Trouble with Ebay ukulele seller. What would you do in my situation?

luvdatuke said:

The issue with the Kalas "going wrong" and being a shocker...first, this issue is with the electronics of 2 ukes. Second, there have been a decent number of folks who have sent Kalas back (to even different dealers?) with buzzing issues, for example. Third, Kala is a company since 2005? Yeah some great stuff and great values, but let's stop acting like Kala has been around forever like Martin guitars or even Ibanez...increases in production can result in decreases in QC...they are what they are: some great values in factory ukes.

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As someone who had the green light to be an authorized Kala dealer (BECAUSE I believe in their work) but never went ahead with selling, I can tell you this which you may or may not know.
EVERY Kala dealer is RESPONSIBLE for the set up of each Kala.
They don't come set up.
Buzzing coming from a new uke is a set up issue.
With ANY instrument maker you are bound to have some problems..even Taylors or Martins...with a few coming off the press so to speak.
You can have defects with a custom builder or a production company. It's the nature of the beast.
2005 you say...well in that short amount of time they have built up a great reputation BECAUSE their products ARE great.
You said it yourself..great values.
I don't recall seeing anyone "acting" like they have been around as long as Martin.
All I see is people speaking from experience.
If you have a Kala or ever owned one feel free to post your experiences.
I don't see anything mentioned in your post about YOUR experiences with Kalas.
All I see from you are posts about the negative experiences you have read from others people's posts.

Someone said (John of the Ladder) that people in a community are like pebbles in a jar which when moved around smoothe one another out.

Kala/Makala: own 2 Dolphins, pineapple, KA-15S and a Makala baritone. Plan on getting a spruce top tenor. Had ordered a solid acacia soprano, ended up (by mistake) with a concert. Had it for awhile, not impressed. Have on this forum recommened Kala more than any other company probably but not much beyond a certain price point...consider for example Curly mangos money to be saved towards better options. Do other people love them? Yes, that fine with me but not for me. The Dolphins and the Makala baritone esp. are my favorites of the bunch.

Set ups with most Kala factory ukes (the truth): tuning it up after changing the strings? Most of them already come with Aquilas. I stand by this. For the most part, this "needs a set up" thing is sheer nonsense...not nonsense though for people who need ultra low action...and I've previously stated that I'm not against all set ups or adjustments.

The fact that you suggest that "buzzing" is (always?) a set up issue with a new uke leads me to refer you to recent threads where a bridge screw (construction) was at issue.

Martins, yes for me, Taylors no.

OP - Thanks for answering the questions I posed. The real issue here is that you need resolution and I think you are misinterpreting the gist of most of the folks here. I know it's easy to become defensive when so many people seem to be pushing back at you because you have an issue with a very trusted dealer, who does what he does very well. And he generally goes beyond the call of duty for most of his customers. This isn't a popularity contest. Ukes cost us money and are valuable to most of us. Having a resource like the dealer mentioned is invaluable to most of us because of those reasons. Because of his reputation here and on ebay, most of us are willing to give him the benefit of doubt and the assumption is a communication breakdown. Whether it's with you, or your unwilling partner, or just snafu on the dealer's end of things. I think most people here will tell you that there is no maliciousness on the dealer's part.

If you can come here and ask a bunch of strangers for advice, I assume you can ask someone in your personal life to make a call for you if you just aren't able to do it. That's all. You will be taken care of if you truly have recourse. Please stick around and contribute to this community if you wish to. There is no need to excuse yourself because of what you may feel is backlash, when it really is just reassurance that this will work out. Just call.

Personally, I don't understand how a defective Kala would result in the offer of a eleuke. They for the most part are not on the same price point and they are two different companies. If the Kala was in fact defective, MGM would accept a return and take it up with the dealer... no? So how could he then replace that defective unit with another brand. This would come out of his pocket but be Kala's responsibility. Some things just don't add up here. I find it hard to believe with his reputation, MGM would accept a return then act like it never happened.

Just my two cents.

AC Baltimore said:

Personally, I don't understand how a defective Kala would result in the offer of a eleuke. They for the most part are not on the same price point and they are two different companies. If the Kala was in fact defective, MGM would accept a return and take it up with the dealer... no? So how could he then replace that defective unit with another brand. This would come out of his pocket but be Kala's responsibility. Some things just don't add up here. I find it hard to believe with his reputation, MGM would accept a return then act like it never happened.

Just my two cents.

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Need for an amplified uke, maybe same uke with reported issues? Price point? The kala archtop around $265 with some money returned or something? We're all presuming the battery was OK....or changed when it was taken to a shop and checked?

As an aside, glad to see other options being explored like Makai. AC.

AC Baltimore said:

Some things just don't add up here. I find it hard to believe with his reputation, MGM would accept a return then act like it never happened.

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Ditto. I've been around long enough to know of MGM's rep and some things definitely seem weird. I don't usually get involved in these types of threads but I find it necessary to repeat that the OP needs to CALL Mike directly and get it sorted out. Mike is a very busy person, but he doesn't neglect customers in such ways.

Give him a call. Make sure you guys are on the same page and everything should work out, beyond your expectations. I buy all of my ukes from UkeRepublic, but I wouldn't hesitate to buy one from MGM either. If the situation is as stated, he will take care of it...

Good luck.

One thing I can't figure out is, what is this solid body Kala? I can't find any pictures of one anywhere. Did I miss the boat on these, or are we talking about the jazz uke?

didgeridoo2 said:

One thing I can't figure out is, what is this solid body Kala? I can't find any pictures of one anywhere. Did I miss the boat on these, or are we talking about the jazz uke?

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Referred to as a version...I think so.

AC Baltimore said:

Personally, I don't understand how a defective Kala would result in the offer of a eleuke. They for the most part are not on the same price point and they are two different companies. If the Kala was in fact defective, MGM would accept a return and take it up with the dealer... no? So how could he then replace that defective unit with another brand. This would come out of his pocket but be Kala's responsibility. Some things just don't add up here. I find it hard to believe with his reputation, MGM would accept a return then act like it never happened.

Just my two cents.

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If I remember correctly, the Kala solid body ukes, along with numerous other companies, were re-branded Eleukes from the old factory. Lots of those ukes had faulty electronics and overall build quality issues. Once Eleuke switched factories, most of those re-branded ukes disappeared. That's probably why an Eleuke was being sent in place of a Kala.

I'm not entirely happy with some of the content of this thread, so I'm locking it for review. Please bear with me.

OK.

The OP has a justified concern.

@poopylungstuffing: I would get your partner to speak to the dealer personally on the telephone. If the dealer is indeed MGM then a LONG history of reliability and honourable dealing would suggest that there is a genuine reason for the communication issues. If Mike is currently able to access the forum then I expect he will be aware of this thread.

A phone call is the sensible course. If you can't do it, then get your partner to do it. Also, you could both send emails in case he has lost contact details.

I have sympathy with anyone who experiences difficulties due to autism. One of my grandsons has some mild probs in that area. However, that said, posts that come across as bitter and sarcastic achieve nothing. I would respectfully suggest that emails in a similar tone might also be less than effective.

When you have contacted Mike, by all means let us know how things are going.

Jerkey said:

Ya whats missing is his side of the story. If it was me being flamed like this I would be on here telling my side of the story. Grow some coconuts MGM and stick up for yourself. Trust me MGM, your silence is hurting your business.

Good Luck

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I know you're a new member, Jerkey, but please... This kind of post helps nothing. Trust me.

I'm unlocking in case poopylungstuffing or MGM have info to share, but please lets not have a heap of guesswork and uninformed speculation.

buddhuu said:

I'm unlocking in case poopylungstuffing or MGM have info to share, but please lets not have a heap of guesswork and uninformed speculation.

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Buddhuu FTW!

When researching my first uke I called MGM and was suprised to hear "Hi! This is Mike!" on the phone! I was thinking with all the business he does surely he would not have time to answer the phone, much less answer my silly question. So yeah, great guy from my experience. Give 'em a call! I am sure he will work it out I would think the lapse in time probably had a lot to do with it!

But I sure hope MGM does not feel like he has to come on this thread and say anything either way. Because it is a double edged sword. Basically, if you think about it, he has 2 choices:

1. Come on here and redeem himself and the only way to do that is to blame the customer, which is a bad rep to get and something I know he would not do.

2. Admit he dropped the ball, whether he did or not.

So, let us say it us an unusual situation with a bit o' miscommunication and hope with the advice of making a phone call it can be resolved.

Good luck Poopy! I hope it works out for you! No head hung in shame please! We all have our struggles! And communication issues are a hard struggle to overcome (I just about wanted to take a kids head off yesterday for a perception that he was laughing at my son for his reading, he is from Ethiopia and struggles with communication and reading, so we understand lack of communication and language struggles in our home). Find someone trusted to make the call for you! Good luck!

Good luck getting this problem solved. I'm another satisfied customer of MGM. Very satisfied. Perhaps he is out of town or something. It's way too bad you are having a less than stellar transaction with MGM. He will make it right if possible. (No, he probably won't give you a KoAloha for your troubles (I say that in fun) but he WILL make it right.

Please don't think you are not part of the ukulele community. The mere fact you own an ukulele puts you in the community. There are lots of different characters making up the ukulele community. That's one of the wonderful things about the ukulele. Once you get this resolved you'll start having a ball. Best wishes,

Sukie

In the past I've observed that whenever a member posts a complaint about a uke dealer/maker without first talking to that person and trying to resolve the issue, the OP rightly or not always gets slammed by other members.

MGM is a great guy and hangs out here alot, but he should not feel like he has to check the forum every hour to defend himself from possible attack. Complaints should go directly to his business. I hope Mike has been away having a great weekend. I'm sure this issue will be resolved and this thread will probably only help cement his reputation as a great asset to the community with all the positive comments about his consistant excellent service.

I couldn't find any info about it after I got it either...I showed it off in a video, but I don't have any photographs so bear with me....

Contact had been made with the dealer over the course of several months with no resolution...I personally can't talk to him in person on the phone very well, and I am sure that at this point, he would certainly have no interest whatsoever in having to talk to me....but my partner has spoken to him on more than one occasion..and several e-mails have been sent to no avail. Once I figure out how to leave this forum I will be outta here for good. Obvioulsy nobobdy has really been attacking him..I started the thread not mentioning his name but it seems everybody already knew who he was. The general concensus has been that I must have done something wrong since the seller has a pristine repuation and that i am bad for even mentioning my troubles on a ukulele forum. I keep getting blamed for not calling, but calls have been made...by the person who ordered the uke for me.

That uke is NOT the archtop now in the Kala catalog. A prototype or earlier model now discontinued (as stated)?

Has this case been finally resolved? I hope so.
Regarding the previous comments about Set-Ups...
...of the last 6 ukes I've purchased, 3 were Set-Up by "trusted sellers" of the forum, and 3 were straight-from-the-factory. 2 of the Set Up ukes had problem, while the other three were perfect.
Interestingly, the 3 that came straight out of the box (2 of which were drop shipped) already had Aquilas on them, nicely finished frets, and spot-on intonation.
The next factory uke I buy will be based solely on price.

I struggled with a fairly bad stutter for many years, so I understand your hesitation to make one final call yourself. It always helped if I wrote down what I wanted to say, so I could keep my ramblings on track.

I believe if you (or someone who has more time than your partner) called again, and explained the whole situation, you could get this resolved once and for all. Whomever calls, you should be with them when they make the call. That way you would know for certain it happened, and you would know exactly what was going on.

Good luck lady. I wouldn't let this sour you to MGM or UU though. Sometimes you get a bad egg, I got two bad watermelons before I got one that was playable. I haven't let it sour me to the dealer (not MGM) or Kala, it just happens sometimes. I had a few terrible purchases from Amazon, but I still order from them.

Sometimes you just need to roll with the punches and realize that crap happens.