Guitar Center Fun

[eightyfour]

The Seattle Craigslist has been entertaining a lively Guitar Center debate over the last couple of weeks, started by a pissed off customer that got kicked out of the store. After a long string of GC bashing posts, this suddenly appeared:

I'm curious how Guitar Center's one day List Sale was the Monday of Labor Day weekend. Some of the more recent list sales have been a little lame, but the ones in 2003 and the first half of 2004 were great. I was unable to attend the last one, and was wondering if they had any good blowout deals. If so, what were they?

In past list sales, I picked up a brand new Fender USA Precision bass (no case) for $399; a pair of John Lennon vintage reissue Ricky's for like $699 each (without cases); a PRS bass (no case ... do you see a trend here?) for $799; and a hardcover music business book for a penny. Any deals that compared to those?

Thanks in advance for letting me know.

[Steve Haynie]

Looks like GC is training customers to wait for the blowout sales rather than buying year round.

[Kurt L]

Now if they could just train me not to poop on the carpet...

[cmatthes]

Baby steps, Kurt. Baby steps.

[Jeff R]

On a related note, my local GC connection (actually a very cool and knowledgable guy) told me yesterday the Austin store had an irridescent Californian in stock as of a few weeks ago. At least it sounds like irridescent based on his description of the paint.

He couldn't recall the price or if it was an Elite (i.e., boomers and ebony). May be worth putting in a call, however.

Scottcrud, care to confirm for the membership?

[MCChris]

Last night I went to Guitar Center to return a used bass amp I bought that wasn't working right. The guy who processed the return must have called me "buddy" about 27 times in 5 minutes.

[cmatthes]

Last night I went to Guitar Center to return a used bass amp I bought that wasn't working right. The guy who processed the return must have called me "buddy" about 27 times in 5 minutes.

Duuuuuuuude!

[silentman]

LOL, Chris. I usually cruise the used pedal/gear case for goodies and one GC dude stated asking me what I played and if I played out. Seemed ingenuine.

[MCChris]

LOL, Chris. I usually cruise the used pedal/gear case for goodies and one GC dude stated asking me what I played and if I played out. Seemed ingenuine.

He was probably a new guy. I think that's verbatim from "Qualifying 101" in the GC handbook.

I will say that "do you play out?" saved me from a potentially embarrassing situation when I worked there. Only after I asked that question did I realize that the disheveled little Asian kid I was about to run out of the store for asking me to bring down the TV yellow Gibson SG at the very top of the wall was in fact James Iha of the Smashing Pumpkins.

[Nuclear Wessel]

I went to my forst List event on Labor Day. It was mainly an attempt to get rid of opened, discontinued, outdated, demo, orphaned, and even damaged gear. The local GC here had such things on sale as one of those rotating DJ/stage lighting thingies, that only briefly flashed and then did nothing when you powered it up. The sales guy tried to convince me it was still a good deal, even if I got it and sent it in for warranty repair. MAybe, but I don't have time for that BS.

There was a pair of KRK studio monitors with blown tweeters on sale. I thought that took the cake.

I did pick up a few cool items like Yamaha wall wart power supplies for .01 each.

[Kurt L]

Scottcrud, care to confirm for the membership?

I can confirm it was there about a month ago. Kind of a multi-colored speckled finish - don't know what the correct name is. I think it was dots, not boomers. May stop in tomorrow - if so, I'll take a look.

BTW, this was the store on Anderson Lane and Burnet Road.

2525 West Anderson Lane Suite 200

Austin, Texas 78757

Phone: 512-419-1717

Edited to add - it's been there a Looooooong time. They also had a Hamer Tele (T-51?) that had been there several months.

[eightyfour]

I don't think it was even writen by a customer. That post stinks of middle management damage control, particularly having been posted at the tail end of a two week long on-line smeer campaign.

That's what I was originally alluding to.

[Wrecks]

The guy who processed the return must have called me "buddy" about 27 times in 5 minutes.

I'm kinda partial to "fella".

[Nuclear Wessel]

I don't think it was even writen by a customer.  That post stinks of middle management damage control, particularly having been posted at the tail end of a two week long on-line smeer campaign. 

That's what I was originally alluding to.

I caught that. And that may well be the case. But if they were using their list event as damage control, they picked the wrong strategy. The list event, at least from my experience last week, is mostly an attempt to get rid of junk no one would ever buy if they weren't almost giving it away.