Dumb Best Buy Installers

[InfraredMonkey]

TRUE STORY

I was working on putting in an alpine HU into my bose powered camaro. I went to walmart to pick up a harness and install kit. There kits look like ***, so I went over to Best Buy, I know they have kits there too.

So I walked into the car audio section. There was a normal floor employee there doing something weird, untwisting some low gage wire, it was just weird. I walked up and said "hello," and I guess he jumped (young guy, mostly like a dumbass).

"Yes, can I help you?"
"Ah yeah, I'm looking for a aftermarket head unit install kit for a 96 Camaro."
"Is it stock, bose, monsoon?"
"It's bose..I was wondering what selection of harnesses and kits you might have."
"Are you planning on using your Bose speakers?"
"Yeah. I have a level converter and a harness already."
"I don't think that will work.."
"Huh?"
"Hold on.."

He walked over to the bay door and let me in. We walked over to the "install guy". Real hot shot dude, looks like he know everything about audio.

"This guy is planning on using his stock Bose system with an aftermarket head unit."
"That won't work unlessl he rewires everything, I'd charge about 180"

I said, "But, I read online all you need is a level converter and a harness, then you're set."

"A converter?" said the install guy
"Yeah, it converts levels so the factory amps will work with the headunit.."
"No, that won't work. You will need to rewire everything in order for the headunit to work with the Bose"
"You're kidding me.."
"No, we can do it for 180, we would need to rewire everything to get it to work right."
"I'm planning to do the work myself, all I need is an install kit and I was wondering if your harnesses are different from Walmart's choices"
"No, our harness are the same as Walmart"

I got the install kit from Metra, which by the way is better looking than Scosche, for about 20 bucks. I went home and did it, wired everything according to the instructions on the level converter and bang, the headunit works with the Bose speakers. In fact that sound a lot better!

So the moral of the story, don't always trust some guy from Best Buy, he might know a little, but not all. Do your research and do it yourself.

Sorry for long post story. :)

[Tom Rs]

Re: Dumb Best Buy Installers

best buy employees are generally useless

[Mike88]

Re: Dumb Best Buy Installers

the best is when I go to the auto parts store for my beater and the hot shot looking kid asks me if its the V6 or the V4 model. Its happened to me twice now. You'd think these guys would know a little better than that.

[Fireball27]

Re: Dumb Best Buy Installers

best buy employees are generally useless

I can't go to best buy anymore without wondering if one of their employees has the CIA intersect in his head...

[SpeedingFirebird]

Re: Dumb Best Buy Installers

there is a reason the dude works at Best Buy.

(no offense to best buy employees :))

[kala]

Re: Dumb Best Buy Installers

So the moral of the story, never trust guys from Best Buy, they don't know sh*t. Do your research and do it yourself.

I fixed it a little bit to make more sense! ;)



:)

[RadRacer]

Re: Dumb Best Buy Installers

Ya, my friend just got a new CD player installed in his Ranger. He paid $280 for it all, installed (and it's still a ****ty DUAL unit) and such. Went online and found I could have gotten everything, shipped to my door for $150, and then spend 10min. to install it myseld.

[Mogobs30th]

Re: Dumb Best Buy Installers

Best Buy and Circuit City can rot in hell. I haven't been in a Best Buy for almost two years, they are a joke. The prices are not the "best", their service is WAY too pushy (because of commissions), and they don't know what the hell they're talking about.

[SpeedingFirebird]

Re: Dumb Best Buy Installers

Ya, my friend just got a new CD player installed in his Ranger. He paid $280 for it all, installed (and it's still a ****ty DUAL unit) and such. Went online and found I could have gotten everything, shipped to my door for $150, and then spend 10min. to install it myseld.

Crutchfield sends all all the adapters, harnasses, and instructions. If you still **** up, they have a hotline that you can call. Installs take no time now.

[StrtRacer98]

Re: Dumb Best Buy Installers

OMG, cry about it why dont you...

[Mike88]

Re: Dumb Best Buy Installers

Best Buy and Circuit City can rot in hell. I haven't been in a Best Buy for almost two years, they are a joke. The prices are not the "best", their service is WAY too pushy (because of commissions), and they don't know what the hell they're talking about.

best buy employees don't make commission.

[Mogobs30th]

Re: Dumb Best Buy Installers

best buy employees don't make commission.

Then why push things like they do? No sense. TOO much pressure on someone to not be making commission. If they don't, then explain why they push like they do?

[Mike88]

Re: Dumb Best Buy Installers

Then why push things like they do? No sense. TOO much pressure on someone to not be making commission. If they don't, then explain why they push like they do?

I dunno...i don't work there. But I know they have no commission. I had a friend who worked there a number of years ago and I think I remember him telling me that if you sold such and such a number of things per month you were elligable to get a gift.

['97RedBird]

Re: Dumb Best Buy Installers

Ill explain. I work at Circuit City but thankfully I don't do sales anymore, I work in the warehouse.

Employees are taught to push stuff like protection plans and installs because its basically pure profit for the company. Installs are just labor. The people who do the installs don't see an extra dime of the money from it. It all goes straight to the company.

Protection plans on the other hand are more of a risk. The company hopes that nothing will happen and they wont have to replace it or that the customer forgets they have the plan. I wont say they screw every customer who uses it because I've seen some people use the plan as it should be and get their replacement, but I have seen some cases where people get bent over and have to take it hard.

Heres another reason why people push sales on this stuff. Raises are pretty much taken from your sales numbers. I used to work in computer department and I was supposed to sell installs on software and the protection plans over any laptop or desktop I sold. My manager at the time thought that people had to have it. There was no other option to her. I would offer it to people and if they said no I would move on and be done with it. She didn't like it. She wanted me to cram it down the customers throat and thats not what I do. Needless to say I went though two pay periods without a raise and she even had the guts to tell me that if I didn't fix it in a few weeks I wouldn't be there for the next pay raise.

Back on the original topic though. Not all of the installers at these places are terrible. Our 'Roadshop' as they called it was actually number one in the country a while ago. The guys that worked back there were a group of friends who all knew their stuff and got along well. They always figured out problems and didn't try to screw over customers. They helped me with my car numerous times for stuff I couldn't figure out myself.

Sadly my store has gone straight down the ****ter the last year and every single one of them quit. We've lost over 30 employees in the last two months. Now our store is full of these people who you describe in the original post. My sister asked me about getting a remote start today and I told her I wouldn't let her get it done at my store. Its honestly a bunch of guys who really don't know what they're doing and don't give two ****s about anyone or their car. Honestly we don't get paid enough to care. To the managers we are all just another worker and all replaceable. When your bosses don't treat you like a human being you really don't have respect for the job. The people who actually did care left and now its full of people who as I said before don't care at all.

[12secondv6]

Re: Dumb Best Buy Installers

I would NEVER go to that place for assistance for stereo install.

Crutchfield has worked very well for me