Had to drive 150 miles to get my Blackstar repaired?

  • Thread starter Thread starter WildNorth
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WildNorth

WildNorth

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Just a heads up on those of you thinking about buying a Blackstar amp/pedal. You may want to check on support availability in your area before pulling the trigger.

My two month old HT Stage 60 just went tits up on me. Long story short, Korg support is horrid, and to add icing to the cake I had to drive 150 miles last weekend to drop it off at the nearest "authorized repair" shop.

Man I love the sound and features of the amp, but I didn't even think about checking into Blackstar's support channel before buying.

Silly me. :doh:

I'm pretty sure this will be my last Blackstar...
 
Well you can have that with any brand. Shipping it to them is always an option.
 
The amp is ridiculously heavy. Shipping really isn't an option.

While I admit I have no experience with boutique amps, I've never had that with any of the major brands (Marshall, Randall, Peavey, Mesa, etc) in the past.

Again, more of a heads up for people who are considering Blackstar. The vicinity of their authorized repair centers really needs to be taken into consideration when buying one of these things.
 
I think most manufacturers could give two shits about repairing stuff they sell under warranty, getting your money seems to be their main priority.

Blackstar & Vox - I contacted Korg USA back in August about becoming a repair center for Blackstar and Vox and they didn't have the decency to get back to me.

Marshall & Randall - Same story with US Musicorp for Marshall and Randall, had my paperwork since August.

Fender - Fender made me fill out 18 pages of shit including taking a test on amps and guitars and they've had my paperwork since last fucking April.

Peavey - Can't get anyone at Peavey to return an email or call to get paperwork started.

Bogner - Bogner has no service centers and doesn't jack shit for help even though their website says they do.

On the other hand there are a few good companies.

Orange - Orange set me up right away and responds super fast when I have questions.

Mesa - Mesa is top notch too.

Jerry
 
I took a Mesa Stiletto in to a certified repair center and the guy told me " see this room full of amps ?(probably 30,not all Mesa,mostly vintage stuff), yours will get fixed after all these if you want to go under warranty. You want to pay cash I'll have it to you next week" He said a warranty repair means he'll get $40 in six weeks from Mesa. I paid the $120 cash and got the amp back in a week.

JerryP":1e8l1w82 said:
Bogner - Bogner has no service centers and doesn't jack shit for help even though their website says they do.


Jerry
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I called Bogner once when I needed to change a bias resistor. They were real helpful. Told me the value and gave me a few tips on changing it out.
 
Fuck..thanks for posting this.

JerryP":2v4q4fz4 said:
I think most manufacturers could give two shits about repairing stuff they sell under warranty, getting your money seems to be their main priority.

Blackstar & Vox - I contacted Korg USA back in August about becoming a repair center for Blackstar and Vox and they didn't have the decency to get back to me.

Marshall & Randall - Same story with US Musicorp for Marshall and Randall, had my paperwork since August.

Fender - Fender made me fill out 18 pages of shit including taking a test on amps and guitars and they've had my paperwork since last fucking April.

Peavey - Can't get anyone at Peavey to return an email or call to get paperwork started.

Bogner - Bogner has no service centers and doesn't jack shit for help even though their website says they do.

On the other hand there are a few good companies.

Orange - Orange set me up right away and responds super fast when I have questions.

Mesa - Mesa is top notch too.

Jerry
Click to expand...
 
BrokenFusion":h3nz9dwt said:
what was wrong with it? where did you buy it?
Click to expand...


Purchased new in the box on eBay.....but not from an authorized dealer (my first mistake), so no warranty. I got it at a very good price though, so pending the repair cost I'm probably still ahead.

I'm not complaining about the lack of warranty (that's my fault), and I don't mind the cost of the repair. I just don't want to drive 300 miles round trip (plus another 300 round trip to pick it up) every time there is a problem. And Blackstar won't release the schematics to anyone who's not an "authorized" repair shop, so I couldn't have my local guy do it if I wanted to.

The actual problem is that the second and third channels have no volume. Tried re-seating the tubes, then new tubes........ no go.
 
If your paying out of your pocket you probably could have taken it to a good local guy. I thought it was under warranty.
 
BrokenFusion":1021tfav said:
If your paying out of your pocket you probably could have taken it to a good local guy. I thought it was under warranty.
Click to expand...


The local guys can't get the schematics. Blackstar claims it's a "safety issue" to give the schematics to owners (or non-authorized repair shops).

It's a retarded policy. I swear, I'll never own another Blackstar amp. :bash:
 
There is a guy here in Milwaukee, John Blick. He works out of his house, is an authorized repair center for almost anyone, and can fix anything music related. I will take my Friedman and CCV to him if I need help in the future. Even if Dave and Brad honor the warranties (and I know they will) I pay $100 to get it to them. I am better off having my guy fix it for $50, warranty or not.
 
Worse yet, I actually posted the story on the Blackstar Forum, hoping someone from Blackstar would take pity on me (they check the Forum regularly).

<crickets>

Don't even get me started on how bad Korg support for this amp is. :gethim:
 
On an amp like that I would pull the chassis,remove the tubes.
Box it up with the tubes wrapped up,make it so the power cord doesn't hurt anything and ship it.
No need to ship speaker cab.
There are no service stations near where I live.

JJ
 
Jammin'John":1bfcskai said:
On an amp like that I would pull the chassis,remove the tubes.
Box it up with the tubes wrapped up,make it so the power cord doesn't hurt anything and ship it.
No need to ship speaker cab.
There are no service stations near where I live.

JJ
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Didn't even think of this to be honest with you. :confused:
 
Jammin'John":ih64wkls said:
On an amp like that I would pull the chassis,remove the tubes.
Box it up with the tubes wrapped up,make it so the power cord doesn't hurt anything and ship it.
No need to ship speaker cab.
There are no service stations near where I live.

JJ
Click to expand...
Yep.
 
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