Got a call from Carter Guitars today!!

Joey Ace · Post by **Joey Ace** » 7 Jan 2004 11:08 am

I'm also getting tired of this one note tune.

Many top quality brands have been bashed on this forum. It's usually by a single person that had a disagreement with the builder.

I'm not going to repeat names, but you can find them using the search function. These bashings are usually unfair, and it's also common to see many satisfied customers coming to the defense of their brand.

Bashing got so bad at Bobbe's forum that there's a law suit pending. No need to mention brands, it can happen to anyone.

In my personal experience, the customer service at Carter has excellent.

How many other builders have a web site that offers so much excellent advice? None that I can think of even have sites that offer much info about their own guitars, like pricing/setup.

Carter has been kind enough to post info, including movies and audio, about theirs and different brands. They also host a Swap Shop, On-Line Steelers Directory, and more.
All at no cost to the public!

Thanks John, Ann, and Bud!

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<img align=left src="http://www.joeyace.com/img/joey2.jpg" >
-j0ey-
www.JoeyAce.com

MUSICO · Post by **MUSICO** » 7 Jan 2004 11:12 am

Just wanted to quietly say that I am a satisfied Carter client. I was a difficult customer because

a) I was far away
b) I was too ignorant to really know what I needed
c) I had some problems with a cancelled credit card

The company and the instrument are 110% in my experience.

Jeremy Williams
Barcelona Spain

David Friedlander · Post by **David Friedlander** » 7 Jan 2004 1:20 pm

Are you all suggesting that the forum is better served by having ten "cheerleaders" voice strong approval, yet discourage someone who does not feel the same way to voice their opinion? On a thread they did not start?

I did not start ANY thread concerning Carter guitars. Not one.

Bob started this thread, and the one prior that got this whole thing going.
I mean the guy asked if anyone had experience- I did, and have been sharing it.

I'm again sorry for those who don't want to hear it. No problem, you don't HAVE to read anything.

Then he made a post ( this one) , referrring to me ( the good ol' unhappy customer), and I'm a bad guy for responding.
Sorry again if I hurt anyone's feelings.

Have a great day everyone.
BY the way- all you Carter defnders are the ones "stringing this out- NOT me.

Stephen Gambrell · Post by **Stephen Gambrell** » 7 Jan 2004 3:13 pm

Then why did you add that last post, David?

John Drury · Post by **John Drury** » 7 Jan 2004 3:44 pm

Bob,

I think you did right by not cancelling that order, the Carters are nice guitars.

I also think Cohen is right, we really need to douse this campfire, because.....Uh....Damn!!!

John Drury
NTSGA #3

Bob Carlucci · Post by **Bob Carlucci** » 7 Jan 2004 4:18 pm

Yikes... all kinds of nasty goings on here!!... anyway I have NO problem with David's opinion at all .. We have had several email discussions and he's a great guy! Opinions differ greatly on this site about what a good pedal steel sound is.. .. Hell I actually use an MSA for my west coast country rock style!! whats up with that???.. I give a big thank you to ALL who took thier time to opine here. Your thoughts mean much more top me than you will ever know. Hey,maybe after a few weeks of playing it, I'll tell David he was right and the Carter is a MUTT!!!!! Perhaps I'll tell him it's EASILY the best steel I've ever seen/played/heard/sniffed/fondled/romanced etc... I don't know. Buying a Carter was a leap of faith. However,IMHO its going to be a GREAT guitar.. Two of my heroes are playing them exclusively... Rusty Young and Bobby Black. I'm pretty sure it will be all that I expect it to be..... we''ll see bob

Mark van Allen · Post by **Mark van Allen** » 7 Jan 2004 7:36 pm

Rather than "bashing" versus "supporters" I would tend to see these threads as just the answers that were asked for: opinions on the Carter guitars and/or service. And it certainly seems to be running a high percentage of positives... I've owned two Carters, both of which I purchased used. Both guitars have had some setup or tweezing done at the factory, with what I consider to be expert courteous service. One guitar was retrofitted with BCT, which I was somewhat sceptical about as far as cost and effect. I have to say that guitar returned to me a much better playing/sounding instrument, with some positive adjustments and additions I hadn't even asked for, totally worth the money. In all my dealings with Carter I've been dealt with promptly and fairly. I'd like to suggest that one reason why they like to deal by phone when possible is because they can often talk while still building guitars which is a bit difficult on the net. I'll also throw in kudos and a great deal of appreciation for the time and effort put into their website, which is probably the second most useful internet resource ever for steel guitar, after this forum.

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Stop by the Steel Store at: www.markvanallen.com

CrowBear Schmitt · Post by **CrowBear Schmitt** » 7 Jan 2004 11:49 pm

i'll agree w: MVA
" I'll also throw in kudos and a great deal of appreciation for the time and effort put into their website, which is probably the second most useful internet resource ever for steel guitar, after this forum. "

i would be very happy to try a Carter

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Steel what?

Tony Prior · Post by **Tony Prior** » 8 Jan 2004 3:43 am

YES.. MVA..very good insight..

I get weary when anyone gets to the
"here's how you should do it " syndrome .

If an opinion is posted that is what we are here for, if half a story is posted then we should just use caution going forward.The forum, as we have all come to know the past couple of years is not the arena for a manufacturer and client to take the gloves off. Any manufacturer who stays clear of these posted grievances and opinons has my full respect.

Everyone see's things differently.

How one person runs a business may not be the model for another to run there business.

I too have posted some "opinionated" statements from time to time, and now and then I get an EMAIL from a forum friend questioning my sanity..wondering if I've been taken over by an Alien..which..I probably have been..

I lost this story as soon as the "LAME TONE" compared to a PP appeared.. Thats usually a pretty good indication of pending digression.

ok..

We are a week into the new year..I'm still waiting for something new to happen ..

I played a gig last night.
Big Blah...
But I did play Steel all night and played things on the Lower Ten pretty much all night.Some of the things I have been working on fit nice..some ..well..didn't...I think the rest of the band was in the wrong key !

t

David L. Donald · Post by **David L. Donald** » 8 Jan 2004 4:28 am

No matter how good you are at your work,
no matter how custumer oriented your company is,
no matter how good you product is ;

there will always be

The day something went wrong
Your key employee is sick for 2 weeks
The customer with different and un-meet-able expectations
The bad month when everything goes pear shaped
Materials from normally good supppliers that make it out of both production lines undetected as defective.

The short window of opportunity recording session with strick deadline,
and the 6 hour blackout at the same time.

An artist with bad instruments that insists you make an cracked Aria nylon guitar sound like a 1935 Martin D-28 and then gets violent when you can't

A singer with no sense of pitch and vocal nodes, and can't understand why a $2,000 mic doesn't make them sound like Reba.

A single bad video tape from a major marque that causes the loss of a whole concert

Oh yeah and lets not forget my personal favorite studio horror.

The producer tells your assistant to erase these two tapes so we can copy to them from the masters.
But then hands the kid the masters...

And the kid (28) does as instructed...
bulk erases the masters, 5 minutes before the composer / conducter arrives to hear the 500 person, one off, Christmas concert recording of his composition and some Beethoven.

And of course who does the producer blame in front of the conductor... me as I walk in the door from another session.
I wasn't even in the building at the time.
Merde alors!!

I did finally help out the conductor with a suplimental rehearsal recording of his originals ;
after telling the "producer" to "take a hike, NOW!"

I couldn't charge the composer out of pure sympathy, cause he had to pay for 70 musicians of the 500 from his own pocket. And it was any easy enjoyable evening gig anyway.

There will always be some complaint sometime from someone if you work in the world.

What the truth is, usually reflects the great mass of work and comments over time, not the one or two off days or bad situations.

Drew Howard · Post by **Drew Howard** » 8 Jan 2004 5:11 am

Carter Guitars are the first steel guitar builder to enter the 21st century. They communicate with their customers, provide after the sale support, and even chase you down if you buy a used Carter. Not to mention they send out Christmas cards and even free parts for another brand of guitar I had (from my experience - your mileage may vary).

Drew

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www.newslinkassociates.com
www.drewhoward.com

Larry Phleger · Post by **Larry Phleger** » 8 Jan 2004 7:34 am

As I stated earlier, I am a satisfied Carter owner, and my experience with the company could not have been better. I do believe it is good to have feedback both positive and negative about any company as long as it is legitimate. It is good for a prospective buyer to know the good, bad and ugly about what he/she is considering. All builders have dedicated followers, and players that wouldn’t touch them with a ten foot pole. IMHO, we can all benefit from feedback from people who have experience with a product so we can make our own informed decision

Ray Minich · Post by **Ray Minich** » 8 Jan 2004 9:17 am

"Why can't we all just learn to get along?"

(Said by some guy in Los Angeles a few years ago, I think his name was Rodney?"

Dave Potter · Post by **Dave Potter** » 8 Jan 2004 11:18 am

>>"Why can't we all just learn to get along?"

>>(Said by some guy in Los Angeles a few years ago, I think his name was Rodney?"

From a quick search of the net -

"Where are they now?

Rodney King is currently living in a drug rehab center in Ponoma, California after a string of legal woes. According to reports, despite his multimillion dollar settlement, he is broke."

Damir Besic · Post by **Damir Besic** » 11 Jan 2004 12:28 am

maybe he tried to make living playing steel guitar

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Eric West · Post by **Eric West** » 11 Jan 2004 12:59 am

I'll bet he's a lot happier the way he is.

Kind of a modern Siddartha..

I'd join rehab myself but I don't have any substance abuse thing to be "rehabbed from". Writing stupid stuff doesn't qualify. I've already tried..

Kind of like wanting to be "gay" and not having anything to be "gay from..." (Not that I do or there's anything wrong with that...)

Makes me long for the "Good Old Days".

After coming in from a week long road gig back in the 80s, my wife was FURIOUS.

She asked "What kind of frigging POOL GAME Lasted ALL WEEK?????!!?!".

"WHATT???" I queried.. stunned.

"Well" she said, "You were on the phone to Randy before you left, and told him you were going to stop by and pick up an "Eight Ball" before you came over."

I had this Exact dream. This whole thread, word for word, the other night, and had to go over to "Off topic" and get my Mind Right.

So. Carters: Are ya "Fer 'em" or "Agin' 'em"?

I'm confused..

[This message was edited by Eric West on 11 January 2004 at 10:45 PM.]

David L. Donald · Post by **David L. Donald** » 11 Jan 2004 1:59 am

Good one Eric. I don't miss the 80's a bit.

Damir you still crack me up.

Damir Besic · Post by **Damir Besic** » 11 Jan 2004 10:16 am

yeah,no joke,imagine your kid decide to play steel and requests from you to buy him a new D-10 MSA Millenium with a pair of new Standel amps and to get "THAT" sound he also needs few top of the line Lexicon effects.Together with a nice Hilton some George L cables and nice Senheiser to mike it all...ugh,sounds like a nitemare.

And after 20 years of practice and you supporting him and his 3 kids he finaly gets a gig in the local club for 30 bucks a nite.And if you want to see him play you have to pay a cover charge and buy him a beer (since musicians don`t have a free alcohol)

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[This message was edited by Damir Besic on 11 January 2004 at 10:18 AM.]

John Lacey · Post by **John Lacey** » 12 Jan 2004 7:35 am

"Writing stupid stuff doesn't qualify. I've already tried." Actually, Eric, they do have a self-help group for that, it's called "on-and-on anon".

Eric West · Post by **Eric West** » 12 Jan 2004 2:00 pm

I tried that one, but I had too many Enablers and Codependants.

Hi. I'm Eric.. I'm a ........(1,285,675,350 words later)....... It's just Me and Jody. The rest all took off..

EJL

David Friedlander · Post by **David Friedlander** » 12 Jan 2004 3:45 pm

Hey Damir,
What you talkin about- we get all de alkehawl we want!

Bob Carlucci · Post by **Bob Carlucci** » 12 Jan 2004 6:48 pm

Wow.. my post has degenerated into total chaos...... bob

Eric West · Post by **Eric West** » 12 Jan 2004 9:24 pm

Sorry, but that was kind of the way it seemed to start out..

I couldn't get whether you were distressed, or somehow felt "threatened" by a "call at work". It looked like you felt you might have been a little 'too closely watched'. I'd have gotten that idea, but then that's just me..

Nobody should complain about their hamburger until it's in plain sight.

Glad to hear that you're "alright", and that you'll be getting the guitar that you want.

I guess....

EJL

b0b · Post by **b0b** » 12 Jan 2004 9:39 pm

I can't follow this discussion, and it appears to be pretty far off topic, so I'm closing it.

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<img align=left src="http://b0b.com/Officeb0b.gif" border="0"> Bobby Lee
-b0b- quasar@b0b.com 

System Administrator