Dealt Mario 45 years ago and it was a horrible experience. I haven't been there in quite sometime due to them being so rude. Totally off my radar, I'll go somewhere else and spend more before I go back to this store. read more

I bought a Kramer Guitar in 2020 , it arrived, out of wack, pickup was a trembucker and didn't fit in the standard routing , the neck was (and is still) shaved too narrow on the sides and both E strings tend to get off the neck on each sides. I fix it with lots of additional money. now 2025 I bought a Marshall amp and there is trouble with it , it is new and even if Marshall knows and agreed about the problem with the amp, i am still stock with and the guy at LA music don't won't to take it back unless i take a store credit or a loss of 8 % and both shipping (ordered and return ) out of my wallet.. when i decided to take a penalty of 8% , no more email answer, i was warned about that politic but i decided to give it a shot and hope for compasion, but no news. That was my last time at LAmusic and my last Marshall amp ever. read more

All around excellent experience. Arrived quickly, well set up and packed properly. My new go-to music store!

Ordered a Gibson SG Junior from them after I texted with a sales person. Saw the guitar online. I appreciated that it was unplayed by customers and unpacked only to be photographed and intonated. It arrived within a week. No issues. read more

LA Music - Gibson SG Junior - Musical Instruments & Teachers Near Me - Mississauga, Ontario

I ordered a Fiesta red American vintage II 1961 online from their online website. It arrived at my house within a reasonable amount of time: 2 weeks from ON to BC - I did hobbies and pastimes to help create the illusion that time was passing at quicker speed. I phoned them to confirm my order given that I am genuinely weary of people, places, and things, but they gave me the impression that they enjoyed selling people stuff that they ordered, which put me at ease. I would buy again from LA Music. I have had it i.e. the guitar in my possession for a week and I enjoy playing it more than any guitar I have ever owned. It was a pleasurable experience. Price was good. read more

This review contains the details of the following story: the time I ordered a guitar on special at L.A. Music from their website, waited six weeks to have it delivered, then had my order cancelled without any prior warning. The details follow. On Black Friday of 2019, I was shopping for a guitar, with a specific model in mind, a Fender 60s Jaguar Lacquer with Pau Ferro Fingerboard. The guitar usually goes in the high $1,300 range. Their normal price was $1,229. There was a $99 discount through a Black Friday discount code. Also, since they are in Ontario and I'm in Quebec, they only charge GST. Basically, the price, all expenses in, was about $400 les than if I bought it locally. "It's a deal, it's a steal, it's the sale of the century..." So I ordered it. On their website, it says: "In-stock orders (excluding special delivery items) generally ship within 2 business days of placing your order." This item was listed as being in stock, although I found it curious that it went out of stock as soon as I ordered it. Once I got my confirmation by email and waited, and waited...and waited. I was patient because L.A.Music only charges for the order once it ships. Giving L.A. Music a gigantic benefit of the doubt, I waited for 3 weeks, reasoning that since I saw the guitar go "out of stock" after my order, it might have in fact been sold out. So, I called them. I spoke to Sam, who was pleasant and reassuring. He told me that, yes, my guitar was on backorder and that he would send me an email to confirm the status of the order. I never received an email, but I again gave them the benefit of the doubt and waited another week. Or, if I wanted, he could cancel my order right then and there. He actually offered to cancel! A week later, I talked to Sam on the phone. He again confirmed that they are waiting for Fender to get back to them with a confirmation that the backordered item is going to ship. Again he reassured me that I would receive an email with the order status, which I never actually received. Again, I figured that since I hadn't actually paid for the guitar, I hadn't lost anything, except time and hope. At this point, I began looking at other online store, but could not match the L.A. Music deal. So I waited for one more week (week 6) and again called them. This time, Sam told me that the Fender rep would be dropping in and that he would show him the order to get it sorted out. I waited one more day for an update, and found an alternate guitar at a different online shop, Cosmo Music. The next day, I called them to get the update and cancel if they weren't sending my order that day. Unfortunately, the phone was never answered (I guess he remembered my number). Ten minutes later, I received an email that said the following: "HI Pierre Sorry for the delay in getting back to you. We just got notification yesterday that our order in from Fender USA has been cancelled as this is no longer available. This is to our surprise so we will have to cancel the order as they will not produce any more....sorry for the inconveneince L.A.MUSIC" This was received last Friday. No offer to sell an alternate guitar, or to try to make any sale. Rather than further wasting my time with a business that is clearly being mismanaged, I immediately order a different guitar, a Fender Player Telecaster, at Cosmo Music. It wasn't my first choice, but I'm sure it will be great when I get it in two days. From order to receiving the item: 1 week (7 days). Please save yourself the frustration and the time that these businesses cost, do not buy your instruments from L.A. Music. If one of their deals seems too good to be true, it's because it is. read more

Firstly, I had no idea this store even existed until Boxing Day 2019. After many years of taking a sabbatical from music (largely due to my hectic move to Canada, which was fraught with many immigrant woes), I decided to resuscitate my passion for music considering I'm now very well-settled in the country. Around Boxing Day 2019, I decided to shop online for a new electric guitar and an acoustic, along with the necessary accessories. My first instinct was to find what I was looking for on Amazon, but I thought of keeping an open mind and seeing what's out there. After many a Google search, I accidentally stumbled upon LA Music's website, and I was immediately stunned (in a good way). The prices I saw were lower than the prices at L&M, Cosmo, and other Toronto stores. Plus, they were offering a further 15% discount because of the holiday season. What surprised me, is the 20 to 25% lower prices they offered on the various signature guitar models. Well, I decided to spoil myself. I ended up buying the Epiphone Tommy Thayer Signature Les Paul AKA the bright, electric blue beast. This model is VERY hard to find anywhere in Canada, but LA Music offered it to me at a price that was easily about $200 lower than the few other spots that did offer this one in Canada. I also bought the Ibanez PF15ECETBS (PF Series Acoustic Guitar Transparent Blue Sunburst), which is one of the richest sounding acoustic guitars I have ever touched. Arrival of the guitars was prompt, barely about a week or so of waiting (the models I ordered are incredibly rare), and the service was mind-blowing, with me being kept appraised of every step in the process. Top-notch service for any music store. Finally, a quick word about the service provided by the gentleman, Sam, and also the others at the store. Polite, friendly, and honest are understatements to describe the people who work at the store. After picking up the guitars, I advised Sam that I had an amp, spare set of strings, tuner etc. that I had bought from Amazon and asked if LA Music had anything better, to which Sam told me that all of my accessories are top notch and I need to buy nothing from him. I didn't expect such honesty, even at the expense of him losing potential business out of me. Another thing is how my Ibanez acoustic had a few problems, but Sam and Dave (the gentleman with the pony-tail who sits to the right, next to the entrance, testing guitars) repaired the problem in a heartbeat, no questions asked. I could go on about the great service, but you get my point. Further, a friend who wanted to buy a piano and another who wanted to buy a Fender Stratocaster decided to give LA Music a shot (on my recommendation), and unsurprisingly, they also got great discounts and experienced the same prompt, friendly service that I experienced. LA Music is great at PRICE MATCHING even Amazon, which is incredible. I foresee a lot of musical instrument purchases in my near future, so no prizes for guessing who gets my business. The store gets a huge thumb's up from me. Give it a shot for your instrument purchases. You will not be disappointed. read more

I have been an LA Music customer since the early 2000's. They used to rock...good customer service, good selection and a mostly nice and tidy shop. I walked in last week and things have changed considerably. I stayed for 5 minutes and went to L&M instead. If you're an online store, be an online store. Don't be an online store with a terribly stocked and organized brick and mortar store. Boxes everywhere and very little selection. Total chaos. Not only that but they say they have a 25,000 sq ft shop. While they used to, they've downsized considerably. Most people want to play an instrument before they buy it but I have no doubt that online sales have grown. Don't forget your local musicians though. They will spend their hard earned money elsewhere like I did. (Btw i bought a Gibson Explorer - 76 Tribute from the competitor that day) LA music has an identity crisis that it needs to get through or local customers will abandon them. read more

LA Music - Look at this nonsense. - Musical Instruments & Teachers Near Me - Mississauga, Ontario

Owner talks down customers.. not a good experience when I have gone to buy something

I made an appointment ahead and was well received at the store. Sam showed me a number of guitars and i bought an amazing Schecter Elite. he shipped it to where I live in langford bc and it was WELL packed and arrived perfect. wonderful experience. read more

I really don't understand the customer service ethics of this company....Their website says that they ship within 2 days unless there is a supply issue. After 5 days of useless communication, I still wasn't able to get a shipping eta so I decided to cancel the order. Shortly after I got a shipping confirmation, only it appears they just printed a shipping label but didn't actually deliver the guitars to canada post until days later. When I finally received the guitars, one of them was packed in a dirty, smelly toilet paper box...it was really gross. When I asked them about this Sam's response was "We recycle everything". I have never experienced this from any music store or individual in more than 30 years of buying guitars. I wont be buying anything from them in the future...really frustrating and humiliating experience. read more

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Absolutely horrible customer relations. Had an issue after being charged for an order on an item which turned out to be out of stock. The item was in stock online, my card was charged ($1700+), then a cancellation email arrived a couple of hours later stating the item was sold out. They had double-sold it out from under me, but I was forced to sit on the credit card charge for up to 15 days. When I messaged the company through Reverb, I received a rude reply from a Mario Piperni. It was as follows: "Are you kidding me. We sell out constantly as there are multiple persons looking and purchasing. Get your refund from Reverb and move on." Ok, Mr. keyboard tough guy. I'll move on indeed, to a store which appreciates and respects its customers. Don't waste your time with LA Music. read more

Awesome customer service. Wicked kick ass products. I have Been going to this place for over 10 years. Customer satisfaction A++++ If your looking to rock out guitar instruments or need parts fast shipping. Thanks LA music you guys rock on. read more

!AVOID THIS STORE AT ALL COSTS! I am not one to really complain but people need to know. If I could give a negative star rating, I would. I made a $1500 purchase on Oct 13, 2020. They immediately took payment. 2 weeks later with multiple ignored texts, emails and unanswered phone calls. They finally claimed my product had shipped but could not provide me with a tracking number and even referenced 2 different couriers. After hounding them for days for a simple tracking number, I requested a refund when they failed to provide one. At no point did anyone personally look into the problem. By far the worst customer service I have ever had anywhere. Hopefully, I will actually see the refund. read more

Went to get some new bass strings and guitar strings. One of the clerks offered me a $10 discount on the bass strings even though they cost $5 more at long and mcquade, which was cool of him. UNFORTUNATELY, and this is both our faults, I didn't mention which type of bass I had and he didn't check the package, and he sold me bass strings for headless basses (steinberger stranstrem systems) so i'm stuck with an open package of bass strings I cant use. (the ones I needed are $26) read more

Last year, I was in the market for a custom shop Telecaster and found online that LA Music had a large selection of custom shop guitars. Like an obscenely big selection of custom shops. I don't live nearby but had a $6000 budget for a new guitar, so I drove over an hour to visit the store. I was very excited because stores near me have such a narrow selection. Knowing LA Music had so many guitars, I thought for sure I'd find my new guitar that day. The staff were friendly upon entering the store. And the store is gorgeous. It's much larger than any L&M I've been in. The selection is also quite large. The staff did their hellos and other pleasantries, asked me what I was interested in today, and the moment I asked about custom shops, they just became wholly disinterested in helping me. I asked if they'd show me a few custom shop Telecasters, try to get some kind of back-and-forth going, try to have a conversation and they kept shutting me down. "We don't let people play the more expensive guitars". Their reasoning is they don't want people to damage them, but I didn't even want to play anything, just show me them. Tell me about them. What specs do they have? They had zero desire in helping me. It's not even like I could check their online storefront for more info: most have scarce descriptions on their custom shops, it's very rudimentary and barebones. Some of the specifications are mentioned, but Fender does provide a detailed spec sheet with every custom shop guitar, so they could at the very least photograph that and put it up. Maybe they only cater to online orders and that influences their policies. They expect people to buy instruments blind. I have never known any musician to do this, from even the cheapest instruments to the most expensive. Even if you don't plug it in, you need to feel the neck, the frets, see if it works for you. I was looking to spend up to $6000 on a new guitar, I would never dream of putting down that kind of money without holding the guitar beforehand. Whenever I buy a guitar, especially at this pricepoint, I need to know everything there is to know about the guitar. I need to feel it, make sure it gels well. There's intangibles at play that a spec sheet won't even tell you, something you only discover picking it up and inspecting with your own eyes. To deprive a customer of this is baffling, to be frank. For me personally, the shape of the neck matters a lot, and even though Fender has specifications for each neck profile, no two guitars are the same, especially with their custom shops. I could try two different guitars with the same profile and I'd have a preference. Just picking the guitar up and feeling the neck tells me most of what I want to know about a guitar. I was advised that if I wanted a custom shop guitar, I should order it online and pick it up in store so I can take a look before I leave. When asked "what if it doesn't feel right?" they said they would take it back for store credit less a restocking fee. That's equivalent to paying them money just to see what you're buying before you buy it. At this point I decided to leave. All told, I was in the store for five minutes before I decided to leave and go to another shop. There I spent about an hour just picking up different custom shop Teles and Strats, pretty much no questions asked. I left with my new guitar that day, a happy camper. And it's exactly what I wanted. I don't care that 100 people have picked it up and played it before me, the "white gloves" approach as they put it doesn't even make sense. I understand the restocking fee and credit for returns because that impacts the condition, but just picking up a guitar? Shameful. Judging by other reviews and my own experience, I feel like LA Music doesn't trust its retail customers. Things are locked away, you're not allowed to play or even touch some of the more expensive instruments. I get it, for every buyer you get of an expensive guitar, you'll have dozens of people window shopping. But the policies in place seem very extreme. They need to rethink these policies or compromise if they want to get the business of people like me. If I was running a business, I would bend over backwards to get that sale, and I'm not chump change: I was ready to spend some serious money on an instrument, and they just made it too difficult to bother. Visiting LA Music was like a fever dream: very surreal how they handle themselves. I've never known any other store to be that paranoid and nonchalant how they treat their instore customers. And because of that, somewhere else got my money. To their credit, however, their selection is large and what they do have of custom shops is quite impressive. If you're of the type who buys instruments blind or for show/display, not actually to play, maybe this is the shop that caters to you. It didn't for me. read more

For a place claiming to be Canada's leading music store my first visit to the place will likely be my last. I don't know if whether moving or renovations we the excuse but the place was in complete disarray. Staff was minimally helpful but couldn't determine whether or not items were in stock. And there was as much ability to browse stock as you'd have window shopping within a locker on Storage Wars. In the US, Sam Ash and Guitar Center and in Canada, Long and McQuade put LA Music to shame. Too bad. I had ever intention of spending money here today. read more

Bought my first guitar here, and happy with the purchase. The reason I didn't give 5 starts is because they sometimes advertise a product supposedly several hundred dollars discounted, but when you check the same product on other websites, they are the exact same price without any discounts. This is really misleading. The guitar I purchased was originally stated $699 as the retail value but other stores had the same model listed for $630. Anyway, I got a good discount and I am happy with my purchase. read more

I bought a Fender Acoustic for 125 plus tax. The guitar has been tough to play as I though I was a novice and perhaps need more practice playing. I asked a friend to play the guitar and he told me the strings are high and that the bridge needs to be shaved and brought down. I asked the store to adjust it, and they said that it will be a $60 charge. My argument was why do I have to pay for a product that is not set correctly. The answer was that I paid and got the value of that payment. I agree with this statement and cannot argue with the person here. HOWEVER... I am not happy that I cannot trust LA Music to have my interest and to make me a lifelong client. I have not had an issue with the service, however after this conversation, I will not go back there again. It is a shame as I am looking to also get an electric Guitar and it will not be from them. read more

Although the employees at LA Music may be knowledgable about their products their friendly service leaves much to be desired. This review covers my online shopping experience, as I did not have the pleasure of visiting this fine establishment IRL. First off, their website aesthetic is out of date and does not show stock for products. They need to update their interface in order to make it user friendly as their competitors, like Axe Music or Long & McQuade, have a much more modern feel was well as being more inviting toward the visitor. On top of that, they offer free shipping only on orders $199 and over, which is totally unreasonable, considering again, that their competitors offer free shipping on orders that are $20+. Now we get to the customer service: I placed an order for three pedals on their website using PayPal Express. I received an order confirmation e-mail and thought everything was groovy. Three days passed, and I received no notification on stock or order status. I called them only to find out that I didn't 'accept' the PayPal payment. I received no e-mail on this at all, which at this point was fine and I thought maybe it was just a technical error with the transaction and assumed everything should go fine from here on out. But boy was I wrong... Two days passed, and I received nothing. No order status, stock information, or confirmation from LA Music that they received my money. Nothing. I called them again, and they seemed confused about the order. They said they would send an e-mail at the end of the day on the status of the order. As expected, they did not. A few more days passed and I was still left in the dark. I noticed that the 'status' of the pedals updated to strange codes that I couldn't decipher on my own. Thus, I had to call this wonderful store AGAIN. They informed me that two of the pedals should come "Within 3-5 days" but they're "not really sure". Furthermore, the third pedal "They had no idea" about and that "We'll call and ask and let you know, man". So, thankfully and miraculously, by the grace of God, they called me within five minutes after hanging up. They informed me that Behringer would not have the pedal until the at least the end of March "if ever". So, obviously, I cancelled that item. So, I whipped over to Axe Music's website and ordered the Behringer pedal (since they had stock). Who would have thought, I received an order confirmation and a shipping notice THE NEXT DAY. On this next day, I realized I had not received a credit on the third pedal. So, luckily, I got to call these fine people again. They assured me their 'accounting department' was looking after it and I should receive my $40 credit by 'end of day'. Well, by 'end of day' I FINALLY got my tracking number for the order, at the same time as I got my Axe Music order tracking number. Well here's the thing, remember that $40 credit? Well, because my order went slightly under the $199 free shipping clause, they decided to take $15 off my credit WITHOUT TELLING ME. At this point, I figured I had talked these 'wonderful' people enough that I was just glad I was getting my pedals and they weren't just stealing my money. Funny enough their order came in AT THE SAME TIME AS AXE MUSIC'S ORDER... which is located in Calgary! Now OBVIOUSLY I won't be ordering from LA Music ever again, unless I want to endure a rollercoaster of emotional turmoil in connection to an online shopping order. They're unreliable, unprofessional and don't handle customer service with the utmost finesse that I would expect in a day and age where online shopping and ordering is extremely commonplace. Two weeks without any communication from them or an ETA is completely ridiculous and unacceptable. There are definitely a lot better options out there that will provide you with a better experience! read more

I have bought plenty of music products online and this has been the most aggravating purchase I've ever made not only within music products but online shopping in general. I made my order in January and was assured that they would ship my product within the next two weeks. several reassurances and two months later they are still yet to even confirm that they have what I paid for in stock. I will be seeking a refund and trying to find what i was looking for somewhere else. read more

Purchased two Yamaha monitors from the online store during their Boxing Week sale. Received the first monitor ONE MONTH LATER. Almost two months have passed and I've yet to hear back about the second monitor. I've e-mailed them twice asking what was going on and if they had an estimated time...no reply whatsoever. Worst customer service I've ever experienced. Avoid at all cost. Learned my lesson to just pay full price elsewhere. read more

Don't make the mistake of shopping at la music they are the most ignorant people I've ever dealt with. If you have any kind of problems they won't even pick up their phone or respond to any email in order to solve that problem whatever it may be all they want is your money. Do yourself a favor go to any Long & McQuade location for musical instruments sales and service. read more

It's been a long, LONG time since I have picked up my trust axe (guitar to the less musically inclined) and rocked out. Of course by axe i mean acoustic guitar and by rocked out I mean gentle finger the strings melodically in an effort to make sweet sweet music! Upon paying a visit to LA Music this summer a deep sense of guilt and longing filled my soul as I realized I had forgotten my true passion - music. That's what LA Music is all about, a passion for music. Those who have that passion work here and those who share that passion come from far and wide to visit their massive store in Port Credit (located on the EAST side). Folks aren't just walking in the door to shop here, they're logging on from their homes across the globe and shopping online! While I was only browsing the day I ventured in, I know where I am coming from now on when I want supplies for my own musical endeavors whether they be upkeep (strings, bags, picks etc) or perhaps a long overdue upgrade in equipment. Staff her are amazingly friendly and helpful, and even as a casual tire kicker, they were more than happy to answer all my silly musical questions with flair and expertise. It's this style of customer service that builds trust with customers so that when they day comes for a major purchase decision (new drums, guitar, bass or Ukelele) you come back to the guys who spent time chatting when you weren't able to spend a dime. read more

I actively avoid this place like the plague. I have been many times over and never once felt the slightest bit welcome. You are treated like a child regardless of your age (I am 30+ and could easily purchase a $3000 instrument if I chose). If the sales staff are having a chat with each other it takes precedent over your need for a patch cord or question answered. I find the staff to be very arrogant and dismissive and really dislike the uncomfortable feeling I get when I walk in. They do carry a good selection of guitars but if you want to touch anything over $1000 be prepared to be treated like you have asked to touch the Mona Lisa, without gloves, while eating a cheese burger. TL;DR This place sucks, stay away, it has been this way for over 10 years. In summary go where you feel welcome when you walk in the door not L.A. Music. read more

Terrible customer service, once you are in forget a common return policy, you will never see your money, if you ask a question you may get an answer: "I am not in a good mood today". Before you go there read other people reviews. read more

One place I will never visit again or spend money at. Was treated like I was 3 by someone (I assume it was the owner). Along with that I'm not going to buy a guitar that I can't try first or play a similar model. If people dont want a played floor model, that's why you have online ordering. But if I buy a guitar only to find out it doesn't have the feel I want, I'm stuck with this expensive guitar that I dont like. Definitely not going back but honestly I've seen worse. read more

Terrible customer service! I purchased a guitar online.I was told that the wait was at least 2 months,which was ok with me. During this time,i had 2 questions to ask "Canada`s favourite music store".I asked these questions 3-4 times through email "contact us",which were all ignored. I asked 5 times on their website where you can see if someone is online and talk with someone right there,right away,but i was ignored each time.If they were busy with someone else,they could have eventually responded to me.The 6th time I though I would try one last time.No answer,until I said that i feel ignored and that maybe I should cancel my order.Someone FINALLY came on and said that he can cancel it for me.No,he didn't feel like answering my 2 questions,but was happy to just cancel the order,.Probably easier for him,but by this point,I was happy to cancel and get this company out of my life. When I am giving my money to any company,I don't want to be ignored.They do not care about customer service. "Canada`s favorite music store" ? Really ? I guess any company in Canada can make the same claim.It means absolutely nothing if you don't show it ! read more

I paid 1,500.00 for a Spector bass and still haven't received it, supposedly shipped Feb 18th 2020 ,its now March 7th 202 and nothing,there was customer service up till they had all my money but since then zero customer service,cant even get them to respond to numerous messages I've sent to see what going on with my purchase. I asked them what kind of strings the bass came with,no response. I'm going to contact Mississauga BBB to see what they say about this business,if its even a legitimate operation or just online fraud. Also thinking I should contact the regional police to file a complaint for losing my 1,500.00. Other then that not sure what else I can do. Obviously I'd never ever send them any money again. I wish I had of read some reviews about this business beforehand but looking at their web site you'd never know what a terrible experience they would be. For some reason the address given with my name and review says I'm from San Francisco,USA ,its wrong,I'm Canadian living in Victoria ,B.C., where that wrong address came from I have no idea. read more

I am incredibly impressed with the customer attentiveness of the staff at L.A. Music. Informative, helpful and most importantly, they're not pushy salespeople at all. We were indecisive about which instrument to choose and salesperson demonstrated patience and even played couple of instruments for us to pick which we thought sounded best. read more

I'm a guitar player, so this review just deals with that part of the store. I'll start with the good: LA Music has a great selection of instruments. They stock a number of very high end models of the lines they carry. It's a big store with a lot of stock, which is great. Here's the bad, and unfortunately there's a lot of it: When I walked into the acoustic guitar room, it seemed like everything they had was low or mid-tier models. Turns out there's a room, about the size of a walk-in closet where they keep acoustics over $1500. From what I could see through the window, there were probably about 30 guitars in there, but it was tough to see. The door to this room is locked unfortunately, so I couldn't get in there to see what they had. I found it a bit annoying to have the nicer instruments locked away. In the back I found another room where they kept all the upper-end electric guitars. Again, anything over about $1500. There were at least a hundred guitars in this room, so I was really interested in getting in there to see what they had. I found the door locked, again, just like the acoustic guitar closet. When I tried to open the door the sales guy started telling me about the school nearby and how a kid irreparably damaged a $16000 guitar and now they don't let anyone in that room. I told him I wasn't a high-school student. He said they don't even let him play the instruments in that room. You can't really see much through the door. The Gretsches all face the opposite direction and it's really hard getting a sense of what's in there. The sales guy just kept rambling on and on about how tough it is to run a music store when everyone wants to wreck your high-end gear. By that time I was really annoyed and tuned him out. He just kept yapping on and on. I was annoyed by the fact that a middle-aged guy with disposable income, is getting treated like a high-school kid. It was insulting to be treated like a child. But it was made much worse by the sales guy's ingratiating chatter, trying to make excuses for why LA Music was going to continue to treat me like a child. And that was exacerbated by the fact that the sales guy made it sound like LA Music doesn't even trust him, a supposed expert, with an instrument over $1500. It made me feel bad. It was a bad shopping experience. I go to guitar stores to feel good. Like every other guitar player in the world, I go to guitar stores to dream about my next purchase, to discover an axe that I'd never seen before and to sit down, get a feel for the weight of it, the neck, the tone. And like every guitar player on earth, I'll do this once a month and spend an hour or two in the store, playing a couple dozen instruments. And maybe once a year, I'll drop a couple grand on something. This is how guitar players shop. If you run a guitar store you not only have to accept it, you should probably encourage it. But LA Music doesn't respect or trust their customers enough to even let them get within 10 feet of a guitar that costs over $1500. They've built a culture of mistrust and they project that onto their customers and they paint everyone with same brush, from the poorest school kid to richest Oakvillian. If you want people to buy guitars from you. Let them look at the instruments. If you have to treat them like museum pieces (which I admit some of the really high-end instruments are) at least display them in a way that people can get close enough to drool without getting saliva on the guitars. But for god's sake, don't make your customers feel like children for wanting to get close enough to look at the guitars. If you think the bad experience ends with that, there's more. It actually starts with the surly prick at the cash register when you walk in. This guy is the exact opposite of a walmart greeter. Once you're put on edge immediately after walking in, and after you're insulted by being treated like a kid, you can have the joy of browsing the cheap guitar room. This room is filled with hundreds of guitars, most of them in the sub $1000 range. Because these are the cheap guitars, they're just the factory setups, some of which were downright awful. Many of the guitars I picked up had buzzing notes, or high action or corroded strings and every single one was out of tune. Yet the salesfolk were standing around yapping. I can understand how expensive it would be to restring and set up a couple hundred guitars. But if the store's empty why not grab a guitar or two and tune it up? Maybe wipe down the strings if they're a bit crusty? Anyway, my experience at LA Music was very bad. They made me feel bad about wanting to look at nice guitars. They made lame excuses that continued to insult me. And when they let me play the cheap guitars, they were badly set-up and out of tune, which further sucked any remaining joy out of guitar shopping. If you go to guitar stores to add a little joy to your life, avoid going to LA Music. I won't be back. read more

The organization and layout of the store is really unappealing. There are boxes in the middle of the store. Overall, the shop is one big mess. The staff were not very friendly, and my friend and I did not feel welcomed when we walked in. We were trying out some of the guitars, when a staff member approached us. We were told that there is no jamming in the store (we weren't playing together) and we were told not to go near the more expensive gear. My assumption is, since we are younger people, they assumed we wouldn't be making any purchases, and that they could treat us how they wanted. They do have a nice selection of guitars, however I wouldn't make a purchase from an organization like this. read more

On April 6, 2021 after several unsuccessful attempts to pay for my online order of an 'in stock' Epiphone Sheraton II Pro electric guitar using two different credit cards, and following the instructions on their website, I instead sent an Interac email electronic funds transfer to 'mary@lamusic.ca' in the amount of $956.60. I immediately received an email confirming my order and the receipt of my payment in full. The next morning I received an email claiming that 'due to circumstances beyond their control' that my order had been canceled (despite the fact that the guitar was purportedly 'in stock'). This email also claimed that my $956.60 had been refunded in full. The only problem is it hadn't. 5 days later I am still waiting for my refund of $956.60. Despite making several phone calls, emails and text messages to L.A.Music, its President, 'Sam' continues to hide behind his voicemail and email inbox evading me and I have yet to receive my $956.60 as promised in their April 7, 2021 email. A quick Google of 'L.A. Music Scams' reveals several instances of L.A. Music keeping customers' deposits and purchase moneys. AVOID THESE SCAMMERS AT ALL COST. read more

Worst customer online service ! Avoid! They do not return emails. Waited two weeks with no communication and then my order disappeared ...still no communication. read more

This store is not worth anyone's time. If I could give it a 0 star rating, I absolutely would. On the inside, it doesn't look ANYTHING like the photos displayed on here. It's disorganized, very little stock (that people are allowed to view) and the customer service is atrocious! My 12 year old son is a guitarist (and a fantastic one at that!). He plays at different venues and there are multiple videos of him floating around. He is always excited to find a new guitar store to go to given that he is always looking to find his newest gem to buy. My son asked if he could play a certain guitar and was treated like crap by the guy that was there. This "customer service" rep (and I use this term loosely) said that they are more of an online store, and that they don't let people try out guitars. He then proceeded to say "Do you understand that?" My son is 12, not 2. Sadly for this store, they just kissed off a valuable customer. We are not going to drop good money for something we can't try out. I wouldn't buy a car without taking it for a test drive, so why would i buy my son a guitar that he can't try out? We are willing to spend good money on guitars and amps, but certainly not from this place. We drove 30 minutes to get there today, paid $1 for parking, walked in the store and left less than 8 minutes later very dissatisfied. It was certainly not worth our drive and was ABSOLUTELY not worth the $1 that we paid to park. I would suggest that if you want to buy a guitar/instrument or accessories, go to Long and McQuade or The Guitar World. read more

Absolute waste of my time. I saw an item on L.A. Music's website and called the store myself to make sure everything is ready before placing the web order. I was assured that the item (I was specific about the item, right down to the colour) would arrive at my doorstep the next day. Three days go by, not a word, and when I check my account on their website, it says it's "processing" -- no tracking number, no information. I called and they said the item was actually not in stock and they had to order from Music Man/Sterling -- which they did not tell me, either when I first called or when I placed the web order. They now say it's going to be two weeks. Two weeks later I call back. First time I was put on hold for six minutes and then they hang up on me. I call back and get an employee named "Mario" who took down my order number, name and phone number and promised he'd get back to me. Two more days go by, not a word. I had to call yet again (fourth one by now) and ask for a manager, and NOW he tells me that Music Man/Sterling doesn't have a Canadian distributor and it'd be another two weeks, and even that's not guaranteed. I angrily remind him that the website didn't tell me the item was out of stock, and that I was originally told that delivery would be in 24 hours. He gave me a bunch of excuses (employees went on holiday...) and when I asked why the previous *three* employees never told me this, he had no answer. At this point, I consider the fact that they offer this item on the website -- with no notification about the time it takes to fill the order -- to be false advertising, and the phone experience i had with them to be abysmal customer "service". Oh yeah, and the manager had said, after I demanded a cancellation of the order: "You will receive an e-mail confirmation of the cancellation in 30 seconds". It's now been five minutes, nothing. With the amount of time I wasted with this place, I could have gotten the item from Amazon or eBay long ago and it probably would have arrived within a week. Don't bother with L.A. Music. I'm sticking with Long & McQuade. At least they actually know what's happening with their own stock. I will also be keeping an eye on my credit-card account to make sure this place didn't try to sneakily charge my card while not shipping me the item I had originally ordered. After this experience, I wouldn't put it past this store's dishonesty and unprofessionalism. read more

Do not even bother using the website to order, I shopped 7 pages of acoustic treatment before settling on items that were listed in stock, spent almost 900.00 3 days after the purchase I get an email that nothing is in stock by the brand I ordered and that they no longer deal with that brand at all. Then they inform me that they were checking local companies to get me something that is close to what I was looking for. Of course I don't want knock off treatments or subpar products that "look" similar but are not effective as the brand I ordered. If I had wanted to go for knock off treatments I could find them on kijiji or craigslist myself. Yes they did do the refund, and yes they were going to see if they could do something for me but really it is irresponsible to have more than 40 products on a website to which they no longer deal with the vendor. Of course all the products were removed the day they wrote me but still. It is very irresponsible to not maintain your online storefront. ergo, my cash is in limbo waiting to be credited back to my Visa, 5 days and a weekend lost waiting for something I expected to finish my new room. I have never dealt with them until now and to be clear I will stick with my L&M on Bloor St., I have shopped at L&M for 15 years and they have never let me down and if it is on the site it is available. I feel like a cheater for looking at another spot but was just trying to get a deal and got let down by LAMusic. Lesson learned. read more

Love this place! I have bought all my guitars here with no issues and customer service is great. One time I went in and saw synyster gates custom guitar and feel in love with it but it was a bit much and I wanted the standard and one of the workers saw how much I loved it and said he could order in the standard and I totally went for it and it's a great guitar read more

Terrible service, ordered something and they lead me on for 3 weeks and never even shipped it.. Thought they would be fast because they are located in Canada but I guess not. Ended up requesting a refund and bought it off L&M in the end. Wouldn't recommend shopping here. Long and Mcquade cares more about customers. read more

I live far away and took a big detour to visit LA Music shop to try a couple higher end Fender Telecasters. I was shocked when they wouldn't let me try any of the guitars I was interested in. I've never experienced that sort of rejection from a music retailer. They said they were 'doing inventory' and that, anyways, they keep those guitars for online customers who buy them sight unseen. I spoke with a friend who had the same experience with LA Music, so it seems to be a pattern. The same day I went to another Fender Custom Shop retailer in Toronto and they let me try any guitar I was interested in. read more