Turramurra Music Reviews 9

Their prices are usually very competitive but it still pays to do your due diligence, so shop around

I have been buying Synths from Turamurra for years, - back to the first Cubase license on PC, and have had nothing but enjoyable conversations, a lot of playing with headphones on and much enthusiasm from the staff.

Nobody cares when I go in and just fiddle around with the new stuff, and whilst they don't advertise low prices like the rest, they do price match everything I have bought (about 10 synths now).

My sons have bought guitars, mixing gear, podcast tech and so on from them and they have been very happy, with the products and the advice.

I have never bought used/shelf mainly the new smaller innovative synths but I wanted to post my honest experience of them over the years, as the current feedback here seems a little overly on the critical side fro what I have experienced.

Where to start, I will keep the bias to a minimum as I am only going to concentrate on facts. It's been over 7 months since my last interaction with this store, and I can say that the level of service is subpar when it comes to one specific person, who says they deal in sales, then in my last email cites they don't deal in sales.

Where all this started was the purchase of a substantially expensive synth for me, a UDO Super 6 demo. I was lead to believe it was demo and found out it was actually 2nd hand, which left me cold. The S6 had a faulty LED to which I returned the unit and looked for something better. Whilst discussing my options, we spoke about being able to trade in 2 other bits of gear I owned to put towards a $6,000.00 3rd Wave module.

I was given a price of 1800.00 for my Pro 2 and $1650.00 Jomox Alpha Base, which would have meant my original purchase on the S6 of $2700.00, I would have $150.00 in credit. This isn't the case, I was then told that the Jomox would be $1500.00 after a few days (was told $1650.00 which I held to his word) and had packed up my gear ready for collection. When I spoke about the original prices, I was told, "it's about the change over, not what you're getting in trade". Well I have sold cars in my life, and his is what we were taught to soften the blow on potential buyers.

So 2 lies I have been told and the 3rd soon to be revealed. I cannot mention the sales person's name, but they told me they basically have the power to do as they please when it comes to pricing or w/e to assist customers. What concerns me more than anything is how the information I have been given, suddenly changes, and that I could not trust this individual as their word changed in the course of communication. So when I agreed to take the $150.00 hit, I was told my 3rd Wave would be ordered and I would be informed of the shipping etc. Not so, I waited 4 days for an update and got nothing, so I decided to call the Australian supplier to which they informed me of the status of shipping. When I informed the sales person I called the supplier, they weren't too pleased with me, well why don't you do your job and follow up crucial details when a customer spends $6000.00 on a musical instrument! I know they made a good mark up on my instruments, as they sold straight away and were never listed on their site. He already had buyers for my gear, so it wasn't an issue for them being able to sell or be out of pocket.

Now the 3rd lie, I was still in touch with said individual, thanking them about the synth etc, then said I had another $5000.00 in the next two months that I was wanting to purchase ( I listed 4 items for availability and pricing). He said to call him back in a month and we could discuss, I did this and he had not done any investigation on pricing or availability, then sent me an email citing that he is not really involved in sales. This had me wondering, who had I been talking to all along, and I don't mind a chat, but when I am spending a large sum of money, I expect a certain level of service to accompany that purchase. This person was the only person who I had spoken to regarding sales, possibly 15 calls in all, even when I made an inquiry online about an AS1, they emailed me. How are they not "really in sales" when they respond to sales inquiries online or via phone? I replied to his email that I would be taking my business elsewhere, to which he was apologetic about how I never felt he was trying to help me. Well he really didn't care about my needs, just that he wanted my gear at a price that he changed, sold me 2nd hand goods and lied about his position in sales.

I have had to warn a few people about their listing practices of ex demo gear, and I would advise anyone who has intent of buying any ex demo gear from this retailer, to do your research 1st, ex demo to them means "2nd hand from a loyal customer".

I have found other retailers that are far more competent, so much so that I just recently spent $8000.00 with them on 3 synths. They may not think this means much, but when people realize the low end tactics they use, I am pretty sure they're breaking the law to which I am sure ACCC would love to hear about.

An exellent music store - great range and really good in store experience. Staff are very knowledgeable and helpful, not pushy. Will be back.

When a new purchase is damaged during delivery and starts to malfunction, you replace it. Immediately. The process I was given for getting a replacement was then altered and extended, leaving me hanging with no unit and no clue as to what to expect. I gave them numerous ways to make it right and the only one they accepted was a refund.

I rang them up. Greeted by only Hello.
Had to ask if this was Turramurra music..
Anyway, I proceeded to ask a simple question.
"Do you price match"?
I was then on the receiving end of verbal tirade for daring to ask a retailer such a nasty question!
You know some music shops do price match and they don't advertise the fact.
It was just a simple question that could have been answered with a simple no.
Its a shame as even if they hadn't I would have still gone there and got what I wanted because its close to me and I like to buy in person.
An interstate music store got the business instead that day.
Maybe they were having a bad day so I shall just give 2 stars instead of the 1 they deserve for this experience.

Moral of the story - DON'T ASK IF THEY PRICE MATCH!

The instrument section, guitars, drums etc is all good with great people. The pro audio section is almost always filled with sour faces glued to their computer screens.

From the time that what looked like a group of employees or owners geeking over some website update, or when all three sales reps barely lifted an eyelid to shout a “you alright there”.. Almost every time I’m at pro audio, I feel like I shouldn’t even be there.

Perhaps it’s just me but when I’m at Manny’s, I’m greeted with help, enthusiasm and excitement.

It’s the main reason I’ve spent tens of thousands with them recently and only buy studio cables at Turra..

I know I was a difficult customer, but the staff had patience with me and nothing was too much trouble. I ended up with a guitar I love to play and they are going to give it a free service as well. I can't praise this shop enough. The staff seem very knowledgeable on everything in the shop.

In the few years I've been in Australia I've continuously visited the team at Turramurra Music, and I've yet to be disappointed. Most other music stores I've visited in Sydney scoff at the fact that I play instruments left handed, but this has never happened to me here, I've only received understanding and help to the best of the team's abilities.

There's never pressure to buy, which is incredibly important to me when I'm about to drop a large amount of money on new gear, I like to pace myself, ask questions and try things out before I commit. The team have always been helpful with suggestions when I've given them the reason for wanting a specific product, and the patience with the team is unwavering.

The recent expansion of the store is the most obvious proof that Turramurra Music is doing lots of things right, expanding their range of products to suit even more types of musician has been incredible to watch happen as well!

Overall, a brilliant team with experience, knowledge, and competitive pricing. No egos here, just pure customer service.