Musician's Friend

I purchased a G&L S-500 Deluxe. The guitar was and still is being advertised as having Shaller locking tuners. When I received the guitar the tuners were not the tuners advertised. I contacted MF and was told the tuners on my guitar are good. Yes... they are... but they are not the tuners that are advertised. They even admitted that their information was incorrect. I suppose I could send the guitar back but it is a great instrument and I don't think I want to risk any further involvement with these people. I wonder what Leo Fender might have to say about the misleading tactics being use by this company to sell his instruments.
BUYER BEWARE!

****** UPDATE ******
I just received a phone call from Musicians Friend. They apologized and gave me an in store credit. I was hoping to get enough credit to get the tuners that I paid for but the credit was a fraction of the cost that I will have to pay to bring the guitar in line with what was advertised.

Just checked their site again... go ahead and check for yourself. Why won't they correct the error?

I ordered a guitar to play a wedding gig that got cancelled at the last minute due to the virus. After ordering, I got an email from a Customer Service rep, checking to see if everything was OK. When the wedding got cancelled, I tried to contact the Rep at the number and hours listed to arrange a return... No answer. No Rep? Strange. Couple days later I called their Customer Service to arrange return. The lady picks up, very heavy accent... I hear roosters crowing in the background... she is on the other side of the world. Not a fan of companies who do that. But worse, she was RUDE! Lady told me in broken English that I was several days past the return window. I told her, "The guitar is NEW IN THE BOX, it has literally not been opened, and I am fine with paying the 15% restocking fee (like $60)." She says, well, why did you wait so long? Arrogant and totally inflexible attitude. She refused to take any return. Worldwide pandemic, things are rough, things get cancelled... and Musician's Friend says, "Welp, you're on day 34, and the return window is 30 days, so... You're outta luck pal!" I decided to write an email to customer service... but they simply didn't reply. Terrible service, terrible company. Never again.

I purchased the Allora ATS-450 Vienna Series Tenor Saxophone Lacquer Lacquer Keys as a birthday gift for my boyfriend on January 2 with free shipping. It arrived on January 4! We opened the box and was so impressed with this beauty! I had this sax in my cart with a discount code applied but by the time I pulled the trigger, it had expired. I was hesitant due to recent reviews I had read and it was a substantial purchase. The person I spoke to was understanding and assured me all would be well and for those who are hesitant too, Covid has shaken all industries with supply issues, personnell issues, everyone working so hard and short staffed, things happen especially in this climate and no industry is immune to these facts. I placed my order over the phone and this person was trustworthy, knowledeable, friendly, professional and went the extra mile to help me get closer to my budget. In addition he assured me that I would be happy with my purchase and he was SO right! The smile on my boyfriends face when he opened this gift was priceless and the hours and hours to come of him playing and me listening to him play, will be even more priceless! Thank you Musicians Friend! You made new friends in us and we highly recommend you to anyone looking for musical instruments and accessories!

This place is the absolutely worst place you could ever have dealings with in buying a musical instrument from. No professionalism, the right hand doesn't know what the left hand is doing. These idiots are also part of Guitar Center which explains a lot. Both Musician's Friend and Guitar Center are horrible people to do business with. Save yourself a lot of frustration and money and go elsewhere. This is the most unprofessional place I've ever done business with. If you do decide to purchase from them don't expect them to check out an instrument before they ship it. I purchased a Yamaha DGX 505 from them last year and when I got it it didn't work, I plugged into an outlet and nothing, I put batteries in it and nothing so I had to reboot it and send it back for a refund. I decided to order another instrument from Musician's friend and once I realized it was most likely the one I bought last year I called them and they wouldn't even want to plug it in and test it before they shipped it out so I cancelled the order. They should be called Musician's Fiend instead of Friend. If you enjoy frustration and aggravation then you will love both Guitar Center and Musician's Friend. They'll give you all of that you want. I just wish I could give them a lower star rating than 1 star they don't even deserve that.

They are not any musicians friend I received a broken Electric guitar because it was poorly packaged was not protected at all for them to exchange it They said I had to order another one be charged and when they would refund the money when they receive the broken one why would I have to pay twice for there mistake they make inconvenient to the customer they get there money but we don't get for what we pay for

I had a great first experience with Musician's Friend. But my 2nd order which was backordered was a nightmare.
I ordered a guitar in early January. Was told it was backordered, will be available to ship in LATE JAN. Ok, I thought. Then Feb came, nothing. I called, was told will be available to ship on Feb 14th. Ok, Fine. I thought. 2/14 came and went. Called back, was told it would ship on 2/28. Ok fine. Last chance.
(Meanwhile this entire time, the website and item in question was listed as AVAILABLE AND READY TO SHIP!) Last call, today on 3/3. Was told it's backordered until MAY.
TERRIBLE TERRIBLE TERRIBLE

They once re-ran my card for $400 one year to the day after a purchase by mistake. Some problem with their credit card system. Caused me to overdraw on valentines day and cost hundreds in overdraft fees that they ended up paying. On another order I was expecting a guitar pickup that was around $100 and a couple small items. Received the small items but no pickup. Had to wait weeks for them to investigate and finally send it out. My current issue is with a preorder. Was told it wouldn't go out until 10/14 but received an email on 9/22 that it went out. My card was charged $930. Fedex still does not have the package 6 days later. I had to call customer service 3 times to get someone to truly look into this and investigate the problem. I asked them to refund my money, keep my place in line for the pre-order, and charge me when the package goes out. They refused. Waiting for them to complete research on whether the package has left their warehouse. If it has not left the warehouse I am cancelling the order even if it means I have to wait longer to get the item. They are the worst.

The good: Love the 48 month interest free financing. Fewer and fewer stores are offering it.

The bad: Their business end is chaotic. I got on the backordered list for a $4000 keyboard. After some 3-4 months I got notice of shipment (Yah!) only to receive a much cheaper $600 piano that I already had bought from them years earlier. And of course this triggered the Bank to start billing me, so I had to get them to reverse it. I ended up cancelling the order but the Bank still showed it an active order for months. I practically had to beg MF to call the Bank and straighten it out as my credit limit still showed me maxed out.

Several months later, they finally got my keyboard in stock, so THEN I placed the order and got it, along with all the reward points.

I used the reward points just this week for an "In Stock and Ready to Ship" item. "Orders placed before 3pm will ship same day." 2 full days after ordering, still no email, no shipping or tracking info. When I called, they were outsourcing it from Guitar Center in Vegas (where I live.)
So I called Guitar Center in Vegas.
"This is great. I'll just come by and pick it up today, okay?"
"Uh, sorry. We only have that as a 'open box' item. If you want it new we'll have to outsource it, (again). Give us a couple of days."

-Sigh-

I bought a new EVH guitar amp from MF for the full price of $699.99+tax. When I unpackaged the amp I found they shipped out a used one with damage. It had a knob broken right off and appears some of the pieces may be missing and not in the box. The end cap of the amp housing was dented into the transformer also on the left side. The amp was not shipped in the original box or packaging from the manufacturer. I paid for a NEW amp. Not a used one that is damaged. The power cord had been used. It had a price tag sticker from a microphone wrapped around it to keep it coiled up. The footswitch appeared to be new. I called MF customer service and complained about how it was packaged and to report the damage and condition of the amp upon arrival. I requested to return the amp and have a NEW one shipped out. I was told to call and have the warehouse check to make sure it was in the OEM packaging before re-ordering. Why? Open-box or used items should not be sold as NEW. I'm not sure they can be trusted after this. Buyers beware! Not a happy camper. :( (Order #: MFW*******307)

I would give it zero stars if possible. I called to triple check before ordering, that the product was new and in the box. They assured me that it was, and I ordered it. They first messed up the address, so I didn't get it until a week after I was supposed to. Each time I called to find out where the product was, I was told something entirely different about the order status.

When I finally got it, the knob for the strap wasn't correct and wouldn't fit. I bought my own and fixed it. Then when I tried to plug it in, no sound came out whatsoever. They sent me a product that didn't even work.

Then when I sent it back, they promised to refund me within 5 business days. It's now been 15 and I still haven't been refunded. They said the gig bag was missing but I know it's not. Why would I keep a gig bag for a guitar I no longer own? Absolute circus of a company, so utterly disappointing and frustrating. It is beyond my comprehension how a company could be so awful at it's sole purpose of business. Avoid at all costs.

I bought a brand new guitar and paid extra for expedited shipping AND Saturday delivery. Received it on Saturday, but the lower pickups don't work. I called and service rep, Nicholas, said the manufacturers warranty would cover it and to call them. I said I'd rather get a new guitar. He told me I'd have to wait until their warehouse received it and processed it before they would ship a new one... because people don't ship them back if they get a new one. He stated once again that I couldn't be trusted to send the broken one back, so I said I'd just return it for a refund. He said he wouldn't return my money for the shipping, so I asked to talk to his supervisor. After waiting on hold, he returned and said that this wasn't important enough for a busy supervisor to spend time on. So now I have to wait to get a replacement because I don't want to lose the 50 bucks... I shipped that POS back in less than two hours after receiving it. If this ever gets resolved, I will NEVER buy from Musician's Friend again.

Musician's Friend tells you on their website they have a 2 year Musician's Friend warranty on the items they sell, but it's a total lie. I purchased a Warlock from them less than 2 years ago. Today was the first time I changed the strings on it and discovered that the screw that holds the high E string tuner is stripped out. I called Musician's Friend to exercise this 2 year warranty, but they told me that since it was over 45 days since I made the purchase, there was nothing they could do about it other than to give me the phone number to BC Rich.

When I asked them about the two year warranty they advertise on their website, I was told that the 2 year warranty stated on their website is actually a manufacturer's warranty, not a Musician's Friend warranty even though it clearly says on the website that the warranty is a Musician's Friend and not a manufacturer's warranty; moreover, it says on the website for someone to exercise that 2 year warranty they should contact Musician's Friend and not the manufacturer, but when you contact Musician's Friend, they tell you they will give you the manufacturer's phone number so you can contact them about the problem. Basically, the two year warranty you see on their website is nothing more than a lie to get you to buy from them; they do not actually honor that warranty.

I would not recommend anyone buy from Musician's Friend. They are not honest and do not honor their stated warranties. You could pay for a very expensive musical instrument like I did and then be stuck with a piece of garbage; their only answer is to pass the buck to someone else.

I recently purchased a Martin HD28 from Musicians Friend via online dealing with Stephanie Super. She was awesome! The reason I give 4 out of 5 stars is I specifically asked for a brand new, direct from manufacturer Martin Guitar. Stephanie indicated a timeline in which to expect delivery. She was spot on with what was conveyed. What concerned me was I began to receive emails from Guitar Center stating they had located a damaged guitar that they could ship to me outlining the compromised condition of what i was expecting. That was concerning. I reached out to Stephanie and she said not to worry. She was correct and I received my pristine instrument and I'm thrilled with my purchase. The conflicting emails should not have occurred thus my 4 of 5 star review. I have dealt with Musicians Friend for many years and are pretty satisfied with their service. The issues I have had they've been responsive and resolved any issues I had. A lot of reviews are critical but I believe they've resolved all of my issues. The most important aspect to take into account is their pricing is second to none. I will continue to invest my money with Musicians Friend.

Why is it so hard to delete my review. I wanted to delete it but it's apparently really hard to do that so you have to edit it to something ridiculous because they won't make it easily deletable.