# GPS tracking devices for guitars



## asmegin_slayer (Apr 22, 2013)

Hey guys,

Recently a friend of mine in Houston had his house broken into and some douche stole 7-8 various custom jacksons/ibanez guitars, messed his whole place up and took his PC as well which had the s/n's of the guitars. All this happened while he was on tour with his band. 

Unfortunately no progress were made and he still doesn't have any of those guitars back. After that it started to get me more open into the thought of putting some kind of gps microchip device in the cavity of the guitar. Small enough that I don't have to do any modifications. Any experienced users here have done this? Any suggestions as to what is the best product for any musician who wants to secure their belongings? 

Thanks,


----------



## larry (Apr 22, 2013)

supposedly strictly7 partnered up with a manufacturer to produce said tracking device. sounds promising, but nothing has materialized by way of individual retail. there have been further developments as far as size and power consumption





for the cellular communications market, but nothing for us gear whores yet afaik. fucking gear thieves . best thing for now, which isn't much of a stop-gap but insures ownership, is the snagg chip. an rfid that links the owner to the guitar via serial number and website registry.


----------



## SavM (Apr 22, 2013)

I'd love to know if there has been any development with this, thieving bastards really piss me off!


----------



## Andromalia (Apr 22, 2013)

I know some chips of that kind are already in use at least in Europe, notably used on high value classical instruments, but it's not GPS, rather an alarm that makes airport detectors ring. A bit outdated info sicne I heard that more than 10 years ago, but know you can likely find a company offering that kind of service already.


----------



## thatguy87 (Apr 22, 2013)

I would like to know more if anyone gets ahold of some information on this. I am a sentimentalist and hate it when people say "Oh well, it's just stuff, it can be replaced." Fuck off and die. Most of my guitars at this point are One-offs or gifts that I refuse to ever get rid of, so no, it's not just stuff. /end rant.


----------



## Gram negative (Apr 22, 2013)

I was just thinking not too long ago about this.

They have LOjack for computers. Why not the same thing for guitars?

My house was broken into, about 6 months ago. The fuckers had my Fenders and my Ibanez beside the door, ready to be stolen. Luckily I came home.

Someone with technical know-how could make some serious money with this! i would buy it! I cant stand the thought of someone tossing around my guitar, pawning it, selling it. I work very hard for all of my guitar stuff. It takes hours of "real job" work to buy it. It takes hours of playing in bars and clubs and getting shitty pay for doing it. I HATE thieves.

Sorry about your buddy. Until guitar lojack is invented, tell your buddy to write down all of his serial numbers to all of his guitars and pedals/processor boards. Put it in a notebook or something that wont get stolen. I have the serial numbers of all of my guitars written down, and even my Line 6 effects.

Get your friend to check and see if the place he bought his axes from has a receipt on file. They will have the serial number. If you give that to the police, they send out a blanket email to pawn shops/second hand stores that alerts them to stolen goods.

This really sucks. Its a nightmare to lose your guitars. Its an expensive hobby when you play music. Hope everything turns out ok, and the police catch these bastards.


----------



## Gram negative (Apr 22, 2013)

thatguy87 said:


> I would like to know more if anyone gets ahold of some information on this. I am a sentimentalist and hate it when people say "Oh well, it's just stuff, it can be replaced." Fuck off and die. Most of my guitars at this point are One-offs or gifts that I refuse to ever get rid of, so no, it's not just stuff. /end rant.



No. FUCK NO. Its not just stuff. Guitars are like your friends. You put emotional investment into them, not to mention lots of money to upgrade/maintain them.
Its not just a "thing". You might have saved up for months to buy it. You might play it every single day. You bond with it.

Listen to Steve Vai talk about "EVO". That guitar is falling apart, and he sounds completely heart-broken that it cant go on tour anymore because its falling apart. And that guy is so famous, can have ANY guitar he wants!

A guitar you love makes you play better.


----------



## skeels (Apr 22, 2013)

Speaking as someone who had a guitar stolen that I owned for longer than a lot of you have been alive, if I had a chip in it, I would be driving to wherever it is to retrieve it. Plus one to anybody who can put one out.

And if it meant having to cut a small slot into one of the cavities even and gluing that baby in there, so be it.


----------



## Daf57 (Apr 23, 2013)

You know, while not GPS, most pets get micro chipped - mine did. You can't track them but if scanned can identify the owner. If, as a start, this could be implemented in musical instruments it would help. Pawn shops could scan and compare with seller id, police could return stolen goods quicker. Ultimately a GPS system would be best - or something like Onstar where they could shut down/disable the guitar remotely and notify the police!


----------



## Durero (Apr 23, 2013)

These are used in instruments:

https://www.snagg.com


Edit: never mind - missed it already linked in the second post :doh:


----------



## Daf57 (Apr 23, 2013)

yeah - snagg looks like what I was talking about! $25 a chip or 5 for $100 - not a bad deal if it helps get the gear back.


----------



## Albionic (Apr 23, 2013)

well they can disguise tazers as mobile phones how about a pickup shaped tazer that can fry anyone who tries to play it?


----------



## rbd (Apr 23, 2013)

Hey, how about a MoP QR code inlay right in the middle of the neck? 
With something like "If this guitar isn't with Whatever_band_name show, might be stolen".


----------



## DantheMan (Apr 23, 2013)

I don't really know if I'm going to piss anybody off by offering to help here, and I sincerely hope that I don't but, in the interest of full disclosure, I am actually in the GPS tracking business. I can help you if you still need it. I don't want to outright talk about what my company does on this forum thread, or solicit in any way, but drop me a line and I'll be more than happy to answer any questions that you might have. What you're looking for is actually right in our wheelhouse. I hope I can help!

Daniel


----------



## Durero (Apr 23, 2013)

do you have a website?


----------



## Jessy (Apr 23, 2013)

asmegin_slayer said:


> took his PC as well which had the s/n's of the guitars.


Dropbox or SugarSync. It is too late in human history to rely solely on local backups.



thatguy87 said:


> I am a sentimentalist and hate it when people say "Oh well, it's just stuff, it can be replaced." Fuck off and die. Most of my guitars at this point are One-offs or gifts that I refuse to ever get rid of, so no, it's not just stuff. /end rant.


I never buy anything that can't be replaced easily. Things get destroyed. It is all stuff. You are what makes something not stuff. Change yourself. You're obviously setting yourself up for pain.


----------



## thatguy87 (Apr 23, 2013)

Jessy said:


> Dropbox or SugarSync. It is too late in human history to rely solely on local backups.
> 
> 
> I never buy anything that can't be replaced easily. Things get destroyed. It is all stuff. You are what makes something not stuff. Change yourself. You're obviously setting yourself up for pain.



On my opinion of this type of response, please see my last post. Thank you and good day.


----------



## Hollowway (Apr 23, 2013)

DantheMan said:


> I don't really know if I'm going to piss anybody off by offering to help here, and I sincerely hope that I don't but, in the interest of full disclosure, I am actually in the GPS tracking business. I can help you if you still need it. I don't want to outright talk about what my company does on this forum thread, or solicit in any way, but drop me a line and I'll be more than happy to answer any questions that you might have. What you're looking for is actually right in our wheelhouse. I hope I can help!
> 
> Daniel



I think you SHOULD make a thread about this. No reason to be humble or coy. We NEED something like this, so don't feel that you're forcing anything on us. I for one would love info on it!


----------



## Hollowway (Apr 23, 2013)

Double post.


----------



## thatguy87 (Apr 23, 2013)

Hollowway said:


> I think you SHOULD make a thread about this. No reason to be humble or coy. We NEED something like this, so don't feel that you're forcing anything on us. I for one would love info on it!



As long as you post it in the dealer thread lol


----------



## DantheMan (Apr 24, 2013)

I do but, again, I don't really want to outright solicit here. I'm brand new to this forum and don't want to do anything to get myself banned before I can even get my feet under me. Drop me a pm and I'll be more than happy to point you to our website and give you my email address. I'm seeking out a mod as we speak (there aren't that many) to answer a few questions before I post anything in the dealer thread. But I AM going to be posting as a dealer soon...hopefully today if I can. Thanks for the encouragement!

Daniel


----------



## Steve-Om (Apr 24, 2013)

This is one of the most interesting threads I've seen so far.

To the guy saying that we should not buy stuff that cannot be replaced, let me ask you something, and please dont take it personal, this is just my opinion, but how many times can you replace a $2,000, $5,000 or even $10,000 guitar or equipment?

Its not only about not the feeling of having something of sentimental value stolen from you, is the monetary hit you receive.

Me? Im no rich guy, and would LOVE to have some way of recovering whatever was stolen from me.

Also, how about issuing a QR code, print it and paste it inside the cavity, and if found, you can use a QR code scanner from you cell phone to retrieve the date stored in it, to make sure it IS your guitar?


----------



## larry (Apr 24, 2013)

Steve-Om said:


> This is one of the most interesting threads I've seen so far.
> 
> To the guy saying that we should not buy stuff that cannot be replaced, let me ask you something, and please dont take it personal, this is just my opinion, but how many times can you replace a $2,000, $5,000 or even $10,000 guitar or equipment?
> 
> ...



this. i'd be fine with buying gear that i could easily replace, but kick ass gear or anything that is well built and excels at it's intended purpose always seems so expensive. i hate 'enslaving' myself to money, but steve-om nailed it.


----------



## redstone (Apr 24, 2013)

Jessy said:


> Dropbox or SugarSync. It is too late in human history to rely solely on local backups.
> 
> 
> I never buy anything that can't be replaced easily. Things get destroyed. It is all stuff. You are what makes something not stuff. Change yourself. You're obviously setting yourself up for pain.



Well, I just kept improving myself until at some point I realized that my current guitars are a huge stress for my optimal playing, and would cause premature health problem in the long run. There's nothing left to change but the instrument, or the hands.


----------



## Jessy (Apr 24, 2013)

Steve-Om said:


> To the guy saying that we should not buy stuff that cannot be replaced, let me ask you something, and please dont take it personal, this is just my opinion, but how many times can you replace a $2,000, $5,000 or even $10,000 guitar or equipment?


Things that are expensive should be insured. What I'm saying, is that, whenever possible, you should use things that are not unique, and you should never believe that the things you have are good enough that they shouldn't be sold when something better comes along. Guitarists do get sentimental about antiquated, obsolete objects; fortunately, this forum generally represents a less obstinate slice of us.


----------



## Steve-Om (Apr 24, 2013)

Jessy said:


> you should use things that are not unique, and you should never believe that the things you have are good enough that they shouldn't be sold when something better comes along..



I understand your point, but I do not share it. 

My example: I still have the first guitar I used to play live shows, and I have a Jackson that my dad and I painted together, how can those not be of sentimental value to me?

But like I said I do get your point, and thats exactly why I have a main guitar and a backup.


----------



## Jessy (Apr 24, 2013)

Steve-Om said:


> My example: I still have the first guitar I used to play live shows, and I have a Jackson that my dad and I painted together, how can those not be of sentimental value to me?


There are an infinite number of items that went into your show, and that painting, which you don't care about. You like guitars, so you give extra value to them and use them as a memory trigger. If you play them, I don't see a problem with keeping them around. But if not, given that they're operational, you could bring about happiness in someone else's life by donating them, or if they're worth money, you could sell them and bring happiness to someone else via that money.


----------



## crg123 (Jan 9, 2014)

Bump. Any updates on this. I think this is a great idea especially for those of us with one off customs or actually guitars that would be otherwise undifferentated from any other off the shelf production model.

I think it'd be perfect if you could put it into the electronics cavity but Idk if the shielding would screw with it (sorry I have limited knowledge of how GPS frequencies actually work). It'd be something where you could develop an app like they use to find stolen phones now adays. Great for piece of mind since most of these cases go unsolved.


----------



## crg123 (May 2, 2014)

Bump again. Anything?

Something like this would be of particular interest: http://www.pettracker.com/

It lets you know when something ( in this case a dog) has left the perimeter of your home. This is great for people who have instruments that aren't normally taken out of their place. Seems simpler then as a full fledged GPS system too, I wish it had both features...

Also I'm not a huge fan of the monthly charge since it just alters you when its left the premises. I'd just rather a larger upfront cost. I guess I understand though.


----------



## jimwratt (May 2, 2014)

Seems like it would need to be wired in somehow to maintain it's charge? I'd imagine that drawing power from the voltage generated by the pickups could keep it charged pretty easily.


----------



## Snagg (May 27, 2014)

Hey Guys, I saw you talking about our company and wanted to reach out to clear up any questions and open up more discussions. I hate hearing from victims of any theft, but some things money just can't replace. I apologize if any of this comes off the wrong way, I just want to get the facts out there.

Our microchip has been used by a number of manufacturers for years to provide an electronic serial number and proof of ownership of their items. This proof of ownership allows law enforcement to scan the ID with scanners they already have available, and return the item, while hopefully apprehending the thief. Our database system scans Pawn Shop records, FBI databases, ebay and craigslist ads to find stolen items and send police to recover them.

Our new service launched last year is a GPS Tracker that allows law enforcement to locate your priceless items on a map, anywhere in the world. The units are the size of a tic tac container and can be hidden inside larger instruments, equipment or guitar cases. They feature up to a 3 year battery life or the ability to be hard wired for charging. We were just featured at Guitar World for our partnership with Hoffee Cases. Stolen or Lost Ax? Trace Your Hoffee Guitar Case with Snagg GPS Unit | Guitar World 

Please feel free to email me personally if you have any questions or feedback. ([email protected]) We are always working with users and partners to make our system better. I hope this helps answer your questions. I am happy to help clear things up. Don't be a victim, be part of the solution.


----------

