A GC nightmare

[cassius987]

Last time I was in GC I was there for keyboards. There were two guys in there also shopping and ZERO employees available to help (all of the ones in the department were flirting with the wallets of some supposed big-name country music producer who was wanting some pro audio something or other... and another and another...). The two guys in the room with me? Well, one kept playing extremely repetitive hip hop beats on his keyboard and then would do his admittedly half-decent rap over it.... again and again. The other guy appeared to be Charles Manson's nephew and sang like an upset Kermit the Frog. Funny, it was almost worse than it would have been because he was using headphones so all I heard was his pounding the keys and screaming like a muppet. Then the rap guy and Chucky Manson got together for a collaboration session... By the time I got some help to talk about what I was interested in I literally didn't want a keyboard any more. I just walked out.

[eatswodo]

...then made the mistake of waltzing into the acoustic guitar room.

You are correct, this was a mistake. One should always rumba into the acoustic guitar room. Never waltz.

I did a rumba the last time I went in there, and they politely asked me to leave.

Must have been the dancing. No-one there would know the difference between a rumba and a waltz.

[wj350]

Sometimes I wonder if I'm the only guy on the face of the planet who's generally good experiences at GC?

[ajish4]

Sometimes I wonder if I'm the only guy on the face of the planet who's generally good experiences at GC?

I seem to have good luck IF I deal locally...

Otherwise.....

viewtopic.php?f=14&t=393099

I LOVE it when you ask about a specific issue, IE: "are there any issues with the neck"....

[eatswodo]

Sometimes I wonder if I'm the only guy on the face of the planet who's generally good experiences at GC?

Actually, you're not. The first one I ever encountered was in Berkeley, CA, in the late '80s/early '90s, and it truly was unpleasant. In those days, they played all kinds of silly games with prices and 'making deals', and it made shopping there a very infrequent and annoying experience. Thankfully there were much more palatable alternatives closer to home for me at the time.

Now, many years later, I have a couple of GCs close to me here in Minnesota. I've learnt not to go in on the weekends. I've learnt that, as in any chain store, there are folks who know their stuff, and folks who don't have a clue (tried finding someone with a functioning brain cell in Home Depot recently?) But, almost invariably, I'm treated in a friendly fashion, whether I'm buying a set of strings or something much more expensive, and I've had a couple of really good deals trading gear there. I've overheard conversations in the acoustic room, for example, where obviously new musicians were given solid, sound advice. I was called by a sales guy a couple of days after buying a drum kit for my church, to let me know that the price had gone down, and that I could get the difference back.

I'll keep buying there, when it's appropriate. Home Depot, on the other hand...

[johnallg]

Regarding the guy, the girl and the guitar: I think you would have been justified to smash the guitar, although it is pretty admirable that his girl will go to the guitar shop with him.

Not really, they have probably only been dating a week. It will soon wear off!

Then maybe she was at least attractive? I think I'm safe to say (although it may be seen as selling out) that most guys have been willing to sacrifice all self-respect and dignity for a girl...

So whats your point??!!

[rickenbrother]

Sometimes I wonder if I'm the only guy on the face of the planet who's generally good experiences at GC?

I used to have some good experiences at GC. That was several years ago when I knew a couple of guys who worked there, that actually knew and cared about what they were doing.

[BuddyDog]

Not a nightmare, but I went into a GC today to get some Ultex picks and look for a strap. Found both of those no problem.

However, I did stray into the acoustic room (before noon on a weekday) and there were a couple of teenage boys in there pounding away on a very nice Taylor and Martin, so no chance to sit down and plink an acoustic ( I was looking at 12 strings and Seagulls).

So I wander over to the electric section and see they have 2 Vox AC15 Heritage Mahogany cabinet amps there for $1299 (used). I wandered over to look at an SG with P-90's and here come the Hardy Boys out of the acoustic room and over to the stacks to shred away.

Why the hell weren't they in school ? I stopped on a weekday so I could avoid these typical weekend wankers

[shamustwin]

There's a GC down the street from me (Sherman Oaks Store), about a 7.5 irritability factor. Over the hill is the Hollywood GC, 9.7 I.F. (c'mon, it's Hollywood!), and near my office is the Hawthorne/South Bay GC. Haven't been there in a while, but that had the lowest I.F. at 4.5.

[deaconblues]

Last time I was in GC I was there for keyboards. There were two guys in there also shopping and ZERO employees available to help (all of the ones in the department were flirting with the wallets of some supposed big-name country music producer who was wanting some pro audio something or other... and another and another...). The two guys in the room with me? Well, one kept playing extremely repetitive hip hop beats on his keyboard and then would do his admittedly half-decent rap over it.... again and again. The other guy appeared to be Charles Manson's nephew and sang like an upset Kermit the Frog. Funny, it was almost worse than it would have been because he was using headphones so all I heard was his pounding the keys and screaming like a muppet. Then the rap guy and Chucky Manson got together for a collaboration session... By the time I got some help to talk about what I was interested in I literally didn't want a keyboard any more. I just walked out.

I've had an experience like that too!

What irks me is salesmen pushing cheap Squiers and Chinese Epis on me when I'm looking at higher-end stuff.

[fatcat]

During one of my highly infrequent GC visits, in the acoustic room to try the 12 stringers, I had to tune EVERY one of them, it's like they went from carton to wall without any checkout.
Didn't find a keeper that day.

[JakeK]

I never go to GC. Not my kinda place. Gotta be a Mom-and-Pop store for me.