My son and I collect guitars so thought we'd make it over to check the place out and despite the negative reviews. I was really impressed. They had everything I would expect from a store of this size from Gibson Custom Shop to Flying V's, to BC's, Deans, and even a Fender built by now deceased master builder John English. The shop curator was patient with my son and I as we tried out a few guitars. They gave us all the time we needed (must have been there for an hour or more). Over all I was really impressed and now surprised by the negative reviews. I walked out with 2 fairly priced Flying V's! They build custom guitars in the back so I would recommend calling ahead of time. When we arrived there was a sign that said knock or call the number listed on the sign. We knocked and they opened the door within a few minutes. Great experience. read more

I came here looking for something unusual, the staff here went out of their way to try to assist me. Even though my request wasn't in their wheelhouse, they spent their time trying to help me find someone that could assist me. What a beautiful shop, great guitar selection displayed. read more

I primarily go to Roman Guitars for repairs, but if you're looking for something unique and one of a kind, then look no further .

I bought a 4000.00 MSB bass from Roman Guitars they sent it to me not packed properly and the body cracked. When I demanded a refund they had the estate lawyer sent me threatening letters. I finally just asked for 3000.00 back just to be done with them. They were holding my money hostage. read more

The people here were super helpful and kind. Great selection of Guitars, Basses, and accessories.

Really cool shop. Turns out they weren't really doing much walk in with Covid and all but I showed up unannounced without knowing that and Scott was super cool about letting me come in and browse and we shot the breeze for a while. Would highly recommend these dudes if you want to buy a guitar or need yours worked on. Super nice guys. read more

Interesting to read the previous reviews. Would've liked to have seen the showroom in it's hayday. My experience was really great. 1st off, I loved that their legacy website had kewl history about the George Lynch / JFrog original Bones I guitar as well as the original Kramer Baretta Mr Scary guitar too. Can't say how helpful that has been for my research. Was cool to see old photos of George & Ed donating a Skull & Snakes guitar to the Hard Rock Cafe in NY, plus Ed & Lita Ford holding a JFrog Skull & Bones guitar. Fast forward to needing a black Kramer Pacer to try & replicate George's old 'Mrs. Scary #2' (minus Kramer GuitarArt Heavy Metal Skull & Rose), since his ESP line surprisingly doesn't have any with double humbuckers, Roman Guitars had the only 2 I'd found online with banana neck / rosewood fretboard (somewhat rare even in the mid 80s), which gave me the excuse to call. Scott was great on the phone, very informative, patient, & helpful. I really enjoyed our various phone conversations. He was also very flexible & worked with me on cost / shipping, which I really appreciate, since it would've needed a bit of restoration work. After purchasing, the next day Bob called & explained that the neck had a hump in it that he couldn't let go out in that condition & offered to swap it our for a same / better one, no extra charge. I really appreciated that, along with a few other nice things he did to it, before shipping it out to me, which is very rare these days. The guitar arrived really fast (like 2 days later), & Bob called again (over the week-end even) to make sure I was satisfied with everything, which I totally was / am, especially the great customer service / follow up. The neck looks / feels / plays great, & I couldn't be happier with both the guitar & my experience. I'm totally ok with the minor issues with the guitar (few small scratches, muddy Schaller neck pickup, etc,) since they're getting more rare, & I plan to restore / mod it anyways. They even threw in a Roman Guitars gig bag, which I'm exited to have as a piece of 'history'. So, I'd say that for anyone reading all these reviews, give them a chance to find out for yourself, because I hadn't read these until right now (after guitar arrived), & glad that I didn't, because I might've not just had a really nice experience / killer vintage guitar. Thanks again Scott & Bob! read more

Roman Guitars - Vintage '84 black Kramer Pacer guitar with rare hocky stick headstock / banana neck / rosewood fretboard. - Guitar Stores Near Me - Las Vegas, Nevada

This shop is a MUST visit place for guitar-heads going to Las Vegas! I went to look at a rare consignment guitar and fell in love with a different guitar, the Roman Pearlcaster. The staff was super friendly and helpful. And the guitars...oh man! read more

Went to Ed Roman's a few years ago to buy a 7-string Eastman. It was 10AM mid-week and the place was empty. I was like a kid in a candy store, trying out all kinds of guitars and they gave me zero attitude. Got a great price on the Eastman. The staff are friendly and helpful and very knowledgeable. The other reviewer's comments about overpriced US Eastmans may be the Roman-built Eastman jzz guitars. Just a guess. Unfortunately only a 4* rating because I must say that Ed himself is a pompous jerk, insulting anybody who doesn't think like him, including customers. read more

I would never set foot in this guy's shop. The quote below is from his blog at www.edroman.com. He openly states that he would accept money to create a vintage guitar forgery and sign a non-disclosure agreement in order to enable the seller to then deceive a prospective buyer. If he's willing to help people cheat other people for his own gain, why would he hesitate to cheat any customer? (except, perhaps, his celebrity clientele). "The only way to fix this problem is to remove the neck completely and replace the entire neck with a brand new piece of presumably aged mahogany. I am currently charging $3,500.00 to do this, For that price I will also sign a non disclosure statement, Promising never to reveal to anyone that this work was performed on your guitar." read more

Ed Roman's World Class Guitars is a legendary institution. Sadly, King Roman is no longer with us but to those of us who were lucky enough to know him we will remember him as a colorful character with a heart as big as the man himself. It has become commonplace for people to bash Ed Roman because of his appearance, his low tolerance for time wasters and his comparison selling style. I am writing this review as a long time customer from his CT days. I also would ask that any potential customer read his rants (specifically the Guitar Center, Cost Cutting and My Selling Style) and make a decision. Yes, Ed was sometimes brash, but the man was more passionate about guitars then most people out there. I have had several guitars custom made by Ed Roman. I first was turned onto PRS guitars back at ECMM. I have what I believe to be one of the largest pre-factory PRS collections out there (17 guitars and 2 basses). When the Quicksilver line started I stopped playing my PRS guitars and IMHO the QS is a much better instrument then the old PRS (Ed actually disagreed) and the new PRSi can not even touch the QS. I also have a Maximus, Kingpin and Glock. Many people do not know that Ed was a single parent and the only thing he loved more then guitars, motorcycles and guns was his beautiful daughter Lyndsey Starr. She is now running the business but I would suggest people looking to buy speak with Scott who has a great reputation - even by people who do not like Ed. read more

Several years ago I had Ed Roman guitars swap out the bridge pickup on my pre-CBS Parker Fly Deluxe from back when Ken was still making them. It sounded harsh and shitty, so I called them and it turned out their flunky guitar tech wired it wrong. I was in college halfway across the country with no options, so AT MY EXPENSE I shipped my guitar to them so they could fix their mistake. Bottom line: I took it to a shop to have a "professional" work on my prized guitar that I wouldn't dream of touching myself. I had to ship it back to them (again at MY expense) so they could fix their own problem. I mean honestly if you can't wire a pickup correctly, what are you doing working in a guitar shop? Forget this place. It's nothing more than Ed Roman's shrine to himself. read more

Same goes here. I had an old BC Rich 10 String that needed repairing and I wanted to do a FEW upgrades. After 4 months with this guy I told him to wrap it up and return it back to me and bill me for the work done. I couldn't take his BS any more. It s all about what Ed thinks and he could give a hoot (to use better language) about what the customer really desires. Unless you are some multi-million dollar star I doubt he would pay any attention to your needs. I pity him he will probably die as lonely as he probably is now. His staff in Vegas seem very nice but you can tell his over-opinion of himself is reflected in the prices! All of this happened when he was back east. Hopefully the crew in Vegas have all of those issues sewn up and in the past now. Could you imagine working for this guy? read more

This place is a Joke!!!! Don't waist your time, they don't have the front door open and when u call to see if there open, no answer!!! If this is the Quality of service from the get go, i'd hate to see what the quality of service is when there's a real problem. Lost my business. read more

I just purchased my new electric guitar from Ed's store in Vegas. I got a BAKER with quilted top in blue with gold hardware and I love it. I got a good deal on it too for only $1295 from Stephen. See a pic of it here: http://www.edroman.com/guitars/baker.htm I had a good experience. I had read online some negative things that I can say were not true for my visit. Stephen treated me real well, went over a few other guitars and let me try out as many as I wanted (it IS true they don't let you take the guitars off the hooks, they cheerfully do it for you, kinda odd but my guitar had NO dings on it off the wall so I guess it is a good policy) Lots of choices and the prices were good. They beat Sam Ash hands down on most everything I looked at. Old school type of store, not as bright and corporate as SA but I felt I could try out the guitar with out a sales guy on commission getting pissed at me. Every one there seemed to be cool. Easy access and lots of parking right out front. We saw several taxies and two limos drop off players at the store while we were there. Ed was not at the store so I missed him but I did meet Joann, Ed's wife and she's a real doll and was a big help with packing and shipping my guitar to my other place in Cali. Rating: 8 out of 10 read more

This is a much belated review - not of the Vegas shop but of the "custom" guitar maker. (I know Ed has since passed, but feel obligated to warn others regardless). I found him in the 2002 and stopped by his "garage" shop back in CT and proceeded to order a guitar to my specs. More than 1.5 years later I got my finished product. Looked and felt like a kit guitar and the custom inlay which I did not approve on first photo was never fixed. There was no dealing with Ed or his shop - I gave up, chalked it up to expensive lesson learned and moved on. These many years later, I pulled the thing out of storage and had to take it to a tech to fix a myriad of problems that I forgot about along with newly discovered busted tuners that were overpriced junk (LSR) that Ed personally vouched for. The tech knew of Ed's work and warned me of potential landmines. He disassembled in front of me and my jaw hit the floor (bad neck placement, trem setup, shim mount pickups instead of body mount and horrible wiring). I had to pay to have the thing fixed (shouldn't have) and get it to play half decent. It's now an extremely overpriced franken-project guitar that I use to experiment with different mods - only thing it's good for. I wish I had researched the guy better so long ago, please do not make the same mistake. /// Update / I followed a link to Ed's all access neck joint which is what I ordered in my custom job....the website is complete and utter BS. MY NECK WAS POORLY SHIMMED AND GLUED IN ON A BOLT ON WITH A VISIBLE GAP SINCE THEY DIDNT BOTHER TO RUN A FULL TAPER SHIM. DIRECT CONTRADICTION TO WHAT THEY THEY STATE ON WEBSITE. AND "FIT" IS NOT SUPER TIGHT AS THEY CLAIM AS STANDARD PROCESS. WITHOUT A BOLT - THE NECK FALLS RIGHT OUT OF THE POCKET. read more

When I entered the shop, i thought that it was a really cool place, big, and had more guitars then a Fender factory. Upon further observation, some guitars were roped off, others had tags saying ask for an employee (before you even think about touching it.) (If you ever go to a guitar shop that dosent let you play a guitar, garbage.) Everywhere I went, there was some employee staring over me like a vulture, inflated prices, and Eds a jerk anyways, worst guitar shop I have ever been to. (ever.) read more

Wow, am I surprised. I would think someone would have yelped this location but it's an honor to be first... While my friends are gambling, getting lapdances at Spearmint Rhino's, or off playing Golf or shooting machine guns at the range, this is where I go. I always make it a point to stop here every time I visit Vegas. In deed, they're tag line fits the bill and I've been nowhere that can match their claim. This IS the biggest guitar store I've ever been too. It's a guitarist enthusiast's dream come true. They sell everything here. And I mean everything... All guitar models, amps and accessories. Custom-made, Celebrity models, autographed editions, replicas, acoustic, basses, uprights. They have it all... I've bought two guitars here, a Rickenbacker 620 Red Sunburst, and an Italia Speedster Blue. The salesmen are friendly and professional. They'll let you test drive something if you ask. There's always room to negotiate, and if you flew in it's possible to have your guitar shipped to you. In most cases, the price included with shipping is almost lower than the retail price with the discount. Competitive prices with a top notch selection. I recommend visiting their site to see what they've got, or if your in town make a stop. When you feel like rockin' out and throwin up the horns and feeling like a real guitar hero, this is where you need to shop! read more

I see a lot of people have apparently had bad experiences there, but mine was great and here it is: 6-String Limo Ride Being from overseas I had been reading their (then) humongous website since the early 2000's (it was so much bigger than the last version of it). I actually did learn a lot about guitar construction, the market, and even English there. In 2005 when I came to the US to attend GIT in LA I just had to go there, so I took a Greyhound within the first two weeks in the country (hadn't bought a car or gotten a DL yet). I Spent the night in a hostel and went to the shop early in the morning. I wanted to buy at least a good acoustic guitar which I hadn't brought from home. Salesman Doug was very helpful and professional. I chose a Garrison G40CE (great guitar which I still own and use several times a week to work). It did occur to me that the shop was not busy with customers and that disappointed me a bit because the website bragged about selling tons of guitars. Online or not, it didn't seem to be happening, but the shop was the ultimate electric guitar store dream on Earth. Acoustic selection wasn't bigger than Hollywood Blvd's big chain stores at that time. After the purchase I continued to look at the actual guitars I had been watching online for years. My conversational English was pretty poor then, but I knew all about the website: Ed's rants, his articles on each manufacturer's page etc. That impressed Doug enough to go in the back and bring Ed to meet me in person. I really felt for him as he needed a cane to walk, was severely obese and his legs were very bloated, blood-colored red (he was wearing shorts). He wasn't looking healthy, but the shop on the other hand was better than the designer lot at the NAMM show. It was really something! He gave me his CD (the man was actually a really good singer) and went back to his office with Doug, who came back saying they were going to take me to the Vegas Bus Station in their white limousine (the one that used to be on the website and had guitar decals on it). I don't know too many places that would do that. I've never sold the guitar I bought there and I plan on keeping it. For all his presumed shortings or things he might have done as a businessman, he was personally very nice to me, and I appreciate the kindness. I also value the fact that one day there was a one-man-owned shop which was about the size of a Costco and specialized in hi-end instruments belittling the corporate, chain stores with their stock market reports, uninformed staff and mediocre inventory. I feel lucky to have seen that and pitched my coin to support. Bottom line is, I was there to buy a guitar and not to kick tires or talk shop. When you go to a guitar store, remember that the people there make their living off their work (sales) and they spend every day in that environment. Be considerate. Peace. R.I.P. Ed Roman. read more

Dealt with Ed while inquiring about a guitar he had for sale. Not only was he insulting, but he was just flat out rude. How is this guy still in business? If you're looking for a minimum level of customer service or respect, go elsewhere. Judging from others experiences, it seems like I am not alone in my experience... read more

I'm so disappointed with Roman guitars. After years of coming to LV, I finally made the time to come and check Roman guitars. Not only was there a lack of service, but the arrogance of this dude, calling his basses and guitars CUSTOM SHOP. The only thing CUSTOM was the wood choices. And his attitude insulting my intelligence and my years of experience as a bass/guitar player and collector of GOOD quality custom made instruments was just abominable. How do u stay in business??? Not only does ur soon called "CUSTOM" instruments lack the quality, set up, finish, CUSTOM high end electronics, but he is in complete denial about the quality vs price on his instruments. Moreover, still have the balls to say this are handmade master pieces not made with cnc machines, when some Indonesian instruments have way better quality and your hand made master pieces of ish. And for your info: I own 2 Foderas, 1 Ken Smith Black Tiger Elite, 3 Hanewinkels, 1 Alembic series 1, 1 Alex Petronouv, and many more... so yes I know about CUSTOM SHOP, not garbage called CUSTOM SHOP. read more

Got royaly cheated Bought a kit for Ed Roman himself over the phone, paid $100 more for the price of a Saga Kit. The basically shipped me a Saga kit right in the Saga box. If that was what I wanted I would have bought a Saga kit for $100 less. What a miss representing rip off this guy is. He will sell these cheap kits by telling you they are something they are not. read more

7 years ago today (9/15/04) I was going to purchase a Johnny Ramone signature Mosrite in honor of Johnny's passing, ordered it over the phone thru Ed Roman Guitars using a credit card ,they placed the order and ran my card, I guess later in the day Ed had heard that Johnny Ramone passed away and had his people leave me a message and said" I needed to call them right away due to a problem" The only" problem" was Ed wanted to double his (my) money and profitise on a dead celebrity, I had a long argument with him on the phone and he reluctantly honored his original price which he basically had to legally since he already ran my card. He accused ME of being "sneaky" and deceiveing about the purchase, I told him I was a life long Ramones fan and had thought about buying the guitar for over two years, I just thought it would be my tribute to my guitar hero's passing..... I noticed those guitars doubled in price the next day which is sad because they still are just Japanese Mosrite copies no matter what he sez on his website. The only real true Mosrites were made by or under the supervision of Semie Moseley. I recieved the guitar but noticed I didn't get the included certificate of authenticity and Ramones pick as advertised.........the guy is a real piece of............work. read more

The previous reviewer nailed it: The great staff were down to answer questions and talk shop for hours, if that's what you want. No pressure, you get to try out the instruments, yet when you do make a purchase they don't just pull it off the wall (fingerprints, screwed up action and all) like the competition. What competition? In my humble opinion, Ed Roman's is a breed apart in the field of musical instrument stores. A mecca for the veteran axeman, yet nonthreatening enough for the beginner picking out his/her first instrument. When I was there, a salesperson noticed me staring longingly at a "Dean From Hell," (Dimebag Darrell limited edition), and took it down for me to play into a Randall. Playing "Domination" on that thing was as close to it as I was ever going to get. Minor annoyances such as rent and car payments derailed my crazy train, and after carefully handing it back, I instead perused their ample selection of instructional materials. I walked out of there into the July heat with a big smile, 2 books and a G3 DVD. I really need to get serious about improving my skillz, and this store provides inspiration in spades. Yet another well-deserved 5-star rating. read more

AN ABSOLUTELY ASTONISHING BASS GUITAR. I saw some weak reviews for this store, but I have to say, I have been playing a Fender Performed bass for almost 30 years, and I received one of this shops' custom Pearlcaster Performer basses, and I am flabbergasted at how incredibly playable, responsive, snappy and precise the instrument is. Custom-made instruments, I have to say, have a crispness and presence that I had no idea was missing until I played this instrument. I am quite literally stunned and in awe at how fabulous this piece of art and craftsmanship is. Scott Krell at the shop was extremely communicative, patient, and cooperative in working out materials, accessories, and shipping arrangements. I was nervous spending thousands of dollars on an untouched instrument, but the bridge, hardware, materials and construction described AND PICTURED on the website convinced me to try it, since the shop was making the instrument to the unique geometry of the Performer bass, but with lighter and more resonant woods, far better-constructed and superior hardware and construction, and a beautiful craftsmanship... I am SO PLEASED I chose to proceed. After having played bass for nearly 40 years, I have never played a bass that is so responsive and alive. read more

In the past I have been guilty of complaining about living in a town without access to a quality guitar shop. Also stating the inability to find a qualified tech much less a luthier; I now humbly and happily eat my words. I recently found and visited a shop I can only describe as "Guitar Paradise" it is called Roman Guitars. I'm sure many of you have heard of these folks, I had not. For those that don't know of them they hand manufacture truly beautiful instruments. I found them via web search and they are located in an industrial park 15 min from my house right off the strip. The site suggested that it was best to call before a visit, which I did. The location is new and not fully open for retail, but with a knock at the front door I was admitted by the VP Scott and was blown away. The retail inventory that is made up mostly of NOS guitars of every brand and style. Scott gave me a brief history of Mr. Roman (now deceased) as he gave me a tour; one large showroom of the retail stuff and this room that consisted of all the handmade Roman guitars. The base model was about 2.5k and they went up from there. They were truly works of art. I asked to see the production area and he agreed, he show me a room full of NOS parts, necks, bodies and electronics that Mr. Roman had acquired over many years. The back area had a curing room full of tones and exotics, the rest was wood working space with 2 luthiers and a tech (more of a luthier himself then anyone I had met previously). All the work was done by hand. After seeing the level of instruments they had I was embarrassed to admit what I was looking for, but I came for a reason and got down to it, not wishing to waste any more of the man's time. I was after a Bass that was under $500 (really less than that but I didn't have the heart to ask for anything lower). Scott didn't miss a beat and said "I will give the same service to someone coming in with $200 or $10 k and I have several fine bass' to show you." ( and he really meant it)He showed me 4 NOS Ibanez each under $200.They were all good but he suggested one that was quite a bit better, a 2009 NOS SR300 active EQ with a nice soft case and tax for $400. It was in perfect adjustment and flawless, and just want I was looking for.I handed him my card and he called his tech (Bob )out and handed it over to him. Bob asked me "do you have about 30 min, we always check the setup before we let one out the door. Do you want anything special, set up preference or string wise?" It felt fine as is was so I just said "do whatever you feel best". About 30 min later Bob came out and Scott asked him how it looked, Bob said "its fine but I'd like to do a bit more, would it be OK if I spent some more time on it, I want to oil the board and there's a few frets I would like to work on, would you mind if I kept it till tomorrow." I was flabbergasted I said" hell yes take all the time you need" (keep in mind this was part of the sale price no extra charge.) These men were really pros and treated me with up-most respect, the price was right in line with any box store or online place and I will never go anywhere else. Do yourself a favor and patronize this place, I have never experienced anything like it. I cant wait until I can save enough money to have a custom guitar made by them. read more

biggest ripp offs ever! ...ther ripped me off on a $3800 build ...they cracked my ebony and abalone fret-board, and shadily glued it back together thinking it would not be discovered ....by the time got to me, last fret was sticking up so high it was unplayable ...my local luthier tried to replace fret, and the board crumbled ...discovered it was broken and glued back together! ...got pics, and i am currently suing them ...they should have been honest and started over rather trying to pawn it off on me ...tried to call work with Scott Krell their head guy, and he was a complete ass to me as always ....to the point of calling me crazy for saying all the stuff wrong with my guitar ...so many things... frets were crooked ...and heal for neck was cut crooked too ...and they did not tung oil finish guitar as i order it to be ...just stained ...they shipped bare wood! ....and the wrong color ...i said "wine red" they stained it orange! ...could not believe it! ....Scott is the head guy and Mike was luthier who built the guitar ...both were a nightmare to work with ...very dishonest people ...i advise to stay clear of Ed Roman guitars ...they do not honor their work, and they do not honor they customers read more

People looking for a Guitar Center should just go to one..if you want to check out the best guitars this is your place. They DO sell Gibsons, Fenders etc..and they DO tell you abouth those instruments and their design flaws and how others are corrected which infuriates many of you turds who have money invested in overpriced production guitars who think they know things by reading blogs. Yes Ed has opinions people dont like and says them freely, and he gets the flak for it..but it doesnt change the truth that bitter turds who maybe shouldnt go there, do go there and ask stupid questions like where the Gibsons?? Duhh If you want a 1950 guitar go down your block dumbass...if you want a JET, or any other high end guitar and expect to see them without the finger grime of a hundred "test" dummies..go to Eds. I laugh at things like the guy who talks about the Ernie Ball situation who doesnt know 10% of the story but heard on a hate blog "facts" he can spew without any recourse. Yes turds can say anything online fact or fiction without ever even going there. Now I did have a issue with one of Eds guitars having rough fret edges but it was pointed out that it had not been set up yet and after I bought it and got it (Scorpion) it was WAY better than my Ibanez dreamed of being. Like a old friend. So put your politics aside, expect a private setting and be a serious buyer and Ed will negotiate..dont cry that it was too much without negotiating kids. And BTW many guitar brands (Eastman?) have been made in Japan AND the USA, and the price varies quite a bit so depending on when, who and where you ask you will get different answers..its up to you to have your facts straight but dont be a turd blogger sheep follower, and again, if youneed any of the shit you currentley like, go to the toilet (Guitar Center) and get another turd they will be happy to serve you up $300 worth of poor guitar for 2k plus. read more