So I've been using Guitar Center for years for my drum stuff. Ive always loved the place because of pricing, selection, their used section, and mostly the people. I'm always able to step inside and rattle off some beats on a drum set and since they are all musicians, no one ever cares. So as a drummer, Its always been the drum section for me but today I came in because I want to start learning something new. Injuries to parts of my arms make it difficult to play guitar but since I've always loved piano, I decided that's what I would try. I first looked on line and found some used equipement but decided to stop in and see what Guitar Center had. Shayne was the first person I spoke to. He gave me a lot of great advice and really tried to educate me on the equipement I was looking at. He gave me all the pros and cons of each piece, he didn't try to over sell me, and he even told me how I COULD save some money finding something used on line or even on their web site. The thing I liked the most is how Shayne actually explained the pros and cons of buying used and gave me the perfect amount of information to make a very educated decision on what I ended up buying AFTER I was invited to take a day or two to do some research on my own before making any kind of purchase. I did buy new, and I did buy it from Guitar Center, and it was because of the service I received from Shayne during my two visits with him. The shop is one of my favorite places to shop but it was Shayne that captured the 5th star! read more

See all

after purchasing a Hy Vibe guitar and 2 year warranty I took it back to have the buzzing sound on frets 12, 13, 14 on the B, G and D strings. the tech did a quick fix it by placing a plastic strip under the saddle. I had to take it back when I changed the strings putting everything back the same way only to have the buzzing come back. second problem was the volume on the pick up was very low so I took it back. I was told by the tech that he couldn't do anything with it and doubt if the company would send a replace part. the guitar was manufactured in France so I guess he just didn't want to be bothered. I contacted the manufacturer and they sent the part with detailed instructions how to remove the old one and replace i. I did it myself taking about 30 minutes. i own a few guitars amp and other equipment i purchased from Guitar Center but never again. I had a pleasant experience years ago when I had a pickup installed on my Martin Guitar but that was a totally different luther. Had the Luther I felt with the last time been like the first young man I would have kept my business at The Guitar Center. read more

Danny was very helpful today with a trade in. Danny did a great job helping us and every team member in the store. He was knowledgeable and handled our gear/instruments with care. I appreciate his positive attitude and helpful information for getting the most out of our used gear. read more

I've probably spend close to 6 figures at guitar center in my lifetime. This review is for this location only. Today I asked to use the restroom while shopping here and was told the restrooms are "no longer public" Yes you heard that correctly, this location does not want you using their restroom while shopping. As if we need even MORE of a reason to shop online instead on I store. Now if I were managing this store, I'd have a seating area and coffee shop with open restrooms with art on the wall. I'd make the shopping experience as confortable and pleasant as I could. Yet... today I was told go elsewhere to use the restroom. I promise you, I certainly will use the restroom elsewhere going forward, as I can no longer support a location so poorly managed as this. read more

Christian is THE MAN. He was so knowledgeable, kind, and patient when helping me trade in my guitar and find a new one to suit my needs. Honestly the best experience I've had in a music shop solely because of his help. read more

Awesome experience. Shane was awesome I went in with some ideas of an acoustic guitar I wanted to test. Shane was extremely friendly and helped me to try as many guitars as I wanted. He offered great tips as an experienced musician. He was not pushy at all like a lot of the sales people. Would highly recommend. Will be back for sure. read more

Guitar Center - Guitar I tested - Musical Instruments & Teachers Near Me - Tempe, Arizona

Their customer service is horrendous. was not able to sell my mint condition synth because i was 4 minutes passed the last hour 8:04 (closes at 9). the employee at register used having to help customers as an excuse... there was 4 people in the store. could have easily checked out the couple behind me as everyone else was just browsing. I've never seen such apathy given to a customer who regularly buys gear and accessories from guitar center. Don't come trade your equipment here; you will get low balled and apparently given no. empathy as today is my birthday and money is tight. read more

Yesterday I went in to sell a guitar. It's something I don't like to do ... and there were two workers standing there like it's the first time they ever seen a guitar... they asked "what's up" and I said "I wanna see if I can sell this guitar ?" Since there were two workers standing there not knowing what to say I asked "who am I dealing with here?" Seemed like a perfectly valid question in my particular situation.. I think the manager said "him (pointing to the second guy) then, reluctantly, "or me?". He took my property and started to walk away saying "we can't buy it" or something that smart people say... i think he was gonna plug it in and test it out... I said "give it back" idk if he was trying to steal my property or what. But he finally explained he couldn't buy it cause I broke a E string on it before I brought it .. I understand now that I researched Guitar center policy. Either way what poor customer service... personally it's funny tho... . I'm only leaving a review cause it's true and at least I can leave this comment to get a tiny bit even... PS I'm glad they were rude... and when I look at that guitar I think the same thing... why would anyone wanna pay more than 100 dollars for it even though the build is pretty solid.. read more

See all

Nick S. Was a huge help and super friendly. Made me want to come back just to buy from him.

Had an amazing experience at Guitar Center Tempe! Brandon was incredibly helpful in guiding me through the process of finding the right guitar. I had a ton of questions, and he not only answered them all but also educated me on what to look for when buying a guitar. Even though their location didn't have what I needed, he went the extra mile to find one that did. This is what A+ customer service looks like! read more

I was having trouble calibrating my Roland high hat and the team at Guitar Center all jumped in and figured it out in like 15 mins! Thank you to Jeff, Nick, Shawn (??) and the drum whisperer Austin! Great customer service, knowledge and commitment to getting it right! read more

The key to going to Guitar Center if you want to try out their instruments, is to go during the week, preferably in the morning. This way they are not too busy and you can take your time checking out the gear without tripping over a thousand lookie loo's. The second (and most important) key to going to Guitar Center, is bring your wallet.  Not that they are expensive mind you, but they have some great gear!  I've been thinking of picking up a new guitar, and have been checking out the new Martin X-Series Koa.  It's not a solid top acoustic which you would expect from all things Martin, but it has a great sound when you play it.  It's a very user friendly guitar with a lot of forgiveness when plugged in, so even I can sound okay on it.   The guy who helped me was named Danny, and there was no doubt he looked the part, and knew his guitars.  He advised on a couple of alternatives and hung around non-judgmentally while I picked on a few.  He has the knowledge, and the pricing is right in line with where I can get it elsewhere.  So I just now have to bite the bullet and let the wife know I'm going to add another one to the stable. read more

I have been playing music most of my life, and needless to say, I've shopped at musical instrument stores most of my life with varying degrees of success. Look, I'll speak plainly, if you say you sell something on the 'store specific' version of your website, i damn well expect you to have in stock when i drive 40 minutes to buy it. All I wanted was a beginners classical guitar for my two daughters. I read that you had several beginners classical guitars available. Great! How many do you think Guitar Center had when I walked into the acoustic area? None. When I asked the two store staff they immediately asked if I had clicked 'purchase options', and even noted, "oh, we've never carried those items in stock". basically, you have to order it in, and you will only discover this fact should you try and buy one online. Beginners classical guitars - the entry level staple into the guitar world, and you had 'none'. False advertising? Kinda....But I could spend hundreds or thousands on a nice new Martin instead. This is a nasty business practice. Please stop it, and get some actual stock in the store that doesn't consist of Steve Vai signature Gem 777's, and update your webpages with real-time stock. Just an FYI, I bought a guitar for them 'elsewhere' the next day. Sure, you lost a very tiny sale and probably don't care too much. But you should care more that you lost my faith and custom, and my two daughters who are just starting out on their musical journey's. read more

I love the store but man, they do need some customer service training BIG TIME! Honestly I am just driving from Tempe to their other location in Mesa cause can't stand how careless are most of the people that work at this location and it is not the 1st time that happened but this is the location close from my house. I put a 3 stars just because I hate to review a place with a bad score and I wouldn't do it but it is the 3rd time they treat me like bad and I am hoping somebody upper level pay attention on this read more

It's kind of amazing how much guitar center is willing to lose money. I say this because every time I've been there to buy something expensive all the sales staff have just stood around talking to each other not pay me any attention. So today I was in there looking to spend about two grand to buy a speaker set up and I got so frustrated after standing for 10 mins I looked on Amazon and found the powered EV 15"for the same price, good job guitar cntr you lost another sale. read more

My daughter asked us if we would support her in taking guitar lessons. My wife and I were very excited that she was picking up a new interest. We decided to go down to the local Guitar Center on the weekend and inquire about lessons. They had flyers all over the store highlighting the costs of lessons. The gentleman who helped us took down my daughters name and number and told us that someone would call her on Monday to go over how to start lessons at their store. Monday came and went and we never received a call ...for over two weeks. She chose to call them again And was put on hold for over 15 minutes and no one picked up. It's very frustrating when your child expresses an interest to learn something new and you go to a trusted location and they never follow up with you. read more

What a fantastic experience at this Guitar Center. My son and I have a country music duo called Dawson Acoustic. We bought almost all our equipment from this particular GC. We met an employee named Shayne. This guy is absolutely incredible. He is extremely knowledgeable and has helped us in SO many ways. He spent hours with my son helping him build his guitar pedals. He answers every question with incredible patience and we look forward to going back every time to see him. I HIGHLY recommend this Guitar Center to anyone looking to purchase equipment for gigs. Go see Shayne! He is absolutely awesome! read more

Bought a ukulele a couple years ago here, even since I've been getting advertising emails for lessons new items etc etc 2-3X a week, even after clicking unsubscribe all 20+ times. A shame I for some reason ordered online and they now have my email address. read more

Guitar Center is fine for a place to go to get what you need. Prices are fair, but if you're buying something major - guitar, amplifier ,a saxophone, an electric piano - Check online at places like reverb.com and sometimes Crutchfield, even Amazon! The thing YOU DO NOT WANT to have done at Guitar Center are instrument repairs. They are hiring kids off the street to do instrument repairs and God bless them, but they just don't have the knowledge, nor the experience to do a good job! There are other shops around Valley that feature professional luthier's, Professionals of all sorts that are available to make repairs or modify your instruments. Don't take a chance! read more

The staff are super knowledgeable and approachable, great spot. I've been window shopping for my first electric guitar for months now, but the range of choices for this instrument can be daunting. Shout out to Christian for helping me find a Les Paul Epiphone that fit my needs and for giving me a crash course on gain/distortion and the main differences between amps. read more

Excellent experience here. Christmas shopping for my electric guitar playing family member and found the amp and other device they had been wanting. Staff was prompt with answering questions and getting my order ringed up. We will def be coming back here for guitar supplies. read more

Brought my guitar in to see if the repair tech could fix a couple issues. Took care of the issues and stringed it up real nice. Quick friendly service. Receipt says Kyle so I believe that is who assisted me. read more

IF YOU DO NOT WANT TO SERVICE THE CUSTOMER FIND ANOTHER JOB, if you are scared of getting SICK, I do not blame you, STAY IN YOUR CAVE and let others HELP customers, LIFE GOES ON, IF YOU ARE OPEN, help the customers, maybe some of us want to keep going while we pray for the victims of this virus and the heroes that are fighting to help. Why DO THEY NOT ANSWER THE PHONES, I sat outside of the store in Tempe yesterday, there was a line of people outside, not too long. I did not want to stand outside, not because of the damn covid19 but out of convenience, they claim to do "curbside pick up" I was browsing in my phone, just needed electric guitar strings and a new guitar. On the website it says they do "curbside pickup" it bears repeating it because they do not. I was about to place the order and it did not specify IF THERE WAS curbside pick up. I cancelled the order and I called again, they pick up and hung up. IF YOU DO NOT WANT TO SERVICE THE CUSTOMER FIND ANOTHER JOB, if you are scared of getting SICK, I do not blame you, STAY IN YOUR CAVE and let others HELP customers, LIFE GOES ON. read more

PATRICK... At the Tempe, Arizona helped me Wednesday night, with some drum purchases. He was VERY pleasant and helpful. He is normally in Pro Audio I believe, but he was quick and efficient and I was very happy with my purchase. Actually, I'll be back tomorrow for some more items. read more

Guitar Center - 1987 LUDWIG DRUMS PROMOTIONAL POSTER - Musical Instruments & Teachers Near Me - Tempe, Arizona

Bought a classical cut away here. D string began buzzing even on open string. Had guitar center look at it and told nothing was wrong with it It's my technique they said. Took it elsewhere and it's was slightly bowed had truss rod adjusted it fixed It. read more

Jake is absolutely professional and accommodating. These guys probably have no idea who I was and I was STILL treated with kindness read more

Guitar Center - Oops hehe. (My republican came out ) - Musical Instruments & Teachers Near Me - Tempe, Arizona

Good Selection and Good Prices. Guitar center has a reliably good selection of musical goods at fair market prices. Sometimes they have really good specials. The great thing is that they have all the massive online inventory available at the stores too. I came in for a simple purchase of a power conditioner for my ranch to keep my electronics protected. I got good advice and grabbed the project and was out the door.... Stop in and give them a look... Lots to see! read more

Guitar Center - Musical Instruments & Teachers Near Me - Tempe, Arizona

Update in my review. (You still need to pay attention to what you're purchasing) But I had the best experience the other day. I had to return a deck and it could've been a mess. Lucy and three of the staff made my experience a 5 star experience. They knew the products and equipment I was using. They recognized that I wasn't in looking for a freebie but I was in guitar ctr looking for legit help in a crunch. It is refreshing that guitar Center maybe changing the way they do business and handle customers. It was nice to be greeted quickly. Acknowledged and then be able to converse with staff that knows the equipment and products they are selling. I'd buy more from guitar ctr knowing that the staff is selling me what is right for me and engaging in what I am needing. Older review- Make sure your purchase is not a return. Make sure it is packaged up and is new. Make sure all items that come with your purchase are actually in the box. Make sure the software has not already been used. So far all my purchases have been returns and not brand new. Yet they sold me like it was brand new. Then the next day looked at me suspiciously. Guitar center is like a second hand store but full price read more

I get no assistance from the Guitar center team except Raul. He is the best. Now, if I carry on a conversation with Raul about gear they pull him away to sell someone a 50.00 item and I buy about 5 to 10k a stuff a years sometimes from them. I now have trouble finding any quality guitars or amps. Maybe if the other sales people got off their behinds and acted like Raul their sales will go up. A chain that declared bankruptcy again a few months ago is not learning that people buy on relationships and having quality gear. If a person could not buy from Guitarcenter.com I dont why they would get patronized. read more

Spent about 30 minutes here yesterday. Was not spoken to once. I was looking at hollow-bodies, played a few, found one that I was interested in. The guitar was set up well and did what I want, but hollows are new to me, so I wanted to ask a couple of questions. I was nearby two employees who were too busy talking about how much they hated working there to notice that I was interested in a guitar. One other guy over by the register would answer the phone when it rang, but otherwise kept to himself. This was a weekday afternoon. I was one of maybe 4 customers in the store. I don't want to be crawled all over, but nobody said hello or asked if they could help. I left. There are other places more interested in selling me the same guitar. read more

Love the new location. I actually thought they went out of business when I drove by the old location. It wasn't until a friend told me about their location that I went back. It's new and improved. Pro Tip: if you are planning to spend a lot of money here, ask for a Guitar Center Pro. They can get you better deals. Use the local people for your onesie twosie orders. read more

Called to see if they had a guitar in stock over the phone. They have told me yes and when I get there they said sorry we do not have it in stock. That's the reason I called so I didn't have to make such a long drive. Drove all the way over here for no reason. read more

Amazing service and great professionals! Lucy and Ian, resident percussion gods, completely took care of me pro bono and heard my cries of help to repair my 6-year-olds bass pedal! They were informative and wenhelpful above and beyond. THANK YOU!! read more

Guitar Center - Musical Instruments & Teachers Near Me - Tempe, Arizona

I felt they were very helpful at this location and it was a large store with a large variety of equipment.

This place as with other guitar centers I've been to was great. I think people like to slam it because it is a corporate giant and any true "artist" wouldn't stand for such a place. If you want to try a guitar or instrument, go there and try it. If you want to buy an instrument there, buy it. If you've found a better deal online, mention it and they'll match it and usually beat it. If you live out of town order it and they'll ship it. For free! If they don't have what you want, they'll order it and still match or beat prices. No need to be elitist or pompous, just go here and use a huge volume corporation to your advantage. read more

Guitar Center - Pelham Blue Les Paul - Musical Instruments & Teachers Near Me - Tempe, Arizona

This Guitar Center location is a very nice one. It is spacious with plenty of merchandise to meet your musical needs. The staff is friendly on a consistent basis and no one bothers you if you want to browse for a long time. This location has classrooms where you can take lessons. My daughter takes drum lessons from James Pope and he's fantastic! He is patient and encouraging and has taught her a lot. The scheduling is convenient and flexible so has life happens, class times can be changed when needed. There is also a nice waiting area where you can watch what is happening in the session via video. Lots of great things to say about this location. read more

These guys are always the best when it come to knowledge, honesty, and service. They won't sell you anything you don't need.

Adam has been teaching my daughter. Very motivating and friendly. She's pretty shy so that makes her feel very comfortable.

The people working there are rude and I will never do business with guitar center again. I'm referring to the avondale location. I was only there to pick up a guitar I had bought online and had it shipped to that store. My first thought was to cancel the order but I didn't. From this day forward I will shop at Sam Ash. If I was the owner of this location I would have fired the 2 employees on the spot. read more

Brandon is the best!! Give him a raise! Awesome in guitars!! Love going here and having him help me out!