Guitar CenterReviews 202

I'm a professional musician/song writer. I've dealt with Guitar Center in Pasadena, Ca., Hollywood, Folsom, Ca, & Palmdale. Personally, I've never had a bad experience with them. I've purchased literally tens of thousands of dollars worth of gear. 3 Drum sets, 6 guitars, recording gear, monitors, everything conceivable. I'm a drummer, so I'm Always needing something. Dan at the Palmdale store is terrific. If you want a deal, ask how much they can discount, and they will. The quality of their gear is first rate. I just ordered a new DW 7 piece kit. It took 2 weeks to arrive. I got a Great deal on the kit, as I also purchased some new Zildjian A customs, double kick pedal, and stands. I showed them the best prices I found online, and Dan didn't just match it, he took an additional 10% off in appreciation for being a loyal customer. There have been a couple of idiots, but they're everywhere. I deal with the managers, and leave 100% satisfied virtually every time. If something is broken, or stops functioning, refunds are No problem. I have nothing negative to say about Guitar Center, and to me it's kind of shocking that it's rated so low here. Most pro musicians I know purchase there, unless of course you're sponsored. Try the managers there. Hoping you have good experiences there as well!

Ordered a Powered Monitor. Waited and when it came it didn't work. Spent nearly a hour on the phone to get it sent back. The Guy Joseph was seriously the worst. Then they tell me to drive over an hour to exchange it (Swap). I'm getting upset just writing this.
Long story short, drove there, the guy was just nonchalant. Charged me/overcharged me extra and treated me like dirt. Dude lied to me telling me it was a equal swap. In fact he tried to get me off the phone several times without making a honest attempt to help me. I remained very claim and polite all the way through this ordeal. I will never go back nor ever recommend them. This Store is ridiculous, seriously! Additionally, i cant turn on my computer or surf the web without their annoying pop-ups imposing on me. Seriously, something needs to be done. They just don't get it. CUSTOMER SERVICE!, AHH THAT'S WHAT YOU GOT HIRED FOR. (My Rate is -100)

After visiting Guitar Center today I certainly will most likely never be going back. I went in today to purchase a Fender CD100 Left Handed Guitar. I left with the guitar, but everything in between that was beyond ridiculous. I walked in with an electric guitar (Maestro Gibson) to be exact. It was just a guitar I had sitting around for a couple of years that I had received when I was younger that I never really played because the guitar was meant for right handed people. So after asking to trade it for credit Kevin the cashier (*******) went and tested out the guitar to see if it functions correctly. After waiting for 25 minutes I see Kevin walk over to his coworker and start to giggle and they both giggle with each other and Kevin approaches me saying they don't want the guitar because the neck is bent. Them not wanting the guitar didn't upset me (it had no cosmetic damage and worked fine, but the neck was bent so I understood), but the behavior of the both of them was highly unprofessional and I will most certainly be posting this review onto various sites to let others know. I play piano and have played for years and if someone were to try and sell me a piano/keyboard that perhaps wasn't in the best quality and had some type of damage I certainly wouldn't laugh in their face, I would respectfully decline their offer, but Kevin decides to be a douche and laugh literally 2 feet away from me. I certainly won't be going back and I did purchase the guitar today, but I will never be purchasing anything else from here. I'd rather go to a place that's more professional and doesn't hire 25 year old kids that are cocky and $#*!s.

I Play music and record and started shopping at guitar center on line and
On Drew Street. I have now been sold broken items actually 5 times in a
Row now. I took one guitar that was sent broken to guitar center on Drew
Street to fix. The guitar repair luthier is an idiot the part was on the wall behind
Him for 9 dollars and he was waiting for same part from Gibson. After five weeks,
I went got it and fixed it myself. Speaker stands with missing parts I could go on and on
So I no longer shop there and what a big improvement.

Guitar center is BULL$#*!... I bought 2 items WITH CASH and both of those items did not work... I was given 2 separate checks as a refund... I PAID CASH! And I was given 2 CHECKS! Checks cost money to cash $7 a check! Nowhere on this receipt does it say that refunds will be given in the form of a check... I called the "corporate office" which is not the corporate office it's the. Com... screening the calls for corporate! The only resolution this company has come up with is to call the store and have them write me 1 check! I PAID CASH! So now you want to have me drive all the way back to your store wasting gas and time and more money both ways to get 1 check WHEN I PAID CASH! Everyone that I spoke to in the process has had an idgf attitude and a bunch of huffs n puffs n smart $#*! remarks... Do not buy anything from guitar center... spend your money somewhere it's deserved!

My complain about guitar center doesn't quite focus on the fact that when you buy almost any piece of gear or guitar it'll have loose knobs, damaged wood, or dented material. But the HORRIBLE 'repair' or 'technician' department, the repair man who seems to work at most guitar centers seems to always be unavailable even if you call them a day earlier and when mentioning that you'd notified them the day before they'll simply say 'oh sorry I don't do appointments' which only makes you question how stupid they are when going through thought process, second of all the fact that they even keep you on the phone explaining why they can't repair your guitar no matter how simple it is, and how they have something to do and aren't sure when they're around. GUITAR CENTER, WHO THE HELL ARE YOU HIRING? Do a better job and stop hiring autists who can't even remember what they had for breakfast, please. I can't even get a repair done for something that shouldn't be so hard to fix if you have the materials, the only hindrance is the fact that your technicians are immensely unreliable and probably don't know what the hell they are doing. Great job 2/10, lol. Also, maintain things tidier, it'll probably make most of your workers seem a tad less lazier than they really are.

Back to Guitar Center Orlando Florida the outcome was ugly I purchased a guitar for the general manager said it was a deal wasn't a good deal corporate never call me back spending $2,000 plus on the guitar should be a happy day in your life I get so mad every time I see that guitar I sold it so I didn't have to be reminded of it in all the sad memories a box of my life Guitar Center offer to buy it back not even a month later for $700 I took a beating on it anyhow just to get rid of it all I can say is buyer beware don't make the same mistake I did I listen to all the lies Dayton make money off commission they will tell you anything you want to hear to sell it to you at the purchase is made they don't even wanna know you

If only Sweetwater.com had a local store like Guitarcenter does I would probably have bought a bunch of things from them, but actually being able to go and see/ play the instrument makes a huge difference in actually purchasing one. I recently purchased an NTX900FM Yamaha from Guitarcenter. They didn't have one, but did have its sibling an NTX700. I had been researching a guitar to add to my collection. I compared similar types on their site that helped me narrow down what I ended up with. I have had an account with guitarcenter for yrs.
The faces have changed through the yrs. But, the people are always nice and take care of me.
Though there have been mishaps, they always try to make it right and for the most part usually do. Thx guitarcenter.com! Sincerely, Richard Pitt

I went to the Waco Texas store asking for a trade in value on my Cordoba GK studio guitar. The manager told me he would give me $150 and sale it for $250. He told me this price is based on lowest price he found on ebay. I asked if this was apples to apples, he told me it did not matter. I showed him the current guitar center used price for this same guitar. He stated that the GC site was most likely outdated. I told him it made no sense that they would sale this guitar in his store for $250 when all other guitar centers, about 7 around the US priced this used for around $450. I think this is a con job!

If I could give these guys NO stars, I would. Fuster Cluck.

I ordered a gift card online, it took 2 weeks to PROCESS (not deliver). When it didn't arrive by the birthday, I asked if we could cancel, was told, no, but they could transfer the balance to the local guitar center without a problem. Um, not exactly. What they would need is me on the phone to authorize that WHILE my niece and brother were at the store AND the California helpless desk was available as well. Didn't happen. Two months after the fact, they credited my account (but didn't tell me - niiiiiice). So my niece got a boring check and it was LATE for her birthday. You guys ROT. We will never ever ever ever try this again.

Disclaimer: I have only used Guitar Center once, and I ONLY have experience with the Online store... I ordered an amp stand and was notified by email about the status of the order (processing, shipping, etc.). The item was ordered on the the 1st, on the weekend, so it took a day or so to process (understandable), and it went to the International Processing Center on the 3rd (not bad, I suppose), but it stayed at the facility for a week! I was unhappy and let Guitar Center and Borderfree Services know, and I have to say that although I brought up serious concerns with the time that my package was at the shipping facility before it was put on the truck, Guitar Center was very helpful with a brief explanation of the process, and ensured that my package would still cross the border in a reasonable amount of time to end up at my place. My concerns were also addressed very quickly, politely and professionally, and before I knew it the Team Lead had already notified me, that he was issuing a refund for the shipping and handling costs on account of my frustration. Excellent job Guitar Center, and thank you for listening to me and addressing my issues, rather than blowing me off and hoping that I maybe might come back someday... I will DEFINITELY be back to purchase more gear (online - I live in Canada). Great product and great customer service experience.

Bought two items online for a birthday present adding up to about $1,100. Both items were listed as "in stock" and we're expected well before the birthday. The day after, I got confirmation of the amplifier getting sent, but was informed that the instrument would take an extra 4 days to send. Ok, should still come in time. After 4 days, no word, no update. I had to call in to find it had been delayed another week, after the birthday. Unfortunate, and I was again very angry it told me it was in stock and ready to ship when I ordered, but so it goes. They told me when I brought up my concern about not being able to test this amp with the delayed instrument until well after the return window, that I would a be able to to return it whenever the instrument arrived since this was a unique issue due to their errors.

More than 9 increasingly long delays later, all of which I got no notice about and had to call to obtain the disappointment each time, it is now "expected" at a date more than one year after it's original estimated delivery date, and I of course wonder how concrete even that date could possibly be. They also decided that I now cannot return the unopened amp I bought with this item that never came and obviously don't want without the instrument.

Personally, I have spent thousands on instruments and tens of thousands building a studio via GC and musiciansfriend, and they still treat me like this. So don't expect to be treated with priority nor respect just because you are a big spender or a loyal customer. The very least they could do would be to allow me to return the cheap $200 amp, and yet, no.

The company is clearly struggling and is hurting its customer base in its desperation to appear otherwise. I had no idea before ordering this last time, but I was so baffled at being treated like this I did a little research and things aren't looking good for both customers and employees at GuitarCenter/MusiciansFriend—I encourage everyone to do the same and look elsewhere.

Purchased an order online only to find out that it was on backorder AFTER they accepted payment, immediately called and was assured by customer service that I would not be charged for the backordered item since it had not shipped. He was soooo helpful in helping me choose a new item which I paid for only to later find that I was charged for both items. I had specifically asked the rep if I had been charged I was assured I had not but upon questioning the double charge I was told that it was a "glitch" in the system and that I must wait up to 5 biz days for a refund. I'm quite sure my bank is not going to care! I will not purchase another item and will make it a point to post my experience on any and every review board I come in contact with! From the website to the shady customer service I suggest you do business elsewhere!

Well, coming from a smaller city that only has one local music store, World of Music, which can jack up prices as they want since they don't have any competitors, I often take drives out to Cleveland for Guitar Center, especially since they have two. I usually go to the one in Mayfield Heights and because of the store I was able to really find my sound. The website is very well developed and I especially like their used items section. I find that their willingness to ship the item from one Guitar Center to another is great. I'm not sure how the process is actually because I've never needed to do that. If I was someone, instead of actually using the site to buy and ship stuff directly to your house, I'd save up some money and go down to the closest shop. The experience inside the store itself has so much more power. The only negative thing I've experience with Guitar Center were the reps. I know they're doing their job by trying to sell and make money but I often find their strategy tiredsome. Also I had a guy flat out lie to me about what would the best way of financing would be... which the way he suggested would have given me the amp sooner but would have paid Guitar Center an extra grand.

Love it or hate it, guitar center tends to have the best prices - It's a big corporation (kind of the Wal-Mart of music stores), so it makes it impossible for mom and pop stores to keep up, but let's face it, musicians are poor and are kind of forced to find the cheapest stuff possible. Therefore, like the lower class shopping at Wal-Mart, I also have to swallow the big fat pill and shop there. But, their 30 day money back gaurantee is a sweet feature, and I've stuck it to them many times by buying stuff, using it at gigs or whatnot, and returned it when I can't afford to buy it yet. Like a free rental!