RFI Guitar Center

[killdeer43]

A new Guitar Center is opening here on Thursday and I'd like to hear any feedback from those who might have experience with any of the other 247 stores. I have none; therefore, I ask.

Thanks,
Joe

 

[jte]

Eh, lots of annoying noise going on all the time, most of the sales people are really simply order takers who don't really know anything, and most of the instruments are poorly maintained- dirty, in dire need of simple truss rod adjustments, and filthy dead strings. Don't expect to find anything that's not cool, hip, and pretty mainstream.

John

 

[davismanLV]

People piss and moan about GC all the time. And from what I've gathered, they can differ in character and mood in a HUGE way. Kinda depends on the management. I've had good luck with Guitar Center back in Los Angeles and also here in Vegas. I've only shopped at the Town Square location, not the one across town in Summerlin, but my experience with GC has been phenomenal. Nice people who pretty much leave me alone and let me do my thing. I don't really expect them to teach me anything or know very much.... but they are helpful. You already pretty much know what the inventory is gonna be. I got SMOKIN HOT deals each time I've bought a guitar there, and they bent over backwards to rectify any issues I had as a customer. Mark at my local GC plays a mean guitar and he'll play anything I throw at him, and play any style and then when I say "Thanks", he gets lost and .... what more could I want?

I've heard stories of certain stores that are UNBEARABLE. My personal experience has been the opposite.

 

[AcornHouse]

I have to agree with Tom. It's the people who make the store. When it opens, visit it and talk to the sales staff. You may find some knowledgeable, helpful guitar people, and/or clueless sales kids. See what they have and ask them some detailed questions. When (if?) you find those one or two people who really know their stuff, deal with them exclusively. Since they're on commission, they'll appreciate that you are asking for them specifically and do what they can for you.

Since its a new store, I wouldn't expect a lot of good used deals for a while; but you can always order guitars from other stores and have an easy return outlet.

 

[walrus]

Good analysis - there are 3 GC stores in my vicinity, and I find the largest one to be the least inviting. Depends on who's running it, and on how lucky you are that when you get there there aren't any "rock gods" playing loud riffs over and over.

And as has been said before about GC, their return policy is very good.

walrus

 

[guildman63]

The GC in Natick, MA has its pros and cons.

pros: sales persons are actually helpful and reasonably knowledgeable; return policy is very good; good used deals.

cons: used gear is frequently displayed in "as is" condition when a simple set-up or cleaning would do wonders; limited jazz options in guitars, amps and strings (not just GC); noise!

overall, I think they do a very good job and I am glad they are around as there are other local options for more high-end and unique items...Tone Broker Guitars is one, and is owned by one of our very own.

 

[SFIV1967]

I have seen many GCs in the US already. Almost on any trip I visit one or two. But my main important point when I visit them: Don't go Saturday or Sunday if you want a reasonable quiet place. Go during the week, best in the morning when they open. Don't go during lunchtime when everybody goes. And yes, there are GCs with great guitar selections in the acoustic room and GCs with bad and filthy examples. The used section obviously also depends how good the area is and how good the sales guys/buyers are. One GC in Dallas for instance has a great Martin selection because one guy there is a big Martin fan and orders many Custom Shop Martins all the time for the store. I bought guitars in the GC in Beaverton/OR and was very pleased there. Always had the acoustic room for myself in the morning and could spend a good hour trying them before more people came. But the acoustic room is mainly Martin and Taylor and Gibson. I have seen Guilds from time to time in the used section.
Ralf

 

[Bill Ashton]

I will agree, you never go to a Guitar Center on Saturday or during school vacations! Every mini-shredder within 75 miles will be there competing with each other...

But on a good note, several months ago my son had a very strange urge for an acoustic guitar...a local GAD-25 did not pan out, but he found a newer GAD-125 (or whatever the latest all-'hog dread is) used at the GC in Attleboro...looked at some reviews on them and they were terrible..ruh-ro...anyway we call, they have the guitar, give an in hand description, but comment that it really needs a set up and their tech just will not get to it soon. Well, worth a shot we start on the road. Ten minutes in they call us back! Feel the guitar has issues and may wish to reconsider our trip. Wow! In for a penny, in for a pound, we continue. By the time we get there, the salesman has bulldogged the tech, has had a new bridge saddle installed and guitar set up. Plays good, son likes it, sadly no case, but its the only game in town so we take it.

And I get my Strat back...

I don't really care for the way the saddle is installed, though the guitar plays perfectly and sounds pretty good...looking at several just like it they are just the same. I think that the NuBone saddle may be thinner than the slot they cut in the bridge assembly.

They even called us back a few days later to see if the guitar was OK; and then Tom gets a thank you note from the salesman for buying the guitar.

Gotta say, they made the experience pretty good!

 

[killdeer43]

So, to continue my education about GC, when I do a search for Guild acoustic guitars, I see a page with 25 listed. Would these be at other stores and have to be shipped here for a hands-on experience?

*FWIW, the new store is located on the north side of town and obviously aimed at the Canadian shoppers who provide much of the lifeblood for the local economy....eh? We locals don't have any money but it seems that our brothers and sisters from Canuckistan do!

Joe

 

[bluesypicky]

We locals don't have any money but it seems that our brothers and sisters from Canuckistan do!
Joe

Money's in Canada? Not in the US?... Well I'll be darned!
Enjoy your new GC, I've made some smoking deals with them and their return policy is second to none.

 

[dapmdave]

Not my experience, but I've heard that you don't want to buy a new Gibson from GC.

Dave

 

[davismanLV]

And why would that be, Dave??

 

[dreadnut]

I wouldn't buy a new Gibson anywhere, I've seen too many flawed ones and GC is no exception. They had a big Gibson jumbo with a moustache bridge, and there were 2 big blobs of dried glue that had squirted out from under the bridge on each side when it was pressed down. 2,900 clams, and I had to point out the defect to the sales kid.

I went there recently with my friend, we each wanted to buy a guitar for our kids, we thought maybe we could work a deal on two of them. We looked at a bunch then asked what kinda deal we could get on two - kid sez just a minute, let me ask the big kahuna - comes back with 348 bucks. I'm doing a little mental math here and this ain't adding up, even with tax. "Oh, he says, well when you add tax and the extra warranty on each guitar, we're actually giving you a deal."

Seeya!

 

[Jeff_L]

There are good GCs, and there are bad GCs.

I have two GCs in my area. One is about 40 miles south of me, a great store. I've bought several things there and the staff has always been helpful, friendly, not pushy, just a nice bunch to do business with.

The other is about 30 miles north of me, across the state line in NY, and one of the worst shopping experiences ever. I was just there yesterday because I happened to be in the area and had an urge to check something out. The sales staff is some of the most obnoxious people you could ever meet. One of them followed me around the store with a "gonna' get him to buy something no matter what" attitude. I told her I was just looking, that I was doing a little research on an item, but that made no difference, it was "look at this, try that, check out this one, won't that one work, well are you sure you don't want this one" until I finally turned my back and walked out.

I've had the same experience in GCs I have been to in different areas of the country, from the midwest to upstate NY. It all depends on the manager and how he trains his staff.

As has been said, don't go on weekends, lunch time, or after school. Every Richie Sambora wanna-be will be there with the amps cranked up, and the drummers banging away in the other room, all in different tempos.

Jeff

 

[twocorgis]

And why would that be, Dave??

I think what Dave's referring to was a conversation I had with Ren Ferguson at LMG3. I asked him why there were so many crappy Gibsons at GC (including my own, which is a pretty good store otherwise), and he said without elaborating any further "Well, Guitar Center is not really where you want to buy a Gibson". I'll probably never be 100% sure his reasoning behind that statement, but it was good enough for me!

 

[dapmdave]

And why would that be, Dave??

What Sandy said...

Dave

 

[fronobulax]

So, to continue my education about GC, when I do a search for Guild acoustic guitars, I see a page with 25 listed. Would these be at other stores and have to be shipped here for a hands-on experience?

Unless things have quietly changed, GC bricks and mortar stores are not going to stock any Guilds. You can order them but new ones are unlikely to be on the showroom floor. They are authorized to sell GADs but not Newark Street or New Hartford product. Not sure about ARCOS. I stand ready to be corrected since my information is a couple months old but Guild has repeatedly said that they cannot provide American made product in the volumes required by Guitar Center's minimum order so GC will not be carrying American Guilds. Given the short supply of Newark Street product I presume a similar situation applies at this moment for that line, although things could change. So if you go visit and find any new Guilds on the wall, make sure you let us know and which ones.

 

[davismanLV]

Okay, thanks. I do remember that statement from posts after LMG3 and it rang a bell, but I couldn't remember the source. Now I do, thanks! If anyone would know that information, I'm sure it would be Ren.

 

[Jeff_L]

I think what Dave's referring to was a conversation I had with Ren Ferguson at LMG3. I asked him why there were so many crappy Gibsons at GC (including my own, which is a pretty good store otherwise), and he said without elaborating any further "Well, Guitar Center is not really where you want to buy a Gibson". I'll probably never be 100% sure his reasoning behind that statement, but it was good enough for me!

If memory serves, wasn't Ren Ferguson head honcho at Gibson's Bozeman, MT factory for several years? Maybe he knows something about the Gibson/GC relationship that the rest of us don't.

 

[twocorgis]

If memory serves, wasn't Ren Ferguson head honcho at Gibson's Bozeman, MT factory for several years? Maybe he knows something about the Gibson/GC relationship that the rest of us don't.

Well, Ren was a wee bit more than that Jeff.

Ren has been credited with pretty much single-handedly bringing Gibson's acoustic guitars from the depths of the dreaded Norlin era to where they are today. He's a bit of a God in Gibson acoustic circles.