Bad "The Axe Palace" Experience

  • Thread starter Thread starter crankster
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I have no horse in this game.

But from what I can read, you didn't have the original packaging. You assumed the customer would be ok with whatever packaging you did have, and you didn't communicate clearly or set expectations before shipping the amp. Then the customer paid for the return shipping due to having different expectations. Honestly, you both had a different view of what was appropriate. Neither is right or wrong or really needs so much defensive posturing.

I think it is ok for a customer to want the original packaging on a high ticket item. In the future, consider talking to the customer before you ship the item? It's only 1% of transactions. Explain the situation and decide what to do with the customer involved. Worst case you lose a sale because you can't agree on a resolution, but you avoid having to argue on the internet.


Fwiw, I bought an Engl around 2002 from a different US dealer, and it didn't come with spare tubes. Come to think of it, I've never bought an amp that had extra tubes in the box. Not saying you are wrong, just saw this statement and was a bit surprised.

And not that it matters, but Engl branded tubes I had were noisy as hell. Not sure why anyone would want to keep the original ones or care about them.
They used to ship with 2 spare preamp tubes. Shitty or not, it's part of what you get with a brand new Engl, (atleast back then you did).

I didn't want to beat a dead horse, but I did buy a "brand new" Laney from them, prior to this, (I know, I'm an idiot for not learning from that experience). I got a great deal, but here's how it showed up, with little to no packing..
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To boot, the head had foot imprints on top from another head being stacked on it. Tell me that wasn't out on the floor. That, it was, and chucked in a box with 2/3 of the original packing gone. He played dumb on that one too and blamed his packer..
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Footprints on a brand new head is absolutely unacceptable and you’re right - it means it was out on the demo floor for sure. It’s also piss easy to avoid - Mesa sells (and includes with their amps now) felt pads that prevent this. But it would take someone actually caring about the condition of the gear they’re selling to worry about that. Axe Palace has always seemed like what happens when a gear nerd has a bit of capital and not like a proper dealer, and this kind of stuff is why - are you a dealer or your buddies jam room?
 
They used to ship with 2 spare preamp tubes. Shitty or not, it's part of what you get with a brand new Engl, (atleast back then you did).

I didn't want to beat a dead horse, but I did buy a "brand new" Laney from them, prior to this, (I know, I'm an idiot for not learning from that experience). I got a great deal, but here's how it showed up, with little to no packing..
View attachment 91635View attachment 91638View attachment 91641View attachment 91644

To boot, the head had foot imprints on top from another head being stacked on it. Tell me that wasn't out on the floor. That, it was, and chucked in a box with 2/3 of the original packing gone. He played dumb on that one too and blamed his packer..
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That’s shitty. How fucking lazy can they be to not even bother to clean it?
 
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It's really sad to see this vitriolic nonsense is still being spewed here. We've never once in our history screwed over a single customer, not try to make things right whenever a mistake was made, refused a refund, etc. Several people posting in this thread are mentally unstable and outright lying. We have thousands of rave reviews on just about every marketplace/review site on the internet, for a good reason. Before listening to miserable trolls, do your own research.

@napalmdeath: I can't believe 5 years later you're still ranting and lying about this. One final time: We shipped you a brand new ENGL Fireball. You were enraged that we shipped the amp in a different box due to the original box incurring damage. That does not make it a used amp. Nonetheless, we promptly refunded you once you complained, so what is the issue? The level of hatred and vitriol you have for someone who sent you a brand new product, and refunded you once you complained, borders on insanity. We've been an ENGL dealer for 10 years, and no one ever had an issue with any amp we've shipped out, other than you. Seek mental help, immediately.

@njhelmet4000: You have a legitimate gripe, although I think that should be more with G&L than us. We promptly placed your order with G&L once you made it. G&L had *major* issues during the pandemic, were shut down for a while, had several orders we placed slip the cracks, I couldn't get our reps to answer emails or phone calls most of the time, etc. It sucks, we were caught in the middle. I should have communicated better during the process, but we were so in the dark that it was tough at times. That said, we have never refused any refund in the case something goes wrong. You never needed to threaten us to get a refund, a simple phone call or emailing asking for one would have sufficed.

@katsumura78: None of that story sounds familiar or remotely plausible given that every single guitar we receive, we open up, inspect, have our licensed luthier/technician set it up to the customer's specs for no charge. Every single guitar on our website specifically has a "Setup Instructions" box for this exact reason. This is something we're well known for, and just about every customer knows about. So something had to have been lost in translation here or was miscommunicated here. You're welcome to PM me with more context, as this is news to me.

To anyone reading this unfortunate thread: not everything you read on the internet is true. Do your own research. Look up review websites, Reverb reviews, eBay reviews, BBB, social media, talk to the companies we work with, whoever, and in the unlikely event you'd still have any concerns, just visit the store or contact us and it's highly unlikely you won't have a great experience.

I'm bringing this dead thread up because I can't believe this response...

You took almost a year to send me a refund for the damaged amplifier you sold me. It was damaged because you chose to ship it in a thin toilet paper box, which was nowhere near strong enough to ship an amp with. I had to harass you to get a response in regards to this.
 
I am more surprised by the mod edits in this thread than the substance of this thread. I guess someone is friends with axe palace
 
Wasn't me, and whoever did it removed the history so I can't tell who did it
It didnt seem like a you move. I am mildly irritated that one of my posts got edited. But in the interest of transparency, it is unfortunate that the others did.

Each party has a chance to give their side of the story. At the end of the day, we know the perpetrator of the monkey business by the language used in the edit on my post
 
It didnt seem like a you move. I am mildly irritated that one of my posts got edited.... At the end of the day, we know the perpetrator of the monkey business by the language used in the edit on my post
Monkey business. :LOL:

Brother, I was obligated to act 'cause the complainant requested that the owner's name be removed, as you would've noticed in multiple posts, as well as the inappropriate ad-hom.

Sorry that it irritated you; I was just doing my job.

One or two members deleted some of their own posts unprompted by me BTW, so kudos to them 'cause they had the maturity to recognise that they might've taken things into distasteful territory unnecessarily.

Not a pretty thread and one I thought I'd seen the last of until its 5-year bump today. :dunno:
 
I am more surprised by the mod edits in this thread than the substance of this thread. I guess someone is friends with axe palace
... or someone was simply doing his job. :dunno:

It didnt seem like a you move. I am mildly irritated that one of my posts got edited.
The implication of course being that it's a "me" move. Thanks.

If Dan were the one to have received the same complaints and requests I did, he'd have been obligated to act as well. He wasn't a mod back then and a certain simian was carrying 90+% of the load so no guesses as unto whom the task befell.
 
... or someone was simply doing his job. :dunno:


The implication of course being that it's a "me" move. Thanks.

If Dan were the one to have received the same complaints and requests I did, he'd have been obligated to act as well. He wasn't a mod back then and a certain simian was carrying 90+% of the load so no guesses as unto whom the task befell.
You seem defensive about this. I am curious why.

You owe me no obligation of course. But I am wondering what complaint you could have possibly received (and from who) that would compel you to remove [name removed, sigh] name from all the posts?

If you were able to verify that all the accusations made against him were false, I get it. But short of that, I have seen many interactions with manufacturers or stores where we have he said/she said and we leave it up and let people make up their own mind when reading both sides of the story
 
I agree with that brother but if the boss receives a request that a name be removed, it is to be done; we're obligated to act.

If you were able to verify that all the accusations made against him were false, I get it.
None of that stuff was removed; only the ad-hom and name specificity.

You seem defensive about this. I am curious why.
I didn't like the not-so-subtle implications brother, simple as that.

"we know the perpetrator of the monkey business"
"I guess someone is friends with axe palace"


Perpetrator? Negative framing.
Friends with the business? Looking out for one's mates.

Doing one's job by-the-book isn't in any way equivalent to showing favouritism. Being on the other side of the world, I'd never even heard of the business.

I hope you understand that from someone in my position's perspective your comments were below-the-belt / offensive. I wasn't offended 'though, just not happy with the portrayal, hence my efforts to set the record straight.

Rock on brother; it's all-good my man. :cheers2:
 
I agree with that brother but if the boss receives a request that a name be removed, it is to be done; we're obligated to act.


None of that stuff was removed; only the ad-hom and name specificity.


I didn't like the not-so-subtle implications brother, simple as that.

"we know the perpetrator of the monkey business"
"I guess someone is friends with axe palace"


Perpetrator? Negative framing.
Friends with the business? Looking out for one's mates.

Doing one's job by-the-book isn't in any way equivalent to showing favouritism. Being on the other side of the world, I'd never even heard of the business.

I hope you understand that from someone in my position's perspective your comments were below-the-belt / offensive. I wasn't offended 'though, just not happy with the portrayal, hence my efforts to set the record straight.

Rock on brother; it's all-good my man. :cheers2:
My comment about being friends with the company is below the belt. But i had to use perpetrator to work monkey business in there...that is my attempt at humor.

I would rather the thread be deleted rather than edited, but perhaps i am the only one. If Rig-talk supported these comments, I can see it being warranted to edit I suppose. But as the offended business and the people affected by the business are all in America, it seems that free speech would be protected.

I am more for transparency than one side getting any advantage. If you look up reviews of the company, you will get a lot of negative things said about one member. I didn't have that experience with him. But many seemed to.

I was fine with him coming in here hot to defend himself, but the "mentally deranged" posters offered to put up copies of the emails and things got a bit quiet.

Just my two cents.
 
You're pretty-much 100% spot-on brother.

I finally managed to track down the discussion I had with admin. There was a lot more to all this than I remembered. I put many hours into discussing this with him and sanitising the thread appropriately. The complainant was happy with my efforts.

Looking back at the whole affair, I'm actually impressed with my overall assessment and handling of the situation at a fairly-granular level. I can't say more than that unfortunately but I'm convinced you would be too. ;)

I invite Dan to go take a look - September 2, 2024.

My comment about being friends with the company is below the belt. But i had to use perpetrator to work monkey business in there...that is my attempt at humor.
Thanks for the admission brother.

I totally get the humour thing - I had a sneaking suspicion about "perpetrator" too; I guess we share the same sort of sense of humour. It just "goes with" monkey business, 100%. :LOL:
 
One final clarification:
The complainant wasn't the person who's name was removed.

I say this 'cause it'd be "logical" to assume it was.
 
"Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your requests be made known to God."
 
You're pretty-much 100% spot-on brother.

I finally managed to track down the discussion I had with admin. There was a lot more to all this than I remembered. I put many hours into discussing this with him and sanitising the thread appropriately. The complainant was happy with my efforts.

Looking back at the whole affair, I'm actually impressed with my overall assessment and handling of the situation at a fairly-granular level. I can't say more than that unfortunately but I'm convinced you would be too. ;)

I invite Dan to go take a look - September 2, 2024.


Thanks for the admission brother.

I totally get the humour thing - I had a sneaking suspicion about "perpetrator" too; I guess we share the same sort of sense of humour. It just "goes with" monkey business, 100%. :LOL:

It makes sense that this was before my time, I would have done the same thing in your position 🤷‍♂️

It was just confusing because the history was gone on the mod view
 
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