So not only do EA and Harmonix have to contend with those heartless delivery guys from UPS and FedEx, who occasionally destroy the very items they're supposed to handle with care, but it must address technical issues as well. I guess it's all part and parcel with the wacky world of proprietary peripherals. :\

Oh, I thought all those gamers smashing there Harmonix guitars against speakers were because they were just trying to be more like rockstars.

UPS is awesome, and Fed Ex is hit & miss. It's USPS (US Postal Service) that really screws up. It shouldn't matter though as long as Harmonix packages their merchandise properly... though from what I have heard from Rock Band players, the quality of the game equipment is questionable from the start.

My local UPS guy is actually quite nice, and I've never received any broken packages from them.

For the issue at hand, it's nice of Harmonix to take responsibility for the faulty guitars for free. But, I can't help but wonder if that charity will extend to shipping and handling.

My suspicion would be that it would not, which is a pain, but one can always hope! :-)