Reverb issue with buyer

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Spaced Out Ace

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Did you use Reverb Seller protection? If so then the'll potentially give the guy reverb bucks to buy another one and open a dispute with UPS if the item was packed properly. When selling on Reverb you are acting as a pseudo business. We're obviously not businesses and so we can't really handle getting a defective unit returned to us when we shipped it out in working conditiion. With that in mind you need to cover yourself and be as clear as possible.

Take the best pictures you can form the most angles, take a picture of your packaging, and record a short clip of yourself playing the item on the day it shipped out showing that it was working. When he asked about the 18v option it would have been better to check for yourself so you could give a definitive answer of no. It's better to lose a sale than deal with some numb nuts causing you a headache.
Yep, I agree, and will definitely be how I go about things in the future.

I've used Reverb a lot and it's an excellent service if you're willing to eat the fees to not have to deal with crap from flakey musicians. They do not side with the buyer in every instance like Ebay. I had one issue where my 2/50/2 had a rack ear bent in shipping.They handled everything, gave the guy $100 in Reverb bucks and opened a dispute with UPS.

If you're on TGP they have some people who post over there that you could contact directly if you think things aren't going the way they should.
Thanks for the advice. I've been in contact with someone via email and via Reverb's chat feature. I just think it's sketchy as hell, and do not think he's being truthful. If I have to, I will send the pictures or even the pedal to Reverb if I get it back and it looks or smells like it's been improperly powered.
 

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protest

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Yea no problem dude. It sounds sketchy as hell. If you think it's fried when you get it back, and they're still only giving you $20 I would contact the manufacturer. See if they can confirm that it got toasted from bad power and then forward that to Reverb and ask for the rest of your money back.
 

devastone

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The difference is that the $20 is in "reverb bucks", you actually want your money back, or better stated, to not refund the guy if he is at fault. You need to make that clear with Reverb, as stated you guys aren't communicating very clearly, hopefully you are being more concise in your interactions with Reverb. Again, be business-like and clear, if you just go complaining to them that this "a$$hole" is trying to scam me it won't get you very far. And also, it took me 15 seconds to look up the JRAD website and see that the pedal is only rated for 9VDC, so it would be time well spent next time, or at least look on the pedal and see that it says 9VDC.
 

Spaced Out Ace

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Yea no problem dude. It sounds sketchy as hell. If you think it's fried when you get it back, and they're still only giving you $20 I would contact the manufacturer. See if they can confirm that it got toasted from bad power and then forward that to Reverb and ask for the rest of your money back.
That's definitely something I'm going to do once I have it in hand.
 

Spaced Out Ace

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The difference is that the $20 is in "reverb bucks", you actually want your money back, or better stated, to not refund the guy if he is at fault. You need to make that clear with Reverb, as stated you guys aren't communicating very clearly, hopefully you are being more concise in your interactions with Reverb. Again, be business-like and clear, if you just go complaining to them that this "a$$hole" is trying to scam me it won't get you very far. And also, it took me 15 seconds to look up the JRAD website and see that the pedal is only rated for 9VDC, so it would be time well spent next time, or at least look on the pedal and see that it says 9VDC.
I'm trying to not lose my cool with the guy, so if I'm not being too clear with the guy, that is why, though in hindsight, I'll definitely do a doom and gloom "ABSOLUTELY DO NOT DO IT OR YOULL NOT GET YOUR MONEY BACK!" Some of my comments here are obviously venting.
 

devastone

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There is a happy middle ground, like, the pedal and the manaul say 9V, so, if you try 18V you do so at your own risk.

In the last episode it looked like he was going to try it again, have you heard back? Although, if he plugged it in to 18V (which we still aren't sure) and it quit working, surely he doesn't think that just plugging it in to 9V will magically fix it.

In hindsight, I sold a EVH Phase 90 once and the person said it wasn't working, it was someone I knew from a forum so I just let her return it, no biggie, although it did end up costing me at least shipping in the end. But, turns out the pedal was fine when I got it back, I don't remember exactly, but she may have been drawing too much from the power supply when she added it to the chain or she was putting it on an supply with a pedal that was reverse polarity, don't remember exactly, but point is, it was an innocent mistake and the pedal was fine but I had to walk her through trouble shooting it.
 

Spaced Out Ace

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There is a happy middle ground, like, the pedal and the manaul say 9V, so, if you try 18V you do so at your own risk.

In the last episode it looked like he was going to try it again, have you heard back? Although, if he plugged it in to 18V (which we still aren't sure) and it quit working, surely he doesn't think that just plugging it in to 9V will magically fix it.

In hindsight, I sold a EVH Phase 90 once and the person said it wasn't working, it was someone I knew from a forum so I just let her return it, no biggie, although it did end up costing me at least shipping in the end. But, turns out the pedal was fine when I got it back, I don't remember exactly, but she may have been drawing too much from the power supply when she added it to the chain or she was putting it on an supply with a pedal that was reverse polarity, don't remember exactly, but point is, it was an innocent mistake and the pedal was fine but I had to walk her through trouble shooting it.
Fair enough, devastone. As for trying it again, I assume he did and that's when he filed for a refund. The guy refuses to answer the question of whether or not he actually tried 18v, and has continuously avoided the question.

As for the last part of your comment, that would be awesome if it's just someone's harebrained mistake (ie, reverse polarity, or something similar that wouldn't screw up the pedal, but would keep it from working.)
 

mnemonic

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(ie, reverse polarity, or something similar that wouldn't screw up the pedal, but would keep it from working.)

For what it’s worth, reverse polarity will still kill your pedal, after the reverse polarity diode fries (not sure how long that would take to be honest, I’ve never tested it). It’s my understanding that they will save the pedal for a short time though.

Once it fries, your opamp and probably all the electrolytic capacitors (they are polarised so they do not like being powered backwards) would need replacing.
 

Spaced Out Ace

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Wow, I am really sick of this fucking guy.

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I think I will just stick to buying shit, because selling it has been nothing but a fucking hassle. I sold two Amptweakers to someone around the same time, and it was a smooth transaction. This on the other hand has been nothing but a fucking nightmare.

Oh, sorry. I forgot about 9 exclamation points after the word "nightmare."
 

Spaced Out Ace

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For what it’s worth, reverse polarity will still kill your pedal, after the reverse polarity diode fries (not sure how long that would take to be honest, I’ve never tested it). It’s my understanding that they will save the pedal for a short time though.

Once it fries, your opamp and probably all the electrolytic capacitors (they are polarised so they do not like being powered backwards) would need replacing.
Thanks for the info. I keep forgetting you're rather knowledgeable about pedals in terms of the internals. I'll make a mental note of that when I get the Animal back to ask you for some things I am looking for.

And at that point -- "your opamp and probably all the electrolytic capacitors would need replacing" -- it will be Reverb's problem.

Please, if you have the time in the next few days, tell me what I am looking for other than a godawful smell and burnt/bloated components.
 

VBCheeseGrater

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I'll wager $1 you get it back and it fires right up and works perfectly. Probably has the guitar plugged into the output jack or some s***.

Of course there's always the chance the men in brown killed another one, but seems unlikely - did happen to me with an xbox pc controller (more fragile than most pedals i'd say) - i got it DOA, decided to fix it (was a common issue), got it working, then tried to touch up my soldering job and then killed it. Told the seller about by botched repair attempt, we split the cost.
 

Spaced Out Ace

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I'll wager $1 you get it back and it fires right up and works perfectly. Probably has the guitar plugged into the output jack or some s***.

Of course there's always the chance the men in brown killed another one, but seems unlikely - did happen to me with an xbox pc controller (more fragile than most pedals i'd say) - i got it DOA, decided to fix it (was a common issue), got it working, then tried to touch up my soldering job and then killed it. Told the seller about by botched repair attempt, we split the cost.
Who effing knows at this point. All I know is it's a bigger pain in the ass than $85 is worth.

And wait, you half assed soldering attempt fixed it but trying to clean up your first attempt botched it up? That is a tad comical I must say.
 

remorse is for the dead

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An adult shouldn't need me to hold his hand through the concept of reading a website or manual as to whether or not a pedal will work at 18v.

You're right, you shouldn't but it's called CYA. People like him are the reason a hot cup of coffee has printed on it a caution label. That's why I'm hesitant to sell on Reverb, stories like this are becoming far too common now.
 

Spaced Out Ace

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You're right, you shouldn't but it's called CYA. People like him are the reason a hot cup of coffee has printed on it a caution label. That's why I'm hesitant to sell on Reverb, stories like this are becoming far too common now.
Some pedals benefit from it, and others have zero benefit from using 18v instead of 9v. The only reason I use it with my OCD is because of convenience due to most 9v adapter inputs being on the right side or the back of the pedal, whereas the OCD has it on the left. Meanwhile, I thought the two Amptweaker pedals I had benefited from it, mainly because they more like preamps.

EDIT: Oh, and as for the "caution" labels on cups of coffee... how fucking dumb can people be? I mean really.
 

mnemonic

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Thanks for the info. I keep forgetting you're rather knowledgeable about pedals in terms of the internals. I'll make a mental note of that when I get the Animal back to ask you for some things I am looking for.

And at that point -- "your opamp and probably all the electrolytic capacitors would need replacing" -- it will be Reverb's problem.

Please, if you have the time in the next few days, tell me what I am looking for other than a godawful smell and burnt/bloated components.

Yeah no problem man.

I wouldn’t say I’m super knowledgable as I haven’t really been around failed electronics for the most part, mainly just building my own pedals.
 

Spaced Out Ace

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View attachment 60674 You really have to ask?...”Are people fucking retarded?...Yes”.
Well, you made my night. Anyone who makes an iDubbbz reference is great in my book. :lol:

Yeah no problem man.

I wouldn’t say I’m super knowledgable as I haven’t really been around failed electronics for the most part, mainly just building my own pedals.
Well, you can probably at least tell me what parts are supposed to measure so I can determine if it's possibly shit the bed.
 

Flappydoodle

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An adult shouldn't need me to hold his hand through the concept of reading a website or manual as to whether or not a pedal will work at 18v. That said, if what I get back looks like it's been improperly powered, I will be telling Reverb that they shouldn't give him his money back, and that they should probably look into removing him for abusing the service provided.

EDIT: In fact, they also shouldn't need me to hold their hand regarding emailing the pedal company as a last resort to inquire as to what voltages the pedal will/will not work with.

You're right - you shouldn't have to. But this isn't an ideal world. People can be dumb, lazy, arrogant etc. When you're selling stuff, you need to think like a business and always look out for your bottom line.

Granted, he probably would have plugged into 18V regardless of what you said, but it's just a note for the future. Don't offer technical support, because they you can be held accountable, even if the guy misinterprets or ignores you. Refer people to the manual/website and that's it. Say "I can't be responsible for anything you do outside of the conditions specified in the manual".

FWIW, in my reading of his messages, he doesn't seem like a scammer - just an impatient, impulsive little child. But again, your responses aren't exactly clear either. Just ask him clearly:

"Did you, at any time, plug the pedal into 18V?"

That's it. Don't go on about reverse polarity, AC or DC etc etc.

You're right, you shouldn't but it's called CYA. People like him are the reason a hot cup of coffee has printed on it a caution label. That's why I'm hesitant to sell on Reverb, stories like this are becoming far too common now.

It really isn't unique to Reverb, or eBay, or Craigslist or any other service in particular. Pretty much any interaction with human beings can be like this. Hell, you've probably been an idiot to others and not really realised it.
 
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