah, I hate giving money to big stores and since this guy was a small shop I was happy to give him the sale. I can buy it again from some of the internet whores but i don;t like doing that. Maybe he'll over night the next one.

 

Maybe I'll upgrade to the New Taylor 614CE which is boner inducing...

http://www.taylorguitars.com/guitars/acoustic/series/600/story?utm_source=Insider+-+Jan+2015+-+600s+V2+&utm_campaign=2015+600s+Insider+-+Grp+B&utm_medium=email

 

Love the flame maple back on that.

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If it were me and the deal was really as sweet as you say, then I'd order another one.

If you can have another shipped go ahead.

Have him use a different shipping company.

Maybe he'll over night the next one.

 

Another option: Several years ago, I ordered a Gibson case from Sweetwater, because they were having one of those major sales. The same thing happened, where it disappeared leaving SW warehouse. The customer service guy that helped me out had the replacement one drop shipped to me. So, ask the guy if they'll drop ship this one directly. He doesn't need to inventory the thing, since it's a replacement one.

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Taylors are not Martins. Martins are robust and Taylors are thin and scratchy/shrill comparatively. Sure they look nice but tonally they lack. Martin invented the dreadnaught and bracing patterns used by all acoustic guitar mabufacturers. I would get a Gibson/Epiphone or Guild before a Taylor, but I have two Martins myself plus I grew up with my dad's D-18 from the 50s which is my personal definition of what an acoustic guitar sounds like.

 

If there is insurance then the onus is on the shipping company. File a claim and have the shipping company/insurance pay for a new Martin.

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Taylors are not Martins. Martins are robust and Taylors are thin and scratchy/shrill comparatively. Sure they look nice but tonally they lack. Martin invented the dreadnaught and bracing patterns used by all acoustic guitar mabufacturers. I would get a Gibson/Epiphone or Guild before a Taylor, but I have two Martins myself plus I grew up with my dad's D-18 from the 50s which is my personal definition of what an acoustic guitar sounds like.

 

If there is insurance then the onus is on the shipping company. File a claim and have the shipping company/insurance pay for a new Martin.

IMHO, this ^
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Taylors are not Martins. Martins are robust and Taylors are thin and scratchy/shrill comparatively. Sure they look nice but tonally they lack. Martin invented the dreadnaught and bracing patterns used by all acoustic guitar mabufacturers. I would get a Gibson/Epiphone or Guild before a Taylor, but I have two Martins myself plus I grew up with my dad's D-18 from the 50s which is my personal definition of what an acoustic guitar sounds like.

 

If there is insurance then the onus is on the shipping company. File a claim and have the shipping company/insurance pay for a new Martin.

 

I believe that I would only buy a Martin acoustic.

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well yes, that's why i already have two Martins myself. I agree, they (Taylors) don't have the bottom end of a Martin but that new 614 is drop dead gorgeous. but it is $3k!!

 

I spoke with the dealer today and he's spoken with USPS again and although its a lengthy process, the money will be returned. The dealer doesn't have the $$$ in his kitty to replace the guitar out of pocket so I have to wait. One of the drawbacks of working with a small shop. Oh well. First world problems right? LOL

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Taylors are not Martins. Martins are robust and Taylors are thin and scratchy/shrill comparatively. Sure they look nice but tonally they lack. Martin invented the dreadnaught and bracing patterns used by all acoustic guitar mabufacturers. I would get a Gibson/Epiphone or Guild before a Taylor, but I have two Martins myself plus I grew up with my dad's D-18 from the 50s which is my personal definition of what an acoustic guitar sounds like.

 

If there is insurance then the onus is on the shipping company. File a claim and have the shipping company/insurance pay for a new Martin.

 

I believe that I would only buy a Martin acoustic.

 

Interesting,

 

I have younger fishing buddy who plays a mean guitar and says the same thing. :guitar:

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Even in this video over laptop speakers I can hear the roundness and evenness of the Martin (despite super fresh strings) where the Taylor has upper mid and high frequency forwardness, thus uneven response.

 

I have a variation of a D-16; an SPD-16TR which I got for a deal. It's a little knackered but sounds and plays great. Similar to a D-18 but a different neck joint (mortoise and tenon as opposed to a Dovetail), but the woods are the same. My other Martin is a D-1 which is similar to the 16 but has sapele sides and back instead of mahogany. Also my D-16 and D-1 both have rosewood fingerboards (rare exception for both because they are earlier versions).

 

My other acoustic is a Washburn 12 string that I tried my hardest not to buy but GC accepted my low ball offer on it. I intend to replace it with a Martin model eventually. As soon as I can find the right deal, which has been evading me.

 

Again the USPS is responsible for the loss, not the shop. Too bad it takes so long to replace.

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Even in this video over laptop speakers I can hear the roundness and evenness of the Martin (despite super fresh strings) where the Taylor has upper mid and high frequency forwardness, thus uneven response.

 

I have a variation of a D-16; an SPD-16TR which I got for a deal. It's a little knackered but sounds and plays great. Similar to a D-18 but a different neck joint (mortoise and tenon as opposed to a Dovetail), but the woods are the same. My other Martin is a D-1 which is similar to the 16 but has sapele sides and back instead of mahogany. Also my D-16 and D-1 both have rosewood fingerboards (rare exception for both because they are earlier versions).

 

My other acoustic is a Washburn 12 string that I tried my hardest not to buy but GC accepted my low ball offer on it. I intend to replace it with a Martin model eventually. As soon as I can find the right deal, which has been evading me.

 

Again the USPS is responsible for the loss, not the shop. Too bad it takes so long to replace.

Even in this video over laptop speakers I can hear the roundness and evenness of the Martin (despite super fresh strings) where the Taylor has upper mid and high frequency forwardness, thus uneven response.

 

I have a variation of a D-16; an SPD-16TR which I got for a deal. It's a little knackered but sounds and plays great. Similar to a D-18 but a different neck joint (mortoise and tenon as opposed to a Dovetail), but the woods are the same. My other Martin is a D-1 which is similar to the 16 but has sapele sides and back instead of mahogany. Also my D-16 and D-1 both have rosewood fingerboards (rare exception for both because they are earlier versions).

 

My other acoustic is a Washburn 12 string that I tried my hardest not to buy but GC accepted my low ball offer on it. I intend to replace it with a Martin model eventually. As soon as I can find the right deal, which has been evading me.

 

Again the USPS is responsible for the loss, not the shop. Too bad it takes so long to replace.

 

The shop has been awesome, and Martin is doing what it can to speed production on a new one (as the shaded tops are not frequently produced). As a matter of fact the shop just called me and asked me if I wanted to do anything different because the factory is basically offering to custom make one. We discussed a few options and we're going to see where it goes.

 

I almost fell out of my chair on the Washburn 12 string. My friend (who doesn;t play at) bought one (D12-12N) for me at a garage sale for $10. Had six strings on it that were so ancient they were literally falling apart at the nut. It was in sad shape. So i took on my first guitar rebuild project. Did a pretty good job but it still sounded like shit. Gave it back to him LOL

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So we were up in the mountains of NC skiing over the winter break and as usual on a rainy day i decided to look up any local music shops to check them out. Found a place called Appalachian Music in Boone near the ski area and decided to go check them out.

 

I'm a Martin player so I was really surprised to see some great guitars at great prices, like really good prices. I've been pining over (and saving for) a GPCPA4 with a shaded top and they didnt have one but he offered to order one for me and have it shipped. He offered me a killer deal neither I (nor even my wife) could refuse. The guy's been in business a long time, serves the diverse and thriving local music scene and college and he was rated very well by newspapers etc.

 

Well, you see where this is going. He received the guitar from Martin on the 23rd of Jan and shipped it back out to me the next day. But then it disappeared. Gone! Poof!

 

Tracking shows it left the sorting facility in NC last Wednesday, the day he dropped it off, and it hasn't been seen or heard from since.

 

In all honesty he's been very on top of it and helpful, and yes, he purchased insurance for it but i just know someone snatched this thing from the mail room and its in someone's living room. It's gonna take weeks before anything gets settled from it.

 

Question is: Do i order a new one from him? Just get my money back? what would you do?

 

How ironic. I just bought one just like this on Craigslist last week for $500.

:P

Sorry, just yanking your chain. Sorry for your luck...any way to pick up the next one without shipping it?

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So we were up in the mountains of NC skiing over the winter break and as usual on a rainy day i decided to look up any local music shops to check them out. Found a place called Appalachian Music in Boone near the ski area and decided to go check them out.

 

I'm a Martin player so I was really surprised to see some great guitars at great prices, like really good prices. I've been pining over (and saving for) a GPCPA4 with a shaded top and they didnt have one but he offered to order one for me and have it shipped. He offered me a killer deal neither I (nor even my wife) could refuse. The guy's been in business a long time, serves the diverse and thriving local music scene and college and he was rated very well by newspapers etc.

 

Well, you see where this is going. He received the guitar from Martin on the 23rd of Jan and shipped it back out to me the next day. But then it disappeared. Gone! Poof!

 

Tracking shows it left the sorting facility in NC last Wednesday, the day he dropped it off, and it hasn't been seen or heard from since.

 

In all honesty he's been very on top of it and helpful, and yes, he purchased insurance for it but i just know someone snatched this thing from the mail room and its in someone's living room. It's gonna take weeks before anything gets settled from it.

 

Question is: Do i order a new one from him? Just get my money back? what would you do?

 

How ironic. I just bought one just like this on Craigslist last week for $500.

:P

Sorry, just yanking your chain. Sorry for your luck...any way to pick up the next one without shipping it?

 

Man that would be from a pissed off wife that didnt know what she had. LOL.

If I get all my money back I will not be able to buy it locally for the same price. In the end I;m saving about $200 which I can come up with, but no one has what I want. It's a limited run item so I'm back to waiting for Martin to turn out another batch, in which case I might as well just wait.

 

This guy says he ships about 50-60 guitars a year and never ever lost one..

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UPdate:

 

So last week it was clear my new guitar was lost. No one could find it, it was just gone. About last Wednesday the dealer was shipped a new model from Martin that was diverted from another dealer and the dealer was to receive it two days ago (Monday) and ship it back out to me for delivery by tomorrow. So Monday morning I woke up with a good feeling that the guitar was at most another 4 days away.

 

I spent a long day at work waiting for the dealer to tell me he got the guitar and was shipping it back out with tracking but no news. He is country boy in the hills after all and tech aint his thing. hahahaha. Anyway,at 3:00 my son sends me a text "Dad, your guitar is here". Huh? what?

 

Yep, somehow it just shows up on my doorstep. NO updated tracking, no signature (which was required), no leaving it with my neighbor, they just dropped a $1500 guitar on my doorstep. Argh! Is it damaged? Is it wrecked? Is the box empty? nope! I rush home and after seeing a couple holes in the box and freaking out, I realized the case is pristine and my guitar is gorgeous! Yay!

 

I gotta tell you, the folks at Martin and Appalachian Music have been terrific.even though this was a hassle, they were patient with my constant big city blabbering and questions and Martin worked to get me a guitar ahead of schedule. The dealer already sold the new model he ordered as a replacement and all is good. I love karma!

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Whew! Glad everything worked out.

 

I would file a complaint with UPS or whoever was supposed to ship it. That's ridiculous.

 

Enjoy your new axe! :cheers:

Edited by BowlCity
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