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Yes, I know. The warranty paragraph sounds pretty harsh. Unfortunately, most people don't read (or have lost) their warranty statement and expect the equipment to be repaired at no charge for any and all reasons. We are not the manufacturer, and are not legally responsible for fulfilling the warranty. We perform warranty repair services under contract as a convenience for the owner and the manufacturer. In most cases, any amount you will be charged will be considerably less than the cost of shipping the unit back to the manufacturer (after which you may still be charged).

The most frustrating (and far too frequent) situation is when the problem will not appear when operated in the shop. As many as one out of every three units (or more - some manufacturers say one in two!) sent in for warranty service appear to operate normally on the bench. These units usually take more time to test than when the symptoms are readily apparent. Often the problem is that the user did not know how to properly operate the equipment, or may have bumped a button or switch that he wasn't aware of, or was trying to operate the equipment beyond its capabilities. In these cases, the manufacturer won't pay us for any of the time taken, and our only recourse is to bill the customer. This bench charge (~1/2 hour) is never enough to cover the time actually spent. You can reduce this possibility by making notes of the control settings and conditions present when the failure occurred, such as:

• which channel, or all channels?
• which input(s)?
• were any effects boxes being used?
• external speakers?
• how loud?
• did it occur only on peaks?
• were you doing anything special at the time?

Finally, re-check your operating instructions and be sure you are following proper operating procedures.

The exceptions to the warranties described are fairly consistent between manufacturers, with a few individual variations. The deciding question on a repair is "Was the failure caused by a manufacturing defect?" Claims for problems caused by dirty switch contacts, noisy controls, broken jacks and other physical damage can reasonably be denied. We will do our best to fairly evaluate the situation, and will make every effort to have the manufacturer cover any failure for which they are responsible. Most manufacturers now have their warranty statements posted on their websites, so you should look them up and check the terms of the warranty for your equipment to avoid surprises. Where available, links to the manufacturer's warranty statement can be found by clicking on the manufacturer's logo on the warranty services page. If you still have any questions, give us a call.