Vibes is an excellent shop for guitars, and I regularly go there for strings and plectrums. The…read morestaff are a bity cliquey and it can be a bit intimidating going in if yu're not part of the in crowd. There's a lovely range of guitars on offer, as well as some keyboards and electronic drum-kits. Plymouth doesn't have a lot of guitar shops - there's one on Mutley Plain and this one, so if you're in town this is the most convenient one to go to. A cheap set of guitar strings cost around £6, which is about the average online, so you're not being ripped off. I've never asked to try a guitar there, but I'm sure that they let you; they're on display so why wouldn't they?

Sadly, this is now Plymouth's only music shop. This would be depressing in itself were it not for…read morethe fact that this is such a poor excuse for a music shop. Vibes is not a music shop. Vibes is a guitar shop. A guitar shop run by guitar snobs whose only interest is in ripping off the innocent mothers of new guitarists. (For anyone who is confused, a guitar snob is an average guitarist who thinks he's the next Eddie Van Halen and looks down on all beginner guitarists who couldn't possibly hope to reach his level of awesomeness.) If you're also a guitar snob, I'm sure you'll feel right at home here and will be welcome to spend all your money on a fancy guitar that's sure to make the ladies think you're as good as you think you are. However, if you don't really know what you want, or if you're just starting out, then stay away from this shop. Take a trip to Truro or Exeter and talk to someone who actually cares about music and wants to help you, not just make as much money as they can with minimal interaction before returning to whatever game they're playing on their iphone. Hell, it doesn't really help when you do know what you want: my mum went in there to get a fairly cheap practice amp for my brother that was advertised on the internet. The guy in the store got really snooty about them not possibly having anything for that kind of price and started to convince her that she was actually after something else which was £60 more expensive. When she argued that it was on their website he claimed that no such amp existed and that everything on their site was listed as being about 20 quid cheaper than what it would actually cost. When it became apparent that my mum had no interest in buying the anything pricier, he lost interest and just ignored us til we left. It really sucks that this is the only music shop for miles and that they'll continue to get business on that basis alone. Take my advice and go somewhere else; anywhere else would be worth the petrol to get some decent customer service.

Excellent service and a friendly atmosphere. While the stock range isn't massive they will always…read moredo their best to get something in for you if you need it, often next day. They also do excellent repairs and setups on guitars and amplifiers and can normally help you out in a hurry if it's an emergency. By far the best guitar shop in the city and fantastic customer service.

From the owner: Music Shop - run by musicians for musicians. We stock a huge selection of accessories for the…read moreGigging musician. All of our equipment is picked to be the best in it's class at highly competitive prices.