LOVE LOVE LOVE this place. I was on my way to SFO to pick someone up, and stopped in...man, I…read moreflipped out. I feel like most of the good gear that I stupidly let go of ended up in there...Jesse, Chris, Ben...these are real guitar guys who own and run a store. I have been in the guitar playing game sixty years and seen more than a few great stores, and seen them all go byebye...so I want you to go there and buy or trade something with them. After that first trip, I was back three more times in eight days and I live more than an hour away on the freeway. I ended up trading stuff I didn't want for stuff that I really did want, and each transaction was friendly, honest, fair, and a whole lot of fun...just like the guys there. I saw them interact perfectly with everyone who came in, from each different private universe, and the staff at Real Guitars knew what the people were talking about and immediately helped them...not SELL them something, helped them figure out what they needed and how to find it. This place and the people rekindled my guitar loving flame and I am so grateful. Of course I will be back. I hope I see YOU there.

Great vintage guitars, basses and amps in a cool south of market street spot. A helpful staff too.read more

Love these guys! I've bought two beautiful instruments from them and the experience both times was…read morefantastic. They are very chill, supportive, and helpful. It's a beautiful place to find just the right guitar :) And they have a fantastic selection of ukulele's and baritone ukulele's as well!

Got my guitar restrung here. The service was excellent and fast. They have a wide range of guitars,…read moreincluding less expensive ones. I appreciated that considering where we live.

Be prepared for a wait -- guy working behind the counter deserves a raise , I was there offhandedly…read morebecause my old flatmate left a ukulele when he moved out, which I decided to restring and learn to play from zero ukulele experience Arrived to the shop on Potrero Hill promptly at my 11:30am appt to 3 others outside and then more came ( lots of professional people with fancy pants Fender guitars , and I was there with my pineapple red ukulele ) , an hour later got my ukulele in and told to collect at 2:30 pm. Which was great to offer same day service , I appreciated that. Went back at 2:30pm and greeted by another 3-4 folk waiting with Fender guitars- when it was my turn to collect my ukulele after 3pm , the guy had already been inundated by guitars , he rushed to get mine restringed in 4 minutes, was very patient and attentive but was quite rushed understandably ---- 5 stars for the solo guy working who deserves to have at least 1-2 other people work, he was confident, professional and a total sound guy ......, but all I'm saying is be prepared for a wait on a Saturday !! Also , had no idea so many people have guitar issues --- it was a constant stream of people showing up with very fancy guitars , who knew , what an experience.

Be prepared for a wait -- guy working behind the counter deserves a raise , I was there…read moreoffhandedly because my old flatmate left a ukulele when he moved out, which I decided to restring and learn to play from zero ukulele experience Arrived to the shop on Potrero Hill promptly at my 11:30am appt to 3 others outside and then more came ( lots of professional people with fancy pants Fender guitars , and I was there with my pineapple red ukulele ) , an hour later got my ukulele in and told to collect at 2:30 pm. Which was great to offer same day service , I appreciated that. Went back at 2:30pm and greeted by another 3-4 folk waiting with Fender guitars- when it was my turn to collect my ukulele after 3pm , the guy had already been inundated by guitars , he rushed to get mine restringed in 4 minutes, was very patient and attentive but was quite rushed understandably ---- 5 stars for the solo guy working who deserves to have at least 1-2 other people work, he was confident, professional and a total sound guy ......, but all I'm saying is be prepared for a wait on a Saturday !! Also , had no idea so many people have guitar issues --- it was a constant stream of people showing up with very fancy guitars , who knew , what an experience.

Quick and easy stop for me today at the guitar Center on Van Ness in San Francisco …read more Just came to return a cable. It was an extra after an event last week. Brought the cable in with the receipt. In this case the cable had been purchased from the Hillsdale store. But I was in the area so I thought I'd return it to the San Francisco store. I stand for super helpful. Return was quick and easy. Well, guitar may not have the lowest prices they are super convenient. And their staff has been helpful in every case that I went in there. The guitar Center on Venice. It's no different. Give them a shot for your needs.

My son is taking vocals at the Dublin location. His instructor Alejandro is so amazing with him. We…read morelove going every week!!!

Mark Newstetter, who runs Balboa Guitars at Balboa and 41st Avenue in San Francisco, is a wonderful…read moreguitar teacher with an amazing grasp of theory and an eclectic effective approach to learning the entire fretboard, rather than focusing on first position. Also a really kind person.

I took lessons as a beginner from Mark for almost 2 years, and he also setup my guitar/bass during…read morethat time. A great teacher (especially for getting proficient with theory on the fretboard), a knowledgeable and skilled luthier, with very fair prices!

We're lucky to still have people in our community who can make sure we've got good gear to play. I…read morehad the misfortune of receiving a badly made body from the web, which I hoped Dan could help fix, but after some discussion, we agreed he'd build one for me instead. It was an important project as it was going to be made mostly up from leftover parts collected by the late Steve Ripley. We perservered through the plague and supply chain shortages to come out the other side with my new favorite axe. Thanks so much, Dan! I'll be back.

I have 1969 Stratocaster with a neck like butter. I always wanted my telecaster to have the same…read moreneck. I left the Strat with Dan Ransom, and he took every possible measurement and "cloned" the neck for me, only with a Telecaster headstock. I'm a picky bastard. Guitar setups are a very personal thing, with one type of setup working for a particular playing style, but not another. I hit the strings pretty hard, chicken pickin style, so if a guitar is gonna buzz, I'm gonna make it buzz. Dan worked with me on tracking down a number of weird vibrations in my telecaster body and hardware and we tried a number of things to customize the setup to my playing style, finding the right amount of neck relief, string height, etc. Dan didn't stop until I was happy. THAT is a rare quality these days. Thanks Dan! You Rock. -Joe Rut

I started as a mere novice musician turned happy customer who brought in a used guitar to be…read morerestrung and worked on a bit. However, I called back to ask about vocal/instrument lessons and so am here to rave about the Magical Marzuki, who I would love to believe is a strong representation of the quality of instructors Mountain Music is lucky to host. (The staff have been lovely to work with too.) Specific to my experience, Marzuki G is magical. He is empathetic, personable, and has been wonderfully able to communicate his expertise in both the body as an instrument (vocals) and music making as a whole.

Excellent service and fair pricing. What's not to love about sales folks who give you an honest…read moreopinion.

We purchased our very first piano from here at the beginning of the pandemic. We figured that…read moresince we'd be staying home more often, why not purchase a real piano!? We made an appointment to come in and Ulysses helped us out. He was friendly, knowledgeable, and helped us through the process. He didn't rush us or pressure us to buy a piano, and he was patient in answering all our questions. We went home that same day to think about which piano we wanted to get and returned a week later to purchase a Yamaha upright piano. Overall, it was a great experience and we now have a beautiful piano!

Update: Gary responded to this review... and then deleted his response a day later…read more After reading it, I actually understand and respect the appointment-only business model. If customers want a private showroom experience, that's completely reasonable. Plenty of luxury businesses operate that way. The problem was never the appointment policy. The problem was how a potential customer was treated. I live next door and have been curious about this store for a long time. I finally saw you at the business and thought I'd ask about purchasing a piano. Instead of a simple, "We're appointment-only, but here's my card--I'd be happy to schedule you," I was dismissed while you waited for your DoorDash order. As someone who works in marketing and customer experience, this felt like a textbook example of turning a warm lead into a lost customer. Your original response then spent paragraphs explaining why I shouldn't have expected service, but not one sentence expressing regret that a genuinely interested buyer walked away with a bad experience. That said, I'm adjusting this to a 2-star rating because I did see some effort to acknowledge my post, even if it ultimately fell short. Businesses don't earn loyal customers by proving they're technically correct. They earn them by making people feel welcome. A 30-second conversation could have turned me into a customer. Instead, it turned me into someone who will be buying a piano elsewhere. If you already have an appointment, I'm sure the experience may be perfectly fine. But if you're hoping to stop in, ask a question, or get a feel for the place before committing, don't expect much hospitality. That's ultimately why I'm leaving this review--not because the business is appointment-only, but because customer service begins long before the appointment ever does.

I love Fender Telecasters!…read more I don't know if it's growing up listening to Springsteen with my dad, or that bright sound that only they bring to the table. I just know that I see them, and I like them. It's sort of the way I feel about cupcakes, but with cupcakes, it's a much stronger desire. Ever since I've been aware them, I've been looking for the perfect butterscotch Tele. I could buy a new one, but that just feel wrong. This guitar is all about history. I want one that looks and feels the part. The only problem is I don't have 20k+ sitting around. Enter Rock n Roll Relics. If you want a guitar that looks like it's been through the 80s with a hangover, but plays like you just bought it in 54, please look no further. I know guitar relics have gotten big and there are a bunch of custom shops putting them out right now. (Fender is even cracking them out at crazy prices to meet the trend. ) Unlike some creators, Billy is a guitar player in the true sense. He's been there so he knows what a guitar is supposed to look and sound like. He loves what he does and it shows in his work. Take a look. It's hard to get over how amazing his work is. To sum up like a research paper; his attention to detail is unparalleled and I want everyone to see his guitars in person. Please check out his site and if you're interested, give him an email or a call. I promise you will not be let down.

I purchased a relic'd RnR telecaster, on a whim, a couple of years ago, at Real Guitars, in SF. I…read morehad never--ever--considered buying a "relic" guitar, as I thought the whole idea of pre-aging a guitar was a goofy bourgeois waste of resources, so I wasn't really looking for another guitar that day. But, while dropping off a repair for Gary Brawer, I randomly picked up this tele and was *shocked* at how amazing it sounded. To set context, I have 25 guitars, including several vintage Fenders, Gibsons, Rickenbackers, from the '60s, along with a Bill Crook Custom Paisley, an MusicMan Albert Lee BFR, a Collings 360 Custom, and some early PRS and G&L models. I recently went back to college for another degree, this time in Music, so play guitar a couple of hours/day. Fast forward to today. . . I almost never play anything other than my Rock N Roll tele. It is sonically indistinguishable from $60K vintage telecasters. Every manufacturer wants to convince you that their relic'd guitars are comparable to the real thing, but this is truly the first guitar I have ever touched that is truly so. It looks, feels, plays, and sounds absolutely spot-on. I almost hesitate to write this review, as I know my next RnR will cost more, when everyone finds out about Billy Rowe, but he deserves the attention. His guitars are works of true genius, in a world of failed promises!

Steve's Guitars is like Ollivanders magical shop of wands from the Harry Potter novels. He loves…read moreto match the individuality of his guitars to satisify my curiosity. Visiting him, and trying out a match he has in mind is always a trip. Through the last 10 years I've traded and upgraded my guitars with Steve several times. Now it's hard to trade anymore cause I think I've got 2 of his very best. Steve is also very knowledgeable about the history of American Luthier, and his collection spans several notable makers worldwide.

Steve is a knowledgeable guitarist, but also a rather impatient, high pressure sales person. I…read morefound him hard to talk to and be heard (he interrupts a lot). I'm all for supporting local mom-n-pop stores and wish I could recommend this one but unfortunately I can't.