ComplaintsforSweetwater

• Initial Complaint

  12/26/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I ordered a product on 12/13/23 sweetwater received the payment on 12/18/23. I contacted them on 12/19/23 and spoke to ***** and he stated there was no record of any order. I requested a follow up call from a supervisor. On 12/19/2023 ****** called me and stated he still hasn't received payment and has no knowledge of the order. On 12/21/23 I called to follow up to see the order the status of the order an representative let me know they received payment on 12/18/23. I then was transforward to ****** because he is the supervisor of the department. I left him a voicemail on 12/21/23 and I didnt get a call back. On 12/22/23 I called and requested to speak to ******. ****** came to the phone and stated that he received a payment. When asked what was the eta for item he wouldn't give a specific date. I asked for his supervisors contact information and he stated he is the supervisor. I stated I know your supervisor of this department but you have a supervisor. He refused to give any further information. Only stated it will be sent out next week and no date of shipping or arrival was provided only a invoice number *******. The order of professionalism was unacceptable.

  

  Business response

  01/11/2024

  *******,

  Thanks so much for reaching out and for submitting your BBB feedback. I'm truly sorry for the poor experience for all of the trouble trying to get this order resolved. I can assure you, we've dug in to this and have addressed this with those involved so that we can learn from this and get better. It's certainly not acceptable.

  To that end and per your request to be refunded, we've sent back your check without taking any money, which you should have received by now. If you have any concerns regarding those funds, please don't hesitate to contact me directly.

  Thanks,

  
  
  *************************
  Director of Customer Experience
  Office: ************ 1046
  ****************************************

• Initial Complaint

  12/05/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  On 12/4/23, I placed an order with Sweetwater for a bass guitar. (Ibanez GSR100EXMOL GIO 4-Str ***** ************* I was given the option to use 3-pay for this purchase. I followed the prompts and it appeared the purchase was made successfully. A short time later, I received a phone call from ************************* at Sweetwater. (Supposedly he is my "sales engineer") He stated that the 3 pay was subject to credit approval and I needed to call back and provide more information so they could move ahead with the order. I did not call back, as I was not interested in them running my credit for a 3-pay. On 12/5/23, at **** AM, I received an email from ***** advising the order had been shipped! I checked my bank account to find a transaction to Sweetwater for *****. I called Sweetwater at **** AM to find out why the order had been processed, especially since they needed more information to run my credit, and I did not provide that. The person who answered, was snarky and would not provide any information. I told him to get me a manager. Someone named ***** got on the phone. I explained to him the situation and that I needed it canceled. He said he could do that, but it was already shipped out and would need to be recalled. He was also very snarky and arrogant. Further, he lied to me about the shipping. According to *****, that package was still waiting to be picked up by the at **** AM. He told me that he didn't know when I would get my refund, but it might be by the weekend, as it depends on when ***** would bring it back. In a rude tone, he asked me if there was anything else, and I told him I wanted to make sure the other order I had was still being shipped. He told me he wasn't even looking at that. This is the worst customer service I have seen in a while, as well as shady practices. I guess I should read reviews a bit more, as BBB is full of reviews about this shady company. I have proof of times and phone calls if needed.

  

  Business response

  12/06/2023

  *****,

  Thanks for taking the time to review Sweetwater with the BBB. Obviously, we wish it would have been under better circumstances and I'm so very sorry for the way that you were treated and for everything that happened. I can assure you, we take this very seriously, and are the type of company that strives to do the right thing, so it's painful that we let you down. I tried to reach you by phone yesterday, but could only leave a message. Bottom line, would love to fine a solution that works best for you, and we can absolutely work out a deal or credit etc. 

  If possible, please reach out to me below so we can solve this once and for all. Again, I'm very sorry for the poor experience, and look forward to hearing back!

  Regards,

  *************************
  Director of Customer Experience
  Office: ************ 1046
  ****************************************

• Initial Complaint

  11/28/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  11/26/2023: I place an order for $561.70. I paid part with my debit and part with my sweetwater gift card I received for the holidays.11/27/2023: sweetwater removes order from my account, and I can no longer track my order. So I contacted sweetwater and they claimed my order was marked as fraud. The transactions have cleared on my card and on my gift card. They never notified me of cancellation for fraud, they were just going to take my money without saying anything.Sweetwater has not delivered my order, my refund, nor an answer to all of this. As of now sweetwater.com stole over $500 from my wallet.All of the info on my account matches, billing matches shipping. Debit card is in my name as well as the gift card. I am not a fraudster and am offended that they would accuse me of fraud.The phone support was rude and not helpful. I run a business and cant get my equipment over a terrible fraud system that picks random innocent people And wastes their time.Order # *********** I am so beyond upset in the daily this is going to cause my business as I run a photobooth business and needed the camera I purchased for the weekend.

  

  Business response

  11/28/2023

  *****,

  Thanks for reaching out and I'm very sorry for your poor experience. I'm also sorry that we didn't communicate better with you. Here is a quick summary of events regarding order #*********** referenced in your feedback.

  Order #*********** was placed on 11/26/23 via our website. 
  Two payment methods were provided, a card ending ****, which I will assume is your debit card, and a gift card in the amount of $555.
  During the normal course of business, we spoke to a different individual who advised us that fraudulent orders were placed on his account, with his credit card.
  One of those fraudulent orders was an order for a gift card that was subsequently used on your order (again that purchase was reported to us by that customer). 
  As a result, this order was canceled, and the gift card that was purchased fraudulently, per the other customer, and used on your order was voided. Out of curiosity, do you have an order confirmation or any information related to the gift card you were attempting to use?

  At this time, we're not taking any other action, but if you'd like to replace the order, the only way to complete that purchase would be with a wire transfer. Sorry again for any trouble.

  Thanks,

  
  
  *************************
  Director of Customer Experience
  Office: ************ 1046
  ****************************************

  Customer response

  11/28/2023

   Better Business Bureau:
  
  I spoke with the business and it turns out the order was marked as fraud due to the gift card being fraudulent. After reaching out to the person who gave the gift card, it turns out they purchased it online, not from sweetwater. Assuming there mustve been a gift card scam. In the end I ended up empty handed but the support was helpful in giving this info to me.

  
  

  Thank you.

• Initial Complaint

  11/21/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Sales and Advertising Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  November to December of 2022, I purchased a DAngelico Premier ******** guitar from Sweetwater. The first guitar I got came with neck/fret issues, certain strings would loudly buzz and bending strings would not produce sound, so I wanted to return it. After some research, I asked the sales associate I was assigned, ****, if I could get the same guitar but in green, as it was available on the manufacturers website. **** said because Sweetwater doesnt have that color in stock, he would have to contact ********* to ship one to them. By this time, they got the 1st guitar back and even though Sweetwater says they will call you to keep you updated, I had to consistently call them and talk to five different associates to learn anything about the guitar I was ordering. I even had to contact Bond Audio (which owns DAngelico) through phone and email, to get the guitar shipped to Sweetwater! The sales associate then tells me because they dont have this color in stock, its essentially a special order, which means no refund, you get what you get. This took from November to December to January of 2023 to finally get the guitar. When I finally got the 2nd guitar, it also has neck/fret issues. But this one also has faulty wiring inside the guitar, so when you switch pickups, the neck pickup has no sound. On both guitars, Sweetwater either did a terrible job setting them up or didnt check them at all. Besides that, the sales associates were rude, it felt like hassle to talk to them and I had to contact the guitar manufacturer for them. I would not recommend Sweetwater to any person looking to buy musical instruments or equipment. Their sales associates are terrible, their 40 point inspection is false advertising, and their products are subpar.

  

  Business response

  11/22/2023

  ******,

  Thanks for reaching out. I'm so sorry to hear that you've been unhappy with your **********. From our records, we shipped the replacement guitar to you nearly a year ago, and at that time (12/12/22 at 4:45pm) we had a phone conversation where you appreciated the help with the replacement. During that time, and now a year later, we've not had any other contact with you about the guitar, nor were we aware that there were any issues with playability. We're certainly happy to help resolve this for you and I'm sorry again that you've had so many issues with the instrument. It's painful to know that we haven't had any chance to make things right for so long.

  Regardless, we're happy to set up return on the guitar for a refund, or if you still have any interest in the guitar, we could arrange to get the instrument back here and have our guitar workshop review the guitar and/or do a set up for you at no charge to really try and get it dialed in. Either way, we want to solve this to your satisfaction, so please let me know how you'd best like to proceed. You can certainly reach out to me directly as well. 

  Sorry again for the trouble and I look forward to hearing back!

  Kind regards,

  
  
  *************************
  Director of Customer Experience
  Office: ************ 1046
  ****************************************

  Customer response

  12/04/2023

   I am rejecting this response because:
  
  I am currently waiting for Sweetwater to receive the guitar back and to get the refund and reimbursement I am owed in a timely matter. Once I do, then I will take back the complaint.

• Initial Complaint

  11/09/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  I purchased a new MIM ****** Precision bass. I know they do a 55-point inspection but I wanted this bass to arrive as close to perfect as possible so I paid an additional $299 for the ***** The bass arrived and when I plucked the open **string there was a loud buzz. I could suppress the buzz by holding down the **string between the nut and the tuners while I plucked the open G. So I called Sweetwater and I played the open **string for the guy over the phone and he said yeah they messed up. He told me to send it back and they would repair it but I decided I didnt want to risk getting another bad bass. So I asked for a Return Authorization figuring I'll get my money back and buy a bass from ************* or somewhere I can try out the bass first. The fellow in tech support said Sweetwater would refund the price of the bass but would NOT refund the $299 for the ***** The irony is had they ****ed this bass correctly the first time I wouldnt be returning it. So it costs me $299 to find out that Sweetwater will send you a poorly ****ed bass and then charge you for the **** if you want to return it.

  

  Business response

  11/13/2023

  Hello,

  We've been in touch with the customer directly and we've resolved this issue!

  Thanks,

  
  
  *************************
  Director of Customer Experience
  Office: ************ 1046
  ****************************************

  Customer response

  11/13/2023

   Better Business Bureau:
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me.

  
  

  Thank you.

• Initial Complaint

  11/02/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Customer Service Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I have been doing business with your company for over 5 years and lately I have been disappointed in the quality of service from your so called "experts" / "engineers" as well as your sales staff.Sales staff - I tried to purchase a ****** APXT2. I asked for a price with case and a set of strings. Two sales representatives gave me quotes on the guitar + gig bag + strings + tax. I thought their quotes were a bit high so I called ********** and they told me that the case came with the guitar and sold the guitar with case for ****** total and they included a set of strings free. When I informed your guys that they were charging me for a bag that came with the guitar, both said they were unaware. Really?Tech Staff - I called last week the find out if the **** Q8n Camera was compatible with my **** R8 recorder and your guy didn't know the difference between the inputs and outputs of either device. The ******* Antitrust Act - This law prohibits conspiracies that unreasonably restrain trade. Under the ******* Act, agreements among competitors to fix prices or wages, rig bids, or allocate customers, workers, or markets, are criminal violations.In a recent email, ************************* stated that **** is dictating that he sell the camera for not less than manufacturer's suggested retail price. I contacted **** and requested clarification on their pricing policies for distributors and they have yet to reply. I included a copy of ****'s email.I'm a musician, audio engineer, and music producer with a degree in electronics and over 50 years experience. Your company is no longer fulfilling even my most modest expectations and it appears that you are in violation of the ******* Act as well.

  

  Business response

  11/16/2023

  *****,

  Thank you for reaching out and submitted your BBB review. I'm very sorry for the poor experience with our sales team and that you've found our pricing to be out of line than what you've found at other places. We work really hard to be competitive with pricing and are close, if not better, in many different other retailers out there, but we also believe we offer a better value than any one else, which we include in all of our pricing. Things like free support on the products you buy with our in house support team, a 2 year warranty that is included in the price, free shipping, and a dedicated point of contact who can help guide you in the right direction. No one else out there has what we offer, so in exchange, they offer lower prices. There is certainly nothing wrong with that, but we also don't have a specific price matching policy because we know others will do extreme discounts that we simply can't match.

  As far as the ****, I'm not a legal expert, but in reviewing your attachments, this has nothing to do with price fixing. You simply asked us if we can sell you a **** Q8N for $329 total, when their list price is $399.99. The response, which is what you've attached below states that there is "near zero room to help with on price," and therefore we would not be able to sell it at $329. No where did we say that **** was mandating the price of $399.99, but we can't also sell a product below wholesale as that would not be reasonable. We're certainly happy to make discounts under the manufacturer's list price where we can, and when it makes sense, but the amount of discount can vary depending on the margin of the product.

  I hope that helps to shed some light on things. Additionally, I would be happy to reassign your account to a different sales engineer, but they're going to be working in the same context of making deals that make sense. If our pricing doesn't align with where you are at, you're certainly welcome to find someone that will make the best deal for you. I'm just hoping that will be us.

  Sorry again for the issues and if there is anything more we can help with, please don't hesitate to reach me directly.

  Kind regards,

  *************************
  Director of Customer Experience
  Office: ************ 1046
  ****************************************

  Customer response

  11/22/2023

   I am rejecting this response because: Two of you sales persons tried to sell me a case that came with the guitar. The message from **** clearly states that **** (the manufacturer) does not allow him the sell the product for less than retail. This is price fixing and it is a criminal offense to both parties. I'm reporting **** and your company to the **** Happy holidays.
  
  
  

  

  Business response

  11/22/2023

  *****,

  I'm very sorry. ****'s message does not say that. It simply says "**** gives us near zero room to help with price on the Q8n." This is confirmed in your own screen shots. It doesn't say that **** is not allowing us to discount or that we're required to sell at list. There is a difference. Regardless, we're sorry.

  Regards,

  
  
  *************************
  Director of Customer Experience
  Office: ************ 1046
  ****************************************

  Customer response

  11/27/2023

   I am rejecting this response because your interpretation is NOT acceptable. I'm going to file a complaint with the *** and see how they interpret the email. I will also post the email response on every social media site associated with musicians and see how the public interprets the email. Also, you never addressed the incompetence of your tech and sales reps and reassigned a new sales rep to my account.
  
  
  

• Initial Complaint

  10/27/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  I bought some items as a gift that I ended up needing to return. I let sweet water know that I needed labels to return the two boxes back on Sep 26 and they issued me labels right away. I sent the items back and they went back to their warehouse on Sep 29th. I have been waiting for my refund ever since. I have talked to multiple, including managers, all who promised to follow up and maybe 1 or 2 out of probably 8 different associates and managers actually had the decency to get back to me. Even the manager who assured me that she'd get back to me this past Monday never got back to me and I haven't heard a peep from her since. There's is some weirdness in the tracking that doesn't exactly make sense, but that's not my fault, that'd down to *** and however their system works. On some calls they say they have the boxes, other calls they don't have the boxes. I honestly have not gotten a straight answer out of these folks over the past month.

  Customer response

  10/27/2023

  Hey there, I submitted a complaint about Sweetwater today.  They actually just refunded me so can you please remove/delete my complaint.  Thank you.

• Initial Complaint

  10/03/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I purchased this item 8/1 as a used like new item it came damaged**** I reached out and was pretty much dismissed so I called sweetwater and they were like sorry here's a label... the problem is the sales rep is commissioned on sales so he only wanted to do an exchange**** the problem for me is ****** decided its an issue that the company he has offers returns and he would recommend sub par equipment I would return ... this time it wasn't sub par it was damaged and I was charged shipping on an item that I'm pretty sure was damaged when it was sold**** I reached out to customer service and they were initially apologetic but that turned into a situation where they were in contact with the bad sales rep that tried to charge me for shipping and although the policy is damaged items don't pay shipping they decided to teach me ****** **** thanks sweetwater ****** learned

  

  Business response

  10/11/2023

  Hello,

  We've have been in touch with **** directly and have taken steps to resolve this to his satisfaction, which includes a refund and confirmation of the issue regarding the product we shipped to him. We're so sorry for the inconvenience that it caused!

  Thanks,

  *************************
  Director of Customer Experience
  ********************** Inc.
  Phone:  *********************
  ********************************************>***************, **  46818
  ****************************************

• Initial Complaint

  10/03/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I bought a new ****** electric guitar for my son to play. Right out of the box it had a terrible buzzing with the strings unfretted. In response to one of their marketing emails about my shopping experience I complained about this. The response I got was to the effect that I should have expected it from a cheap guitar. Well, I didnt. At least she was polite about it. Then they offered for me to send it back for a free tune up. So, imagine you are buying a new car with zero miles on it, and on the way home after buying this new car the engine knocks. And when you complain about it to the dealer they say, well it is a cheap car but if you want to send it back to us well give you a free tune up. No. What I want is something I buy new to work as intended without having to be immediately fixed. If this is a common problem with this model guitar why sell them at all?

  

  Business response

  10/11/2023

  *****,

  Thanks for your feedback and I'm so sorry to hear that your experience has been so poor. We're happy to make things right for you and replace your instrument, or take whatever steps we need to make things right. Currently, one of our sales managers has attempted to call and email, but so far we haven't heard back. Rest assured, we'll make things right and we'll be sure to address this with those involved internally.

  Again, I'm very sorry for the trouble, but please reach back out so we can take next steps to replace or refund.

  Thanks

  *************************
  Director of Customer Experience
  ********************** Inc.
  Phone:  *********************
  ********************************************>***************, **  46818
  ****************************************

• Initial Complaint

  10/02/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I sent my guitar back to Sweetwater after having 2 different repair shops in ********* ****. reuse to fix a guitar that was built so badly it should have never been sent out. I only brought in in to get setups and these shops regarded very highly would not take my money or do the repairs as they said it was unrepairable. So I sent back to Sweetwater who came to their own conclusion and told me they could fix it with a setup, which I fund very hard to believe after my two previous inquiries with repairman. I told them to do the repairs and send back with note saying the guitar is perfect so I could sell without any remorse, I was quoted 211 some dollars, and said ok fix it, then I received a call the following day stating that the repairs would be free of charge and I would here back later in the day, it has been almost a week and I contacted them and they said there was nothing new and nobody had even got the message. This is terrible as they have had my guitar for a month. They also offered to buy my **** guitar back for **** which is a joke. I can't seem to get any remedy and I have nothing to play as I am disabled and stuck with lightweight acoustic guitars. They have the worst customer service I believe I have ever seen in musical sales, a shame being they are one of the biggest companies. I have never ever had a problem with any of the other over 250 guitars I have owned that wasn't resolved easily. They are just a disgrace.

  

  Business response

  10/11/2023

  *****,

  Thanks so much for reaching out and I'm very sorry for the poor experiences. I know our team has been in touch with you, and we've arranged to cover all of the necessary repairs at no charge to try and help make up for things. We're confident that when you get the guitar back, it'll be to your liking. Additionally, we'll be addressing this with those involved so that we can learn from this and getter. Please let us know once you receive the guitar back where things are at.

  Sorry again for the trouble!

  Thanks,

  *************************
  Director of Customer Experience
  ********************** Inc.
  Phone:  *********************
  ********************************************>***************, **  46818
  ****************************************

  Customer response

  10/12/2023

   I am rejecting this response because:  this guitar was very expensive and all they did was put a band aid on it.  According to other ******** Ill have the same problem again within 5 years.  Wouldnt have been hard to replace guitar with a guitar built correctly.  Am I happy no they knew it was a bad guitar when they offered me **** for a **** guitar.  
  
  
  

  

  Business response

  10/18/2023

  *****,

  Thanks for your response and I'm very sorry that you're not satisfied with the response. I certainly understand why you'd be upset. Please know, we want to try and help. Since this guitar is now over five years old, we're very limited in what we can do. Simply too much time has passed, and after reviewing the account, there was no mention of any issues with the guitar over the course of the last 5 years, until last Month. We offered to bring the guitar back here to Sweetwater, covered the shipping to do so, and made adjustments to the guitar, including replacing a new intonation saddle, a new bone nut, and a set up at no cost to you, essentially doing the repair under warranty, even though the warranty expired three years ago. Beyond that, once the work was done, our team in our guitar workshop thought it was a perfectly acceptable instrument. Like any guitar, though, overtime, it can shift and adjust.

  Regardless, it may be a good time to try and sell that guitar on our Gear Exchange platform. Often times, when we quote $1000 (for example) to buy the instrument, we're going based on other auction price points, which aren't always current. We do our best, and then when you factor in fees, in can be much lower than what you're expecting. You could create a listing and offer what ever you feel is fair to see if someone would be interested in buying it, if that would be an option.

  Again, I'm sorry for the trouble and I'm hopeful that the steps to repair your guitar will extend it for many more years to come.

  Thanks,

  *************************
  Director of Customer Experience
  ********************** Inc.
  Phone:  *********************
  ********************************************>***************, **  46818
  ****************************************

   

   

   

  Customer response

  10/18/2023

   I am rejecting this response because:
  Its no excuse for a guitar that should have never left faculty.  I will never do business with sweetwater.  A **** guitar should not be sold if not built correctly.  I wish I knew when I got it.  
  
  

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩