Let me just start this letter by saying how huge of a Dream Theater fan I am. John Petrucci has been my idol as a guitarist ever since I first heard the Systematic Chaos album almost ten years ago.
Since that point I'd hoped one day to own an Ernie Ball Music Man Petrucci model guitar. To my understanding they stood for perfection in craftsmanship as well as the ultimate guitar when it came to possibilities and versatility. With all that in mind this is where my story begins.
Purchasing one of these guitars is certainly not inexpensive. Given the income of the average musician there isn't much room available as far as spending money goes. Luckily I was able to find one second hand from a local guitar collector which cut some of the cost off. Not wanting to have regrets later on about which model I purchased, I chose a top-of-the-line Ball Family Reserve model.
It was perfect. This guitar for me was the greatest piece of musical gear I'd ever owned. My other two guitars went back into their cases and one of them was even sold afterward thinking I would no longer end up using it.
If only this were true.
Shortly after owning the guitar I noticed a slight bow in the neck. I would tighten my truss rod some and it would be fine for a few days but it always seemed to slip back to the way it was. Because of this I would always have the truss rod set pretty tight to keep the neck straight.
One morning I picked up my guitar and immediately noticed something wrong with the back of the neck. The wood had been split and a piece was pushed out of it! I'm not sure how this came to be. I attribute it to the drastic change in temperature here in Canada as winter was just approaching at the time. Oddly enough, my other guitar which was a fraction of the cost of the Music Man was perfectly fine. No problems with a bowing neck. No truss rod issues. Certainly nothing splitting on the back of it. Both of these guitars had thin maple necks and the other guitar was at least 6 years older and had survived many more winters.
I was heart broken at the sight of it.
I immediately brought the instrument into Long & McQuade to see what could be done. They told me I would need a replacement neck and they would get a hold of Ernie Ball then call me when they heard back. I've still never received a call about it by the way.
Tired of waiting, I contacted Ernie Ball directly. After a few days I received a return email telling me they can't do anything and I need to take it up with Coast Music here in canada. So I went further down the line and sent them an email as instructed.
I received no response to the email so I called instead. I was told that it's really not their problem and that I should talk to Long & McQuade or Ernie Ball about this. Placing me back where I started.
Now, 4 months have gone by. I've been passed around from company to company with no solutions or help and still I have a beautiful looking guitar that may as well be a decoration because it's unplayable.
I put a lot of faith and money into Ernie Ball and the John Petrucci line of guitar only to be let down consistently.
All I want is to be able to play my guitar again. It shouldn't have been defective in the first place and I can't even seem to get a replacement neck to fix the problem. For such a big name company offering instruments with that large of a price tag, this is absolutely unacceptable.
Since that point I'd hoped one day to own an Ernie Ball Music Man Petrucci model guitar. To my understanding they stood for perfection in craftsmanship as well as the ultimate guitar when it came to possibilities and versatility. With all that in mind this is where my story begins.
Purchasing one of these guitars is certainly not inexpensive. Given the income of the average musician there isn't much room available as far as spending money goes. Luckily I was able to find one second hand from a local guitar collector which cut some of the cost off. Not wanting to have regrets later on about which model I purchased, I chose a top-of-the-line Ball Family Reserve model.
It was perfect. This guitar for me was the greatest piece of musical gear I'd ever owned. My other two guitars went back into their cases and one of them was even sold afterward thinking I would no longer end up using it.
If only this were true.
Shortly after owning the guitar I noticed a slight bow in the neck. I would tighten my truss rod some and it would be fine for a few days but it always seemed to slip back to the way it was. Because of this I would always have the truss rod set pretty tight to keep the neck straight.
One morning I picked up my guitar and immediately noticed something wrong with the back of the neck. The wood had been split and a piece was pushed out of it! I'm not sure how this came to be. I attribute it to the drastic change in temperature here in Canada as winter was just approaching at the time. Oddly enough, my other guitar which was a fraction of the cost of the Music Man was perfectly fine. No problems with a bowing neck. No truss rod issues. Certainly nothing splitting on the back of it. Both of these guitars had thin maple necks and the other guitar was at least 6 years older and had survived many more winters.
I was heart broken at the sight of it.
I immediately brought the instrument into Long & McQuade to see what could be done. They told me I would need a replacement neck and they would get a hold of Ernie Ball then call me when they heard back. I've still never received a call about it by the way.
Tired of waiting, I contacted Ernie Ball directly. After a few days I received a return email telling me they can't do anything and I need to take it up with Coast Music here in canada. So I went further down the line and sent them an email as instructed.
I received no response to the email so I called instead. I was told that it's really not their problem and that I should talk to Long & McQuade or Ernie Ball about this. Placing me back where I started.
Now, 4 months have gone by. I've been passed around from company to company with no solutions or help and still I have a beautiful looking guitar that may as well be a decoration because it's unplayable.
I put a lot of faith and money into Ernie Ball and the John Petrucci line of guitar only to be let down consistently.
All I want is to be able to play my guitar again. It shouldn't have been defective in the first place and I can't even seem to get a replacement neck to fix the problem. For such a big name company offering instruments with that large of a price tag, this is absolutely unacceptable.
Good luck
