Sound & Video

Friendly on the phone a responsive. Two techs arrived on the scheduled day on-time, but found they did not have enough time to complete the installation so we rescheduled the following week. In addition to reviewing what I wanted done on that first day, I typed out detailed instructions for the installation day since I had to work and my mother-in-law would be staying in the house for the service. My instructions clearly stated that the TV in the family room was to be positioned right above some wood molding on the wall. (This was still higher than ideal, but I didn't want to remove or cover the molding.) I returned home mid-day to check on the installation and found they cut holes in the wall for the large in-wall speakers more than a foot higher than instructed and were preparing to mount the TV at that same height! (Since the height I had instructed them to use was already higher then it should be, the extra 12" + really made the tv too high for proper or comfortable viewing. If these installers were the true professionals, they would have contacted me to make sure I knew this wasn't going to be they way it should be before they cut the holes in my wall! They just proceeded like nothing was wrong. I told them immediately it was too high and if they read my instructions? One of the techs pulled out the instructions and read it to me and didn't offer any reason why those directions weren't followed - obviously they just decided to do what they wanted and didn't care what I wrote! He then said something to the effect that "most people like the TV's higher." I told him that's not what we had discussed the previous week, nor what my printed instructions said to do. I said the ideal height is eye level and he agreed....I looked at him and said you installed it at eye level if I am STANDING UP, but that we normally watch TV sitting down! He finally agreed that the TV and speakers should be at viewing/listening level and asked if I wanted them moved. He then mentioned that a light switch was in the way of where the left speaker was to be installed, so I said to move it over. I was very upset because I was paying these guys a lot of money ($179/hour for two techs I recall), and now I was faced with two large holes in my wall where the speakers were installed and big drywall/painting repairs I would have to pay for. At first, I told them to "just leave them where they are" (I would just get someone else to re-do it) because I didn't want my walls torn up more, then decided I'm paying for a professional installation and I needed to get it; so I told them to do what I had instructed in the first place. I returned to work and called the manager of the business from my car immediately to inform him of the problems, but he was out for an hour. The girl who answered the phone asked what was wrong, and I told her. She took a message and told me the manager would call me in about an hour. That call never came, and still hasn't! About an hour later, one of the installers called me and said there was conduit and electric boxes in the wall where the speakers were supposed to be and that I would need to have an electrician relocate those if I wanted the speakers where I said. I asked why didn't he call me with this infomation before they cut holes in my wall in positions contrary to my instructions, but I didn't really get an answer. I said he told me about the one switch, but not other electric obstructions all along the wall. I told him I guess there wasn't any choice at that point, so just leave them where they were and I'd have to get an electrician out and re-do everything later. I returned home to find a bill much higher than I thought, $2566.95. No allowance for the mistakes made or the time wasted, one of the techs was obviously not experienced and was basically in training and I don't think I should pay for his training time at full rates, and the work shouldn't have taken as long as it did in the first place. The wires behind the tv were just running thru a hole in the drywall - no covers or outlets of any kind were installed to make it look professional, and they left some drywall spackled area unpainted. Obviously, these "professional installers" don't think anything is important if it's behind a tv and can't be seen easily. At the rates charged, I expected better. I'm still faced with hiring an electrician to move the electric lines, then hiring someone else to move the speakers and tv, and a drywall company to patch and repair the holes cut by Sound and Video. As stated, the manager never returned my phone call and the techs who did the work knew I wasn't pleased with the whole project; but I have heard nothing from anyone since they got their check. It's obvious they don't care about completing their work to professional standards, nor do they know what proper customer service is. You do not receive the expertise or industry standard work from this company even though you are paying top dollar for their service. I would avoid them at all cost. A handyman at $50/hour would have done similar work, or better.