Bye Bye Guitar Center

ozover50 · Post by **ozover50** » Sun Feb 20, 2005 8:56 am

I hear what you say, Dave and I agree.

The word 'boutique' conjures up different things in different minds and it's perhaps one of those words that has lost its original meaning and can be inappropriately applied, with or without intention.

I don't believe that Rickenbacker guitars fall into the 'boutique' category. Certainly they are produced in limited numbers because of the company's underlying philosophy and its desire to maintain certain characteristics in its products that make them perhaps 'different' rather than 'special'.

However I believe that we should recognise that to many, that 'difference' makes it 'special'. I unashamedly place myself in that category. Since my mid teens I have rated two brands above all others - Gretsch and Rickenbacker. Why? Firstly, during my impressionable years they were played by my heros - that in itself makes them special. Secondly, they were expensive, hard to get and were only purveyed by a few. That situation made them even more desirable because there was (rightly or wrongly) a certain 'mystique' or 'aura' associated with them. My guess is that you can't buy Valentino or Dolce & Gabanna at Macey's!

You're absolutely correct when you say that companies like RIC need volume dealers - without them we'd be paying twice as much as we do now (if indeed we could still purchase Rickenbackers at all!).

I don't believe that it's the size of the store or chain that counts - it's more about the people in those stores that do service (or not) to the manufacturer and the end users. I may be completely wrong here (hell, I'm thousands of miles away for a start, so what would I know?) and I am happy to be howled down at any time but could that be the problem with the GC/Rickenbacker relationship? That is, the people on the shop floor and not the organisation itself.

Of course, the shop floor attitude may well be driven from above and if that's the case, the organisation is then to blame.

There are a number of shops here in Australia (both large and small) that through lack of training, product knowledge and overall concern for the potential end user miss out badly. And so, in lot of cases, does the customer!!

Anyhow, there's my two penneth worth (ramble, ramble, rabbit, rabbit - shut me up for God's sake!!)

Cheers

rictified · Post by **rictified** » Sun Feb 20, 2005 9:58 am

I have 4 GC's within an hours drive and find nothing interesting in them anymore and yes Paul they give me a headache, the last few times I went I was also out the door as fast as I could get to it. I think they make them busy and noisy to disorient us so we'll buy buy buy.
I buy in the local stores now, and Ric's I get from either Pic o the Rics or Mike Parks.

bluespckr · Post by **bluespckr** » Sun Feb 20, 2005 10:52 am

While it's always preferable to buy a guitar only after you've had your hands on them, there are places where some guitars are impossible to find in a store. Rics tend to be in the hard to find-seldom seen category in many places in this country. So, you sometimes have to trust the product's reputation (and the fine print on the returns policy) and go mail-order. Ric is a quality guitar with a quality reputation (but then, I don't have to preach to the choir here, do I?). I bought a new 360-six via mail order in December and was rewarded with the best damn guitar I've ever owned or played. In the end, it didn't really matter that it was bought sight-unseen. With other guitars -- Fenders, Gibsons and their clones -- that are so readily available in almost every music store, and in which the quality can truly vary greatly from instrument to instrument (even of the same model of the same make), I would not think of buying without playing it. But I would have no hesitation on buying another Ric via mail order.

Regarding GC and the comment about trying to sell the hard case separate -- so true. I bought an American Series 50th anny Strat in my local GC early last year. When I tried to dicker on the price, the sales dude had the nerve to say, well, I can throw in the case and some other things ... and I was quick to point out that, well, gee, this particular model came with the hard case standard, and the goodies he mentioned. In the end he dropped about $150 off the price, and I got all the stuff he was going to so generously give me as the sole discount. The moral of the story: Do your homework before going in to GC buy.

atomic_punk · Post by **atomic_punk** » Sun Feb 20, 2005 6:58 pm

Brian, you've gotta remember that Jeff is over 50...He never had a mohawk or anything pierced, as far as I know. Missed out on the Clash and such. But to give him his props a little, he is a "young" 50.

I am not a fan of GC, I go in there to get something only if necessary. If there is something there, I assume it is used, not new.

loendmaestro · Post by **loendmaestro** » Sun Feb 20, 2005 7:03 pm

I'm with Rath...there are no MENSA candidates working at GC.

RutleDirk · Post by **RutleDirk** » Mon Feb 21, 2005 1:07 pm

Let's be fair, now.

The GC employees with black nail polish, streaked hair and pierced eyebrows aren't any greater idiots than those without.

loendmaestro · Post by **loendmaestro** » Mon Feb 21, 2005 2:19 pm

Let's be clear now, I wasn't referring to accessories & fashion statements, I was referring to IQ levels & knowledge of musical equipment.

aceonbass · Post by **aceonbass** » Mon Feb 21, 2005 3:21 pm

I think when Jeff referred to the GC drones by their appearence, he was commenting on what unprofessional looking posers they are. A lot of people who go into music stores are the parents of young musicians who don't feel the above mentioned sales people represent GC in a professional way. When these sales people turn out not to be competent at their job it's two strikes you're out. And as for being treated like royalty, my customers expect nothing less and so do I.

highway_star · Post by **highway_star** » Mon Feb 21, 2005 5:33 pm

It does seem like the quality of inventory has gone down recently and there are some deals that can be found. I bought a '75 Reissue Jazz Bass for $925 ($1350 regularly) since GC was closing it out. Otherwise, I'm not too impressed with their selection save for the Music Man line.

The best episodes I've had in GC are the times I've taken one of my Rics in try out an amp. Most of the sales folks at least seem appreciative of them and the older folks will stop by and say something like, "Hey, I remember those!" It's amazing when the kids find out how great they sound.

I'm fortunate since I have two solid Ric dealers nearby, Chuck Levin's Washington Music in Wheaton, MD and Classic Axe in Manassas, VA.

atomic_punk · Post by **atomic_punk** » Mon Feb 21, 2005 6:33 pm

I felt bad for a woman I encountered in a local GC, she was looking for a starter bass for her son and the GC employee was basically bullying her into an Ibanez piece of ****. Her son wasn't really digging the bass he was being pushed into, I was trying out another one and I could hear him telling his mom that he didn't like it.
I actually took a few minutes and showed them something better in the same price range, and he liked it a lot better. When they were paying for their items, and the guy asked who helped them, they pointed at me.

oreca · Post by **oreca** » Tue Feb 22, 2005 4:20 am

Steve that's a great story!

You gotta have a pretty good feeling after helping out that guy and his mom.

wormdiet · Post by **wormdiet** » Tue Feb 22, 2005 5:22 am

I remember being told a recent, EXC codition 4003 was worth $1200. I also learned that it was "a good deal because it was a discontinued model." 'Nuff said.

ken_j · Post by **ken_j** » Tue Feb 22, 2005 6:19 am

Steve which GC was it?

atomic_punk · Post by **atomic_punk** » Tue Feb 22, 2005 8:15 am

Ken, it was the one in Canton, it was right around Christmastime, I went in there to look for another GK4x10 cabinet and they were in there shopping. I felt so bad because of the service they were getting. It wasn't the normal bass department guy, by the way. I told her that if he doesn't like it, he won't want to run home from school and want to play it all night long. (Like I did!) Made me feel good.

green_us90 · Post by **green_us90** » Tue Feb 22, 2005 3:33 pm

Ron Wrote:
"The best episodes I've had in GC are the times I've taken one of my Rics in try out an amp. Most of the sales folks at least seem appreciative of them and the older folks will stop by and say something like, "Hey, I remember those!" It's amazing when the kids find out how great they sound"

I couldn't agree more.

When I went into the local GC recently and scored my new SVT 350 head to go with my 410HLF cab, I purposely brought Bruce, my '75 4001.
Just to see if that would tip the scales my way with the sales guys and wow them. Luckily I got a knowledgeable bass player and like every sales puke in the store was gaa gaa over it. I let the guy bang on it for about 15 minutes and he seemed impressed. Customers were checking it out while the door stiff was giving me the body cavity search treatment at the door."Cool....wow that's neat....etc etc."

Anyway all the basses there were pretty poor, a very mediocre Antiguia 77 Jazz for $1500, coolest bass there was an Epiphone EB-0 for like $225, I was tempted.