Musician's Friend

They never check their online orders and have sold used vintage Squier Stratocasters I've bought and paid for not once but twice in the last three months…I will never even so much as buy strings from them again

It's been several years since I've done business with musicians friend. The reason I stopped is because I had two items I needed to return for standard reasons. Both separate returns in new, unopened box shape. Total was $200. Never saw the money credited to my account. Customer Service said they didn't receive the package, though the USPS stated it was delivered. No recourse (don't get me started on PayPal). Lost $200 to these crooks. I had done business without hassle for several years prior to this incident and no issues, great customer service. I read that they had been sold to another company and that service and overall business model had dropped off significantly after the sale. Makes sense. Use Sweetwater, a local music shop, or other online music companies like Chicago Music Exchange or Sam Ash. DO. NOT. USE. MUSICIANS. FRIEND!

I recently purchased a Martin HD28 from Musicians Friend via online dealing with Stephanie Super. She was awesome! The reason I give 4 out of 5 stars is I specifically asked for a brand new, direct from manufacturer Martin Guitar. Stephanie indicated a timeline in which to expect delivery. She was spot on with what was conveyed. What concerned me was I began to receive emails from Guitar Center stating they had located a damaged guitar that they could ship to me outlining the compromised condition of what i was expecting. That was concerning. I reached out to Stephanie and she said not to worry. She was correct and I received my pristine instrument and I'm thrilled with my purchase. The conflicting emails should not have occurred thus my 4 of 5 star review. I have dealt with Musicians Friend for many years and are pretty satisfied with their service. The issues I have had they've been responsive and resolved any issues I had. A lot of reviews are critical but I believe they've resolved all of my issues. The most important aspect to take into account is their pricing is second to none. I will continue to invest my money with Musicians Friend.

So never buying from this $#*!ty company again,I ordered a used cymbal and it had a huge crack in it not isted as such and why sell broken instruments along with other gear it should be in a separate section clearly marked damaged goods. I reported this to the better business bureau and they lost a great customer. $#*! you musicians non friend.

My wife ordered a saxophone stand for me form Musicians Friend. 1.5 weeks later it never arrived nor any tracking info. Called them about it and they eventuallyanswered the phone and apologized blaming the manufacture for the dely. Said they would get it out right away. 1.5 weeks later again with still no tracking info or delivery she called again to cancel the order. Was told they did not understand what had happened again and cancelled the order but said they were going to make it right by shipping it anyway without charging for it. Well needless to say same old song and dance... Order from a more dependable company if you need the item.

This place is the absolutely worst place you could ever have dealings with in buying a musical instrument from. No professionalism, the right hand doesn't know what the left hand is doing. These idiots are also part of Guitar Center which explains a lot. Both Musician's Friend and Guitar Center are horrible people to do business with. Save yourself a lot of frustration and money and go elsewhere. This is the most unprofessional place I've ever done business with. If you do decide to purchase from them don't expect them to check out an instrument before they ship it. I purchased a Yamaha DGX 505 from them last year and when I got it it didn't work, I plugged into an outlet and nothing, I put batteries in it and nothing so I had to reboot it and send it back for a refund. I decided to order another instrument from Musician's friend and once I realized it was most likely the one I bought last year I called them and they wouldn't even want to plug it in and test it before they shipped it out so I cancelled the order. They should be called Musician's Fiend instead of Friend. If you enjoy frustration and aggravation then you will love both Guitar Center and Musician's Friend. They'll give you all of that you want. I just wish I could give them a lower star rating than 1 star they don't even deserve that.

I find that the customer service is fair but the products have been sub par and will never purchase again from this company

The good: Love the 48 month interest free financing. Fewer and fewer stores are offering it.

The bad: Their business end is chaotic. I got on the backordered list for a $4000 keyboard. After some 3-4 months I got notice of shipment (Yah!) only to receive a much cheaper $600 piano that I already had bought from them years earlier. And of course this triggered the Bank to start billing me, so I had to get them to reverse it. I ended up cancelling the order but the Bank still showed it an active order for months. I practically had to beg MF to call the Bank and straighten it out as my credit limit still showed me maxed out.

Several months later, they finally got my keyboard in stock, so THEN I placed the order and got it, along with all the reward points.

I used the reward points just this week for an "In Stock and Ready to Ship" item. "Orders placed before 3pm will ship same day." 2 full days after ordering, still no email, no shipping or tracking info. When I called, they were outsourcing it from Guitar Center in Vegas (where I live.)
So I called Guitar Center in Vegas.
"This is great. I'll just come by and pick it up today, okay?"
"Uh, sorry. We only have that as a 'open box' item. If you want it new we'll have to outsource it, (again). Give us a couple of days."

-Sigh-

I've bought bass guitars and some other stuff from these folks. New is what you'd expect. New. Recently I needed a Peavey amp and ordered a used one from Musicians Feiend. It arrived quickly and was packaged well. The amp arrived looks wise as it did in the photos. I was told that the amp had been checked out and was solid. Not so. I plugged it in and there was heavey static and popping sounds. It was impossible to use. I wrote Musicians friend and 48 hrs later I've heard nothing.

My son ordered a 24 pack of dipped plastic tipped size 5A drumsticks for $40...he received undipped size 2B sticks...way too big for his hands, but drumsticks are on their list of things they don't allow you to return... so he's out $40 & still needs sticks

I've purchased from them 14 times over the past five years, including three times this year. I've never had anything except excellent customer service from them. For instance, a few months back I ordered a guitar, and when it arrived, it had numerous issues. I prompted called them, got through to a rep right away, and told him the issues. He immediately sent me a call tag, so all I had to do was box it back up, put the tag on, and take it to UPS. I received my money back very quickly as well. They're a pleasure to work with. I will continue buying from them.

Said that's what they do, to make sure funds are available, sounds fishy to me, Don't trust them after this, hopefully all goes well, said after one goes through the other one falls off as customer support stated. If not I'll dispute it with my bank and have the bank do a force charge back if stuff is not new either, cause that'd count as not goods or product that I Purchased. Musician's Friend is quick to make people not trust them. I'm one of them. Next day they took 2nd charge off, Just got to see if Items are New now...

I bought a conga stand and it didn't fit my drum and they wouldn't send me a return label Sweetwater does this no problem I have bought a lot from Musicsns friends and will not be a customer because of this no return policy if there is nothing wrong with your purchase too bad I liked all the other stuff I purchased. John Carlson

Despite my better judgment, I ordered my dream guitar through these people in early 2022. It was a pre-order that they said would ship in May. When May comes, they tell me the shipping date had changed to October. October comes and they call to confirm the billing information. During this call, I inform them that I've moved and need the guitar shipped to my new address, which is the same as the billing address. They tell me it's been updated and that the guitar will ship in December. December comes, they finally ship the guitar, and I realize to my horror that they've shipped it to my old address on the other side of the country. The guitar was left in the mail room of my old apartment building where it was promptly stolen, so now I'm out over $800.00 because they didn't ship it to the address I'd specifically given during the billing confirmation. I should have trusted my gut and avoided these people. I will never do business with them again and will make sure nobody else does, either. That $800.00 may not be a lot to some people, but it's a small fortune to me and a huge financial blow. If that much time has passed between an order being placed and an order being shipped, you'd think they'd double-check to see if the shipping address had changed. Hell, almost a year had passed between placing the order and it being shipped. A lot can change within that time. People move. That's why, when they called to confirm the payment six months after I ordered the damn thing, I stressed the importance of shipping it to my new address. They didn't do that and now I'm out a pile of money. Ugh. I have a heart condition and this has just about killed me. Thanks for nothing, Musician's Friend. Of course, I asked for a full refund but I know the chances of getting one are slim to none.

I've purchased numerous high end items (guitars, amps, recording studios etc...) in my track orders tab in the app it only showed one amp I bought in 2008 and none others. I called customer service to see if i can check past orders and all he said was huh? I guess you cant. That's strange. Is there anything else I can help you with? I'll just buy from sweetwater or somewhere else from now on.

Ordered a new guitar got one with multiple scratches and a warped neck. Sent it back for a refund, obviously and then they revoked my credit by nearly 100%! I canceled the card and will never do business with them again.

I have bees buying instruments from Musicians Friends for many years and was told, and FOOLISHLY BELIEVED, that the matched prices of legit competitors brick and mortar shops. Well this Black Friday I got a price that was 20% off for a guitar from the Woodwind and Brasswind. When I called up MF the sales rep stated "I CANT MATCH THAT PRICE CAUSE THEY MAY HAVE A SPECIAL DEAL WITH THE GUITAR COMPANY' I questioned that cause the W and B is a legit brick and mortar company and an on line shop as well. I then purchased the item from The Woodwind and Brasswind as obviously THEIR MATCHING PRICES POLICY IS FALSE.

I had been watching and tried to purchase a Fodera bass guitar from Musicians Friend. Two weeks ago I received a holiday coupon from musicians friend into my email for 15% off to use towards any purchase $299 or more. I placed the bass guitar in the checkout. I applied the coupon which the website took and gave the discount. I then selected the payment option of the offered 48 mos. Financing. The purchase could not be completed and to call musician's Friend. I called and the person said they could only apply this discount by phone. After approx 30 min. The representative came back and said the website mad a mistake. They could only give 6 mos. Financing with the 15% coupon. Better yet it was learned that the bass was a demo hanging on a display hood out in Las Vegas. I went back to the website for review. The website said it was brand new! (The bass was a $5000 guitar.). I went back to the representative and asked if he could do any better on the price. He replied NO, I walked away from the whole thing. Yesterday I was surfing the web looking at the Fodera's. Sweetwater ia a site I have done business with before that caught my interest. There it was, holiday deals and financing had arrived at Sweetwater! I called and spoke with a representative and not only did he answer all my questions, he gave me the best price on the bass guitar! SOLD!
It is refreshing in todays market/ internet world the human element is still alive at Sweetwater.com. It sad to say that even a 5% discount from Musicians Friend would have completed the deal. They played hard ball with me, held their ground and lost the 5k sale over a few hundred dollars! Great job guys……..

DO NOT ORDER anything from musicians friend or guitar center (same company). I ordered a guitar back in February 2022... I heard absolutely NOTHING from them. No phone call, no email, NOTHING! Apparently, the guitar became back ordered. I got busy and it slipped my mind. April rolls around, still nothing, I contacted them, they say "oh, it's back ordered, but looks like we have a shipment date of next week"... So, next week came and went, then the following week, then the following month. I've contacted them several times and they always say the same thing. I had to escalate as much as I could to get somebody to look into this order... and it was in October (8 months later). I finally was able to get someone to look into it and they were actually honest... first up front person I've dealt with. They told me it is likely not coming into stock anytime soon. So, after a discussion, he cancelled my order. I paid with an e-gift certificate and when he cancelled my order, he gave me an "in-house" credit... which apparently is something I am not able to see on my end. So if I want to use that credit, I am FORCED to deal with their inept customer service representatives. The one I was dealing with tells me I am not able to apply discounts to items on sale. I did not argue but I pointed out my original order was a guitar, on a nicely discounted sale, and I was still able to use a %15 coupon to make it even cheaper... he told me to find another salesman. I was stunned! (not surprised though... that is the type of sales people musicians friend/guitar center uses). They (not all, but most) seem to be arrogant, smug, posh little individuals who think they're all so talented and smart and they're the 'god' of your life and they want to dictate to you what you should buy and play. When I use this credit up I will burn this bridge with extreme prejudice!

In between this abomination of a transaction, I've ordered a Yamaha DGX-670 and a Casio Privia 870 from Kraft Music... and I was impressed with their knowledge and follow ups. Now, they do kind of blow up your email, but I'd rather have too much sales presence than NONE AT ALL (like musicians friend and guitar center). Sweetwater is also a wonderful company to do business with! So, in short. Musicians friend/guitar center = BAD, AWFUL, HORRIBLE, STRESS and HEADACHE INDUCING. Sweetwater and Kraft Music = Pleasant, relaxing, (I haven't had any issues yet with over a dozen orders placed over the years with each of them), sales people aren't rude or smug or arrogant, and they seem to care about customers!