Shady guitar tech...gah.

[elgravos]

I remember a few years back I had a very good experience calling in the manufacturer to get this type of thing fixed.  I was living in the UK and ordered an H&K tubeman off a big online retailer in Germany.  The guys didn't send me the wall-wart on the basis that the UK plugs and voltage are slightly different.  I was pretty pissed given that for all of $5 (at most) you can get a perfectly good converter and in the meantime there I was with a tubeman I couldn't use (I believe it's 12 volts DC or something along those lines - not the sort of thing a run of the mill AC transformer will cover).  I called the guys and complained and they told me to get stuffed.  I then called the H&K office, also in Germany, and 2 days later I received a fedex wall-wart from the offending retailer together with an apology letter.  Good stuff.  I like Hughes and Kettner, you know they are looking out for their customers.  They also sent me a letter apologizing to me for having to put up with the dodgy retailers BS as well as a UK standard voltage / plug wall-wart on the house.   So now I got 2 wall-warts - neither of which work in the US but that's another story!  It's still a great piece of kit though.

 

[OzziePete]

Why would you expect somebody to set up your guitar under warranty when you changed string type and guage? Its not their fault your guitar is out of adjustment. Now that being said that's pretty stupid for somebody to say a string change voids a warranty. I've never heard of that. Then again I'm not a warrantyologist either. I just don't see how godin would pay this guy for setting up your guitar.

TBH, as I read the original post, I took it that the setup was free under warranty...kinda like a free service on your car as a sales inducement. I agree that I would normally assume a set up is a maintenance issue, and not something under warranty.  But who knows it may be a way that Godin are trying to pull sales in. :dontknow:

 

[Strat Avenger]

I set up all my own guitars, so this situation would never be an issue for me. If you can build a Warmoth guitar, you can certainly set up a Godin.

 

[mullyman]

I don't usually agree with Cagey but this time I'm in his corner 100%. You changed the strings, 2 gauges down from what it was set up to be. The guitar shop should not have to foot the bill for your setup. A warranty is only applicable, in most cases, when there is a problem that is a result of what the manufacturer or their representative has done. Also, there is no way any company can guarantee that your neck won't warp. It's wood, wood warps. So, if you change the gauge of strings like you did, an extreme difference in gauge too, you can bet your sweet ass that the neck is going to bend or bow. That's not covered at all. Now, if you were playing and the pot went bad or the switch stopped working, yeah, get the warranty out on that bad boy. Sorry, in your case, you're not covered.

I would like to say, though, that the place you take your guitar to sounds like it's run by a bunch of ass munchers. Calling my Warmoth "El-Cheapo" would have guaranteed me never stepping foot into their store ever again. I also didn't like the way they told you your warranty was voided. It's not void at all, what you have isn't covered and they should know that. And, they charge 54 bucks to adjust the truss rod and possibly adjust the bridge? Dude, learn to do those things yourself. You'd be paying them 54 bucks for a total of about 4 minutes work.
MULLY

 

[Mor Paul]

You'd be paying them 54 bucks for a total of about 4 minutes work.
MULLY

Most of that 4 minutes would be finding the right wrench.

 

[mullyman]

You'd be paying them 54 bucks for a total of about 4 minutes work.
MULLY

Most of that 4 minutes would be finding the right wrench.

Exactly.
MULLY

 

[ByteFrenzy]

So they include one free setup on the basis that it won't require them to actually do anything? How generous...

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

I don't think he was wanting a free setup, but a string gauge change voiding a warranty?  recockulous!

 

[erogenousjones17]

The free setup is on the original purchase invoice. That's why I brought it there in the first place. The only "problem" was that the intonation was a little off on the higher frets. I could have taken care of that myself.

And I don't think I was clear in my first post; it's not just that the strings are a different type or gauge--I could understand if that were the case, for the reasons some of you mentioned above--it's that they're not the same strings as when I bought it a year ago. It doesn't matter what I replaced them with, it's the fact that I replaced them myself.

For the record, I'm not trying to be whiny, and I'm not expecting "a lifetime of free setups". I paid the guy and left politely without complaining or pitching a fit. Knowing before hand would have been nice, that's all. Don't give me a contract with no small print and then cite the small print to cancel the agreement. That's just low.

But hey, you live, you learn, you fix your own guitars and you stop going to the crooked music shop downtown.  :laughing7:

 

[erogenousjones17]

Also, what's with the tuning thing? Am I really the only one that finds it really bizarre that that would have any bearing on anything? Am I really that stupid or naive?

 

[swarfrat]

I suppose if you wanted to string 0.42 - 0.13 and tune DGDADG you could really warp a neck. Even though it's being a petty pitb, I could see language concerning string gauge changes. A better way to handle this might be rather to argue if it ever came up, that  string and tuning that way is not reasonable, and get some expert opinions (like some of your competition) to back it up.

 

[elfro89]

Also, what's with the tuning thing? Am I really the only one that finds it really bizarre that that would have any bearing on anything? Am I really that stupid or naive?

the tech guy's a c^nt, for lack of a better word.

i hope he goes out of business.

 

[tfarny]

Cagey and Mulley are right on this one - once you change the string gauge, you are responsible for adjusting the truss rod and intonation. Otherwise you could ruin this guy changing your strings every day and bringing it in to be adjusted "under warranty". Warranties are for defects in workmanship. Anyhow, unless the top is bowing, learn to adjust your own damn truss rod and don't give those hacks another dime. Sheesh.

 

[Paul-less]

Well, the place I bought my first guitar offered free service for two years after purchase. I never had them change strings, but after 8 years, that tech remains the only man to touch that guitars truss rod...

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

Cagey and Mulley are right on this one - once you change the string gauge, you are responsible for adjusting the truss rod and intonation. Otherwise you could ruin this guy changing your strings every day and bringing it in to be adjusted "under warranty". Warranties are for defects in workmanship. Anyhow, unless the top is bowing, learn to adjust your own damn truss rod and don't give those hacks another dime. Sheesh.

He paid for the setup.  The warranty against defects shouldn't be voided for a string gauge change.

 

[tfarny]

OK, fine, it doesn't "void the warranty" to change a string gauge, but a setup after changing gauges should not be a warranty issue. Seriously, you need a straightedge, an allen key, and an eyeball to do this job, and you'll probably do a better job yourself than some hack who couldn't care less about your axe.

 

[ByteFrenzy]

I'd like to compare this to the free 'checkup after one year' my son got on his MTB.

'Did you ride it off road?'
"It's a fr*ng MTB, FCS..." 'Well did you?' "Ehhh... no ....???"

'Did you ever do over 15mph with it?' "Ehhhh... no?"

'Then did you ever inflate the tires yourself?'

This is the one where you're screwed either way, 'cause either you have, or you've ridden with underinflated tires...

 

[erogenousjones17]

Cagey and Mulley are right on this one - once you change the string gauge, you are responsible for adjusting the truss rod and intonation. Otherwise you could ruin this guy changing your strings every day and bringing it in to be adjusted "under warranty". Warranties are for defects in workmanship. Anyhow, unless the top is bowing, learn to adjust your own damn truss rod and don't give those hacks another dime. Sheesh.

That's exactly what I would have done under normal circumstances--I rarely, if ever, take my guitars to a tech. Actually, the neck didn't even need adjusting, but whatever. I just figured I might as well take advantage of the "free" thing before it expired and have someone else change my strings and polish my guitar for a change. Whaddayagonnado, right?

 

[JaySwear]

I don't think he was wanting a free setup, but a string gauge change voiding a warranty?  recockulous!

recockulous indeed. but i wouldn't blame the tech just yet. this isn't the first time i've heard about this, but i can't find the other thread for the life of me (on another forum). it's pretty ridiculous (recockulous), but i've heard about their warranty being voided if strings other than their own are used. i can't find my seagull warranty papers anywhere either.

 

[mullyman]

Also, what's with the tuning thing? Am I really the only one that finds it really bizarre that that would have any bearing on anything? Am I really that stupid or naive?

Well, when you change tuning, say from standard to half down, you are releasing tension on the neck which could make it warp on you. Not only did you change the gauge of strings, you changed the tuning too. I would think that after not too long that neck bent pretty good. As for voiding a warranty......sorry, I don't think changing your own strings or changing your tuning should affect that but I understand it if it's their way. Personally, I think they were just trying to worm their way out of doing a freebie for you. They sound like a bunch of dicks if you ask me. But, if you have a new guitar and it says they'll do a free setup for you then you should have taken it in when you wanted to change everything and had them do it for you. I still think they're dicks though.
MULLY