bluemountainhome - Posted - 01/26/2010:  11:17:07

I am looking at possibly buying a guitar from audiolinks.com and wondered if anyone has bought anything from them, whether they're a reputable site, what their customer service is like etc...

I am pretty new here (this is my first topic) :) and would apreciate anyone's advice.

Edited by - bluemountainhome on 01/26/2010 11:19:19

ccravens - Posted - 01/26/2010:  12:14:02

What kind of guitar are you looking to buy? Will this site provide a set-up & inspection before sending it out? What about their return policy? There are a number of reputable places to buy that will do an inspect and set-up free of charge, as part of the purchase. This is one one thing you should think about when deciding who to buy from; just thought I'd throw it in.

brokepick - Posted - 01/26/2010:  14:51:15

Looks like audiolink.com specializes in sales and rental of PA and recording equipment. I've never bought anything from them, but they look legit enough.

The only guitars I saw on their site were a few Fenders and Washburns. I didn't do any price comparisons with other sites. I guess you may have done that already. If not, you might check out places like Guitar Center, Sam Ash, Musician's Friend, Music123, Zzounds, etc., and see what kind of deals they will make. Like ccravens said, there is more to a guitar seller than just price. Some places may charge a little more, but they will do some setup and inspection before they ship. Some places offer a better return policy, should you not like what you get.

Have you checked out any local dealers? That way you can actually put your hands on the guitars. It has its advantages.

bluemountainhome - Posted - 01/26/2010:  21:13:42

thanks both of you, the guitar I'm looking at is a washburn, (wd18sw) I tried one out ages ago in a music shop and something about it... I felt a connection. (that one turned out to be in not so good a shape) I personally hate the idea of buying a guitar online, but washburn discontinued the model and no one seems to be carrying it - even online, this is the only site I found that carried it. Also, if I found a place that did setup as part of the price that would great...

The very first place I called was my closes guitar center, apparently they don't sell washburns except for the occasional secondhand trade-in (kinda strange)

here's a link if anyone wants to look:
audiolinks.com/tek9/tek9.asp?p...jncmlncqi

brokepick - Posted - 01/27/2010:  06:11:22

Interesting guitar. Solid sapele top, back and sides. I did some looking, and it does seem that that guitar has been discontinued.

The only two dealers still advertising it were the one you found, and this one:

elevation-music.com/wawddracgu.html

I hope one of them still has it. A lot of times, when you try to order something like that, they will reply that it has been discontinued, and they just didn't update their website.

I think that you will be okay with either one of these places, if they have it. Oh, I wouldn't expect any setup or inspection for that price. If it needs setup work, you can usually find a local music tech that can do it for you for maybe $50 or so. That is usually money well spent.

Good luck!

brokepick - Posted - 01/27/2010:  06:21:21

BTW, something that came to mind. If your budget would allow, you might look around for a Martin D-15. It is solid mahogany top, back, and sides. A very nice guitar. I think Martin discontinued them, but some still might be available, and I know there could be some used ones floating around.

Jack T - Posted - 01/29/2010:  10:50:20

If you are interested in a Washburn, you might ask some questions on the Washburn Guitar Forum. They have people that know their Washburns. They can answer any questions you might have.

There are also Washburn dealers that post there who are very reliable, give great service and give some really good prices.