Whats the bottom line on the warranty difference?

[ichasedx]

I just purchased a Helix floor a few weeks ago from guitar center. Additionally I paid $250 for a 3 year warranty, including the one year, (now 2), from line 6. I haven't had the chance to do a side by side comparision of the warranties. The manager at guitar center said I had a few weeks yet to decide if I want to cancel the extended warranty I purchased and be refunded the $250. He told me that the major difference between the two warranties is that GC will cover accidental damage of any kind, where the line 6 will only cover manufacturers defects.

Im sure there is someone here that can set me straight...any bad experiences with either?

If it were you, what would you do?

Thanks as always for your help.

 

[cruisinon2]

1 hour ago, ichasedx said:

I just purchased a Helix floor a few weeks ago from guitar center. Additionally I paid $250 for a 3 year warranty, including the one year, (now 2), from line 6. I haven't had the chance to do a side by side comparision of the warranties. The manager at guitar center said I had a few weeks yet to decide if I want to cancel the extended warranty I purchased and be refunded the $250. He told me that the major difference between the two warranties is that GC will cover accidental damage of any kind, where the line 6 will only cover manufacturers defects.

Im sure there is someone here that can set me straight...any bad experiences with either?

If it were you, what would you do?

Thanks as always for your help.

 

 

Extended warranties offered by retailers are a scam. It's free money for them, generated by preying on your fears that something unfortunate will befall your shiny new toy. If you're determined to spend money on it anyway, you can extend the 2-year factory warranty directly with Line 6. There are a few options to choose from, and this way you don't have to deal with GC as the middle man... because should it ever need a repair, they're just gonna ship it off to L6 anyway.

[brue58ski]

Guitar Center covers your mistakes. Line 6 only covers their mistakes.

[jester700]

I used to work at an electronics retailer, and they REALLY pressed us to hammer customers to buy extended warranties. It was the only thing I wasn't good at (because I knew they were overpriced) and was the reason I quit the job. IIRC, most insurance policies are priced so they payout over 50 percent. That is, the policy is designed to be under 50% profit. Extended warranties were over 85% profit when I looked into it. They're not necessarily worthless; just way overpriced. As they said back in the day "it's the most profitable item in the store".

 

So, I'd return it. Then take care of your Helix! The only time that doesn't make sense is if your $$ situation is so tight that you couldn't afford to have the Helix fixed if it had a problem. But $250 is a BIG chunk of the purchase price - bank that, and you'll HAVE fix money. After 3 years, if you didn't need it (which is likely) you'll have $250+interest.

[codamedia]

2 hours ago, cruisinon2 said:

Extended warranties offered by retailers are a scam.

 

For the most part I agree with you 100%... but I consider the extended coverage I have with with my Helix to be worth every penny. 

1. In Canada the Helix is only covered by Line 6 for 1 year.... and it only includes manufacturer defect. The stores extended coverage is included (free) during any manufacturer warranty as well.
2. The distributor in Canada is also the nations largest music chain... so help is available in almost every corner of our country
3. The extra coverage includes theft, liquid damage (handy in beer filled honky tonks), drops and even neglect! Not just manufacturer defect.
4. If the unit can't be fixed, I get a new one.
5. If the unit can be fixed, I get a loaner until it is is ready.
6. If the unit goes back for repair 3 times, they dub it a lemon and replace it. 

For someone that does about 100 gigs per year, $45 a year is well worth it :)

That said.... I never buy coverage for anything else I buy from that store... I just felt it was worth it for the Helix. 

 

 

3 hours ago, ichasedx said:

Additionally I paid $250 for a 3 year warranty, including the one year, (now 2), from line 6.

 

That seems excessive. The coverage I talk about above is is for each year AFTER the first year, is less than $50 per year, and you have the option to renew it each year... not pay it all up front. 

[lungho]

The only way I've ever agreed to buy an extended warranty from a retailer is if they subtracted the cost of the warranty from the product.  That way they sales person gets closer to their quota and I got a free warranty.  

 

That being said, an extended warranty is only as good as the people behind it.  I've never dealt with a warranty repair through Guitar Center, but if they are the type to keep you in limbo for months on end, waiting for <insert excuse>, then it's not worth it.  I do have experience with Line 6 customer service and it's been top notch every single time.

 

As usual, take all this with a grain of salt and YMMV. 

[cruisinon2]

1 hour ago, codamedia said:

 

For the most part I agree with you 100%... but I consider the extended coverage I have with with my Helix to be worth every penny. 

1. In Canada the Helix is only covered by Line 6 for 1 year.... and it only includes manufacturer defect. The stores extended coverage is included (free) during any manufacturer warranty as well.
2. The distributor in Canada is also the nations largest music chain... so help is available in almost every corner of our country
3. The extra coverage includes theft, liquid damage (handy in beer filled honky tonks), drops and even neglect! Not just manufacturer defect.
4. If the unit can't be fixed, I get a new one.
5. If the unit can be fixed, I get a loaner until it is is ready.
6. If the unit goes back for repair 3 times, they dub it a lemon and replace it. 

For someone that does about 100 gigs per year, $45 a year is well worth it :)

That said.... I never buy coverage for anything else I buy from that store... I just felt it was worth it for the Helix. 

 

 

 

That seems excessive. The coverage I talk about above is is for each year AFTER the first year, is less than $50 per year, and you have the option to renew it each year... not pay it all up front. 

 

I can't speak to anything that goes on north of the border...but round these parts, the first rule of warranty repair is "find any plausible excuse not to do it". And in my experience the bigger the corporate entity, the more of a runaround you can expect to get what you paid for. The one exception I've found down here is Sweetwater. I haven't set foot in a GC in years for a variety of reasons, but when last I checked they weren't exactly known for their legendary customer service. Maybe it's better of late, but I would have laughed at $250 for an extended warranty on a $1700 purchase. That's ~15% of the purchase price. It's ridiculous.

[cruisinon2]

2 hours ago, jester700 said:

I used to work at an electronics retailer, and they REALLY pressed us to hammer customers to buy extended warranties....Extended warranties were over 85% profit...They're not necessarily worthless; just way overpriced. As they said back in the day "it's the most profitable item in the store".

 

 

This friends, is all one needs to know about extended warranties... it only ends up being worth it if you happen to be one of the unfortunate few who actually has to use it. And for the overwhelming majority of purchases, you won't. The store is playing the odds that the vast majority will never result in a claim... and they're right. There's only one winner in this scenario.

[HonestOpinion]

6 hours ago, cruisinon2 said:

 

This friends, is all one needs to know about extended warranties... it only ends up being worth it if you happen to be one of the unfortunate few who actually has to use it. And for the overwhelming majority of purchases, you won't. The store is playing the odds that the vast majority will never result in a claim... and they're right. There's only one winner in this scenario.

 

Absolutely true! Not saying it is the undisputed authority on the subject but Consumer Reports recommends that instead of buying warranties you put that money you would have spent on the warranty in an account you keep for repairs. In the long run generally you will come out way ahead with plenty of cash left over sitting in that account. With that said I understand people occasionally weighing the potential expense if a repair is required, how hard they are on the item, and how prone to failure an item is, versus the cost of the warranty.  There may be some situations where it pays to have the coverage, but generally not.  Provide your own coverage, it's profitable, that's why companies do it.

[codamedia]

6 hours ago, cruisinon2 said:

This friends, is all one needs to know about extended warranties...

 

Absolutely true... I don't disagree with it one bit. As I said earlier, I NEVER buy into extended warranty coverage.... other than the Helix!

 

Not because I don't trust the manufacturing of the Helix... but because I know where I am gigging, and I know the coverage I get. The fact that my retailer is coast to coast and will cover a bar room drunk spilling a beer into my Helix with an instant loaner/replacement....well, I know the crowds I play for, and I know the odds :) 

[brue58ski]

14 hours ago, lungho said:

The only way I've ever agreed to buy an extended warranty from a retailer is if they subtracted the cost of the warranty from the product.  That way they sales person gets closer to their quota and I got a free warranty. 

 

I love this idea. I'm stealing and using it.

[ichasedx]

I realize now that I should have mentioned that I paid $1500 for the Helix floor from GC. I was able to get 10% off for my military service, plus a few more dollars due to my 30 plus year relationship with their store. When I was younger I always purchased extended warranties. But it seems, as everyone agrees, that the cost of the warranties has escalated to an absurd percentage to the purchase price. Plus with all the warranties I purchased, I can't remember once using one of them.

Im am leaning toward canceling the extended warranty and being refunded the $250. Even though you could say that with the discounted price plus cost of the warranty is just slightly over the retail price, I'd rather be content with  paying $1500 for it.

 

[phil_m]

If you really want an extended warranty, I'd recommend getting one of the options offered by Line 6 rather than going through GC: https://shop.line6.com/services/helix-service-plus/

 

GC and other retailers use third party services for these warranty programs, and I've seen them do some seriously stupid things (the service Line 6 offers is handled directly by Line 6 CS). Honestly, companies wouldn't sell them if they weren't making substantial profits from them. $250 for an additional year of warranty coverage seems really steep to me. Yes, it's true that GC will cover accidental damage, I suppose, but I guess you have to ask yourself how likely that is to happen. In all my years of playing and gigging, there's only a couple things I've had damaged in that sort of way. One of them was by a 300 lb man stepping/stomping on my pedalboard while dancing, and the other was by my cat...

[Tarekith]

These days I'd be more worried about Guitar Center actually being in business still to honor the warranty in a couple years.