Guitar Fetish? Never again!

[@ReptilianHeart]

I've bought a lot of GFS components for years, but never guitars. I've recently purchased a few effects pedals. Their products have always been as-advertised. I've never had to deal with customer service. I suggest calling the owner and voicing your concern. Obviously, word gets out; they have an incentive to keep customers happy and loyal.

[@thepurgatorykids]

If they had a customer service phone number, maybe. All they have is an email and they won't have an incentive until business drops. In the meantime, they'll just keep providing shitty customer service and hoping that the prices keep the buyers happy.

[@tonyn1926]

Sorry to hear all your problems. I received my Slick Tele yesterday. Have not been able to put it down! It sounds great, it plays fantastic, right out the box. I could lower the action a touch, but it is very playable and fantastic. I will change the strings as soon as I can put it down long enough, I will condition the fret board at that time too.

[@HuxleysGhost]

I’ve had great experiences with GF but I get it.

[@RichM1967]

I bought an xavier tonewood series. Mine has the comfort cut, rosewood back and sides. I was told it was all solid wood, the sides are not solid wood, it's plywood. The back is not one piece, it's more like 4 pieces, but it seems to be wood and not plywood. The top is solid spruce. The guitar needed a setup, fret level or at minimum polishing the frets because they would make a horrible sound when bending the frets -- but I've bought high end Epiphones that needed that. Other than that the fit and finish on my guitar was fantastic. Unplugged in the guitar sounded and plays fantastic. Fit and finish -- there wasn't a flaw on the guitar. I feel I got more than what I payed for but, honestly at this price point you're not going to get high end electronics -- but mine wasn't bad, it had a nice sound and included both a piezo and mic. I did put a better system along side the stock and plugged it in to the mic jack and it sounds fantastic. I also examined the insides and it is a typical xbrace and the braces are scalloped -- something you don't see on low end guitars. The workmanship on the inside looked really good as well. I believe everything this guy is saying tho, just saying I had a different experience. Buying from Guitar Fetish may be a roll of the dice.

[@2011studies]

I have purchased three guitars from Guitar Fetish. Love each and every one of them. I also purchased a Fender Tele neck that I also love. They won't place a battery inside in case it leaks.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

I don't doubt that some people have had good experiences with them. I only said it was a gamble. I think the possibility of a leaking battery is unlikely, but if they're really worried about that, they could put a battery in the guitar with the plastic wrapping still on it. Or they could include one outside of the guitar. In any case, the battery wasn't the primary issue; the primary issue was that the electronics on a brand-new guitar didn't work, and they wouldn't let me return it free of charge.

[@C.Rig21]

Thanks for posting this video. I have had my eye on a Pro845 Telecaster and was on the verge of buying it. I can't afford to mess with a company that doesn't accept responsibility for their products or respect their consumers. I'd rather spend the extra money for a squier 70s classic vibe telecaster and be done with it.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Thanks for viewing and commenting. I hope you get a good guitar. 👍

[@shanesworkshop922]

Really cool taking a negative experience and turning it to a positive and maybe even life changing opportunity. Super nice thing to do and thanks for giving us the chance to win it!

[@thestratman7903]

Guitar fetish is not the company it once was back in the early 2010s...They used to have good customer service, the products were WELL worth the money, and the clearence/blem stuff was a great deal...Now if a guitar has a broken neck, and no pickups it's $20 off ?!?!?!? The last staw for me was buying a Tele copy that just didn't cut it for me...It sounds good, because they do have decent pickups/materials but it was a blem for a finish issue, and just like your experience, it came with MUCH more than that finish blem...

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Sorry you had a similar experience. Thank you for your comment.

[@danssolo2633]

I think the first main thing in any company should be customer service and I cannot stress that enough.

[@MLCDelux]

I had a very easy transaction with GF & I really love my Slick guitar, I play it more often than any of my higher end guitars, shipping was fast, guitar was great right out of the box. Not every transaction can be good, maybe I just got lucky. Guitar Center on the other hand I’m done with, never again .

[@russwilloughby501]

Guitar Center sucks.

[@MISIVmusic]

Man that is a crap experience I can't imagine how frustrated it was. Thanks for posting this video, very informative.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Thanks for watching.

[@frankfarklesberry]

@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel Thanks so much for doing this. I've been looking at their acoustics after the terrific reviews about some of their electrics. I'm curious. Did they contact you and fix the problem after this video? They just shot themselves in the foot for no reason!

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

@@frankfarklesberry No, they have never contacted me.

[@zukiryder05]

GF has a reputation for bad customer service. I get it. They are in the business of value priced, budget products and sales volume is the "end game". Customer service is not their focus, volume is... I've purchased a couple of guitars from them, and I know from the start that it's very likely I will have to do some work on the guitars. Oh, and to know that they are going to take their sweet time to ship the products. They don't get in a hurry to do anything.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

So you no longer play triple-pickup Les Paul guitars exclusively, Ace? 😉

[@myekuntz]

As a metal head electric guitar player even I know an acoustic guitar has to be top notch. But if it’s an electric issue it’s probably an easy fix but you’re right. A brand new anything should work correctly.

[@jerroldshelton9367]

I've bought five acoustic-electric guitars on-line. One was a Celebrity-series Ovation via Amazon. One was a James Nelligan solid-body piezo-electric also bought via Amazon. Two were Harley Benton HBO 600 "Ovation Shaped Objects". Finally, there's the Bullfighter solid-body piezo electric guitar I bought from Amazon. Four out of five came to me with problems with their pickup systems that essentially rendered them useless when plugged in. The Ovation came to me with a dead preamp. The James Nelligan came to me with a defective output jack and overall dookie fit and finish not consistent with the cost of the instrument. One HBO-600 came to me with a dead preamp while the other arrived without blemish or flaw of any kind. The Bullfighter that I received a few days ago had really horrible string-to-string balance with the high E being dead. It took hours of tedious work to fix it. Usually, the under-saddle piezo is loaded from the bass side. This loads the piezo from the treble side. The hole the pickup loads through is really too close to the the location of the high E and makes for zero "fudge factor" in fitting the piezo pickup in the saddle slot. The saddle itself wasn't flat on the bottom. That's why the Low E, A, D, G, and B strings all had uneven volume and sustain. Now that the piezo is sitting where it needs to and the bottom of the saddle is perfectly flat, the output is now balanced across all strings and the instrument is probably my all-time favorite of all I have owned. So, I'm one for five in terms of getting fully functional piezo electric guitars via Internet order.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Interesting. I recall ordering an inexpensive Alvarez (I think it was from Musician's Friend). It had a fit-and-finish problem, and they replaced it right away - and they covered all shipping. In addition to the Glarry which I referred to in the video, I've bought a couple of Epiphone PR4E packages. They worked great right out of the box. I haven't heard of some of the ones you mentioned, but I've seen used Harley Benton electrics for sale on Craigslist. They look nice.

[@rickdavis2235]

Why not: 1. File a complaint with the Attorney General's office for the state of Massachusettes. 2. File a complaint with the BBB. 3. Contact your CC company and let them know about it. If they decide to issue them a chargeback, you get a refund from the CC company plus the seller loses out on the sale and has to pay a penalty that also goes against their CC rating. 4. Donate it to a school.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

5. Make this video, hold a drawing, and give it away. I chose number 5. I certainly wouldn't have given it to a school, considering what's taught in school these days.

[@bretta3]

My experience with Guitar Fetish. I bought a Les Paul copy. I hated it and I felt it was defective because the tone and volume pots were crazy hard to turn. Guitar Fetish didn't see it as a defect and I had to pay considerable money to ship it back. Many of their parts are excellent and low cost. Their pickups are grate and their bodies and necks are pretty good. Customer support is terrible. They will take items back but they will never admit that anything is defective therefore they won't pay for return shipping.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Shipping probably costs them a lot less, too. I believe big companies that ship a lot get volume discounts.

[@kma6881]

I’m in the same boat. I’ve been buying and building guitars for years. I recently purchased a pickup from them to replace an similar pickup that I purchased from them. Everything works fine with the guitar, as is. When I put the new pickup in, it didn’t work. I sent them an email about it. You would not believe all the pictures and videos they asked for. Every time I sent a video they’d try to blame something that obviously wasn’t the problem, existing wiring not being GFS, or the battery, it kept going on like this for weeks. They finally agreed to accept the pickup back if I paid for shipping. I sent it to them. They lied and said they didn’t get it. I sent them the tracking info. After more than a month of the same thing you explained, they said “we couldn’t replicate the problem. We’re sending you the pickup back.” What a terrible company. I had tons of videos and ran tons of tests. It’s a bad pickup. It’s as if they’ll tell you anything to prevent a return or a deny accountability. I wish I would have watched this video earlier. Thank you for making it.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Thank you for your comment. I'm sorry that that happened, but I'm glad you posted about it because it validates what I said. It wasn't a minor thing for me to post this video, because I'm hesitant to criticize any company so publicly when I know how hard it is to make a living. But when someone else says that they had a similar experience, I'm further relieved that my criticism wasn't out of line. Hope you ultimately found a solution.

[@kma6881]

@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel thank you for your reply! I have filed a complaint with the BBB and hopefully some resolution come of it.

[@old_romans]

Bought a Fender Sonoran in Seafoam, absolutely gorgeous guitar, but on the preamp, sounded terrible. Ended up trading it. I'm pretty sure that GF is a one or two man operation out of a warehouse in Florida, so I wouldn't expect much...I do buy their fantastic pickups and a lot of warehouse clearance bodies from them to build up and it works out great to build up luthier problem solving skills, but you are buying from a warehouse only, mom n pop...from Florida, there will be risks. My GF acoustic will arrive next week, first time buying a complete guitar from them, I'll update.

[@user94825]

For me customer service is almost as important as the product itself. Thanks for the heads up and good for you turning this into something positive. Cheers.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Thanks for taking time to stop by.

[@JP3_Miller_CriPPs]

Acoustic electric is nice. I’m trying to save my money for a Yamaha 150, it’s an electric sax. Of course did this for the contest cuz it looks really nice, easy fixes. Merry Xmas everyone!

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

I'd never heard of an electric sax. They say you learn something new every day. I guess I can clock out early. 😁

[@tnvalleyyoga7122]

I just purchased a LP style electric and the guitar was great, I only had to intonate the G and B. The guitar was clean, with good fretts, a straight neck, and decent tuners. I would not purchase low-priced acoustic without handling it first.

[@aperezdeal]

Sweetwater dinged me on shipping for a “new” guitar that shipped with pitted frets. I feel you man.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

That's too bad. They seem more reputable. What was their reasoning?

[@aperezdeal]

@Far Stox Hello firstly, barrel roll! Yes I was clear with my explanation and provided documentation in the form of high resolution and well lit photos. It was a bad experience to say the least.

[@andrewharbison8489]

I bought two guitars from Guitar Fetish. I bought a Pro845 Thinline Telecaster with case. I received the Telecaster and had to some fret filing on the fret ends. They would actually cut your hands. I decided to puchase a Coil Splitter Harness for this Telecaster that has two Humbucker Style Guitar. Overall the Telecaster was satifactory for the $229.00 and $85 for the case that I paid for the guitar. However you can buy a Fender Squire which I also have, just not Humbucker pickups for the same amount of money or less. Based on that experience I purchased a XV-900 335 with Case. Total with shipping $443.00. I had the guitar for over the 90 day period for return and then discovered that the neck on this guitar has a bad backbow. When I contacted Guitar Fetish and asked if I could return the guitar and got the same customer service that this gentleman in this video. If you do buy a guitar from this company which I do not recommend. I recommend that you really check the guitar out very closely. My advice is to stay away from this company. Customer Service is well lets just say less than stellar.

[@toms6816]

I have purchased many items from them over the past few years and luckily, never had a problem. Yes, their customer service does suck but it has improved a bit

[@cqdencox3287]

How long did it take to get the guitar

[@toms6816]

@@cqdencox3287 they are now based in Florida, and since I live in Florida, it only took a couple of days

[@travissmith2211]

I've never bought a new guitar to have any input. However, this does reinforce my belief that there's certain things that should be bought in person instead of online mail order.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

I'd say it depends on the company. In my experience, companies like Musicians' Friend and Sweetwater are more service-oriented and stand behind their products. I think I mentioned in the video that I once bought an Alvarez from MF on their Stupid Deal of the Day. It had a problem and they replaced it quickly, no charge to me.

[@azaerehs]

As I was listening and was wondering about your experience brands and then you mentioned glarry. Anyone has experiences with donner? The dad812 I deposed to be a solid top I wouldn't mind opening the electronics. I like being an amateur guitar tech

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

I've only heard the name.

[@YankeePinstriper]

It sucks when companies treat their customers like crap, they forget that we’re the ones that keep their business running! It’s nice that you’re giving the guitar away, I really hope I win! Thanks for the giveaway 😁

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Thanks for stopping by.

[@DougHinVA]

You do not get to choose how companies treat customers. Executives in GFS make those choices, not you. Feel free to buy elsewhere ...

[@wheelchairtestdummy3059]

Sad to hear about your bad experience. Hoping if not me, then whoever wins it can bring some joy learning to play it. Thanks.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Do you do the research for this guy? kzbin.info/www/bejne/i4LYc62JnbR5m9k

[@stephenlee1782]

Sorry for your troubles. I tried to buy a tele style guitar over the internet 2 years ago, one from eBay and 2 from monoprice. All arrived damaged in some way, all were returned, and both companies--one was just a guy selling imports out of his house--deposited my payment promptly. I bought a bill lawrence s-style guitar, in person, at a local music store. Perfectly happy with my new/used guitar. Got much more for my money. I don't think I will ever buy a guitar on-line again. Sweetwater is the only music store that I trust on the web for customer service.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Musician's Friend has treated me o.k. I had to return a guitar to them once (exchange), and it worked fine. I also bought a Monoprice Les Paul (bolt-on neck) once, and it was a good guitar - especially for the price. Looked good and stayed in tune really well. The worst thing about it was that it said "Monoprice" on the headstock. I gather that they've finally come up with a name for their guitars (although I don't recall what it is at the moment).

[@stephenlee1782]

@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel glad you had a good experience with mf and monoprice. Both guitars I ordered from the former had bad grounds, the second worse than the first. My Billy has L 250 pups and graphite bridge saddles. Upgrades on the original. Not a tele, but the best stay I ever played. Stay safe.

[@ChristopherMichaelMusic]

I had a bad experience with GF quality as well. Luckily, my CSR was willing to refund my $$$ back on my card. I have purchased pickups from them and they were fine, infact, i prefer them but the instruments are inconsistent at best.

[@corneliuscrewe677]

That’s kind of disappointing, about 2 years ago I bought one of their big pole Tele pickups that had a damaged lead wire, they took it back and shipped me a new one with no issues whatsoever.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Maybe they're more agreeable about backing up the smaller stuff that doesn't cost much to ship.

[@gunnslinger7774]

While I do like GFS for pickups and parts.. I to have had a problem with GFS customer service… Who ever I talked to via email was a little prick… Hey GFS you should watch this video once a week so you don’t forget… This video needs to be watched by anyone buying from GFS and I am a fan of their pick ups not of their customer service…

[@madmusicianmagician]

I've purchased a used luna gypsy spalt from guitar center for $135 all together and it came in pristine condition. Have you ever played a luna guitar?

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Once or twice in their showroom, I think. Seems like a good deal. Can you plug it in?

[@madmusicianmagician]

@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel yeah it all works perfectly, I can plug it in and sounds amazing. I thought it was steal at the price I've seen people selling them for around $300

[@madmusicianmagician]

@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel heres how it sounds plugged in kzbin.info/www/bejne/ponYnZ6Pi96phsU

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

@@madmusicianmagician How about the clean sound (no distortion)?

[@madmusicianmagician]

@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel heres how it sounds no distortion kzbin.info/www/bejne/g4fThmONhsegaZY

[@MaxPower-js1sk]

I’ve never bought a damaged guitar. I have a reasonable collection of Taylors, Martins and Larrivées, and none of them were damaged. My acoustic-electrics always come with batteries.

[@davismusic3674]

In a lot of cases, it seems customer service online is non existent ? Wouldn’t it be different if we could still deal face to face ?

[@babarishka]

I feel your pain. I haven't had a horrendous experience with Guitar Fetish, but not the greatest either. I've bought some pickups from them and they were decent - not great but not bad and they worked. I bought a Strat copy from them which needed fretwork, which never surprises me with Chinese guitars. The whammy bar, however broke near where it meets the body. I'm not a shredder and wasn't doing Steve Vai whammy dives, so it was a little bit of a shock. So, I bought a supposedly beefier version from Xaviere and the same thing happened. I then found an old whammy bar from some guitar I had in the past and it worked fine. I eventually gave the guitar to a local music foundation that provides instruments for underprivileged kids. My curse is more related to guitar techs. I'm a pretty patient and reasonable person like you seem to be, but I've had some nightmarish experiences with guitar techs here in Buffalo and the surrounding area. Maybe I'm too nice, maybe I have the word "schmuck" written across my face, maybe someone placed a voodoo curse on me - I really don't know!!!. Recently, one guy held onto one of my guitars for 3 months, did shoddy work on top of it AND gave me an attitude. Another tech (probably the most respected one in the area) held on to a guitar for 7 months (I believe he did so because I had taken it to another tech who botched the electronics and I think he was pissed off that I brought something to him that another guy worked on, kind of a passive/aggressive FU to me). When I sent him an irate email by month seven he told me to pick up the guitar and never come back to him. I'm running out of options here!!!! Sorry about your experience with the guitar. I agree, there is no excuse for bad customer service. I bought an acoustic from Sweetwater last year. The specs and price were great but it didn't sound that great, plus the open high E was fretting out. I returned it and they paid for the shipping - no hassle. I don't think they'd have done that if I simply didn't like it, not sure really, but I've had good luck with them so far. Have a great weekend!!!

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Thanks for your comment. I, too, have sometimes wondered if I have an invisible "kick me" sign on my back. It's a drag when you try to be civil and flexible, and people interpret that as an opportunity to walk right over you. Keep on rockin'.

[@babarishka]

@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel You too!!!

[@tyrssen1]

Never had a problem with GFS, but then, I've only bought assorted parts for builds. And I've never cared for "electric acoustics." Just me.

[@brianstallard5446]

Hi Lance, looks like you got fed quite the crap sandwich. That's really surprising, I've heard nothing but good things about GF, but that's dealing with parts. I can't believe a company that has built a great reputation in a large but tight knit community would treat a knowledgable customer with valid complaints like that! Will you be getting the replacement piezo to send with it?

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Not as far as I know. The guy made me more skeptical when he changed his tune from, "I've sent out a replacement pickup," to "I can still have a replacement pickup sent out." I mentioned in the video that I can't accuse them outright of knowingly sending out bad electronics, but the more he resisted and the more flimsy excuses he gave, the more I wondered if they didn't send me a dud with the knowledge that they were doing it.

[@brianstallard5446]

@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel Yes, it does make you wonder. Have you tried reaching out to any of the big guitar channels on here. Phillip McKnight, Darrel Braun, and Dylan talks tone are probably the 3 biggest channels for guitar/tech geeks like me. They have a large base of viewers that like to mod guitars, which means they buy a lot of guitar parts(GF's specialty), and probably a lot of them buy from GF. Maybe one of them would be willing to shed some light on this to a much bigger audience and stir up some word of mouth. If I bought a lot of guitar parts from a company that seems to be trustworthy, I would want to know about scummy, shady stuff like this.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

@@brianstallard5446 I hadn't considered that. They're welcome to address it if they want, but I don't want to burden anyone else with it. I wasn't that thrilled about doing this myself, because I haven't ever wanted to convey a negative vibe through this channel. But gear review is one of the things I planned on from the beginning. I did tell the GF rep in no uncertain terms that I was going to share this experience, and he wasn't moved - he just fell back on "our policy is..." And he didn't respond to my last email at all. So I figured that's it. I'll add that this has prompted me to do more research, and I found out about Orangewood. So maybe something good will come of it. 😃

[@riveracoop2]

Thank you for your honest review of the product.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Thanks for visiting my channel.

[@burtsmitley]

How many guitars do you currently have? Never bought a new guitar. Couldn’t answer that

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Three. Well, two, because this one's not really mine anymore. I also have a $79 guitar I just made a video about, and a strat copy I got at a yard sale.

[@FlowforthInstruments]

I bought a Xaviere blem from the GF site and it had all sorts of set up issues additional to the blem. I managed to get it playable and resold it - never to order an acoustic from them again. I did a video about them on my channel too. By the way, never accept a return refusal from a guitar retailer. There is absolutely no excuse for them to refuse a return when it is their fault - and you can call your credit company to reverse the charges. If you paid via paypal you can initiate a complaint and they will force the return for you. Please don't trash the guitar - you can probably figure out the electronics issue - you can also sand off and refinish the headstock if you want the logo gone. Good video.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Thanks. I hadn't thought about the credit card thing. Instead of smashing it, I held a giveaway (with full disclosure about the problem). Shipped it to the winner last week.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

PS: Just visited your channel, and realized I'd been there before. I think I first saw it when I was looking for other people's thoughts on these.

[@FlowforthInstruments]

@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel Cool - thanks for watching.

[@FlowforthInstruments]

@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel You're a stellar chap. You should let them know what you felt compelled to do.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

@@FlowforthInstruments While I was trying to get them to accept the return, I did let them know that if I had a negative experience I was likely to post about it. The guy just dug his heels in, and not only that, he never sent the pickup that he said he would. Once it was clear that they weren't going to budge, I decided to not contact them any more. If they find out about it, it can be from someone else. Thanks for the kind words. I don't know about "stellar," but I keep on trying.

[@DunderHead.5000]

I have yet to have a good experience with any company. Either the customer service is good but the repair shop is horrendous or the customer service and the shop are horrendous.

[@eckyevans5437]

Only once have I had an electronic failure in an electro-acoustic, couple of months in the display on the tuner died, didn't affect sound Notified the company and they offered to return it for replacement of the preamp or sending me the complete preamp, new piezo, condenser mic and jack included They only offered to send me the preamp because it became apparent to them during our conversations that I build and wire guitars, if it wasn't for that they would have arranged a collection at their cost, effected the repair and returned it at no cost to me That's the kind of service you expect, I'm a little surprised you've had such a bad experience with GF what with them being such a prominent figure in the marketplace I considered getting some items from them twice in the past, it was their shipping costs that put me off, remember they wanted more in shipping for a set of tuners and a bridge than competitors of theirs in the US were charging for shipping a complete guitar

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

There's so much coming competition in the marketplace nowadays, it's surprising that anyone would neglect (or ignore) the obvious thing: good service.

[@eckyevans5437]

Absolutely @@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel When you see the quality of some of the guitars in the sub-500 range these days and the lengths the companies making them go to in order to provide quality items and service it's pretty shocking to get that kind of sub-standard item from a company who've been in the game as long as GF have, not to mention the disappointing after-sales service you've received, just doesn't fly in this day and age Probably think they can survive on their rep from earlier days

[@MarsHalekGuitar]

I bought a used Xaviere (Guitar Fetish) spalt acoustic-electric on eBay because it was positively gorgeous. The electronics similarly did not work. I couldn't really complain to GF since I bought it used and I have sympathy for occasional used guitar sellers who don't know their products, so I brought it to a luthier I'm friends with. The upshot was that the wires between components were too short, so they didn't stay plugged in securely. The luthier replaced them with longer wires et voila. Now that I can hear it, I would say the fancy preamp, blending a piezo and a small mic, is not great. It's not bad, just kind of cold. I have a cheap Joyo pre with just a piezo that sounds way prettier, in a classical guitar, allowing for the fact that the guitars themselves are very different. Anyway, the wires and connections between the preamp, pickup, and battery on your guitar might be a place to run a diagnosis. Maybe they're trying to save a few pennies by not sparing a couple of inches of slack wire per guitar? It's also good to hear your customer experience, as I was thinking of buying a defective item direct on clearance with their Memorial Day sale. I think I'll pass now, though I may pick up a few parts and tools. I do have a pair of their pickups in an electric 12-string, not bad. Their pickups were how I first heard about Guitar Fetish, quite popular with guitar modders on a budget. My luthier also owns several Xaviere guitars he's set up and/or modded to his own liking. I can't deny they're nice guitars. Thanks for sharing your experience!

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

The wires seemed to be ok, but in any case, I ended up giving the guitar away. Thanks for your comment.

[@jetteroheller]

They’re insane on their shipping. I just got $125 worth of stuff, plus $18 on shipping which includes mandatory insurance. And it’s for slow USPS. All the stuff works but it isn’t anything special. It looks like the stuff you find anywhere else for a lot less, so GFS probably has an 80% markup on that stuff and with shipping 90%. And oh most of their stuff is still out of stock. I wonder if they have liquidity issues.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

I have to wonder how they stay in business. This video has gotten far more comments about negative experiences than positive ones.

[@mikal]

I've never had a piezo pickup damaged in shipping, and I've had probably dozens of acoustics shipped to me, including everything from a $5000 Taylor to a $300 Ibanez. Maybe he was referring to the pickups in his specific guitars. And whenever I've had *any* problem with a guitar shipped to me, the manufacturer has covered return shipping and everything. If I buy cheap guitars or parts from a cheap guitar/part company, but the company is happy to help return/fix things, I'd be happy with them. I'd keep buying stuff from them, knowing that they'd stand behind any issues and make the customer happy. But if they resist helping to fix issues with their products, I'd be unhappy and probably not return as a customer.

[@luimelo6280]

That’s good to know. I was thinking about buying one of they’re electric guitars. I just like the way it looks. I don’t even care if it comes with any problems with the electronics, cus I was just going to swap everything, including tone and volume knobs, but if that’s how they treat they’re clients, I definitely not buying from them. That’s dishonest.

[@RussellRayborn]

Nothing like customer "no service" for sure. Seems that there wasn't any final check before they shipped it out. With such a bad hum,seeks like a direct ground short somewhere. If your looking for a quality build and great tone, check out the Copley brand of acoustic, acoustic electric, or electric they offer. I purchased the MSG-688 electric guitar and was blown away by it. That model was under $240.00 bucks shipped. Mother of pearl inlays,Seymour Duncan pickups. If I luck up and get yours in the drawing, I'll let you know what the electronic issue was.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Thanks. Considering the way things played out, I wondered if they *DID* check it, and sent a dud knowingly. I don't have absolute proof of that, but there are one or two other things I didn't mention in this video that left it open to question. Thanks for the info on the other company. I found out about Orangewood, too.

[@RussellRayborn]

@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel awesome. There's some great companies out there for sure. I've heard the Glarry brand as well. They do make good instruments at a great value. But as with a lot of less expensive guitars,they usually need a little set up.

[@bozeeke]

I've bought parts and accessories from them and they've been just fine for the price point. I've never bought any of their actual guitars though.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Well, if you reach the point where you're considering it, think twice.

[@kernjames]

I bought 2 guitars from Guitarfetsih, a Sl 51 (tele style) and a Xavier 900 (Gibson 335 style). The Xavier was a Luthier special (it needed some work) but the SL 51 was advertised as totally new, no blemishes etc.. On both guitars the bodies and necks of the guitars are well made and solid quality, but that is were the quality stops. Both guitars need fret and neck work, even the new one. Both guitars have pickups that are okay for someone that is just practicing or playing very low keyed Gigs. But for someone that is recording on Protools, such as I am, the pickups suck. I took both guitars to my Luthier and each one needs about 400 dollars plus, work done, which includes him installing decent pickups for recording, and to get them to playable. Good pickups cost 180 to 220 dollars a pair and that is not including installation unless you do it yourself. Both have frets that need leveling due to protruding too high on the fret board. As they are now with the uneven frets, they are unplayable, not to mention the crappy pickups. People say these guitars are inexpensive but I ask you, are they? Initial Guitar price plus another 400 to 500 dollars shoots the total price on the Tele one to over 700 dollars. go figure.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

That doesn't sound like a good deal. Thank you for stopping by and for commenting.

[@kernjames]

@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel I appreciate your comment.

[@BillWeiselMusic22]

Sad to see that you had this experience. I've been using their products for years and I've had nothing but good from them. The Xaviere acoustic I got from them is my main acoustic. Sad that this one let you down.

[@TheLexluthier]

I've had a couple of negative experiences with GF. I haven't purchased anything from them since. The last time was a XGP body that had a run in the finish. I was supposed to pay for a return on something that should never had left the factory? I was really put off of GF after that. I ended up wet sanding the run out, and buffing it out, but I should not have had to do that.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

That's what I thought: why is shipping on me - especially when they probably get a highly discounted corporate rate? I eventually gave this guitar away on my channel, and the winner was across the country. Shipping was over $100. I wasn't going to pay that for a fix that I shouldn't have had to worry about. Sorry they did it to you, too.

[@bretta3]

When I am dealing with a defective product I always say did my payment go through? So my money wasn't defective.

[@Murasane]

i just bought from guitar fetish last week after seeing some reviews talking how great they are and now Im kinda sacred since I am a beginner player with not a lot of money so I really hope theres no major issues with it cause I wouldnt have the least idea how to fix it.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

I hope so too. Electric or acoustic?

[@Murasane]

@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel I bought an electric it's a les Paul style guitar

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

@@Murasane Let me know how it turns out. Thanks for visiting my channel.

[@Murasane]

@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel thanks its set to arrive on Halloween

[@Salieri47]

Companies price products low to entice buyers, then won't stand by the products because their profit margin is slim. Many of them will sacrifice Customer Service, and repeat customers, for the quick small profit. Years ago the word on GFS was mostly positive, but that came from players and technicians used to making repairs.

[@TJEvans98]

I've been buying parts from Guitar Fetish since the pandemic started...guitar building has become my quarantine hobby. That being said....my FIRST purchase was a loaded stratocaster pickguard. At that time, I was NOT good at soldering, so I took the easy rout. The neck pickup wire, to the switch, was SO short that it wouldn't clear the body routes on the GF Basics body I had purchased. My first thought was "how did this get past QC?" I mean, the wire was a straight line, from switch to pickup. It was vintage style pull back cloth wire...seemed really nice to me. Their solution when I contacted them was to send me an additional piece of wire to replace it....mind you, I SUCKED at soldering. They sent me a cheap looking length of wire with just the plastic shield...no cloth. When I complained about that, they assured me that it was good quality wire. I was hoping for a complete replacement pick guard, but all they offered was the wire....and they didn't even "make good" by providing me a coupon code, or discount on future purchases...it was "here's the wire, it's your problem, now." Just last week, I purchased a blem XGP (THEIR top of the line bodies) stratocaster body in "surf green." when I got it, I took it straight to the basement to get working on it...I got surf green to match my tele and jazzmaster. It wasn't until I completed the assembly, and hung it next to the other 2, when I realized that it was SEA FOAM GREEN....not SURF GREEN...minor issue, but for me, it was a huge problem. Anticipating the runaround I would get if I tried to return it, I simply bought a non-blem surf green one, that should be here this upcoming week. If the colors still don't match, I WILL be making a stink. Funny thing is, the JM and Tele don't "exactly" match either. All 3 bodies are XGP, and all three were listed as surf green. Why would a manufacturer have 3 different shades/tones, of the SAME COLOR? Unfortunately, buying stuff from them is like playing roulette. Some stuff is good...I LOVE the Dream 180 pickups I put in my Firefly FF338. The neck for my strat build might be the nicest neck I've ever played. For the prices they offer, I have taken my chances. The 2 strat bodies I bought are still, combined, less than half the price of a warmoth body. I hope you can work out what's wrong with the acoustic...and no...I've NEVER seen an Electric Acoustic shipped without a battery

[@TJEvans98]

LOL....I didn't even know you were giving this thing away until I watched the updated video....IF I happen to win, I'd rather you donate it to a music program for children, or a church that's struggling (trust me, giving is down lately...I'm treasurer and worship leader at my church) and needs a guitar.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Sounds like your experience was similar to mine. It's too bad they aren't more service-oriented. If you win, you can tell me how to proceed (as long as it doesn't involve shipping it out of the continental U.S. or something 😂).

[@TJEvans98]

@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel You'll love this one. My new "surf green" strat body came in today. It's yet ANOTHER shade of "surf green." It's almost like they mix a new batch of paint for each body them make...and none of them will ever be 100% the same...This one doesn't even have a hint of blue in it...it's more of a "mint green." and I don't mean the old fender pick guard muted mint green....it's like completely green. If they were to have mixed the paint from the first strat body with the paint from the second, then it probably would have been closer to the surf green I got on the other 2 bodies...

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

@@TJEvans98 Well, at least you get exclusivity. 😉

[@TJEvans98]

@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel LOL....if only I wasn't all about the matchy matchy.....My OCD is on overdrive looking at the 3 different shades of guitar hanging on my wall....

[@markmeyer2222]

Good warning - bad customer service is becoming more common, their opening comments on their web page reads "Xaviere represents the greatest combination of quality, craftsmanship and value EVER in the guitar industry." Totally agree WHY do you have to fix a brand new guitar.....does anyone have a review on the 750 series?

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Thanks for your comment. 👍

[@foreseengust]

This is a brilliant way of getting back at them. I would like to win this guitar, and I would likely think twice before buying anything more from them. I got an electric guitar from them, got it as a blem as well but thankfully it didn't have any issues. I was thinking about getting one of their spruce top acoustic electrics with the same order, I'm glad that I didn't. I wouldn't wanna deal with that kind of treatment.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

It's not my aim to be vengeful, but at the same time, I think other potential customers deserve fair warning. And I told their rep straight out in our email exchange that I'd post about the experience, but he was still unmoved. I never did receive the replacement pickup he had said he sent, either.

[@foreseengust]

@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel I want to say that they likely mailed it via USPS, it's been exceptionally slow lately. But it's been a month, they probably didn't send it. I'm surprised they won't refund for a defective item, the joys of buying stuff online I guess. I ordered some plants off a very popular online nursery in 2013, they couldn't ship because of cold weather for a few months, then they canceled my order because they didn't have one of the plants. They wouldn't refund me, I could only order something else, I haven't ordered from them again. I'm a plant addict, I've found other online nurseries. Customer service matters.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

@@foreseengust Well, the guy changed his tune midstream anyway. At first he said that he had sent the pickup, but then when I requested a return, he said that he _was still willing_ to send the pickup. At the end, he just said that there was nothing else he could do for me. So I figured, "ok then... a bad KZbin review it is."

[@foreseengust]

@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel Yikes, one of the reasons I bought from them and not one of the Chinese sellers on Ebay or even Thoman was the perceived easier returns. They don't understand what they have going for them I guess.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

@@foreseengust Agreed. My initial perception of this guitar was quite positive, but I did a full turnaround.

[@howelledwards5188]

Your dissatisfaction in entirely warranted. The proper thing to do here (Customer Service 101) is to make the customer happy. You should not have to pay for shipping it back. They should have paid for the return shipment and if you still wanted it, they should have gotten you another guitar. If they no longer had that model, they should have offered you something else, and then you could have decided if you wanted it, or just the credit and be done with them. I have managed customer service operations in several companies in my past. Businesses will make mistakes, products will fail etc. What should be done by the company is to acknowledge the problem and then take ownership of a solution that will satisfy the customer. Having you make repairs etc. is wrong. This was just mishandled by them and eventually that type of service will catch up to them and be their undoing.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Thanks for understanding. I've been in numerous customer service positions myself (retail, restaurant, warehouse, etc.), and while I don't believe that "the customer is always right," I *do* believe it's good business to accommodate a customer who has a valid complaint.

[@sagiriizumi8079]

I wanted to return a precut body i got from GF that was a mess. It was their premium body too. They fought with me for two days with calls, emails, having me take tons of pics. THE GUY ACTUALLY yelled at me before agreeing to have me ship it back with insurance and pay restocking. They are a difficult company

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

I'm kind of ambivalent about liking comments like this, because other people had a bad experience, too. But they make me feel vindicated also. It's good to be reassured that I didn't overreact.

[@jackmaniacmusic]

I’m sorry about that. There’s a ton of stuff that’s gone around about guitar fetish, not just with the company, but bad advice on the forums as well. Sad to hear that they are this bad.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Thank you for stopping by. 👍

[@MikeS4628]

I won't be buying from them again either. I bought an electric and the frets were to no bad as far as eveling goes that if you wanted it for anything other than slide, you were out of luck. I had done spot fret repair and of course taken care of things like fret sprout, but had never leveled frets. The day before the guitar came I had received some tools for just that job. I decided to make this my test guitar instead of trying to return it. It came out great actually. But what they sent me was unplayable. I've seen good reviews and a couple people remark about fret issues. So I'm not buying again from a company that seems to be a roll of the dice on geting something playable. Now seeing this about their customer service it just locks down that I'm not buying from them again. As a guy that's gigged a lot and has dozens of guitars and admittedly has a problem buying stuff, (LOL) they've lost quite a few future sales. Thanks for putting your story out there.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Thanks for your comment. A few people have defended them since I posted this, but yours is one of several other negative experiences that have been shared. "A roll of the dice" seems to be an appropriate expression for doing business with them.

[@GregStraub42]

first order, a bunch of stuff by build a parts-caster. one pickup mount was poorly tapped to the point that the screw wouldn't thread the response i got was to go get a tap and put new threads in it... what? ok well thankfully I have one. Second order, ordered 2 sets of pickups and 2 wiring harnesses, and other stuff. 1 set of pickups is find, the other set: 1 pickup is bad, 1 pickup is the wrong colour. Of the two harnesses one is fine, the other has a bad neck position because a wire wasn't attached. not even the soldering came undone, it was just never done. This time? They sent me a return label in about 10 minutes and are replacing it. So either they've changed employees, or policies, or its just luck of the draw.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Well, I did have the option to exchange, but the problem was that they had no more of this model, and none of the closest comparable model, either. So I would've been painted into the corner of exchanging for a guitar I didn't want. Considering that - along with the other concerns mentioned in this video - I felt that GF ought to be a bit flexible with their otherwise rigid policy. The entire fiasco was their fault, after all. Who knows... maybe videos like this will eventually prompt them to soften. I held a drawing for this guitar on December 31st, and I haven't promoted the video since then. Yet it's continued to get views and likes without any further effort on my part. If I owned an instrument company, I think I'd prefer backing up my own product to 5500+ views of a scathing review.

[@GregStraub42]

@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel I absolutely understand and I am hoping that when I get my parts they'll be correct and working, you're in the unenviable position that exchanging wouldn't work and their response was absolutely unacceptable.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

@@GregStraub42 Thanks for stopping by. Hopefully you'll have a better outcome.

[@johntoland3520]

I wish you played some on a guitar,,,,,,,was it a cheap guitar?

[@anderszidane973]

Thanks for the warning. I was considering them, but too many complaints online.

[@kirbonite]

Most of the positive comments from GFS come from the Slick products. I think they're better cared for. I wouldn't consider buying an acoustic from GFS because you could take the money you spent on both those guitars and get a recording king (they only have one with electronics) but the RK's alway have incredible tone due to the Greg Rich designs. btw. Greg Rich is the guy that saved Gibson in the nineties. RK's also have a great art deco aesthtic. yes, there is only one with electronics but they're fishman electronics.

[@janeremauro5738]

Was thinking about getting one of the Xaviere telecasters , might hold back now though. I’d love to win that guitar if the giveaway is still going on , always fun to tinker and would be cool to try and fix it , if not you can’t go wrong with a campfire guitar !

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

I won't draw a winner until December 31st. I can't live stream it or whatever, but I'll make a video and post it ASAP afterward, as well as notify the winner via the comments. Thanks for visiting my channel!

[@thestratman7903]

I have one, and I'm not sure how I feel about it....They have great specs/materials and hardware,but I was underwhelmed with the pickups, and the neck has a very funky radius for a tele....I use it as my warmup guitar because you have to fight to play it if that makes sense? It's like it won't EVER break in.

[@averyprice9422]

Thanks for the opportunity to win this... Have a great day!

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

You too.

[@ToneChaser79]

If I was in the market I would buy cheap Yamaha acoustic over any guitar in that $300 price point. I’ve never had a bad experience with them

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

As I said in the video, I've bought a couple of Epiphone PR4E packages and those worked great. I don't recall ever owning a Yamaha, but I've played one or two in stores and I liked them.

[@neutrodyne]

It sounds to me like what you got was a customer returned guitar. Then it was not checked out and resold to you as a second.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

That may be. There were some dark spots on the strings, and they had been tensioned a bit out-of-alignment on the bridge. So that indicated to me that someone (either a customer or an employee) might have toyed with it before it was sent to me. That's certainly not how it was advertised, though.

[@bobamato1810]

Love my Guitar Fetish pickups. Great boutique sounding pickups without the horrible markup!

[@scottsmith4145]

Very damning video for this company! Wow,, what might have cost them $30 to pay return shipping is now costing them much much more in threatening their entire reputation! Total stupidity on the companies part!

[@dirtsmiles8098]

Sucks you had such a bad experience. I’m looking for a decent acoustic and I’ve been checking these out. I really like the 550 and 750. This makes me super Leary

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Better than Timothy Leary! 😉

[@shoer5151]

I only buy from sweetwater never ever had a problem returning anything There a great customer service company

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Musician's Friend has treated me right as well. I don't recall them ever failing to back their stuff up.

[@InterestingWorldLove]

WOW Thank you! I was about to order a exavier pro guitar with case. Back to guitar center and Sterling by Music Man Axis LOL

[@kernjames]

Lance, I love your presentation and critique. Guitarfetish has issues as you have pointed out. I concur with your conclusions and I am really glad that you put this video up.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Thanks for visiting my channel. 👍

[@kevincarothers7486]

Mine was awful. A bridge post was bent. The neck was bent. After a pro setup it still was below average.

[@MickSammonsMusicWorld]

Had a similar experience. I purchased 2 of the highest level of the acoustic electrics and they were both junk. One of them after about a week the bridge started pulling off of the body. The other one the frets were terrible. I will never get another acoustic from them. I’ve never had a problem out of any of their electric guitars. I doubt if these are even made out of real wood. When I looked at the body with the one of the bad bridge, the wood was as thin as paneling that people put up for walls. I’ll never get another acoustic from them.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Interesting. This one certainly looks good at face value (and played well for the short time I played it unplugged). It's part of their tonewood series, or whatever they call it. Of course, I can't say anything about its long-term durability, especially since once I decided to give it away I set it aside in a storage room. I'm sorry you had a bad experience too, but thanks for sharing it. That confirms to me that I'm not being hypercritical.

[@shannonwadley2252]

He should buy a Harley Benton Acoustic Electric. You would probably want to purchase 2 guitars when you order because of the shipping from Germany UPS to the USA. I have a Custom Line CLJ-45EVS 189.00 plus shipping. It has a nice pickup Fishman Presys-2 with preamp and Tuner built in. It also has a bone nut and nice vintage tuners. It's a spruce top with mahogany body and neck.. it's a nice looking J45 inspired Gibson take for a great value. It plays like a honestly 1,200 Taylor or Takamine.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

I only heard of those recently. Maybe I'll check them out. Thanks for your comment and the info.

[@shannonwadley2252]

They don't build anything worth a crap pickup wise in the new guitars. My other Acoustic Electric is a Ovation Glen Campbell 1626 model from 1978 it works perfectly and it can be played loud through any amplifier with no feedback but it's a 1,500 vintage guitar.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

@@shannonwadley2252 So the one you bought didn't come with the Fishman?

[@shannonwadley2252]

@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel mine has the fishman presys 2 pickup and tuner on the Harley Benton. I bought the Sunburst finish. It looks really nice.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

@@shannonwadley2252 So it came with a Fishman? Because you said that they don't put anything good in the new guitars. Or does HB just not offer that one anymore?

[@jonathanmills2555]

I watched you r video, and have to say, I own a Yamaha FGX700SC, as well as, other Yamaha acoustic guitars. I'm very happy with all of them. The problem you describe sounds like a grounding problem somewhere in the electronics. Like the problems you were having with the company your cup, said it all, "Me Last"

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Wow - you actually saw that? I designed those. They're available through my Teespring store (see video description). Thanks for stopping by.

[@MusicalEarthlingShow]

Thanks for the opportunity to win a guitar. Does it come with a case? How will the winner be notified?

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

No case. I saved the packaging I got it in. I will post a video to announce the winner, and also try to notify by responding to the comment if necessary.

[@MusicalEarthlingShow]

@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel Thank you.

[@theroguetomato5362]

I've had both bad and good experiences with GF. I have no idea why their service quality varies so much. I haven't bought guitars from GF, but I've bought a lot of bodies, necks, pickups, and other hardware. Some problem products they replaced gladly, others not so much.

[@jwald6795]

I've bought several guitars and guitar pickups and parts and have been satisfied with what I bought. I have several Xavier guitars and they are what they are. Pretty good for the price. Sorry you had a bad experience, but that doesn't mean every one else will.

[@cugir321]

So because you got a decent part or guitar they shouldn't have average customer service.....your time is coming soon cup cake.

[@jwald6795]

It always helps if you read the return policy before you buy something. Blems, Clearance, and Demos All products marked "Blem", "Clearance", or "Demo" are sold as Final Sale items. Any item purchased from our Clearance section are Final Sale and may only be returned for Store Credit. Cup Cake

[@cugir321]

@@jwald6795 It always helps if you don't lie in the advertisment. You're a bunch of hot air. That's like saying I have a car that is in excellent condition....all but the tires. When you buy it the transmission is bad...they hid it. It sounds like you are Guitarfetish.....because you're a liar.

[@jwald6795]

@@cugir321 And you sir are a big Whiney baby that can't read. And just where did I lie? If you had taken the time to read their policies you would have know you couldn't send it back, and that if you did you would have to pay shipping. They guy offered to help you fix the guitar and you turned him down. And again where did I tell a lie?

[@cugir321]

​@@jwald6795 They listed it with one problem. It had multiples. You're saying they didn't do anything wrong. You are a liar. They offered to send him a piezo pickup.....It's not his job to fix something you didn't list in your ad.....most people wouldn't be comfortable fixing your companys problems. They're not going to give him his money back even if that doesn't fix the problem. You talk like they sent him a guitar with 1 problem. "As is" applies to what was sold in the ad. They didn't list all the problems. I could get my money back 100% of the time if I challenged the sale with my bank. I'd suggest he go through his bank. Guitarfetish will take a hit on their credit card processing and he'll get his money back. (when you go through your bank if the bank finds in your favor it will increase the companies credit card bank fee's over time...it's a great way to give it back to them) Do a video of the problems and send it to your bank. I will bet you it will turn out in his favor. I worked for people like this at one time....they lost 100% of the time with the bank.

[@allenwebster6329]

I agree totally I had ordered an xaviere guitar with a floyd rose on it ,one of the bridge screws was missing on the floyd rose I thought well I've probably got a screw since I have several guitars with a floyd rose I have a ton of parts well it turns out I dont have one that fits it's a special screw and I dont have one,I called the guy told me basically the same thing so I'm stuck with a great looking guitar that I cant play i thought about buying another one even from guitar fetish cause i like alot of thier colors so i get on their website again and every model i was interested in they were out of stock so now I'm at the point of forget it ,if a guitar company cant keep any guitars in stock why bother as far as I know guitar fetish is ran by 3 guys what thier problem is they are trying to make a thier guitars known to the public and they getting tangled up in a mess they cant keep up with demand because they are a small company and in my eyes if they keep doing the shit they are doing they wont have a guitar any longer they are trying to be like sweetwater and musicians friend they will never be as those companies why,because they dont have the money if you order a guitar from sweetwater,musicians friend or Chicago music exchange these companies dont charge you shipping why because they are multi million dollar companies and $30 or $40 shipping wont hurt thier pocket guitar fetish dosnt have this to offer that tells me they are small and cant afford to pay shipping they cant even keep up with thier demand of people wanting thier guitars so inturn sooner or later I see them falling and one very important issue they have is customer service that alone is going to dismantle them because that is the one thing they suck at the most I dont see guitar fetish lasting very long at all with piss poor customer service and never having what you want

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

They had enough money to buy an entire additional warehouse of guitars (which they boasted of on their website). They should've spent that money on quality control and customer service - perhaps one or two more employees would be enough. Thanks for stopping by.

[@allenwebster6329]

I read the reply ,yes they inturn need to better their costumer service that alone will kill the company they need to back up thier products if there is an issue they need to repair or replace the product without cost to the customer if it happened to me and as well you I'm sure there are most likely others that have had a poor experience with them,I don't believe they have purchased another warehouse if they did they would not be out of stock on just about every guitar they have and when your number of guitars fall to a certain level you should keep up like if you have 100 guitars and 50 sell you need to be on the phone with the supplier and say I need 50 more and not wait till you. Have 4 or 5 left that's what they are doing,why ( because they are too small of a company and cant afford to ) so they have to sell everything before they can buy more and that puts them in a terrible spot and they have no answers besides the customer floats the bill which isn't right at all you cant run a business like that and expect the customers to respond in a positive way about things

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

@@allenwebster6329 I think the warehouse they bought was like a lot of some other company's seconds or half-finished guitars or something that they were going to blow out.

[@mikefromusa6902]

GFS is mostly miss. I generally try to avoid. Some pickups are ok.

[@overcome8628]

I bought one of there KWIK PICK UP brand guitars last yr. The quality was horrible, and the guitar would not stay in tune, I sent it back.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Did they replace it and/or cover shipping, or what?

[@overcome8628]

@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel They gave me my money back but did not cover shipping it back, I had to eat that money.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

@@overcome8628 Lame. Last time I checked their website, they were boasting about their purchase of another warehouse of guitars - but they won't even shell out like $40 to back up their products.

[@raymeedc]

For $79, I would be surprised & ahead of the game if it had a neck‼️ 😊

[@Tommyhearnsrighthand]

I only own 1 acoustic with a piezo, it got sent to Australia from china and arrived working... It's the worst when you get crap service, especially when there are companies that are great and really look after you

[@scotttaylor9875]

they probably left the battery out because they knew it did not work,,,if i win i have an dimarzio acoustic p/u i can put on it

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

I wondered that myself.

[@paoloc.8055]

Thanks for the heads up, man! It sucks when you get mistreated by companies 😕

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

All the more so when the item in question wasn't cheap.

[@BobbyMeeks]

Sorry they didn't go out of their way to make it right. For what it's worth, I have purchased 12 guitars from GFS (several b-stocks) and many upgrade parts - got my first one in 2007. They are all great project guitars and with play amazing with a pinch of TLC. I love them. But I love working on guitars. My experience has always been positive. They sent me the wrong order once and rush shipped the correct one. I have the same acoustic and it's been great. It really is sad that a company would shoot themselves in the foot over something so petty. Customer service from a 4-man operation selling a $200 guitar probably won't ever compare with an Epiphone/Gibson sized company, but they should never go out of their way to make an enemy.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

They're big enough to boast (on their website) about their purchase of another warehouse full of guitars, so it seems like they could handle an incident like this. They just didn't want to. Thanks for stopping by.

[@kevinmcconnaughy9710]

That sucks man I personally have never dealt with Guitar Fetish but I never will customer service is a major selling point for where I buy instruments thank you

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Yeah; instruments usually aren't cheap. Not that I like poor service when I'm buying cheap stuff either. 😂

[@thepurgatorykids]

I've bought several products feom them over the years, mostly positive experiences; but, I decided years ago to stop buying from them for two reasons (both of which you covered here): 1.) They knowingly-- I believe --ship out bad product with the expectation that the customer's laziness and/or reluctance to pay return shipping will allow them to make money (rather than lose it) on defects 2..) They pretend to manufacture their own products when, in fact, they buy bulk from other manufacturers (in China) and create a saleman's fiction on their website. They're middlemen who buy cheap, flip it at a profit, and refuse to let defective items eat into their profits. That's why they won't even pay for ANY shipping -- if they paid just for return shipping, it would eat away at the profits. It's a used car lot business model. Like I said, most of my experiences with them have been good, but that's because I've mainly bought hardware from them.

[@thepurgatorykids]

Having said all that... If I'm completely honest, then I do have to admit the possibility that I COULD be tempted to buy from them again in the future, when the poorer experiences fade from my memory and the price tags start looking tantalizing again. But, I don't anticipate that happening anytime soon-- there's simply too much competition and too much good quality gear at rock bottom prices these days.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Thanks for your comment.

[@billreed986]

Quality control in any business is key. I’d rock it unplugged

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

If you win it, you can! 😃

[@bobbyk3469]

Recently stumbled across Guitar Fetish and was considering one of their electrics. But after watching you video and others comments, I think I'll look elsewhere. Thanks.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Thanks for stopping by my channel.

[@Amphlux]

Sounds like a totally unfortunate experience bruh. Sorry to hear. Ive had experience with bad companies as well. This company sounds no different.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

It certainly dampened my enthusiasm.

[@SergioGonzalez-gi9kr]

Yeah.. I write off companies on customer service. I've like the quality of some parts for the money for doing upgrades on cheap guitars. Thanks for the post. Was considering a kit from them. Stew Mac is not much more expensive, and I'm sure their quality is way better.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Never heard of Stew Mac. Thanks for visiting my channel, and for your comment.

[@TheConnoissumer]

I recently had a similar experience with GFS customer service. They were very careful with their words so as not to admit anything. I bought a bunch of gear to build a few partcasters. They shipped an LPB tele body with a terrible paint job. Someone had clearly handled it before the base coat was dry and they still sprayed clear coat over it. I would understand if they say you get what you pay for. But they ask to be compared to bodies costing $400. Warmoth would never let this body leave their warehouse. Heck, Squier wouldn't either. I've bought three other GFS guitars that were fine, but I will hesitate to buy again. Definitely rolling dice. I'm going to try the Paypal dispute method. Thanks for sharing.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Thanks for stopping by, and for your comment.

[@phi2771]

Sounds like this was returned prior to you buying it. Maybe GF was hoping some beginner would have bought it, and never used the electronics.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Maybe. Or I wondered if they took the battery out hoping that whoever bought it just wouldn't need to play it plugged in for a few weeks, and when they finally did plug it in, the buyer would think that somehow it was their own fault. I'm not sure what GF's initial angle was, but the way they followed up brings a lot into question.

[@phi2771]

@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel yea, either way, it’s bad business. Hopefully you get it resolved .

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

@@phi2771 Their representative made it clear that they weren't going to accept it back, so this video was my resolution.

[@ClaySobrino]

Sad that you had such a bad experience. I looked into these guys and was considering a purchase myself as I am in need of a decent acoustic for recording. Thanks for this video man. Subscribed. Also you started playing the year I was born. Don't know why but that made me smile.

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

Makes me... not smile so much (lol). Just kidding. I don't feel that old.

[@ClaySobrino]

@@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel That just means you have had more time to enjoy guitar than I have. :P

[@TheMICMusicInspirationChannel]

@@ClaySobrino And be frustrated by it. Haha