"Bought an Oscar Schmidt OE20G from them. Had previously bought at Amazon, but that one arrived damaged, so sent back. They were $55 cheaper than Amazon then. Theirs showed up promptly, in perfect shape, and with a free cable. Next bought 12 string acoustic/electric, also cheaper than anyone else. Then, a year and a half later, ordered another OE20G from them, because I had foolishly sold my other when I had gotten a much more expensive guitar. Liked the Oscar Schmidt better, and really missed it. It said plainly that it was on backorder because of the CITIES ban on Indian rosewood causing a delay getting them into the country. They are a small business and do not keep a large inventory. But they had the best prices around and I liked them. I had to wait a month, but that was sooner than I was told by the company the that makes them by two weeks. As always, arrived perfect, just needing a good set-up, like every other guitar I ever bought. Now it just screams. Blows away my Epi Les Paul (it's a Les Paul copy). Great guitars at an unbelievable price."
"I ordered about $250.00 worth of violin stuff - the violin itself, bow, strings and portable music stand. I placed the order and received an order number. There was no further communication after that. I let two weeks go by and emailed them. They replied promptly and said that the violin is on backorder. I read somewhere that they are brokers - that they don't necessarily have items in stock and will order it for you at deeper discounts than regular stores (which is their selling point). And that is fine with me. If you want deeper discounts and you're not on a deadline, this is a good place to shop. The order was placed in late February. I received the violin, bow and stand around end of March, beginning of April. It was all packed very carefully and everything was in excellent condition! The violin is even more beautiful than in pictures! The receipt had a note in it that said that the strings will come separately. So I waited another week and emailed them about that. Reply was prompt just as before that it will ship soon. And I did get it about a week and a half later carefully packaged and in excellent condition.
The lesson is, you have to understand what kind of store this is and never buy anything there on a deadline because you might not get it on time if the item is not in stock. It's worth shopping there though because it has the cheapest prices you'll ever find anywhere. And when you do place an order, initiate and maintain communications with them about the status of your order (as they seem shy about this?). When communicating with them however, it's always good practice to be polite and kind (as with everyone else!) and the transactions will go more smoothly."
"2 weeks past, no update. So I made an inquiry it looks like they are back ordered and can't get it until 2 months later. Well then, they should have informed me, so I could cancel and order it from somewhere else! No phone support. Only by email, and it takes about 2-3 days to get a response. Horrible e biz."
"Ordered a Ukulele and then received an immediate email that the item was back ordered. 3 weeks later I am unable to contact the company by phone or email. There is no way to contact the company directly, and they will not let me cancel my order online because it is "processing." They apparently try to string you along so that they can charge "cancellation fees" when your order doesn't get shipped. Just google this website to see how much fraud they have committed."
"I ordered an Eastwood Mandocaster 12 (in Seafoam Green) from instrument Alley nearly 2 weeks ago. The only response that I have received so far is "I had to do a little more planning to get this to you up in Alaska. I was out of the seafoam green here and I couldn’t have it shipped direct from Eastwood as they don’t ship USPS. I’m hoping to have a USPS tracking number for you by Tuesday. Please let me know if you are in a time crunch.
Regards, Ben."
I supplied an address that they could ship UPS to. No response.
Only after I ordered did I read the reviews of Instrument Alley. Had I known what I was dealing with I would not have subjected myself to their poor service.
At this point I'd settle for a Mandocaster 12 in sunburst. Or a refund so I can order from someplace reputable.
Don't make the mistake I did trying to save a couple of bucks. Read and heed reviews before ordering anything from unfamiliar sites."
"I received my Oscar Schmidt autoharp a day earlier than was estimated on the initial FedEx shipping notice. I ordered the Ozark model and received the more expensive Americana model.
I have to say that I grew apprehensive after I received an email reply from Ben on March 8 stating the Ozark model was in stock and ready to ship, then found reviews on various websites that were less than positive reviews about Instrument Alley. I waited the five (business) days as stated on the IA website for shipment, then sent a text message on March 14, which was replied to by Dave. Dave assured me that everything was in stock and would be shipped the next day, which would have been March 15. Dave said the delay was due to waiting for the case I ordered with the harp. He said I would be notified on Thursday, March 15, that the purchase was shipped. When I didn’t hear anything on the 15th, I again was concerned. But, on Friday, March 16, I was notified by FedEx that my purchase was shipped.
I waited until I had the harp tuned up and checked everything I could think of before I tried to leave feedback.
I realize this company doesn't do the volume of business that Amazon does, but they beat Amazon's price. And I have had really bad experiences with Amazon. I contacted Ben and asked why they sent the more expensive harp. He said the manufacturer had it listed wrong, so he just sent it on to me at the same price as the Ozark model.
"
"What a great place to purchase items I can't find at other retailers! I plan on shopping here again. Also Ben is such a nice person to help with your orders.... I think he should be named Gentle Ben! "
"I ordered a ukulele from them and paid the extra fee for overnight shipping. No where did it say it was backordered. After a few days I emailed then called then instant messaged them. Said it would be in the following week. It wasn’t. I called them the next Monday and they said “next week” again. It’s now been 4 weeks. It took 2 emails, 3 calls and a few instant message attempts to get them to refund my over night fee. Finally asked them to cancel my order and send me a confirmation. Haven’t heard anything. Super rude. Super unhelpful. Kind of just stealing when you sell someone something and never send it....
UPDATE:
They asked me to delete this review.
They emailed me back finally saying the ukulele would be there this week. Again. I asked them again to cancel my order. Again. They asked me to take down my "false review" because they never took my money. The money left my bank account and then was returned a few days later. Still haven't confirmed that the order is canceled. I still consider taking someone's money, whether temporarily or not, to be stealing when you consistently lie about when the product you sold someone will actually reach the customer. Be prepared to be told "It'll be in next week" over and over if you decide to order anything from these kids. "
"I ordered a guitar that was listed as in stock and it was advertised as in stock for 5 days after I placed my order then suddenly it was back ordered. thought maybe I had bought the last one. So After 2 weeks had passed with no word I went online and entered a chat and the guy said out of stock for 6 more weeks.I said "well you cant sell what you don't have and asked if he could get me out of the order without a bunch of fees and he said he would be glad to cancel the order if I didn't want to wait. No problem,and it wasn't.I think they should communicate what is going on and be more real time.However they did do the right thing when I asked."
"Ordered a guitar, amplifier, case, cable, strings etc. 110 days ago. The guitar was labeled as a temporarily out of stock item. 2 weeks ago the same guitar was listed as "In Stock" and my order on their website showed as shipped. Website states that when orders ship, tracking info is available. Bull ****. 3 separate requests on the website chat for shipping info were ignored. Wished I had paid more attention to all the negative feedback online. I know, people are quick to complain and slow to praise but the lousy reviews I've read are spot on and mirror my experience completely. Never again, and if you want anything close to minimal customer service you will look elsewhere IF you get your order, you may save a few bucks but my bet is you'll be disappointed."
"ordered a oscar schmidt 12 string guitar, need more improvement in the costumer service, every thin else was ok got guitar in 5 days"
"Horrible, Horrible customer service! I ordered a mandolin which on their website said it was back ordered. A day later I got an email staying it was a pre-order item and was back ordered 30-60 days. I decided I didn't want to wait that long so emailed to say I wanted to cancel the order, no reply. Called their phone # several times, never got a live person. Left at least 4 messages, never got a call back. I sent numerous emails to amazon pay. Finally, 8 days later, I get a very brief email stating my order has been cancelled and that they normally charge a $10.00 fee for pre-ordered items. WTF??? No apology even and the email made me feel like they were doing me a favor. I will never, ever do business with this company again, even if they have a cheaper price, NEVER! I want to warn everyone to be wary of this company."
"Bought a $250 Oscar Schmidt serpentine guitar, probably not a lot of margin for them, but they treated me like a king, got a great guitar and fast shipping! I read the poor reviews, and you got to understand if they are giving great prices, they may not have the employees and drama like guitar center etc..... they responded to my emails. I’m happy. I wasn’t expecting 5star service on a $250 purchase but I got it. "
"I purchased a baritone ukulele from Instrument Alley in June. The ukulele was back ordered and took several weeks. During that time, Ben was very helpful and responsive, keeping me informed of arrival date, etc.
Now I am the proud owner of a world class instrument with a hardshell case at less than half the retail price.
Very satisfied! Thank you!"
"no communication at all! will not reply to my emails or calls. they say they wont bill til order ships but thats a lie. if i had only checked this site first i would not have ordered from them. so long story short, they got my money. i still have no answer on when my order will ship. "