My relationship with Alliance began not as a matter of my own free choice but because the builder of the new housing development where I had purchased a home to be built had already mandated that Alliance would be the only audio/video company to be granted exclusive access to the new homes during the building process. Thus, at least until the home was completed and escrow closed, I was precluded from using my usual Palm Desert A/V company from whom I have received exceptional service in several homes for many years. Instead of waiting for the house to be finished whereby my trusted A/V company would have been able to install a complete entertainment system as they have done for me in the past, I naively succumbed to Alliance's assurances that they could provide a first-class A/V system that would be up and running on the day my escrow closed. That promise, unfortunately, would prove not to be the case. I would later regret profoundly that I had let my impatience get the better of me.
To say that I have been disappointed with Alliance would be an understatement. They are at best a mediocre A/V company that over-promises and under-delivers. While I was assured at the outset that they possessed the expertise necessary to install, integrate and program the modern technology of today's sophisticated A/V world, I was alarmed early on in our relationship that they may be in over their heads, or at least that they might be compared to what I was used to.
Although I began to suspect soon after signing the contracts and writing a check that Alliance's capabilities might have been exaggerated, one of the first real signs of trouble occurred on the day after close of escrow when I took possession of the house. Because Spectrum Cable had been unable to complete its hookup earlier, Alliance could not proceed with its installation and have the system running by the end of the day. After the technicians left, I contacted Alliance's scheduling coordinator to make sure Alliance would be ready to return promptly once Spectrum had solved the blockage problem and completed the hookup. To my great surprise, however, I was advised that the next available appointment would be in approximately thirty days, to which I replied incredulously " are you serious?" The scheduler's response? "Serious as a heart attack!" So there you have it. Apparently I was supposed to sit in my house with no wifi and no television for a month because Alliance wouldn't be able to shoehorn me into their schedule. Their excuse was that it wouldn't be fair to the other customers who already had appointments to drop everything in order to work on my problem. I don't know about anyone else, but this attitude is not what I'm looking for in an A/V company. Fortunately, by appealing my case to an Alliance VP the next day, I was able to secure a technician to continue working on my project once Spectrum completed the hookup.
I wish I could say at this point that my story went on to have a happy ending. Such, however, was not to be the case. In fact, several weeks went by thereafter while the system struggled with a number of performance glitches which intermittent visits from several technicians could only partially solve, even occasionally blaming individual components as faulty when in fact it was later determined they were not, merely programmed incorrectly.
As more time went by, I realized that I had gone about as far as I could with Alliance's limited capabilities and I called in my regular A/V company rather than beat my head against the wall any longer with Alliance. As things stand today, much of Alliance's efforts had to be redone and several components replaced with more suitable substitutes but I'm happy to report that the final result reflects the quality and performance that over the years I have come to expect. While the memories of my personal frustration of even having to deal with this company at all, not to mention incurring the unfortunate financial losses associated with their questionable competence, will certainly fade over time, I have tried to keep in mind that the overriding goal is to have a topnotch A/V system for the long run. After all, for those of us who love watching sports, movies and other entertainment, the efficacy and quality of our entertainment systems simply cannot be placed in the wrong hands. read more