Sweetwater takes care of their customers. The only reason Brian Walton got charged shipping is because he decided to return the guitar. If, by chance, you received a guitar that had a problem, they would make it right. It's an exchange vs. a return. They never charged me a cent when I needed to exchange my faulty compressor. If I would have wanted to just return it, I'm sure I would have been charged for shipping.

Sweetwater is top notch. I recently bought a half dozen packages of guitar strings and some high dollar picks; then got a personal follow up phone call a week later asking if I had received my order and was my experience satisfactory. I was very amazed over such a small purchase that they followed up just as if I had bought a 3K guitar.

Well....I put my order in today for a new acoustic with Sweetwater and my "Personal Sales Engineer".
 
And now.....
 
I wait.......
 
and worry.......
 
Sigh.....

Ozz
Well....I put my order in today for a new acoustic with Sweetwater and my "Personal Sales Engineer".
 
And now.....
 
I wait.......
 
and worry.......
 
Sigh.....

10 to 1 you're really happy when it shows up!

TheMaartian

Ozz
Well....I put my order in today for a new acoustic with Sweetwater and my "Personal Sales Engineer".
 
And now.....
 
I wait.......
 
and worry.......
 
Sigh.....

10 to 1 you're really happy when it shows up!

I agree...

TheMaartian
If I'm going to buy a guitar/bass online, it will be from Sweetwater if they sell the brand/model I want.
 
When shopping online, each guitar/bass from $299 upward is individually inspected, set up, photographed and weighed. You can see each unit they have in stock by serial number and order that specific serial number. I've bought several guitars and basses from them and have zero complaints.
 
Waiting for the annual guitar/bass sale (September?). I want one of the new Ibanez BTB845V high-C 5-string basses. Bad G.A.S. this time.
 
In comparison, I've bought 2 G&L guitars from Musician's Friend. Really happy with one; not so much with the other. You get whatever they send you.

I'm guessing by now that the OP has received his guitar and is happy.  Overall I think Sweetwater is (are) amazing people, but several years ago I ordered a John Lennon Casino copy from them (somewhere around $2,000).  The setup was abysmal, a tuner was lose and there was a rattle whenever you hit a chord.  At the time of the order Sweetwater claimed EVERY guitar they shipped was inspected/setup/played etc.  While I lay the problems with that guitar at Epiphone's feet, I doubt it even got a visual inspection from Sweetwater. 

I've ordered numerous higher-end guitars from Sweetwater.
They have always arrived in good condition (packed well).
 
As far as return shipping:
Sweetwater will absolutely cover it if there's anything wrong with the gear.
If it's simply that you don't like it, then you're responsible for shipping.
IMO, That's pretty reasonable.
 
As far as setup, that's always subjective.
Nicer instruments get more attention (both from Sweetwater and the manufacturer)… so they usually arrive without needing much attention.
After putting on my strings of choice, I typically have to adjust intonation.
Occasionally, I'll make small adjustments to the setup.
 
I'd have zero qualms about ordering a nicer guitar from Sweetwater.
 
 
 
 

I agree with Jim and had the same observations. I have even returned a guitar I didn't like and they only asked I pay for shipping. You may find a better deal somewhere if you look long enough but you won't go wrong by using Sweetwater.

I've returned a couple guitars and a couple of tube heads over ~20 years.
Stuart Hisey has been my sales-engineer from the beginning.
Nice guy...

I'm guessing by now that the OP has received his guitar and is happy.  Overall I think Sweetwater is (are) amazing people, but several years ago I ordered a John Lennon Casino copy from them (somewhere around $2,000).  The setup was abysmal, a tuner was lose and there was a rattle whenever you hit a chord.  At the time of the order Sweetwater claimed EVERY guitar they shipped was inspected/setup/played etc.  While I lay the problems with that guitar at Epiphone's feet, I doubt it even got a visual inspection from Sweetwater. 




Nope....haven't gotten it yet...but it DID ship out today, and they say I should have it sometime on Thursday.....so, I'm excited and apprehensive at the same time..lol
 
The one I got was the last one they had....and there was one thing in the pictures I'm a little concerned about (just an aesthetic thing...but....hey, I'm shallow, what can I say?)
 
Hopefully, it won't be as visible in person....if it is.....I'll give it a few days to see if I can live with it, or if I'm going to have to pony up some return cash... (actually, it'd just be exchange cash....I'd either wait til they get more in....or, more likely, because I'm an idiot, I'd trade UP...lol
 
But...looking forward to it....my lone acoustic broke a couple years ago (but..the way time passes for me, I could be way off on that)....and I wasn't that happy with that particular guitar anyway...bought it when I was young and didn't know much better (loved it when I bought it, but the honeymoon was relatively short).
 
I also question this "55 point inspection"....because they don't really tell you what it is....I even asked my sales guy...and he kind of ....vaguely mentioned a couple things....but....personally, I think it's an exaggeration.
 
I'm also not so sure my guy is too knowledgeable about acoustic guitars....though, it seems if Sweetwater REALLY wanted to have awesome customer service, that if a person emails a question regarding acoustic guitars....they send him to someone who might specialize in that kind of instrument, instead of whoever is next up in the queue.
 
But....he seemed like an alright guy (we'll see how he is if there's a problem or I want to return/exchange it)...and when I asked what he could do on the price....I have to admit, I think he did pretty well.
 
I won't be sleeping much the next couple nights....lol