Quality Control? Real or Gimmick
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- Опубліковано 8 тра 2023
- Baxter and Jonathan Talk about the Gimmick of QC checklists. Is it a real tool or just a pencil whipped checklist?
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Quality ain't something you slap on a product after its been built.
I like the old Fender bit from the Leo days.
Each person who worked on the guitar or amp had to sign off on it, so they caught errors and issues sooner in the process & got them fixed.
FWIW, I’m just one guy and it was one guitar, but the gorgeous Gibson acoustic I bought from you was an absolute fantastic experience. Clear and thoughtful communication, the guitar was packaged carefully, it arrived in better than expected condition, and there was even a thoughtful little “Thank you” in the case. Almost unbelievable, honestly. It was my first (in 53 years) internet purchase, sight unseen for the most part, so I may be spoiled now. Thanks guys, I will love her always and think you all every time I strum her. ❤❤😊
Awesome story. A friend for life, your Gibson that is.
Reverend also does that "SE" thing. All the guitars come from South Korea, and are inspected and set up in Michigan before going back out. I have two, and the setups were spot on. (Go, Zack!)
I'm a shredder guitar/extended range guitar player primarily, but I feel the urge to get a classy guitar from Casino this year. I still like to believe that there's value in who and what a person supports when it comes to merchants, and getting to listen to you folks speak on guitar topics and discuss the shop has swayed me. Keep the videos coming!
I order online from you guys few months ago, and my Strat was and is impeccable! Thank you! 🎸🎸
I ordered a Les Paul from them last year and they sent me a used pair of Baxters underwear ! I mean come on !!
I used to be the warehouse manager for a medium big Midwest guitar retailer. We had a dedicated tech that restrung/checked the truss rod/cleaned/polished/checked the electronics on every guitar we sold. During the busy season that would be anywhere from 30 to 50 guitars a day. It was a well oiled machine, run by fear and pressure from the ownership. I don't miss that place at all. But it can be done with the right amount of staff who are paid fairly for the work they do.
I bought a guitar once from a large retailer that supposedly does inspections. On that particular guitar there is no way they could have done anything more than glance at it. The bridge was installed incorrectly which caused the bridge pickup to push into the strings. There is no way it could be played like it was as no notes would ring out. It was something I could fix so I kept the guitar, and it plays great now. It was just a good reminder to never assume anything. I always need to check for myself.
Sweetwater’s 55 point inspection happens as the guitar gets received. It gets processed and added to the website during the inspection. If it’s a guitar that doesn’t sell right away, every 6 months it is reinspected. Returned guitars are also reinspected. It’s a really great system. If there are any blemishes or chips or finish cracks or anything like that, if they’re not fixable, they will be marked as demos per manufacturers standards. If they are fixable there are some incredibly knowledgeable and talented techs working in the guitar gallery that fix them. The point of the 55 point inspection is that wether the customer buys a $400 guitar or a $4000 guitar, they both play great out of the box. I hope this answers any questions anyone may have! Love your channel guys!
I've got one coming Thursday from Sweetwater. I'm going to check the inspection date. Great question! Love your show!!!
Sad to say for me, FMIC and their custom shop have a real QC problem. Here’s my experience over the last 18 months
#1 - Masterbuilt Todd Krause Strat. Tone knob broken on arrival. Spins forever. 6 months back and forth with fender support for replacement (relic’d knob so needed matching one)
#2 - Fender Mod shop order. Received guitar, the QC Checklist was included. Signed off under picture of hard shell case I ordered. Guitar came in gig bag.
#3 - American Ultra Jazzmaster - Tone Knob was so tight it was unmovable. 4 of 6 tuners were so loosely installed the washers spun on them. Push button on vol knob didn’t work. Had to pull apart and reinstall. Worlds worst setup on a guitar. Bridge made loud clunking noise (different than usual Jazzmaster sound). Returned guitar.
#4 - Custom shop telecaster - Arrived with wrong neck (21 fret not 22 fret on build sheet). Wrong string gauge and wrong tuners (vintage not locking). 6 months ship back/replace.
#5 - Custom shop strat - Guitar was perfect, the included certificate of authenticity has totally different serial # than guitar. Still waiting for replacement COA.
To be clear, Casino was only involved in one of these issues and couldn’t have been better in getting it resolved. In fact Baxter helped out in my issue #1 and I didn’t buy that guitar from them (hadn’t discovered casino at that point). These guys are the real deal, best guitar shop I’ve dealt with hands down.
Phil McKnight did a behind the scenes on the Sweetwater QC process. Fascinating.
Of course, what do you think is going to happen when cameras are present?
Phil McKnights OF is truly fascinating.
@@buckodonnghaile4309 Fascinating.
Fascinator
It is miracle that any guitar from China even squire or Harley benton has survived the time that they are stuck at sea!!! Especially with the ports that were closed down!!! Also all the tubes that are at sea!! It is why I love my little solid state stuff don't have to pay 50 to a100 for microphonic or dead tubes! WE is saying 200 to 250 for there tubes! Love you both and have a blessed day!!!
I'm with you on solid state stuff. most players who insist on tube amps will first run the signal thru a bunch of solid state pedals anyway. if I wanted to spend a few thousand on an amp, I'd much rather get a good modeling processor that can do a bunch of different things, and then run the output into ANYthing.
Nice video guys, bringing back memories here! Some years ago I was the warehouse guitar tech for what at teh time was the largest music store in France. If there were no problems I could test and setup 20 - 25 guitars per day, including packing for shipping. But one problem instrument could take an 30 minutes to an hour before diagnosis, fix, and/or paper work was done for sending it back. In general electric guitars of all brands had totally random setup quality at all price levels, with just two exceptions - Gibson and Music Man, though Gibson had very frequent finish issues back then.
I received a masterbuilt Fender custom shop strat with a badly cut neck pocket causing a misaligned neck and lacquer runs in the finish - shocking.....my dealer over here in the UK picked it up, thank god for local businesses who care...
poor quality from Fender custom shop? I don't find that shocking at all.
I ordered a Fender Player Stratocaster recently and I decided to upgrade the tuners. After changing the tuners out and restringing it I discovered that the nut was cut uneven, with a wider gap between the high E and the B string therefore making all the other slots off. It’s a beautiful guitar with a light weight and it wasn’t noticeable at first glance. But this defect wasn’t caught by either Fender’s QC nor the retailer that did their multi inspection. To the credit of the retailer they are going to cover the cost of the nut replacement and setup. But buyer beware that you need to look 👀 the guitar over with an eagle eye!
Sweetwater inspects on arrival, photographs and weighs each guitar. They do not use stock photos for the listings.
When in doubt ship it out! Cheers Casino!!
My understanding from a friend who bought a guitar from SW- they perform the inspection once you purchase the guitar, not prior. So that makes sense on how they can afford to do it
Weird, I’d
Figured they are all boxed up and ready to ship by the time you place the order. I mostly get my
Guitars within 2 days when I order. I do live 4-5 hours away but still.
It would be interesting to see what would get rejected or corrected during a QC inspection- and how it's handled.
And that's the rub.
You're doing quality control, not luthier work. In order to make the system work, you have to send it back.
I bought a Sweetwater "exclusive" Tele about five years ago that was mostly amazing. There was some glue on the fretboard at the nut that could have been cleaned up at Fender, and certainly should have been noticed at Sweetwater during their "55 point inspection." There were also a few finish issues that should have been noticed at Fender and Sweetwater. But other than that, the guitar showed up well set up and actually in tune. I imagine that there's a limit to what can be done at the retail level, but there should be a little more care at the manufacturer. Especially with something above base model.
Sweetwater has changed a lot in the past year, let alone the last 5. There's a lot of things I feel like they should be catching in their 55 pt inspection, but they aren't. I would try to buy from your local guitar store whenever possible.
@@rensuzugamori2531 Very true. With Sweetwater's sale to venture capitalists a couple of years ago I'm sure we're just seeing the beginnings of their inevitable decline. (Which is a shame.)
Sweetwater checks it first. I just saw this under "Available to ship soon"
"This guitar is currently acclimating to the climate inside our warehouse before we can complete our 55-point inspection. Order yours now, and we'll ship it as soon as our team is finished with the inspection process, usually within the next 48 hours."
I've only had one issue with Sweetwater on QC on a Tele but it was more around the saddles and the dirt on the rosewood fretboard that needed to be cleaned
I was gifted a PRS SE for my b day from a friend (this past weekend). Shipped to GC, went to pick it up. The input jack had been retracted from the plate. No biggie easy fix. When I told my friend, he laughed and said the PRS SE he got for his son also had the same issue. Go figure. Can’t argue though because it was free.
I bought a new 2017 Les Paul Tribute that had fret sprout, and a new 2015 Tele with a cold solder joint. Both were fixed by the dealer in a couple of days.
Baxters beard, though small is very neat and would appear to be conducting an orderly business.
The Hair is having a wild , wild Party.
Oh yea, and if Sweetwater is so great on attention to detail, how did they manage to ship my American Professional 2 Strat without it's tremolo bar? I've alread ranted about that though.
I've only had one bad experience and it was with Sweetwater. I ordered a Squier Telecaster Deluxe and it came out of the box wildly outta tune, one of the volume knobs was broken off, both humbuckers were loose and rattled like mad..there was no way QC inspected that guitar. Sweetwater made me a deal to send me new parts and fix it myself or get a new guitar, which was on back order for 90 days. Shit happens, and they made it right. I have ordered through Sweetwater since, and have had no issues.
I imagine Sweetwater does some inspection on delivery since they photograph and weigh the guitars before posting them on the site.
Reverend also do the 'overseas manufacture but opened, inspected and fully set up in the USA' thing that PRS do. It certainly up's the quality consistency.
I know that people hate on Gibson for QC issues here in the last few years but I got a Tobacco Burst Les Paul Tribute from Sweetwater and man that thing was AMAAAAAZINGLY put together! I've got a 335 from the early days of the Memphis factory and I can tell you I'd put that little Tribute right up against that 335. I've got a lot of Shorts on my channel and the vast majority of them are with that Tribute more than the 335. I just can't hardly put the thing down. Anybody think that's more of a "Sweetwater thing" than "Gibson thing"? I think Sweetwater is incredible!
I saw a video of Sweetwater's process a few weeks ago. I forget who did it. There is definitely some inspection on the way in because part of it is done as they're taking photos since all of the guitars that qualify for the inspection also get photos of the specific guitar along with weights etc. It's an inspection that covers things like "the action is within manufacturers specs" but it's not a setup. They can fix some minor things in house if they fail, and they feed back stats to the manufacturer so they can improve their processes. (No clue about how many of their 1000/day are above the threshold price to qualify for the inspection)
I used to do Quality Control, but not for Guitars, but for M1 Tanks.
You get to a point where you either finish the job yourself or it becomes an ego thing with the people you work with.
I used to rotate mechanics through the system with me 18 pages of checks and tests. At some point they understood that I was just trying to send the best product out the door.
I can assure you that feeding Tanks to a War in the M.E. made a lot of pressure for all of us.
You are the Finish Assemblers!
I've ordered two guitars from Sweetwater - an Epiphone Casino Coupe last year and a MIM Fender Vintera '60s Telecaster Modified, also last year. I ordered an additional setup on both (not just the standard included 55-point inspection). The Casino Coupe shipped about I think 2-3 days after it arrived at SW (it had been back-ordered), and the setup is *perfect*. After playing it, my dad was inspired to take his Les Paul, which he's had since like '77, into a local Sam Ash for a setup for the first time ever - that's how good my Epi's setup was 😅. I only have great things to say about their service and work on that guitar.
I actually had SW do a neck swap on the Tele prior to sending it to me, getting them to replace the original neck with the roasted maple soft-V Vintera '50s Tele neck in addition to doing a setup. I think it was just over a week between the guitar's arrival at SW (also back-ordered) and shipment to me. The high E string was a bit too close to the edge of the fretboard, noticeably so compared to other Teles and guitars. I eventually had the nut replaced with a TUSQ nut at my local Sam Ash (we don't really have any small local stores where I live). The neck did come with the nut pre-cut, I believe, but I do think that's something that may have been caught or improved. In general, though, I'm obsessed with the guitar; it's my baby. Setup wasn't up to the same level of perfection as the Casino Coupe, though.
I’ve gotten guitars from the factory covered in grime, dust and rusted strings.
And Prestine beautifully set up
Guitars from sweet water. I’ve also seen guitars come in stock at sweet water and they put them on hold because they need to go through inspection and photography
I’ve purchase a Martin CEO7 and a PRS CE 24 from Sweetwater and when I received both of them they played great right out of the case. The PRS I gigged with on the day I received it and had to make no adjustments to string height, intonation, or truss rod tweaks. I haven’t had that same experience with most my local guitar shops.
I hope you’re enjoying that CEO7. I recently fell in love with one at my local shop and can’t get it out of my head.
I've wanted a real Fender strat for 30+ yrs and finally got a Vintera 50's. My friend noticed that the edge of the neck at the 1st fret was slightly dipped as though 1mm too much wood had been shaved off. It doesn't make a difference so I'm not bothered. But it is a £779 guitar from Fender and I'm a carer for the elderly on just £11.10 per hour so it's my dream guitar and sounds magical to me.
I think Baxter is right - the volume electric guitar manufacturers are spending 2½minutes _tops_ per guitar on pre-ship QC. My guess would be closer to 60 seconds: out of the box, spin it 360º, plug it in, strum a few cords, and on to the next one!
G&L does the 'SE' thing also. Now it is not as thorough as the PRS, but still doing it,
I bought a PRS from Sweetwater. They had already inspected and photographed it. Then It took two days for them to recheck it and ship it.
Got fender strat players plus from sweet water set up was good just lucky
I purchased a few different guitars from Sweetwater. Granted none were high end guitars, but all were supposed to have had the 55 point inspection. The last being an Epi Firebird was by far the worst I had received from them - the setup was horrible. I don’t might doing my own set up, but the starting point is usually a lot closer to where I end up after I set it up for me. I am reluctant to order any other guitars from them as I feel that their quality control has slipped. I never thought that they had such a huge number of guitars being shipped out each day - So I can understand if they miss stuff.
I have a local luthier who I pay ($380 AUD) to go over every new or used guitar I buy. One brand new Hummingbird needed the frets leveled truss rod adjusted as it was loose with no tension in it, as well as a bunch of minor problems. He's one of the best Joe Walsh uses him when he's in Australia. He told me that most new guitars come out of the factory like this, they simply can't afford to set up every guitar to high standards. When Leo works on a guitar they are perfect and it's worth every dollar.
My guess is that Sweetwater inspects the guitars when they come in, and then they put them into the inventory for sale. You couldn’t do the inspection for each order and keep up.
That’s exactly it. They inspect them as they come in not go out
Yes you can, warehouse needs to have a specific setup staff and controller bench room to do it. 5 capable people on 2 shifts doing the work, yes, it very much could be done even to the tune of 1000s of new pieces a day. The professionalism of that team could later build guitars, of ran even partly right it should compensate entirely lus some the needed output.
I think SW inspects them when they come in and take pics for the website. I went there and bought a guitar a couple times and they always had someone play it and do a quick check before I left the store.
“Don’t get sued by Marvin Gaye” 😂😂😂
i know sweetwater inspects their guitars before they go up for sale in the "gallery" where you can look at it etc to pick which one you want to buy.. they have a notification when things are coming soon but undergoing the inspection process
I worked in a QC laboratory in a chemical plant. We had several hundred tests per day we did.
After a couple months I told the boss, there was no way the techs could do all that work properly. Turns out the techs were only running every other test and penciling in the missing tests! Faking results vs the right thing. Oh well. I was not popular after that.
we have an Indian owned liquor store down the street, recently my wife asked oh are you going to be open on ?, the fellows response is, Indian business open everyday, like not even a question, obviously the culture has a work ethic, sad that guitar companies and retail stores than make hundreds and thousands of dollars on the items, don't really get this idea, work no matter what then work more and harder, rinse repeat,
When I watched a recent factory tour of one of the big brands, the speed of the employees was crazy. I guess their time frames for an inspection are adventurous.
I’ve had a couple terrible experiences with Sweetwater. There was a couple guitars that NO WAY went through their “55 point” inspection.
I'd say it's possible it did go through the so-called "55 point inspection", but like Baxter is saying here, there are limits to how much time they can spend on it because this is retail.
@@danielstoddart Well of course anything is possible. But the oversight on these 2 different guitars was extreme and remarkable. In my experience I have just found better prices and better service at a handful of other retailers. Sweetwater markets the “55 point” inspection as a worthy feature that warrants customers paying higher. But truthfully I can get a better and more thorough setup from my local tech for less than $60! So again, in my opinion it just isn’t a selling point at all, and like I said in my experience they even failed at that service. They are my LAST choice to buy a guitar.
@@samsacco6979Sweetwater doesn't charge a premium for their 55-point inspection. You can elect to get a setup from them, which you'd have to pay extra for, but the 55-point inspection is free and doesn't affect the price. But anyway, I bet Sweetwater barely even looks at all those guitars. They say they do it for all guitars $300 and up, which means there'd be an insurmountable amount of guitars having to be inspected.
I think they (sweetwater) do the inspection when they receive the guitars. There’s a tour of their distribution center on another channel. They go through the whole process.
I spent 25 years in QC. All in manufacturing. The sad fact is, some defects are not identified until the product is so far down the line in the process, it's too late to repair it at a QC station. And there is rarely a good process for getting it back to be repaired. So, again sadly, out the door it goes. Now it's your issue. It's nothing personal, it's business.
There are grey areas, custumor A ok and when for custumor B it is a reject. Another thing is a guaranteed delivery. If a reject of sort means a breach in contract one may decide to deliver faulty product. After sales handles this and the company gets a big thumb for such great after sales service 😂
Just purchased a LP Special from Sweetwater seemed like they only had a few ready a day because of doing the Plyk on the frets. The cue said three more ready tomorrow.
I do not believe in Sweetwaters 55 point inspection. First of all -Are there 55 things to inspect on a guitar?
I don't think so. Last week I ordered a new Gretsch Electromatic with P90s , paid for 129.00 for a set up, plus Elixir strings. When it arrived 3 days late, the volume knobs, & tone knobs were off the guitar in bottom of the box and the truss rod cover was bowed out & the Truss Rod was sticking up half way up the headstock. I called them , asked how this could possibly be ???, returned the guitar because of the experience for a full refund. They did not want to discuss how this escaped them. This is the first bad experience I have ever had with SW, but now I am leary again of ordering a guitar from a website
All of the guitars and basses that I've purchased from Wildwood have been perfect. That's no coincidence.
Quality starts with the incoming inspection of the components. Next is the inspection of the various assemblies to see that the correct components are used and placed in that assembly using good manufacturing techniques. Then the final assembly to verify that the product and all of its subassemblies properly work together to create the final product. All of these steps should have to pass through inspection to verify the quality level as prescribed by the manufacturer has been mentioned. The absolute FINAL inspection should be the responsibility of the retailer. If it should have a problem at the retail level, the store should either fix it themselves (if a small issue) or return it to the manufacturer. No manufacturing chain is perfect and neither is their QC. "Buyer beware"
I feel like the quality of QC goes hand in hand with the quality of the brand. I watched a video on EMG pickups and their QC the other day and holy crap are they not fucking around, hence why you never hear about EMG QC issues. I feel like companies run by people who care the most, never have to be told to improve their QC, no company with someone working there who's last name is in the brand, or with the founder of the brand still there seems to have these issues. Meanwhile manufacturers that at some point made a decision to move some portion of their business overseas to take advantage of cheap labor (at the cost of our environment lets be real), seem to have never ending QC issues from the items they still produce in country even! Companies that give a shit only about the bottom line have lot of QC issues, and companies that clearly prioritize the instruments with a desire to protect their legacy (like Martin) don't have those issues. The most knowledgeable people at Fender and Gibson leave a lot to be desired, the bar is set incredibly low for both of them and they both can't even come close to competing with who they were in the 1960s, meanwhile boutique makers that are passionate, are now making better versions of strats and les pauls. I don't think QC issues for the big guys are going anywhere, I don't think they are ever going to bring manufacturing back to the US, I only see them doing more and more overseas to compensate for their losses. The big guys have one thing going for them, brand names, but people give less and less a shit about that as every year passes and they are incapable of capturing the magic they found in the 1960s.
I have a Fender Strat. Was having string problems so took it to a local shop for a service and restring. The guy spotted 3 items that need to be worked on that was causing me problems. Trem system not right, scratch guard under the trem and adjusters not turning correct. So Q/C is very hit and miss.
Well,having dealt with Sweetwater I can say their 55 point inspection is a joke,they were ok about returning a guitar and getting another but the 55 point inspection was not done,the nobs were crooked and barely on,one of the pots was way loose,so I don't know how anyone actually inspecting the guitar could miss this !
The last 3 martins I got all needed work..
As someone who builds all his own guitars. My biggest peeve is playability. Low action at the nut is the most important. Every guitar I have ever bought from the big names has always been terrible playability out of the box. Finish blems, fretboard/fret blems are another issue to me from big name companies. Which is why I sold my Gibsons.
I worked in manufacturing and what they have as a result of quality programs is “quality at the source” meaning that as a product goes through each stages of development the person at each station is responsible for making sure the his portion of work meets standards before sending it off to the next production station. I don’t know how many guitar companies practice this. I would think many Japanese companies do
My QC experiences? Let's talk current day Jackson. I bought two (entry level) JS Series guitars - A Rhoads JS32T FSR and a Dinky JS32 DKA Arch Top both in Natural Oil finishes. It was the finishes that I liked so I bought the matching pair off the sales walls of two local Guitar Centers. When I got home I discovered the DINKY had a bad tuner. More than a half turn of play in either direction. Somehow it left the factory in China that way and then from out of the box to the GC sales wall. It was in tune when I initially picked it up, so how a GC employee could have tuned it without noticing is not possible, yet up for sale it went. Another GC location where I'd spent a lot of money swapped that tuner with another from the same model off their wall and then sent theirs back for repair. I bought the Rhoads off the sales wall, first putting it on layaway hold since it did not have a case. I ordered the Jackson case for their V models, which cost almost as much as the guitar. When the case came in I paid off the Rhoads so it could leave the store safe in a quality hardshell case. The guitar did not initially fit the case. It was just a bit too wide. The body had to be worked in with gentle but firm pressure to manipulate the hard foam to adjust to body dimensions. If you inserted the guitar body in the “right way” you could close the lid normally. Took the guitar in case home and placed it into climate controlled storage with most of my gear. Several years later I decided to cull the guitar heard and decided to sell the Rhoads since I never did a damn thing with it. It still had the protective factory plastic film over the pick guard, truss rod cover and pickups. Took it, still in case, to GC where I was told the neck had a bow and it would require an $80 setup out of my pocket before they could pay me $100 cash for it, potentially leaving me to net $20 for a guitar and case I paid almost $500 combined for. I told them I'd rather make a clock out of it. Now, my dumb ass originally just grabbed that Rhoads off the wall and put it on layaway until the case could arrive. I didn't play it. I assumed if it was up for sale, it was set up properly. I'm guessing the bow in the neck was already there when new and I didn't notice. I mean, it went from their sales wall to hook in their back warehouse until to the proper factory case made for it arrived, to my climate controlled storage and back to GC to sell. Yes, a few years passed BUT the instrument was kept in that case and never experienced any temperature extremes. None of the necks of my other instruments bowed under the same conditions so far as I've seen, so I think that Rhoads was bad from the get go and GC didn't care and they put it up for sale. The joke is on me for not playing it first. Jackson JS series is poor QC garbage and shame on FMIC for allowing it. GC is... well GC. I did finally rid myself of both of those Jacksons at a big loss, but I kept the Rhoads case. I might gut it and use it as a suitcase.
musical instruments are made to be played.
@@anthonypanneton923 I own around 40 musical instruments but only have two hands.
@@danwilson9530 Right. I was refering to the Jackson Rhoads you were whining about. it seems to me that if you had ever played it, you might have noticed if it had a bowed neck. It may have been that the truss rod was loose and sitting in a case for a few years with a loose truss rod and strings on it would be likely to bow a neck. you might have noticed that the truss rod needed adjustment if you had ever played it. and to assume anything about the state of a guitar (even a new one) from an outift like GC is just not "best practice."
just sayin'....
@@anthonypanneton923 You sir are 100% RIGHT! It’s a weird thing. I have an 84 Rhoads Custom. Got it new as a gift when I was 15. It was about $4,500 in today $. It’s the guitar I’ve compared all others against for 39 years. I bought that JS32T because I liked the Natural Oil finish. Looked amazing for what I knew was a POS guitar. My plan was to strip it down to the husk, rebuild it with good hardware/electronics and take it places I’m too uptight about taking my 84. So, my attitude at that moment was I didn’t care how it played because I had plans. Never considered the truss rod could be an issue. You are absolutely right. I should have examined it better and not assumed a new guitar would be just fine coming from a GC. Buyers of entry level Jacksons from GC BEWARE!
Schecter guitars probably has the best QC of any mass produced electric guitar. They produce most of their stuff in Korea and Indonesia and once it gets to Los Angeles they unpack it and go over them and set them up then sell them direct to consumer or to guitar stores.
I had an SE McCarty show up a month ago from a big online retailer. Both the retailer AND PRS missed $400+ worth of wiring and fret issues. I've heard plenty of people tout the PRS QC but it failed me on my first go at a PRS /shrug
I don't usually buy guitars I can put my hands on.
The local indy shops I buy from are pretty good at making sure their guitars are ready to go out the door.
So I think to myself Quality Control would maybe be a cool band name. I just looked it up on Spotify and it's already taken. Their top song is Baby (Lil Baby feat. Dababy) with over 417,500, 000 plays. Lmao. Oh the irony
I just purchased a brand new Gibson Standard Maestro Vibrola SG. Fret dots on the side binding not even close to being centered. $2500 for zero QC
Sweetwater inspection is completed when guitars are first received. “Produce Like A Pro“did a YT video on the process. Every aspect of the operation is “timed” and results are posted on monitors within the area. If you are not meeting quota, the entire department knows, lol.
The amount of product in the warehouse is amazing.
A Jonathan upgrade? Wonder what that would be.
I always see mixed results online about Chapman. Let me offer my positive experience purchasing an ML3 Pro Bea from their Korean factory. Guitar was immaculate. So fear not.
The ugly headstock, you’re going to have to sand down and round out yourself, however.
I think the 55 point inspection happens prior to the photos they post.
Best guitar I've gotten straight out of the box was a PRS SE Tonare.
I am glad that the manufacturers have inadequate QC in general, so the guys like you can stay in business. I would buy a PRS guitar, especially S2 line and up, sight unseen, from anywhere. I would only buy a Gibson sight unseen from a small reputable store like yours. Speaking of, super glad Gibson got rid of the "cool guy". They don't need a brand expert, they need a manufacturing expert. The only reason their brand has been tarnished is because of the long term neglect of built consistency.
Quality starts with Concept, the Materials and Personnel before ever Touched or Built, Then its The Process used to Create your Magical Instrument at the Manufacturers, Those Dotting those i's and crossing Those T's to maintain Quality. The Mom & Pop Shops are still better then a GC big box because you have a chance the Mom & Pop or Casino will set it up and not Charge you for service that most feel on New Guitar Should be Mandatory and Free. Best I can say is Keep Casino and other Mom & Pops Open before all you have left are big box that just wont care as Much as Baxter, Jonathan or a Mom or Pop on the corner
Not true about Paul Reed Smith SE guitars. I bought a Custom 24 SE. The input jack hex screw was loose, one of the pickup screws was loose and the washer on one of the tuners was loose. I tightened all myself. Seems to me that would have been checked in Maryland and taken care of before that guitar went out. I didn't buy in store. Was shipped to me that way.
G&L does the same thing PRS does and inspects all of the imports before they send them out.
I got an amp from Sweetwater that was DOA and a guitar the had sharp fretts on the side of the finger board from not being dressed properly. So.....
The thing that bugs me about "Quality Control" is people making determinations about a process from seeing one example of either a success or failure. There's no way to determine how good QC is without seeing hard data about a crap-ton of guitars.
I've seen many videos where Epiphones come to customers with issues. A lot of broken switches and pots.
i just had a guitar shipped from sweetwater last month and the 55 point inspect. is done before it goes out to the customer. They called me me and told me it had gone into the 55 point and then it would ship.
My 2 Squier Classic Vibes where much better than my MiM Stratocaster. Also Sweetwater only does inspections on guitars over $399 so not all 1000 orders per day are above that price.
Economy of scale, procedures and systems. They probably have a very specific system for guitar checks. Can one guy check a guitar every 10 minutes? 8 hour day, $20 hour, 48 inspections, $3.33 per guitar. It's probably less than that per guitar, which is probably less than the cost of sending bad guitars out. Just spit-balling here. No actual experience or knowledge of their systems.
I should have watched the whole video. LOL, you all covered it after I typed it.
If you have a knowledgeable staff with experience and training then QC will never be a problem. With the aforementioned points you really won’t need an extensive extra QC step. It will happen t every stage. People care about their work if they are allowed.
I got an acoustic guitar from Musicians Friend, and they are no friend of mine. It came with corroded strings and sounded so bad. They wouldn't let me return it. Neck was out as well. Baaad experience.
Just spent 4.700 on a 61 custom shop fender telecaster faded olenpic white grease bucket tone got it home all it did was pop….. took it back to Fullers they opened it up and wires weren’t even saudered !!!!?
Sometimes QC is baffling! I recently received a custom ordered guitar from a very famous maker. A screw was missing from the pickguard and the electronics were all jacked up. I realize said "name" may not have touched through every process, but you are only as good as your employees who handle different parts of the build and/or process. This was my first time ordering something like this, really disappointing experience and not sure if I will ever do something like this again.
Purchased 2 prs se guitar last year both sent back for high frets on both guitar prs Europe certainly don't check em
Well just went back and forth with 3 fender handwired deluxe reverbs to sweetwater. All 3 were bad. Fender didn't seem to have any. 3 of 3 bad. I told sweetwater im done. No more for me...
Play your Acoustic Cover Tomorrow on one of those Amazing Guitars you have for sale, not just to hear you rendition of Song but to see another Fine Instrument for Sale at Casino, Jonathan must have heard it on the grapevine about Marvin Gaye
Obviously, Sweetwater isn't gonna drop everything and inspect YOUR guitar, the same day you order it. They inspect them all when they arrive. Does this prevent any and all problems? NOT. I think alot of people still mistake this for a set up. An inspection by an entry level tech, is a long way from being set up by a pro level luthier. Why is this soo hard to understand?
Lots of high frets on high end Martins…
Guitar Centers have Vintage Guitar Strings
Some places don’t have the QC they claim (not gonna mention names) and other places have it in droves. I bought a fretless bass in the middle of winter and of course it was buzzing like a hive. Took it back “The Bass Shop” in Seattle and they did the full adjustment twice and it plays like butter now. If you have such a shop in your life, give them a shout out. Jeff & Chad rock!! 🤘
@thebassshopseattle2450
My last guitar (American Pro II Stratocaster) bought from Sweetwater had a crack in the finish at the neck joint. There is no way this guitar went through an inspection process prior to shipping. I don't see how it's possible with the volume that they handle. I mean things happen, no big deal, as long as the issues are addressed.
I just want to add that my Taylor AD22e purchase from Casino was an awesome experience. From speaking with Baxter and getting help picking out the right Taylor to the hand written thank you after I received it. If your reading this, these guys are the best.
I had a slash appetite from destruction Les Paul shipped from Sweetwater ..the pickup selector tip was cracked ..no foam cap over it when shipped they sent me a new switch tip ..but that shouldn’t happen ….I don’t think they are what they used to be the people u call now never played a instrument…sell baby sell…at any cost😂😂
Mercy always triumphs over judgment. Look in the mirror. Give Grace. Remember times you’ve not achieved perfection. Give people the opportunity to make corrections.
Sweetwater inspects when they come in.
I know for a fact from personal experience that Sweetwater DOES NOT do a proper setup job…at least for electric guitars with a trem. In fact, they are flat out awful. I think they just sign that they did it but never look at it. That, or they have people who are working that position who know nothing about a proper setup/inspection.