[Nuwidol]

Well I just received a reply from UE. 12 days & 3 emails later.

Hopefully they'll fix them & get them sent back quicker than they reply to emails.

I really want to like UE as a company but they keep letting me down...

 

[ammo510]

Hey my UE just recently broked (the metalic blue and plastic black crack). I called UE and got a RMA in a few minutes. Now I am sending it in hopefully it will be a quick one. If you guys are having problems with the email maybe you should call them.

 

[lewislink]

Everyone needs to take into consideration the possible reorganization of the company going on right now. Logitech may be doing some shake up. Things might take a bit longer, now, as the timing for sending stuff in wouldn't be the best.

 

[Sugarfried]

Quote:

Originally Posted by channum /img/forum/go_quote.gif I'm an inherent skeptic. If you see widely varying reports of the quality of CS from UE but always the same name attached to it, you assume that it's at the least possible that Tarah at UE is about as real as Tom at myspace.com.

You know that Tom at myspace.com is a real guy, right?

 

[Sugarfried]

Quote:

Originally Posted by steviebee /img/forum/go_quote.gif Oh no way...call me a fanboy if you will....but I'd take UE & Triple Fi any day, even w/ an irregular CS, over Shure. Shure may have great CS, but their phones? Just not for me. At Triple Fi level, it's the SE530, which I wouldn't want even if they included a spare pair (just in case) and had a Shure rep come over for coffee. And they bring the coffee.

Your loss, I make great coffee.

 

[Sugarfried]

Quote:

Originally Posted by BigEat /img/forum/go_quote.gif You think Shure audio is just laughing its proverbial ass off? They don't have a custom mold...yet, but they've got to be digging this in a huge way.

Nope, not laughing at all. While we may be competitors, I consider several UE employees (past and present) to be friends and only wish the best for them.

 

[Sugarfried]

Quote:

Originally Posted by channum /img/forum/go_quote.gif Now, now, they've had their own problems like the all but guaranteed to split cable on E500 series. Admittedly, they reacted quickly, changed the construction (and even the model number to distinguish the new from the old) and seem very liberal about exchanging these when there's problems. Still, anything that draws attention to bad customer service, even if we really are the minority, with a company that managed to advertise their way into a reputation for excellent customer service must be pleasing to their competition that have, seemingly, spent a lot less on greasing the wheels of mindshare creation out there.

If anything it makes me feel:

- Proud of the blood, sweat & tears that we go through on a daily basis to make our products as good as they can be.

- Lucky to have a great customer service group (even though there are the occasional exceptions).

- Validated when I don't accept anything less than the best.

- Nervous that there is always the chance of bad things happening in the market. No matter what level of testing we conduct we can't predict everything.

- Fortunate to have Head-fi - Six years lurking, five years posting. This place is the best.

 

[Sugarfried]

Quote:

Originally Posted by ansextra I was told that they would email me a new cleaning tool. It never showed up.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nuwidol /img/forum/go_quote.gif Weird that it never showed up. Did you check your junk mail folder?

Funniest post in this thread.

 

[Sugarfried]

Quote:

Originally Posted by channum /img/forum/go_quote.gif I don't know about headphones, frankly, I've been nothing but disappointed with the calibre of support with the headphones I've had to return. Sennheiser turned it around in less than two weeks but shipped me the wrong headphones. It was actually a considerably more expensive set than what I'd sent them, sent PX100s & got HD500A, but it was annoying and turned me off of buying anything from them again. Audio Technica turned it around in a bit over two weeks, but they insisted on repairing the ATH-EC7s and their repair failed two months later. Since they have the chutzpah to charge a processing fee on their warranty service, I said the hell with them and haven't purchased any of their products since. The only reasonable service I've gotten is from head-direct who always swapped out my PK2s without any fuss and quickly - that I had to swap them out more than once was my problem with those. OTOH, when I had a Maxtor hard drive fail, it took one call to verify the failure code, poof, 2 days later I had a brand new replacement in hand with pre-paid shipping return box. When my iPod mini failed, poof, 4 days later I had a like-new refurb in hand and I didn't have to pay a thing, the box to ship it to Apple and the return were all paid in full and all overnight. When I mentioned just as a comment that a replacement faceplate I purchased from iFixit had a small blemish, so small I had no interest in returning it or getting any money back, they rush shipped a replacement that I hadn't even requested. When my laptop died under warranty a few years ago, I did have to pay the shipping out, but the return was two-day, no charge. When I had a CD-drive go bad in a computer, it had to be swapped out a total of two times because the first replacement arrived DOA, but Power Computing shipped each of them overnight, no charge and never had to send anything back. I had a DVD-ROM go bad in a Dell Computer under warranty, the replacement was 2 day shipped with a pre-paid container back to Dell. When a motherboard replacement from Abit disappeared into the nether void (3 day shipment), they wound up shipping me another one overnight, and when the first showed up a couple of weeks later after it turned up, literally, under someone's desk in the shipping department, they just let me keep it. I could go on, but I think I make my point. In electronics, overnight or 2 day shipping, often paid by the company to and from, are not unusual and, frankly, companies that don't provide such levels of service do not get much love from their customers. The fact that the headphone industry are bunch of chump monkeys when it comes to providing good customer service does not magically turn UE's barely adequate customer service into excellent CS, it just looks good compared to a lot of their competition.

I don't think Shure is a chump monkey with regard to customer service. I'm biased, but we take it very seriously.

 

[BloodSugar00]

There some great posts to read Sugarfried! Real nice insight into both yours and your company's excellent metality and attitude and business practice, even towards your competitors and how to view/regard them! You have absolutely the right attitude for life IMHO. To accept and harmonise as opposed to resent and control. Obviously, there is gona be competitive veneers and aspects to things, but it doesn't have to dominating or overlording. Good stuff!

 

[Sugarfried]

Quote:

Originally Posted by immtbiker /img/forum/go_quote.gif Sorry if any of this is redundant info, but is it possible these problems have arose since it has been rumored that UE was bought out by Logictech and they are having growing pains?

Not a rumor anymore Aaron, it's official. But this was my thought all along reading through this.

Jerry and Mindy (founders) are likely not involved anymore, and the reorganization process can be very trying. My hope for them is that this is all a temporary setback.

 

[Nuwidol]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sugarfried /img/forum/go_quote.gif I don't think Shure is a chump monkey with regard to customer service. I'm biased, but we take it very seriously.

It shows. I've returned two pairs of se530s (cable cracking) over the past year & both times were completely hassle free & very quick. The second pair I received were shipped the same day they received the old pair.

It's from dealing with companies like Shure that makes me expect more from other companies...

 

[nsx_23]

I must say, my experience with Shure overseas was pretty good.

My E2C cords failed just before warranty expired, so I took them back to the store that I purchased them from and a new pair was ready for me to pick up from the store in about a weeks time.

I still don't understand why Shures seem to suffer from cable failures though. This cabling issue is really putting me off from buying SE530s.

Firstly, they're too expensive here in Australia, so I'll have to buy them in Hong Kong when I go back there to visit the family (Can't exactly purchase them from a US store due to dumb pricing policies, and not willing to risk warranty for something this expensive [to me anyway] ).

Secondly, if they do screw up when I'm back here in australia, how will I get any repair work done on the? Shipping costs in Australia aren't exactly cheap, especially to the US.

Thirdly, aren't the engineered properly in the first place so they don't fail? Wasn't any research done on what kind of loading the cables would be under and the appropriate material was then picked to make sure failures don't occur? (I study engineering, so I'm pedantic about things like this)

I loved my E2Cs, but I was extremely lucky that I was in Hong Kong when the failure occurred and I managed to get an associate to fax me a copy of the receipts, which was back in Australia.

 

[Sugarfried]

Quote:

Originally Posted by BloodSugar00 /img/forum/go_quote.gif There some great posts to read Sugarfield! Real nice insight into both yours and your company's excellent metality and attitude and business practice, even towards your competitors and how to view/regard them! You have absolutely the right attitude for life IMHO. To accept and harmonise as opposed to resent and control. Obviously, there is gona be competitive veneers and aspects to things, but it doesn't have to dominating or overlording. Good stuff!

Much appreciated. I'd like to think that it's a two way street and that they would do the same for us.

In a past life I considered moving out west, and if that had happened UE would have been on my list of companies to talk with.

While I consider some of their marketing claims to be unfounded (specifically the fact that they claim "75% of today's top touring rock musicians" use their products), they are stand-up people in my opinion. I sincerely hope that doesn't change with the Logitech buyout.

 

[Sugarfried]

Quote:

Originally Posted by nsx_23 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I still don't understand why Shures seem to suffer from cable failures though. This cabling issue is really putting me off from buying SE530s.

The (well documented) E500 cable problem is fixed. Anything packaged in an SE530/SE530PTH box has the updated cable and will not fail for that reason.

E2 cables had different problems, it was a process foul on the part of the cable manufacturing. Specifically, the position the raw cable sat in prior to the 1/8" jack overmold was "crimping" the shield, making it only a matter of time before it frayed internally and became intermittent. This too was fixed.


Quote:

Originally Posted by nsx_23 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Firstly, they're too expensive here in Australia, so I'll have to buy them in Hong Kong when I go back there to visit the family (Can't exactly purchase them from a US store due to dumb pricing policies, and not willing to risk warranty for something this expensive [to me anyway] ).

Unfortunately 3-step distribution means that there are pricing variances. Our distributor in Australia (a company called Jands) is primarily a professional company which presents a challenge when it comes to consistent pricing. But suffice it to say that if you purchase from an "authorized reseller" and retain your proof of purchase you will receive servicing from them.

Quote:

Originally Posted by nsx_23 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Secondly, if they do screw up when I'm back here in australia, how will I get any repair work done on the? Shipping costs in Australia aren't exactly cheap, especially to the US.

Our Hong Kong office oversees the market for Australia. Not that it's any less expensive, but it's preferred for customers to contact the actual reseller, then the reseller contacts us or our distributor. Technically, this is how it's supposed to go.

Quote:

Originally Posted by nsx_23 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Thirdly, aren't the engineered properly in the first place so they don't fail? Wasn't any research done on what kind of loading the cables would be under and the appropriate material was then picked to make sure failures don't occur? (I study engineering, so I'm pedantic about things like this) I loved my E2Cs, but I was extremely lucky that I was in Hong Kong when the failure occurred and I managed to get an associate to fax me a copy of the receipts, which was back in Australia.

Massive amounts of quality testing are conducted for each and every product we design and manufacture, not just earphones. I hope you never go through what I (we) went through during that time. I won't go over that stuff here (check my posts in the E500 cable failure thread), but I'll just say that our raw parts suppliers were 'ripped a new one' in that case.