Groovy Game Gear has crappy communication and is slow. (Mod edit: Disputed, read

[Nephasth]

 

Too bad the water from our fountain is brown...

[Mikezilla]

yeah, and sometimes its nice getting a cool drink from that fountain instead of the kool-aid everyone else is drinking.

I dont get it.

[newmanfamilyvlogs]

yeah, and sometimes its nice getting a cool drink from that fountain instead of the kool-aid everyone else is drinking.

I dont get it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drinking_the_Kool-Aid
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonestown

[Mikezilla]

yeah, and sometimes its nice getting a cool drink from that fountain instead of the kool-aid everyone else is drinking.

I dont get it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drinking_the_Kool-Aid
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jonestown

Thank you friend. You know who runs my work filter. 

[DaveMMR]

Another +1 for Randy. Ordered from him twice and he even corrected a mistake I made in my first order free-of-charge.

Try your comprehension again, there, pbj!  

Thanks, I was about to say...  To be specific, I ordered an LEDWiz and picked the wrong ID number, rendering it kind of useless for my purposes.  He was helpful and understanding (and to be honest, he would have had every right to be annoyed with my carelessness). He let me send it back and shipped it right back to me almost immediately.

[studmuff]

I ordered LedWiz controllers, buttons and RGB drivers with no problems in the past.  Good seller.

[bradx]

i placed an order with groovy game gear last wednesday, got a confirmation email immediately, order update email thursday that it was being packed, a shipping email friday with confirmation number, and today my package arrived. i realize one good transaction does not mean its that way every time or for everybody, but in my case the order couldnt have gotten here quicker, there couldnt have been better communication, and i am 100% satisfied and will order from them again in the future.

[bradx]

From a marketing perspective a post like this is gold!

One there is an upset customer, that is his perception, nothing you can do about that. He has expectations from vendor's like Andy at Ultimarc, which everyone knows that he has from 6-8 androids on his staff that fill orders.

Second, look at the outpouring of prior customers that say they experienced great service from GGG, it means a huge deal.

Third, GGG found this thread and responded to it in a positive and professional manner.

Businesses spend millions and millions just to try and get feedback (hopefully negative!) from customers. A negative letter or email or forum post is gold, it is an opportunity to win back a customer, foster new ones, and show your firm in a positive light.  

Feedback from customers is vital!

not to get too off topic, but i ordered from ultimarc and got a broken software CD, a flaky PS2 cord with my ipac, and a mag stick plus that one of the screws holding a switch was stripped and was broken within a week.  the order was shipped quickly and he did provide me a link to the software, but due to the general shoddiness of product i received i do not plan to order from them again.

[Nephasth]

not to get too off topic, but i ordered from ultimarc and got a broken software CD, a flaky PS2 cord with my ipac, and a mag stick plus that one of the screws holding a switch was stripped and was broken within a week.  the order was shipped quickly and he did provide me a link to the software, but due to the general shoddiness of product i received i do not plan to order from them again.

You may have to create your own "Ultimarc Sucks" thread. This one is for GGG.

[bradx]

yeah but it doesnt really suck.  stripped screw holes and shoddy cords are inevitable as are packages being damaged.  i know andy is a good guy from all i have read and thats why i didnt make an issue of it.  however, that purchase pretty much directly caused me to become a GGG customer, so it is sort of related, in my mind anyways.

[Nephasth]

Jokes...

[Bender]

likwidtek,

how about updating the title of this thread, to be a little more fair?

[likwidtek]

likwidtek,

how about updating the title of this thread, to be a little more fair?

Sure, fixed.

[nox771]

Meh, you know what that 4 hour drive is - not just boring road time - no, it's time to multitask:



You'll never fall behind on email again.  And while your at it you can fire up MAME and test out some new buttons and stuff.

[elsie]

I have to agree with likwidtek that RandyT and GGG is being extremely unresponsive.  I placed an order last week for 2 items (a trackball and a spinner), and it is just hanging out as "processing" even though my credit card was charged immediately.   This is very frustrating since the last time I placed an order with him it shipped out the next day.  I sent an email through his website and never heard anything back.  It seems that Randy gives high priority to this forum (since he had time to post on this thread) than to his customers whose money he has taken.  If there is going to be a delay because he is moving, it is only right to let everyone know how long the delay will be.  His stuff is good but if there is a significant delay or continued lack of responsiveness, I'll look elsewhere.  If RandyT is looking, I'm order # 13160

[Well Fed Games]

I have to agree with likwidtek that RandyT and GGG is being extremely unresponsive.  I placed an order last week for 2 items (a trackball and a spinner), and it is just hanging out as "processing" even though my credit card was charged immediately.   This is very frustrating since the last time I placed an order with him it shipped out the next day.  I sent an email through his website and never heard anything back.  It seems that Randy gives high priority to this forum (since he had time to post on this thread) than to his customers whose money he has taken.  If there is going to be a delay because he is moving, it is only right to let everyone know how long the delay will be.  His stuff is good but if there is a significant delay or continued lack of responsiveness, I'll look elsewhere.  If RandyT is looking, I'm order # 13160

I know this doesn't help at all by I have an order for a spinner from July 23 that is still processing as well. Perhaps the Turbo Twists were part of the stock that got moved over last. Thankfully I don't have my control panel ready anyway.

*Edit: Just to be clear, I am not venting about GGG- love them and will continue to order from them! Just wanted elsie to know that I had a similar order that was delayed, and it might have been because of the particular stuff we had ordered. Very much appreciate the transparency in Randy's post following mine.*

[RandyT]

I think we may need to do what some other vendors have done in the past and shut down the orders at the store for a bit while we catch up.  I hate to do it, as we are still able to serve other customers quickly with the parts we have on-hand, but I don't want to upset more folks who order our specialty items that take us longer to build, such as those in the aforementioned order #13160, and have them continue venting here.

I have been responding to inquiries, and notifying folks of the delays for the past several days, while processing as many orders as I can, and so far all have been very understanding.  I'm not sure what more I can do.  If there is anyone out there who is on a tight schedule, and we have not already shipped your order, I encourage you to contact me to cancel.  I understand that it's not an optimal solution, and not one I offer lightly, but I don't wish to be responsible for putting anyone's project on hold for longer than they are comfortable waiting.

Thanks again to those who have been very patient with us as we work through the transition.  I can assure you all that it's a temporary condition, and we will be back to normal shortly.

RandyT

[DashRendar]

+1 for a great transaction with GGG and Randy.

The sellers in this hobby are not like Radio Shack or Walmart.  It's usually 1 or 2 people running the business.  They usually have to front a lot of money into developing their products (molds, prototypes, etc).  And due to the fact that there isn't a huge market, they usually do so more out of an interest in supporting the hobby than as a way to get rich.

Randy- I think it would be better to put a message on your Order page that states there may be delays of a week or two.  But keep the ordering active.   

[garnerb350]

Randy...keep up the good work...We know how things can get hectic at times...Appreciate the service you and the other vendors provide...
 

[upprc04]

On your home page, you have GGG Store News.  I would write something about the move, and there may be a delay in shipping.  I'd also state the delay on the order page.  Hopefully, you won't need to shut down orders or if it does come to that it won't last long.  I have ordered from GGG in the past and was going to make another order soon.  It's best to know in advance if there are going to be delays, and adding a message to the order page or main page sounds like the best solution.

+1 for GGG

Edit: I was just giving some simple solutions that would make the people happy that haven't heard from them at all.  Not all customers of GGG frequent this forum.  I don't expect any specific time lines, but think a simple message saying there may be delays due to a move would be nice.   I will be ordering GGG in the future and was just stating the OP's issue seems like a big deal.  It would be nice to get this thread off the "front" page, because it seems to be a non-issue with a known good company.

[Mikezilla]

In our hobby, I just dont see the big deal waiting. We are restoring/building old school tech so we can enjoy at home, the man said the reason why stuff is slow getting out is because of the move. I agree that something should be posted on the site indicating the reason for the slow shipping, but cmon. Like its gonna kill you to wait an extra week for a part. 

[yotsuya]

I'm with Mike. I mean, I'd be more worried if it was marked as shipped and a week had gone by with nothing. I've had some vendors turn an order around in a day, and then the next time it takes a week to ship. I mean, it comes with the nature of the hoppy/shop. If Amazon did that to me, I'd have different expectations.

[SavannahLion]

I'm actually amused that people actually have a schedule to keep with their hobby.

[SavannahLion]

Since you can't read I'll re-iterate the hobby portion of my last response.

hobby

It would be equally amusing (albeit for different reasons) if one of RandyT's industrial customers came on here squawking about lead times.  

[Gray_Area]

I think we may need to do what some other vendors have done in the past and shut down the orders at the store for a bit while we catch up.

RandyT

I would've suggested giving a heads-up to the community - including taking the store offline for a few days - likely avoiding all of this nonsense.

[Vigo]

Randy's claimed multiple times that the majority of his customers are mass ordering his products for industrial purposes.  Believe what you will, but folks like that have schedules.

I would love to see one of these industrial locations that uses GGG parts. Large control panels to operate heavy machinery filled with TurboTwists, blinky buttons from a ledwiz, and joysticks with tron handles.

 

[Donkbaca]

I've ordered stuff from Randy, and I love his insights in this forum, but dealing with him is hit or miss.  How many "How do I hook up this thing" posts are there about the LED WIZ are there?  How many things on his website are listed that aren't actually available for sale, and haven't been so for months? (Nova gems and electric ice buttons?)

Anyhow, not to rip on Randy, but I think there is a difference between being busy and having things pop up and keeping people in the dark, especially when they are charged right away for stuff and have no idea where their order stands (as happened to the OP). The OP has a point that its not THAT hard to let people know what's going on either on his website, answering e-mails from customers or just posting a notice on the B/S/T thread here.  Look at Andy, he went on holiday and posted that on the ultimarc website that he wouldn't be taking orders for a while.

That being said, Randy sells great products and he is great on the forums and I know my cab would only be 10% as cool as it is without him and people like him selling what they sell.  I know real world stuff pops up and people I think are willing to cut people some slack if they know what's going on, but people need to know what's going on if you are going to take their money.

[Nephasth]

Sounds like someone has been sneaking some drinks of kool-aid while the others weren't looking.

[RandyT]

I would love to see one of these industrial locations that uses GGG parts. Large control panels to operate heavy machinery filled with TurboTwists, blinky buttons from a ledwiz, and joysticks with tron handles.

 

You'd be very surprised at our customer list.  National Labratories, NASA, Fortune 500 companies, Metropolitan museums, US Department of Defense, etc.  But I don't think any of them use our TRON handles .

[GibsonRiddler]

I would love to see one of these industrial locations that uses GGG parts. Large control panels to operate heavy machinery filled with TurboTwists, blinky buttons from a ledwiz, and joysticks with tron handles.

 

You'd be very surprised at our customer list.  National Labratories, NASA, Fortune 500 companies, Metropolitan museums, US Department of Defense, etc.  But I don't think any of them use our TRON handles .

I can actually say I've bought different buttons from Randy for prototype guitars that we were working on at my
job.

[Mikezilla]

Sounds like someone has been sneaking some drinks of kool-aid while the others weren't looking.

I get that now hahaha!!! 

[likwidtek]

I think we may need to do what some other vendors have done in the past and shut down the orders at the store for a bit while we catch up.  I hate to do it, as we are still able to serve other customers quickly with the parts we have on-hand, but I don't want to upset more folks who order our specialty items that take us longer to build, such as those in the aforementioned order #13160, and have them continue venting here.

I have been responding to inquiries, and notifying folks of the delays for the past several days, while processing as many orders as I can, and so far all have been very understanding.  I'm not sure what more I can do.  If there is anyone out there who is on a tight schedule, and we have not already shipped your order, I encourage you to contact me to cancel.  I understand that it's not an optimal solution, and not one I offer lightly, but I don't wish to be responsible for putting anyone's project on hold for longer than they are comfortable waiting.

Thanks again to those who have been very patient with us as we work through the transition.  I can assure you all that it's a temporary condition, and we will be back to normal shortly.

RandyT

I think that's a bit drastic.  Seriously, I think all you need to do next time is throw up a mention on your website when you get backed up.  Something like "Due to X you may experience a processing time of X days".  It's just a heads up that will work wonders.  Additionally, just create an autoreply to your email if you're swamped and haven't had a chance to catch up on emails yet.  Something to the effect of "This is an automated response:  We're currently backed up due to X.  Please note that there may be some delay in getting back with you however please feel free to post over at http://forum.acradecontrols.com if you'd like some immediate help.  Otherwise, we promise we will get back with you in the order in which your email was received." 

Which brings me to my next point.  I still haven't gotten a reply to the emails I've sent your company.  Some people have no idea about this forum.  You can't expect them all to be "in the know".

[RandyT]

Which brings me to my next point.  I still haven't gotten a reply to the emails I've sent your company.  Some people have no idea about this forum.  You can't expect them all to be "in the know".

I don't know who you are, or if your emails even made it to me.  I get about 25 a day through the "contact us" form, and it wouldn't be the first time the server at our hosting company fouled up and "ate" a few.  Order number?

[nick3092]

I've had noting but positive experiences with Randy and GGG. Even for support almost a year after I bought my product. Through contact us, direct email, and on the forums.

Which reminds me - Randy, what's the story on the black Classx buttons. A few moths ago you were waiting for a new sample, and I haven't seen them added to the site yet.

[RandyT]

Which reminds me - Randy, what's the story on the black Classx buttons. A few moths ago you were waiting for a new sample, and I haven't seen them added to the site yet.

Unfortunately, the black buttons became part of the "tooling saga" which is now delaying the NovaGem2 release.  We had some nice yellow NovaGem2 samples come in after the latest mold tweak, but they were made with spray mold release.  It's expensive, and time consuming for the molders to do this, so they removed the tool from the machine to tweak it some more, in hopes that they can get the same quality without the release agent.  Getting them to actually run parts has been an exercise, but I believe they are doing their best, given the complex nature of the design.  They like to test with the light colors because they tend not to pollute the coloring of other parts following, so black is the last thing they want to run right now.

Every time I think about how much effort I have put into the project, I get closer to washing my hands of it all and opening this room for business, which is on GGG's new bottom floor. 



Ok, probably not, but it has been an ordeal.   I was assured today that the molders are confident that the flood gates will open after the next revision, for all colors, so I am hopeful.

Lord, Randy, how many unshipped orders are you sitting on???

Sitting on?  None.  Busting my hump to get out?  Enough to not know the order number of the individual in question, without at least a hint.  Contrary to what you might believe, Jim, we do a fair amount of business.  It's what pays for the ads which help to support this site you like to hang out on.

RandyT

[RandyT]

I helped you sell like 100 encoders a few years ago.  

Thank you.

[Vigo]

I would love to see one of these industrial locations that uses GGG parts. Large control panels to operate heavy machinery filled with TurboTwists, blinky buttons from a ledwiz, and joysticks with tron handles.

 

You'd be very surprised at our customer list.  National Labratories, NASA, Fortune 500 companies, Metropolitan museums, US Department of Defense, etc.  But I don't think any of them use our TRON handles .

I knew all those blinky lights that NASA has was all for show. Since they are the inventors of the frankenpanel, I guess I can cut them some slack. I'm a least glad they finally upgraded from keyboard hacks; apparently ghosting is a bad thing when it comes piloting a spacecraft.

In seriousness, that's pretty awesome. It doesn't really surprise me either. If I was looking for quality precision controls on the cheap, I can't think of any better option.

[Gatt]

Just to put in my two cents here.

I put in my order a little bit ago,  and then a few days later sent an email asking for one of the items to be changed (T-molding Red -> Black).  Even with all the chaos,  they were able to switch my order in the processing stage,  and advance my order to the next stage.

I've not a single complaint,  is there a delay?  Sure.  But I'm going to get the high-quality parts I want,  and they were kind enough to switch my order saving me money,  in the midst of what can only be chaos.  I'll order again and again from GGG.

People need to remember what Ramcontrols was like,  I waited 6 months to get my yoke.  Then there was slickstik,  that disappeared while taking money.  Another company I waited 9 months for something they even had in stock while they ignored my emails.  A week long hiccup in the middle of a transition to a new location is acceptable IMO.

Edit:

Seriously,  in a month I'm going to be playing Warlords on my finished beautiful cabinet with GGG Microleaf buttons,  and a superior spinner,  and I'll guarantee you what I'll be thinking will be "OMG is this incredible!".  A couple extra days to be able to do what I dreamed of in elementary school is insignificant.  GGG's done incredible things for this hobby.

[spoot]

Wish one of them would get their crap together and take my money.
 

I'll gladly take your money.   

[RandyT]

It's a shame that groovy game gear doesn't take Paypal.

Jim, if you need something, I will make sure you can pay with PayPal.  I've done it for others here, so I'll certainly do it for my old pal (or nemesis...I'm never quite sure.)  But Paypal is something I have been considering more as of late.

Wish both would list out clearly what will and will not work with a wooden panel!!

If you have a router and/or approach it the right way, pretty much anything will work on a wooden panel.  In fact, I don't think there is a single item on the GGG site which won't.  Some sticks are short, and are better that way for performance reasons, but can still be used in wood with the right size recess in the top or bottom of the panel.  Even those odd little snap-in buttons (which we don't currently carry, but may soon) meant for metal panels, can be press-fit into wood and secured with some adhesive (touch of hot melt, etc.)  What will work in any given situation often depends more on the ingenuity and toolbox of the builder than the specific design of the part.