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Conrad Johnson Repair Issues

The Post I Never Dreamed I’d Write
About two weeks ago I sent my beloved Conrad Johnson Premier-17 back to
the Conrad Johnson factory for repair because it stopped making any sound whatsoever. It apparently blew some internal component.
I soon received an email acknowledging receipt of the unit and an estimated bill
of about $523.00 not including parts.
On 10/14/2016 I got a phone message telling me the preamp was fixed & total charges were $579.00.
I called a few days ago to give my credit card info to pay for the repairs. The CJ
employee told me that “we also need to tell you that the unit was damaged during
shipping & the damages are not repairable because it involves damage to the structure of the unit & those metal parts are no longer available." The damage was not mentioned until that point.
Photos showed the actual frame of the preamp was twisted & bent. It looked like it had been dropped off a two story building without the box.
The repair manager felt it would be pointless to file an insurance claim because
they would automatically deny any claim where the box was not damaged & refused to assist me with any insurance issues.
The CJ phone rep assured me that Mr. Johnson, the owner, would call me that afternoon but he never did.
I did get a call from the repair employee who said they just want to
get my payment information & send my preamp to me.
I shipped U.S. Post Office & insured for $2000.00.
I’m shocked to have this happen with this company. I've had several pieces of equipment repaired by them with great service.
I would appreciate any advice. I'm a little shaken & confused.
I’m really shocked that this would happen with a company of this stature.
I've stayed with this brand over the years because of their reliability & reputation for integrity.
It really doesn’t look like shipping damage to me.Shouldn’t they at least be willing to
assist with insurance issues?
This is one of the more unpleasant customer service experiences I've had in a while.

128x128pereza

Showing 4 responses by mfoley3

mfoley3
47 posts
 
I am a very long term CJ customer having owned and enjoyed many of their preamps and amplifiers over the last 30 years. I've had several upgrades and repairs performed over that span. In all cases, CJ's service was exemplary. Thus, 
I was both surprised and disappointed to read the original post, as it is so contrary to my own personal experiences with the company. Given the seriousness of pereza'a accusation, someone is owed an appropriate response. Either pereza is owed a satisfactory settlement and apology from CJ or pereza owes CJ a sincere, public apology for wrongly accusing them. Let's hope the facts are soon forthcoming.  If not, I think this post should be removed. 

mfoley3
47 posts
 
In my view this comes down to a personal determination of which of the following two scenarios is more credible. 
Scenario One: a serious vendor accusation is made by a relatively unknown poster who only provides a questionable story without documentation to support his accusation and, who then, follows that with two weeks of dead silence despite requests for further information by the very people whose advice and support he seeks. 
Conclusion: Low Credibility

Scenario Two: The vendor does not publicly discuss the accusation. However, numerous testimonials from current and past users of the vendors products and services are voluntarily provided. Further, the vendor is an industry stalwart with a long and deep track record for quality products, great customer service and high integrity. In addition, the dollar amount of the questioned transaction is comparatively small. Two questions: 1. Why would any rational business person compromise the integrity and reputation of their business over such a small amount of money?  2. Why would any rational business person choose to engage in a time consuming, public dialogue over such a comparatively small and flawed accusation?
Conclusion: High Credibility

In my view, this accusation is specious and should be removed from the forum. It helps no one, particularly pereza who comes across as either quite lethargic when it comes to follow-up or, more seriously, disingenuous. 


mfoley3
47 posts
 
With the continuing passage of time and no response from pereza, it has become evermore clear that this post is either a hoax or an exercise in badly flawed judgement. Why then, should CJ choose to dignify it by entering into a public debate?  

CJ is a small company (I believe on the order of 10-15 people). Mega companies like BMW, GM, Apple, Microsoft, etc. and their dealers must receive thousands of such complaints daily. They also have huge staffs to deal with service, marketing and public relations issues. Nonetheless, something like this would be dealt with in the manner that CJ already has - directly with their customer. That's an industry best practice, why should they do more?  

Pereza via the original post initiated this plea for advice and presumably support to all of us. He's now missing in action. The rest of us are clamoring for more from him. His non response is deafening with its silence. We've been fooled and it's time to move on. Removing this entire post sense makes for the reasons I've cited, it's a sham, why allow it to continue?

mfoley3
47 posts
 
Pereza - I'm very happy to hear that you and CJ have reached a satisfactory settlement. It's also good of you to respond back to all of us that had taken an interest in your situation. Best wishes for much future musical enjoyment and high equipment reliability. 
Mike

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