Re: OK, So Let's Help The Scam & Con Artists Now Too!!!!



fishhead wrote:

> PMG wrote:
>
> > On Sat, 08 Oct 2005 07:33:05 -0400, Rich Koerner <richk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
> > wrote:
> >
> >
> >>Well, it's a long story.
> >>
> >>But I'm going to spare all the bandwidth.
> >>
> >>The short of it is, I had a new customer call about a noise his amplifier was making and asked if I
> >>could fix it. He was very vague trying to describe the sound over the phone. He agreed to bring it
> >>in the shop to be checked out.
> >>
> >>He was told to bring EVERYTHING with the amp he was using when it made this noise.
> >>
> >>A few days later he stopped in. I had him hook up his old BF Deluxe Amp, with his guitar, and his
> >>guitar cord.
> >>
> >>He played for more than 30 min. without the noise appearing.
> >>
> >>He told me he had just got it off ebay, and was not sure it was a good deal. So, I offered to pop
> >>out the chassis to take a look. He agreed, and I popped it out in front of him.
> >>
> >>The speaker was not stock, the screen resistors were cooked and measured over 600 ohms. The filters
> >>were the originals with bulging sides, and other past repairs had been done with poor workmanship.
> >>
> >>I suggested, for the sake of reliability, these issues should be addressed.
> >>
> >>
> >>He said, do it, and I did. I had tested it on the bench and play tested it for my standard balls to
> >>the wall half hour test. Not so much as a cabinet buzz. I never heard this noise that brought him
> >>into the shop in the first place.
> >>
> >>When he came to pick it up, the first thing he asked was if he could play through it, to check it
> >>out.
> >>
> >>He didn't bring his guitar, so I gave him mine, and I cut him loose.
> >>
> >>He played for a long time while I worked on the bench. Later he stopped, and commented how much
> >>better the amp performed. He paid by credit card, signed my invoice, which states the unit was in
> >>proper working condition, and left.
> >>
> >>
> >>Weeks later Karen opens the mail, and we have all these official papers saying this guy is
> >>contesting the charge on his credit card. He states that the amp was never fix right, and the noise
> >>is still there.
> >>
> >>He then states, that another shop would fix that noise for a lot less than he was charged by us.
> >>
> >>There were other papers included that showed this guy had a history of contesting his purchases on
> >>his credit card. 8 of them currently. One for an ebay purchase over 400 dollars.
> >>
> >>Now this is all new to us. In all the time we have been honoring credit cards, this is the first
> >>time this kind of thing popped up. So, we had only three days to respond to this action, complete
> >>with photo copies, and start the appeal going.
> >>
> >>Well, it's now months, and the two banks, his and mine, are still going at it, and we still don't
> >>know where we stand on this.
> >>
> >>OK, so I get on the phone to find out if any of the people I know in business had been hit with
> >>this. Some have, and some had not, was what I found out. Of the ones that had, the stories were
> >>unusal, and make you think, you got ripped off by their transaction.
> >>
> >>One fellow had a real horror story involving PayPal. Basically the same kind of thing, where the
> >>transaction was contested, and Paypal just automatically sided with the buyer and pulled the money
> >
> >>from the merchant's account. The same way the credit card people do it, I found out.
> >
> >>
> >>So, here it is last Sunday, and Karen is listening to her favorite morning consumer auto repair
> >>advocate call in talk show, while doing her house work.
> >>
> >>Next thing I know, she's all excited, and is yelling for me to turn on the radio where I am. By the
> >>time I can get to turn on the radio, she comes walking in yelling, did you hear it, did you hear
> >>that guy.
> >>
> >>Hear WHAT!!!!!!!!!!!!
> >>
> >>Well, she goes on telling me that, a guy had called in the automotive talk show, and was complaining
> >>he was overcharged for a repair on his car. So this talk show host starts telling him, and the rest
> >>of his LISTENERS that, anytime you feel you were over charged, you should contest a credit card
> >>transaction, AND......
> >>
> >>ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
> >>
> >>get any other business to give an estimate of a cheaper amount on paper, send it into your credit
> >>card company, and they will get your money back for you. YOU, are the card holder, and your credit
> >>card company are on your side!!!!!!!!!!!!
> >>
> >>Karen said, the whole time this guy was complaining, it was all over the "price", and this guy had
> >>no complaint associated with the repair itself.
> >>
> >>Well, that was it for the both of us.
> >>
> >>It's bad enough I have to pay all the charges in addition to my invoiced amount, just to provide a
> >>credit card service and customer convience.
> >>
> >>NOW THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
> >>
> >>Look, it's not so much the amount of this guys bill, which will be CHARGED BACK to my account, that
> >>has me pissed. It's the lack of GOOD WILL in the equation, and the *inconvience* I now find I have
> >>to DEAL with, to continue to offer such a *convience* for our customers.
> >>
> >>So, here I sit, having the same thoughts I had when I had a PROBLEM with BOUNCING *RUBBER* CHECKS in
> >>the past.
> >>
> >>There was only one good way to FIX that problem. No Checks!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
> >>
> >>And,... that's how I just fixed this new version of an old con game.
> >>
> >>In other words, it's back to Old School.
> >>
> >>http://timeelect.com/Ampparts.htm
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>Comments......
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>
> >>Regards,
> >>
> >>Rich Koerner,
> >>Time Electronics.
> >>http://www.timeelect.com
> >>
> >>Specialists in Live Sound FOH Engineering,
> >> Music & Studio Production,
> >>Vintage Instruments, and Tube Amplifiers
> >
> >
> > Well, it's disappointing. I can understand how you wouldn't want to
> > accept credit cards if someone has figured out a way to rip you off
> > using one, but I need to rely on one for purchases.
> >
> > I don't understand why the banks haven't resolved this matter yet
> > though, since you have an invoice that he signed, agreeing that you
> > *had* repaired the amp.
> >
>
> The thing I find disturbing is that really what seems to be going
> on here is a short circuit of the court system...as a means of
> price shopping *after* the fact...it's an exploit of a well-intentioned,
> but apparently unbalanced, policy.
>
> And since the amp is already fixed, what does another 'repair shop',
> or 'Joe Blow' for that matter, stand to lose by quoting a price
> (whether they knew the situation or not). In this case, the amp
> was fixed, so they don't have to put up.
>
> The only way I see this abuse getting addressed is for the credit
> card companies to get wise to it and require getting bids for repairs
> beforehand, and taking the cheapest bid, if it is to be a covered
> repair...something like that.
>
> Or have a store policy of "Cash Only"...if they want to take the
> store to court, they can find out what a judge will say to the
> argument: "I found somebody later who said they'd have done it cheaper!"
>
> Any system can be exploited...the key is to make the exploit less
> worthwhile.

I've been taking plastic for years and years.

I've only had one chargeback, and that one was for a transaction
which was accidentally double entered (once by me, once by my
old lady) for a tube order. The dude wasn't upset about it at all -
in fact, he told me he was just going to have me send him some
more tubes, but his bank was all hot and bothered about it and
they insisted on a chargeback. No big deal, really.

As for walk-in traffic, I have good radar. If I get any flaky vibes
from anyone, they pay cash. Most of my regulars pay cash
anyway. Every merchant/repairman has encountered "professional
complainers" before. These are people who *won't* be satisfied
with anything, no matter what you do for them. If my radar goes
off on somebody, I just send them down the road - I have more
work than I can do as it is; I don't have time for whiners. And
of course, there are the "experts" who insist on doing stupid ***
after they've been told it will damage their equipment. I had
this one idiot who was into "magic wires" - he claimed he
could hear the difference between the stock reverb cables
and some half-inch thick Wanker Wires from some audiophool
outfit (Esoteric Audio? Can't remember...) in his Music Man
combo amp (65 watts - two twelves). He'd brought his amp
in because it was dull-sounding and underpowered, with some
hum. When I put it on the bench, I found it was oscillating at
about 140 KHz, which would certainly explain the symptoms
he'd reported. I noticed the pair of Wanker Wires coming
out of the reverb tank isolation bag, and just for fun, I grabbed
them and moved them around a bit. Sure enough, the positioning
of the wires affected the frequency and amplitude of the
oscillation. Piece of cake, I figured - I just took 'em out and
put in a pair of Fender-style cables, and all was well. All, that
is, until Mister Magic Wires showed up to claim his amp.
I handed him his audiophool cables and told him they were
the problem, and he pulled a face like a baby eating spinach.
He got his guitar out and played the amp, and he complained
that the reverb sounded like *** without his magic wires in
there. So, I put them back in and let him play, and he complained
that his amp was back to sounding dull and humming. I hooked
up the scope and showed him how those wires were causing
his problem; I let him move them around and observe the
scope trace. He elected to position the wires for minimum
oscillation amplitude, and told me "he'd deal with it." (His
exact words.) I told him ok, but it was likely that if he continued
to use his amp in that condition, something was going to fail.
Sure enough, he was back in less than two weeks; his amp
was blowing fuses. He'd fried his output transformer. (Music
Man OT's are weak to begin with - this is well known to pro
repair techs). I told him it was a direct result of letting the amp
oscillate, and that I'd fix it only if the amp left my shop without
those asinine reverb cables in it, and that I wouldn't guarantee
the repair under any circumstances. He said OK. I replaced
the OPT and the reverb cables, he paid his bill (in cash) and
away he went. Haven't seen him since; he's probably someone
else's problem these days. BTW, this same dude was into
using solid-core speaker wires with his PA, and they were
constantly failing from him coiling and uncoiling them all
the time at gigs. I had explained to him that solid-core wire
was a stupid choice for portable use, but he insisted on
using it anyway. Rocket scientist. ;-)

Lord Valve
Expert

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