Guitar Shops (remember those?)

[EdwardMarlowe]

Not sure this applies everywhere, but here in London I've noticed a lot of my old favourite guitar shops gradually disappear. The Guitar Centre (ne BassCentre) moved from Wapping to Shoreditch to online only - gutted, Shoreditch was local, and they did good repair work for me. Leytonstone's Holiday Music - with the best stock of Lefties in Europe, important for me - moved to an industrial estate in Essex (crap for non-car owners), then, afaik, went online only - and now (I assume from lack of website) are out of business entirely. Denmark Street used to be nice for a look (though  never lived up to its claim to be the best in London; prices were not always outrageous, but they rarely had lefties in stock and really seemed to specialise more in budget options than what you'd expect from what was supposed to be the height of the guitar shop world per its own publicity....). 

This has left me thinking - both London *and* elsewhere  - would be nice to have a thread where people can flag up shops / repair places/ whatever local to them who do good stuff and are well priced. 

I'll kick this off with reference to Matchetts in Belfast. Most of the guitar shops I used to hang out in back in the 90s in Belfast are long gone now, but Matchetts are still going strong. Helpful staff (some of them have been there forever as well, which is a good sign its nice place to work) https://matchettsmusic.com/ Good stock of stuff, were always fairly priced in my experience. I dropped in last a couple of years ago; all seemed to be much still the same. Spent a grand or two there during the nineties, including my beloved 1994 US Std (still not my favourite neck profile, and I wish I'd gone for the metallic red over the burst, and maple over the rosewood, but I still love that old guitar and will never sell it). Highly recommended if that's your patch. 

[Skinnyman]

Great topic! 
 

Gallaghers Music in Grimsby is trying hard in the face of the online giants to maintain a decent stock of guitars, basses and amps.

 

They have a decent range of PRS and some good quality budget offerings (Vintage, Cort and the like) and they always have a good supply of interesting second-hand stuff.

 

A real old-school guitar shop and I really hope they can keep going in the face of the online competition 

[ubit]

I have always had to travel 100 miles to Glasgow to find my nearest music shop. There used to be one locally but they tended to cater more for traditional music and have moved online only now anyway. The last few acquisitions I have bought were bought online sadly.

[Stub Mandrel]

On 22/09/2021 at 19:21, Skinnyman said:

trying hard in the face of the online giants

 

A local guitar shop owner (about two years ago) was telling me how the 'online giants' generally do discount deals for shops, these allow him to sell at prices close to theirs.

[EdwardMarlowe]

4 hours ago, Stub Mandrel said:

 

A local guitar shop owner (about two years ago) was telling me how the 'online giants' generally do discount deals for shops, these allow him to sell at prices close to theirs.

That's interesting, know any more? 

[Jesterminute17]

I can't believe people would buy a guitar online without having played it!?  It's so bizarre to me.   It's like shopping for a book based on the best cover.   You might never find the best fit for you and just assume this guitar you chose online is the guitar for you.  It's insane!  

 

I've just posted a topic on advice on where to go for a guitar in the uk. (im in scotland but would travel)  Maybe Guitar Guitar Glasgow...but wasn't impressed with Edinburgh's selection at all in two shops i went to; very limited .  

 

I want to go into a shop and play 10 different teles used or new and then go yep that is a beauty.... Maybe a new Ultra is the best fit for me, or maybe I want to try a 7.25 radius and not 9.5.  

[Skinnyman]

There’s Gear4Music in York or Peach in Essex. Both sell online but also have huge stores with a big selection. G4M don’t do used stock but Peach usually have a mixture. Apart from those, Wildwire in Selby, Promenade in Morecambe and Richards in Stratford on Avon are real shops that have more than the usual run of the mill stuff in. Whether they have the full range you want in stock in enough quantity to justify a visit is a different matter but worth a phone call and maybe plan a road trip?

 

In London, there’s Andertons (well, just outside in Guildford, a train ride away) and still a decent bunch of shops in Dean Street even after the demise of Macaris. Plus Wembley Music Centre.

 

There are still some real shops around but it can be pot luck whether they’ll have the range that you want in stock and available to try.

 

Good luck!

Edited February 11, 2022 by Skinnyman

[Dad3353]

58 minutes ago, Jesterminute17 said:

I can't believe people would buy a guitar online without having played it!?  It's so bizarre to me...

 

I don't find this strange at all. Most guitars, of the same make and model, are very similar, once a set-up has been done. Some folks (quite a lot, it would seem...) even commission custom guitars from builders; obviously they haven't been able to play 'em beforehand..! They're just confident that the spec they agreed with the Builder will satisfy them, and they're mostly right. I will admit to having gone through the whole range of cymbals in the shop, once, (I'm a drummer...), but have also bought decently spec'd stuff online, and never been disappointed. If it's broken or damaged, that's a different affair, but, to me, a Tele is a Tele is a Tele, really. We're all different... 

[T-Bay]

We have a small local shop but the prices are so crazy I can’t believe anyone buys anything other than the ‘starter set’ sort of stuff. Second hand stock isn’t even cleaned and often sports rusty strings. I buy strings there if I need them in a hurry but sadly that’s all. I really wish they were decent but unfortunately I can’t see it changing any time soon. For most things I go into Birmingham as there are still a few decent places there thankfully.

[ezbass]

It’s a drive of an hour+ for anything for me. There’s Kenny’s in Dundee or Aberdeen and Guitar Guitar in Edinburgh or Glasgow. There may be others, but I’ve not ventured into the major conurbations since moving and the one in Perth closed some time back.

[EdwardMarlowe]

On 11/02/2022 at 23:27, Jesterminute17 said:

I can't believe people would buy a guitar online without having played it!?  It's so bizarre to me.   It's like shopping for a book based on the best cover.   You might never find the best fit for you and just assume this guitar you chose online is the guitar for you.  It's insane!  

 

I've just posted a topic on advice on where to go for a guitar in the uk. (im in scotland but would travel)  Maybe Guitar Guitar Glasgow...but wasn't impressed with Edinburgh's selection at all in two shops i went to; very limited .  

 

I want to go into a shop and play 10 different teles used or new and then go yep that is a beauty.... Maybe a new Ultra is the best fit for me, or maybe I want to try a 7.25 radius and not 9.5.  

 

That's definitely the ideal, but I think it's a bit of a vicious circle, really: online places are able to sell cheaper, so a lot of people buy from them, so more bricks and mortar go out of business, so more and more of us have to go online as that's the only option.... With better stuff, it worries me less as the instrument is much more likely to have had some proper attention, as distinct from buying budget bottom line where a lot of places will sent it out without unboxing, or even have it drop-shipped. I think the fact that the private second-hand market has been so taken over by online sales has also helped to normalise it. Course, I am perhaps less freaked out by this (even if I agree it's not ideal) because being left handed I've so often hand to commit to buying something without having seen it. Before I bought my US Std Strat in 1994 - and after two years of saving for it - I found one with a maple board (I wanted rosewood) in a store in Belfast. That was the sole example I'd had the chance to play before I ordered mine, and was financially committed such that once it arrived, unless there was an obvious fault, that was it. 

Also worth noting that the Distance Selling Regulations (unless or until they are thrown on the post-Brexit bonfire) mean that if you order something from a store online and don't like it, you are legally entitled to return it without having to give any reason as long as you do it within seven working days. Yes, if there's no fault and it is what you ordered you have to pay for that return postage, BUT for a lot of folks that might be worth the gamble over the old situation where you love something in the shop but get it home and try it with your own gear, and it's a dud...

[Crusoe]

I bought my Harley Benton online, but only because I'm a beginner and didn't want to shell out a lot of money only to decide I didn't like it. If I do decide to upgrade, it will be from a physical shop. Funnily, like @EdwardMarlowe, Matchetts would be my local shop. There's also Bairds and Belfast Music Supplies. I'm sure Edward remembers Session Music, on the Dublin Road. There was also Marcus Music, which became Dawsons, but sadly they have now closed.

[EdwardMarlowe]

On 16/04/2022 at 12:21, Crusoe said:

I bought my Harley Benton online, but only because I'm a beginner and didn't want to shell out a lot of money only to decide I didn't like it. If I do decide to upgrade, it will be from a physical shop. Funnily, like @EdwardMarlowe, Matchetts would be my local shop. There's also Bairds and Belfast Music Supplies. I'm sure Edward remembers Session Music, on the Dublin Road. There was also Marcus Music, which became Dawsons, but sadly they have now closed.

I remember Session well..... I was at school with a guy who went by the same handle as you who once bought a Squier Silver Series Jazz bass in there, I think.... not you by any chance? This would have been in 1992ish.... 

Bairds are out by York Street train station, aren't they? Used to have a wander round there, though never bought in it. Picked up a few bits here and there in Marcus - nearly bought a 78 SG in there in 1996/7 when I was a student, but couldn't come up with the £450 they wanted. I'm sure it's close to double that now. Sorry to hear they are gone. Belfast Music Supplies is a name I remember.... were they out Upper Newtonards Road way? I remember visiting in about 2015 and there was a cracking shop in Shaftesbury square, don't recall the name, but it's gone now as well, I think. The other one I can vaguely recall was Crymbles(? Something like that), down Ormeau Ave, past the Limelight, but I think they went before even Session. 

[mikel]

Curvy Sounds in Heaton, Newcastle. New and used guitars and basses, and the guy does the best and cheapest setups I for one have ever had. A real music shop, but mostly guitars and basses.

[Crusoe]

I was in the aforementioned Matchetts this evening. They are having a pedal week and had Adam Ironside from D'Addario in to demonstrate their new XPND pedal board. I am an absolute beginner when it comes to electric guitar, so I went along to try and learn something (and because I was at a loose end). The pedal board looks like a really useful bit of kit. The one he showed holds about 4 pedals but has a section that slides out which can accommodate another 3 or 4. He encouraged us to ask questions, so I asked about powering the pedals (I did say I'm a beginner) and I ended up coming away with a D'Addario Pedal Tuner Plus for asking what Adam considered to be the best question of the night. Happy days! He also gave us some t-shirts. The moral of the story is, support your local bricks and mortar music shops, because you don't get this sort of thing from online retailers.

[SnapOut1]

Many music stores are disappearing because now people play musical instruments less. It is also much more profitable to have an online store because there will be more purchases, and at the same time, you will not need to pay for a room where there will be guitars. That's why I think music stores are gradually disappearing, unfortunately. If I need to buy Guitar Knobs, for example, I can just go to some custom site and order them for myself. Why would I waste time looking for a music store and then going to it? Although, if I were buying a new electric guitar, I would prefer to play it before buying it.

Edited September 5, 2022 by SnapOut1

[R32]

Hey! Although I’ve just bought my most recent guitar online from Andertons (who I believe are in Guildford) I’m actually in Newcastle on Tyne. We still have a few decent guitar shops here thankfully, a place called JG Windows is a great music shop which stocks all sorts of instruments from pianos to acoustic guitars. There’s also the obligatory ‘guitar guitar’ which has quite a good selection. There’s also a couple of independents hidden away in backstreets, the names of which escape me at the moment. Overall I feel like we have a fairly decent selection considering the relative size of the city. If you’re ever up north I’d be happy to show you around and do some window shopping! 
cheers

 

richard

[Axe2Grind]

Haha, Holiday Music did indeed move to an industrial estate in Essex, Purdey Way Industrial Estate, just down the road from me, they are better known as Strings Direct but owned by Holiday Music. Very handy for me and they have a cracking guitar tech Chris who is fantastic. 

I'm lucky as we still have PMT local to me where I live so not short of shops to go to, although Strings Direct is more online but you can still go there if you wish to pick up strings and accessories. I do all my shopping online anyway so not bothered if music shops go the way of the dodo at some point, they are usually full of guitarists with no money to spend and just get off on showcasing their lack of abilities lol. Sorry, that's my keyboardist side coming out. 

Edited September 22, 2022 by Axe2Grind

[Fredflintstone]

Nearest to me is old hat guitars Horncastle Lincs they have a web site.www.oldhatguitars.co.uk

Have been to Guitar Guitar Newcastle 

And a big one in the Metro centre.

The Horncastle one has also an ebay shop Normans old hat. Is user name.

 

Edited October 18, 2022 by Fredflintstone

[Gwilym]

Dipping in to the dark side... asking for a friend, no really! 

 

Would be grateful if someone could recommend some shops in and around London that have good levels of stock of entry/intermediate guitar e.g. Squier etc.

Guitar Guitar in Camden is on my radar, anywhere else that would be worth the trip?

Somewhere where a good range of different instruments can be demoed.

[Fredflintstone]

Tune inn hither green se13

has web site that shows stock.

 

[Kiwi]

I think what's happening is that the business model has shifted and those shops that are making enough and jumped on the bandwagon early enough are surviving.  Those late to the game and can't afford the extra overheads are losing out.

[Crusoe]

I've just thought of another good argument for physical shops. A few days ago none other than Mr Robert Plant called into Matchetts, in Belfast, to buy a harmonic. Yes a bona fide rock legend might buy something off your website, but you aren't going to be able to get him to pose for a photo. 

[ezbass]

Went to a shop to buy my recent purchase, a hundred mile round trip. I took my two acoustic guitars with me to compare to the two I’d short listed. I then traded one of them in. I could’ve done this online, but then sending one back and selling the one that became surplus to requirement would have been a pain. I’ve bought online a few instruments online, but I do prefer a shop. Whilst I was buying my guitar, another guy bought a Fender Jazz Bass, so they had a pretty good start to their day.

[Crusoe]

I popped in on Saturday to buy a music stand for my daughter. There was a young lad in with his dad, buying what was obviously his first guitar. Great to see it.