I try to adhere to a simple rule of blogging, if you can't say something nice, don't say anything defamatory, legally actionable at all.
There is some good logic behind this way of thinking, including allowing for the possibility of being wrong.
As a result, I have kept pretty quiet during my recent struggles to get a crucial piece of technology repaired.
As you, Dear Reader, may recall, our TASCAM US1800 died during our location recording sessions at Bawley Point (horror! The Horror!).
So instead of complaining about the Distributor being a tad slow (2 months) on dealing with the issue and/or coming across as a grumpy person (Hulk SMASH bad customer service!!), I'd instead, like to give fair praise to the diligence and follow up of the retailer who sold us the gear.
Bravo Nick Bava, bravo Bava's Music City -
If I limit myself to minimal ranting about poor performance, I can at least sing the praises of folks that give a sh care about customers.
Nick and his guys were on the case for months getting our stuff squared away and we're grateful. Thanks guys.
That doesn't make me a happy chappy about the whole process, but my theory of trying to purchase from local retailers was borne out.
I could have bought the unit online more cheaply and I agree that sometimes the web represents a reality price, as opposed to a 'retail' price. But this is where your risk profile comes into play.
When buying gear that might go wrong, is a large(ish) investment or may require future support, buying from the other side of the planet could prove tricky. That said, you can have the same problems with the shop down the street.
In our case, I chose to buy from a local retailer precisely because I wanted to be able to increase my personal participation in resolving any issues. The price differential was worth the reduction in risk.
I didn't expect the gear to blow up and from my googling, the TASCAM US1800 has the occasional USB interface problem (the chip goes bung) but on the whole, i still think it's a grand piece of kit.
However, when the unit went Kaplooey (under less than ideal circumstances) I was lucky to get such good help from my local retailer, bolstering my opinion that maintaining local connections to your supply chain is a good thing.
Paying for stuff from bricks and mortar stores can prove more expensive and I am not adverse to a good ebay bargain, but when I look at a purchase like the recording system, I also try and think of what might go wrong and who will I need to stalk chase up to get issues resolved.
So in short, the distributor could lift their game but the retailer went into bat for us with alacrity. Bravo Bava's.