The Sound Factory — Local services in Knoxville

So just got my car back from them, had them install an alarm (from them), Apple CarPlay radio and backup camera. Along with the alarm I had them do a keyless entry for my door locks, so they also installed new actuators.

It took a while (3 weeks) but they were having trouble with getting the actuators to work and its a 1985 Trans AM so this was fairly understandable (I'll get back to this). Its a custom type car and as such a little more difficult to deal with so they actually passed on installing my rear 6x9's eventually and I also understood.

So the issues and why they are getting one star from me. I'll start with my missing sun visors and the fabric pulled away from my top (what remains from the head liner as it's a convertible). The fabric was pulled away from the roof and the visors were missing as stated, when I pointed it out the guy that I was dealing with went in the back and didn’t find them, came out and told me so and stated he wouldn’t have messed with the visors any how so I must be mistaken (The car is fairly new to me but I know I used the visors when I drove the car before dropping it off). Almost had me convinced I was crazy and yeah why would they be messing with my visor. So I drive the car home a bit frustrated but now have the working radio in my car, I ask Siri to change the song and she can’t hear me, they were messing with the visors because they needed to install the external microphone which is also missing. I get home and do an inventory of what is still in the box (not the microphone) and find that they failed to install the engine lock relay with the alarm and I also have some additional wires that are not installed one is a fuse and one I'm not sure what it is but I am now concerned that nothing was installed properly.

Returning to the actuators issue, they had me come in over the weekend (custom car and I had to show them how to open the trunk). While there the door panels were still off and the actuators were in fact struggling to work, I had the opportunity to reach in and feel the back of the locking mechanism after talking to the guy he sprayed some WD40 back there and they worked (at least on the passanger side while I was there) so obvious lubrication issue. Get the car back and they still dont work.

For clarity purposes the guy I was taking to and about most of the time is the guy that stays up front, not the guy that was actually working on my car. Speaking about the front though, they almost never answer the phone, they use a text messaging system from some 602 area code but it must be web based as I have gotten service error messages from it, and the person that types the messages is vague and unclear (doesn't really answer) when answering.

Over all, this is a very frustrating experience and not worth the money and time it took. I sent a text with the major issues and left a voice mail so will see how they respond. I will likely...

I have done business with the Sound Factory several times over the past few years. But No More. First let me say that Chris Myers is the only person working here who should be allowed to interact with customers at all. I love my music and have had 2 installs done in 2 cars and this last time was a upgrade. I have used equipment I have bought new from the Sound Factory and also stuff I have bought new or used online. Believe me, with the extreme retail mark up on new car audio when we buy new equipment from a shop like this they should be very grateful. This last time I was there the staff member I'll refer to as the "Bearded " one treated me like I was wasting his time with my stupid upgrade and actually broke 2 pieces of the very expensive speakers I had bought online. Neither of these pieces were even being used for the install. Believe me, I say this with my left hand over my heart and my right on the face of God. The first time I used the Sound Factory was a few yrs ago and I was told then by the staff member I'll call the "Large" one that my speakers I had bought online would not fit because the magnet was too large by a fraction of an inch but, he had some speakers there that would fit fine and sound better than the ones I had. I bought these new speakers plus another pair so the front and rear speakers would be compatible. It wasn't until I went back for another install a few yrs later I found out he lied about this because I brought back the same speakers I had kept. And they installed them just fine after I bought a new pair of speakers for the rear doors of the same brand. A brand they did not carry the first time I was there. With these guys being so resentful and untrustworthy I am done doing business here. I will say they do good work as far as the quality of the install but after the Bearded One broke those pieces I can't trust any of them to do any more work for me. Which is a shame because with all the competition in car audio these days, and the state of the retail business part of it, I am blown away that they would treat a very good regular customer with soo much disdain. These guys are not...

Had a Kenwood Excelon DDXR9907 installed there a year ago, they did a nice job.

Fast forward 13 months, the head unit developed a problem with the AM/FM tuner, with no audio when selected. I called and made an appointment to have it checked and they said it was bad, they would have to order a replacement since they didn't carry that unit in stock, and it would be replaced under warranty. The new unit came in and was installed. However, it was loose in the dash and could be moved by placing a finger on the bezel, or if you drove over an expansion joint. I notified the dealership, and they had me bring it back a week later. The installer, Ray, was livid that I brought the unit back so it could be mounted correctly. A few days later, the AM/FM tuner quit working on the replacement unit. Again, they were called, and a week later, it was inspected. Their installer said it suffered the same problem as the first and that my amateur radio was at fault, causing an overload of the front end in the radio burning out the IC chip in the tuner. They said they would replace the unit, but I couldn't use the unit and my amateur radio at the same time.

I called Kenwood customer service and explained the situation to them, their Technical Specialist said that it was highly unlikely that my amateur radio caused the failure, as the radio is shielded to prevent problems. They asked who installed the unit, and when I told them, Kenwood Customer Service said the Excelon unit must be installed by an authorized dealer.

Jason, the salesman, was easy to work with, very helpful and friendly. Ray, their installer, is rude, arrogant and talks down to the customers. He does shoddy work also. In my opinion, leaving the head unit loose in the dash may have been the root cause for the failure in the replacement unit, yet he chose to blame it on something he knew nothing about.

I have since had the unit replaced by an authorized dealer, and it is working properly, with no problems.

The faulty unit has been sent back to Kenwood for repair/replacement under warranty.

I cannot, in good faith, give the Sound Factory a...