Hasselblad H6D-100c experience

[JK12]

I invested in this camera 7 months ago after selling the majority of my equipment and trading in my previous digital back (Hasselblad CF39ms), Ive used it in a very basic manner and in a studio while treating it carefully. It started error-ing right in the middle of working till it error-ed upon start-up the other day for which there was no way out and it had to go in for repair. No offer of a loaner from Hasselblad and not even a return label to compensate for this- paying to ship such a valuable piece of equipment is stressful and is the least they could do for customers buying their cameras, especially ones that have been out for less than a year and are suffering from a manufacturing problem. This is not how a company selling such expensive and "professional" equipment should treat their customers. They received the camera 1st thing Tuesday morning and not even an email at this point letting me know that it is now in their possession. I use this camera for work and paying to rent one is absurdly expensive, especially when that money went into BUYING it. Anyhow the files are nice when the camera works but this whole experience thus far has inspired very little confidence that the camera is really at all dependable.

Update:
Received a generic response at 5:30ish that they received the camera. Was also informed by dealer that the Hasselblad rep would rent me a 50c for a flat fee but that it did not come with a charger- I have my own but still... it doesn't come with a charger?...

Does this all sound normal to you guys?

 

[jduncan]

I invested in this camera 7 months ago after selling the majority of my equipment and trading in my previous digital back (Hasselblad CF39ms), Ive used it in a very basic manner and in a studio while treating it carefully. It started error-ing right in the middle of working till it error-ed upon start-up the other day for which there was no way out and it had to go in for repair. No offer of a loaner from Hasselblad and not even a return label to compensate for this- paying to ship such a valuable piece of equipment is stressful and is the least they could do for customers buying their cameras, especially ones that have been out for less than a year and are suffering from a manufacturing problem. This is not how a company selling such expensive and "professional" equipment should treat their customers. They received the camera 1st thing Tuesday morning and not even an email at this point letting me know that it is now in their possession. I use this camera for work and paying to rent one is absurdly expensive, especially when that money went into BUYING it. Anyhow the files are nice when the camera works but this whole experience thus far has inspired very little confidence that the camera is really at all dependable.

Update:
Received a generic response at 5:30ish that they received the camera. Was also informed by dealer that the Hasselblad rep would rent me a 50c for a flat fee but that it did not come with a charger- I have my own but still... it doesn't come with a charger?...

Does this all sound normal to you guys?

And know the counter starts to see if someone in the company knows the importance of this bad experiesces and address it here, or they don't and don't understand the power of the internet.

Let see how long it takes. Day one.

Best regards

 

[bab]

Your in good hands a small company with little repair issues don't be surprised if you get a quick response! Where did you send it and did you fill out the on line repair form within the Hasselblad sit? That's important.
Regards

 

[JK12]

I did fill out all necessary forms including sending in a copy of my receipt along with the camera to NJ. Im not expecting this to be a quick fix unfortunately though- hopefully I am wrong.

 

[DougDolde]

You would never get this shallow treatment from either Capture Integration or Digital Transitions

 

[SrMphoto]

I did fill out all necessary forms including sending in a copy of my receipt along with the camera to NJ. Im not expecting this to be a quick fix unfortunately though- hopefully I am wrong.

Sorry to hear about your problem, hope it gets resolved quickly. When I had an issue with firmware upgrade on H6D100C, HB was very quick to help me out.
Did you talk to your dealer about the problem with the camera before sending it to NJ?

 

[rmueller]

Sorry to hear about your experience with HB which luckily i can't share. Not sure who your dealer is, my HB dealer here is quite responsive when it comes to damaged HB equipment and usually offers replacement from his loaner pool without a fee. Not sure how he's handling it with HB internally (and frankly i don't care too much). Given the price of such a MF kit and the option of an after-sale opportunity with lenses, future body upgrades etc. its quite stupid from a dealer perspective IMO. Anyway, hope your issue gets resolved soon, the H6D is too expensive to wait in repair or travel alone with UPS.

Best Regards, Ralf.

 

[tjv]

While I totally understand your frustration, does this perhaps indicate a problem with your dealer as much as it does with a faulty product? Even where I live at the end of the world, a replacement loaner would be / is offered.

 

[JK12]

Thank you all for your responses thus far- it's nice to have some understanding. If one doesn't already feel questionable investing this much into a camera then after an experience like this they might. I have not been rude to anyone although I was frank but I would assume that that would be reasonable nor have I demanded anything- I was told by the dealer on Saturday that I would hear from them Monday after they could have a discussion with their sales rep, Wednesday I get an email that the sales rep has been on the road... Thursday evening I'm offered the rental of a 50c without a charger that won't actually be available till the following Tuesday for a flat rental fee and that I will have to pay the return shipping to Hasselblad if I accept. Some may wonder why I am hung up on this shipping stuff but for 1 it's not cheap and it does take time and it is stressful shipping things of high value- it seems like a courtesy that they could extend to customers that would alleviate a great deal of the aggravation involved in sending the cameras in for repair, especially within the warranty period.

 

[Paul2660]

I am sorry to hear about the problems. You are definitely not hung up on the shipping issue. The cost to insure a 100c or 50c during shipping is not inexpensive. Folks who ship such items back without insurance IMO are gambling and I am not a gambler.

You might see if your dealer will work with you on the shipping cost, i.e most dealers can ship/insure for a much lower price than an independent photographer, as they have a much higher volume of shipping. See if you can get the shipping label through your dealer, you still pay but at their rate?

Paul Caldwell

 

[JK12]

Thanks Paul for understanding- it definitely cost a lot to ship the camera, not to mention the jobs I'll have to forgo while it is away along with the personal work I use the camera for that will have to wait. The dealer knows my situation... Like I said I've been frank with them about how this is all less than ideal, but I was always polite and thanked them for whatever they could do.

 

[rmueller]

Hmm, i never payed for any shipping of HB equipment to/from HB, all handled carefully by my dealer and usually they have some insurance that covers pretty much everything they send. Why should you pay for this? Thats one of the most important reasons I pick a dealer i can go to rather then buy things on the Internet. I was once in a situation where my HC 120 Macro shutter broke somewhere remote in Scotland, quite embarrassing since it was brand new but then i didn't need it really and used the HC 100 instead. Back home i told my dealer and checked in the 120 for repair. Only comment from my dealer was: Next time something gets broken while you're traveling, send me a message and i get a replacement FedEx'd to you overnight wherever you are. So, i really believe its a problem with your dealer more than anything else, don't understand that he leaves you in the dust with this. Or its the local HB sales rep for this region who doesn't take care of such things. Maybe try and call another sales rep? Hard to say, good luck with your situation!
Regards,
Ralf

 

[dave.gt]

Jordan,

Where are you located?

 

[JK12]

Ralf- sounds as though you have the type of dealer I was hoping for. The dealer I chose isn't local to me and the closest dealer isn't even local to me unfortunately. In defense of the dealer I chose, they were very responsive by phone initially if I was experiencing a technical difficulty and they seemed incredibly pleasant, then this error started happening and here we are. I only called a few times at the beginning so perhaps if it's something small they're helpful but to be honest I wanted a dealer that would get me through the stuff like this not the little things that can be handled through the forums with a simple inquiry. Somethings not right.

 

[JK12]

Hi Dave,
located in MA

 

[mkerouac]

I invested in this camera 7 months ago after selling the majority of my equipment and trading in my previous digital back (Hasselblad CF39ms), Ive used it in a very basic manner and in a studio while treating it carefully. It started error-ing right in the middle of working till it error-ed upon start-up the other day for which there was no way out and it had to go in for repair. No offer of a loaner from Hasselblad and not even a return label to compensate for this- paying to ship such a valuable piece of equipment is stressful and is the least they could do for customers buying their cameras, especially ones that have been out for less than a year and are suffering from a manufacturing problem. This is not how a company selling such expensive and "professional" equipment should treat their customers. They received the camera 1st thing Tuesday morning and not even an email at this point letting me know that it is now in their possession. I use this camera for work and paying to rent one is absurdly expensive, especially when that money went into BUYING it. Anyhow the files are nice when the camera works but this whole experience thus far has inspired very little confidence that the camera is really at all dependable.

Update:
Received a generic response at 5:30ish that they received the camera. Was also informed by dealer that the Hasselblad rep would rent me a 50c for a flat fee but that it did not come with a charger- I have my own but still... it doesn't come with a charger?...

Does this all sound normal to you guys?

In general Hasselblad service in the US is very good and very responsive. However, there are a few aggravating items. They do not pay for shipping for "under warranty" product to HB. This drives me nuts. I had to send my X1D back a second time because the first repair was not done properly and they still made me pay for shipping. In Europe, HB will often send a courier service to pick up the camera. In the US its a different story. in terms of loaners, I think HB is stuck They can't afford to have enough loners and demos on the shelf. So we need to have some type of backup or do without. Not ideal by any means, but its what we are stuck with. My 100c has been almost flawless so far, so knocking on wood.

 

[citizin]

I've ever only had positive experiences with hasselblad, and the rep for my area, Andrew, is the best I've ever worked with. I wasn't even considering Hasselblad when I decided to go to digital medium format. I was set on the Mamiya/phase kit, (P25+/P30+at that time.) I had set up a phase demo and the store/rep blew me off. After a four hour train ride specifically for this, it was a little upsetting.

Try to figure out what to do for a few hours before the train home, I filled out the demo form on Hasselblads Website. Before I was done Andrew called me and told me to come by, he was at the store about 10mins away. Went in chatted with him for over an hour, no aggressive sales tactics, felt like I was chatting with an old high school buddy. Playing around with the h3dII-50 for a bit. Asked me if I wanted to take it home and demo it for a few days. Showed him my Driver's License, and I was out the door with the system. He let me demo it a 2nd time, same deal. I ended up buying it.

A few years later, my 80mm's shutter died on a Saturday. Had it overnighted on Monday to the NJ repair, ended up having it back with a brand new shutter on Friday. Again no issues.

Now I'm looking to upgrade, the H6D-100c finally seemed finally worth the upgrade. Same deal. Ended up taking the H6D-100c overseas to the Azores for a week to demo. Accidentally hit it with a rock, gave it a good ding in the aluminum edge on the back. Fell in love with it, and I'll end up getting it once this season is done. I haven't even considered anything from phase since. I guess that's what a good rep can do.

 

[stngoldberg]

I also must trumpet my accolades for Peter Lorber, the ultimate Hasselblad dealer and the finest gentleman one could encounter.
When I purchased my first Hassie over ten years ago, Peter gave me his personal cell phone number with the pledge that he was available 24/7 to help with any situation.
Being new to medium format, situations were abundant and I called Peter during personal hours more often than is excusable.
He is a world renowned panorama expert as well as a student of the physics of lens capabilities in addition to being the kindest person imaginable.
When I became intrigued with technical cameras, he pushed Hasselblad to arrange for an attached battery on my H5D50.
When the H6D100 became available, I waited 18 months for a technical camera solution calling Peter monthly because at my age (78) time to enjoy all those megapixels is unfortunately evaporating.
Hasselblad had too many problems (financial and production) to address peter's
urging for a attached battery solution for their back on a technical camera and so with his blessing; I bought a Phase One back.
I still call Peter for advice and I treasure his friendship
Stanley

 

[DB5]

Having to rent a loaner on a ridiculously expensive piece of gear like this is faulty is grossly unacceptable.

 

[JK12]

DB5, I agree obviously- it's not right.