It's funny how you can live somewhere for ages and still make joyous discoveries, such as this. I…read morecame in here a while ago (having some how missed it!) and was delighted to see a shop dedicated to retro gaming. Although as I entered the front of the store had a few bare shelves, next to the DVDs that were on sale, as you delve further back there are many retro gems to be found. All kinds of old school games and consoles are on offer here, from Sega Saturn, Nintendo 64, Mega Drive and many more. I'm always on the look out to find old games and was really chuffed to see they had quite a few of my old favourites in attendance! All the classics, Golden Eye, Sonic and a range of Disney games to name but a few, were there before my gleaming eyes. They also buy in old stock, which is great news for me as I have a hoard of items that I really can't see myself playing anymore, so promised the guys I would be back soon with a bag of goodies for them! One of the best things, other than the old school haven of games, was that they had a whole hoard of Tartan Asia Extreme films on sale too. To any other fans of Tartan, you'll know this is pretty awesome, since Tartan Asia is sadly no more! I'd strongly advise getting in there and stocking up, if I don't beat you to it that is... To conclude: Friendly staff, awesome retro games, Tartan DVDs. That adds up to a win in my book!

This is a brilliant little shop which ok is not as cheap as cex most of the time, but the fact…read morethat majority of the time they have DVD's and games that cex don't more than makes up for it and are generally in better condition as most discs i get from there don't have a single scratch or finger print!! Considering its only a small shop they have a very large selection to choose from, for example you can get anything from super nintendo, and dreamcast to PS3 and XBOX 360 games and video cassettes to DVDs. Its deffinatly worth a look if you want to buy a box set as they are quite often fairly cheap. The service is very friendly and they know what they are doing I would recomend anyone to go in and have a look.

There are two World's Apart shops in Liverpool and contrary to the name they are actually quite…read moreclose together. This building in Lime street is a mess and needs a sympathetic refurb and clean. I was surprised to discover that actually this shop is part of a small chain. I visited the shop for the first time this week. It's full of comics and toys you simply can't get elsewhere - not that I have tried. So many of the toy figures I could not recognise although I did spot some of the original Dr Who figures and some from Final Fantasy. Forget Toys R Us, this place is a wealth of badges, stickers, games and oddness for kids, adults and fans of things I've never even heard of.

Like its geeky counterpart, Forbidden Planet on Bold, World's Apart deals in all things cult. Cult…read moreis often a term used to describe things that have a strong, devoted core audience - or for studio executives something with low viewing figures. But no more, the popularity if this store can be seen on Saturday afternoons as children and adults alike fill the store and rummage through the amazing collections of limited edition, imported and new toys, comics, books, graphic novels, DVDs, posters and clothing for every genre and range of sci-fi, horror and anime franchise.

THECDVAULT.COM was an excellent find . browsing the web I…read morefound the most unbelievable catalog of rock rarities available for purchase , prices were incredibly affordable and the service was THE BEST . the guys are collectors and they understand your questions I recommend them 100% .

Man this shop is pokey!…read more Big Deal sell a good deal of stuff for such a small space, that is for sure. Their goods range mostly in music items and electrical goods, most especially amplifiers and guitars although there are a number of other items on sale here too. As a lot of the items have been part exchanged/are second hand it means they offer reasonably competetive prices on their goods. The main issue with this, though, is that when searching for musical items money isn't (and shouldn't be) the main factor. I'm not saying one should go crazy, but it doesn't matter how cheap their Takemine might be, that doesn't mean it is a better deal than a full price elsewhere. I'll elaborate. Unfortunately therein lies the problems with musical instruments - line up seven of exactly the same guitar from the same factory from the same day, and one will be miles above the others for sound quality. One will sing and you'll notice it compared to the others. There just aren't two guitars the same - you can test this yourself by annoying the salesmen in any guitar shop in Leeds and ask to play as many of the same brand and issue as they have! (In buying a guitar recently I did just this to weedle out the best one!) What I'm getting at is that Big Deal have a lot of great offers and some very nice prices, but be sure to test the item first and make sure it sings as well as it should. Unless you've naught the patience for all that, in which case, go enjoy a bargain!

Smiling, helpful, knowledgeable staff in a shop that is tiny and jam packed with so much electrical…read morestuff that is all looked like a black haze to me. If you need anything electrical from cables to speakers, turntables to laptops, guitars and lights they are likely to have it for a good price although this value seems to have decreased (i.e. prices have risen) since el crunchio. You get a three month guarantee with most items and part-exchanges are welcome. Many of my friends have happily purchased second-hand laptops from here (after a mass laptop theft) and all are happy with their purchases. Enjoy a tight-squeezed browse or just ask what you are after and the men will be glad to help.

Sadly Spectre has now closed, which is a shame.read more

This is one of the best music shops in the district and although small, offers some great bargains…read moreon all musical instruments. They seem to specialise in guitars but have good knowledge on all aspects of musical instruments. They have very friendly staff who are passionate about music. Many years ago I was a fan of a band called China Crisis who used to get all their gear from here when it was call JSG. It might have changed hands over the years but it is still a great store that offer some excellent product at great prices with a smile.

I'm a new record collector and I'm trying to get all of Taylor Swift's albums! I live in the…read moreUnited States and there is a local record store that I like, but they never have three of her earlier albums. I tried to buy them online, but the prices are outrageous/way over retail. I think I found out about Vinyl Tap because they sell through Amazon, although I ordered directly from their website (vinyltap.co.uk). I loved the fact that they are a small, independent record shop with a brick and mortar store in the UK. I think Vinyl Tap's website is easy to use and they had the three albums I needed. There is a button on their website where you can change the currency and they ship internationally. I thought the prices were incredibly fair and the shipping costs weren't bad! After I placed the order, it took about three weeks to arrive (I picked the slowest option). The records were packaged well and arrived in perfect condition. They were shrink wrapped and the store put an extra outer record sleeve on each one. They also included a printout of the other Taylor Swift albums they have. I thought that was so cool. I am very happy with my purchase and I look forward to buying more records from Vinyl Tap.

The worst customer service, they dont deliver a tracking number, they don't refund…read more I write them emails and they have just ignored me, they are not ashamed to violate my rights as a consumer.

this is good shop for guitars drumsetc. tiny shop but jam packed with musical goodies ie straps…read morestrings electric acoustic amps and loads more

Darlington is a pretty small town and has had many music shops in the past (with 'Williams' being…read morethe longest standing and most prominent). I personally think the Darlington Music Centre is one of the best music stores we've had in Darlington, the staff are friendly and always very willing and helpful. The prices are pretty competitive and if appropriate they have been willing to negotiate in the past. For a music store in a small town they also have a decent selction of guitars including big name originals like Gibson, Fender and PRS. Also for those of you wanting to learn how to play an instrument you can enquire in store for guitar lessons or drum lessons, in fact you can take the drum lessons at the back of the store so you don't need a drum kit and don't need to annoy your neighbours (until you decide you're serious about it!;)

Was looking for some sheet music & books for base guitar. A fair selection available. Have been in…read morea few times & have found it has what I need.

I really can't get over how cheap the books are in here now. On a brief and short-lived re-visit…read more(for shame, we had to get home for tea!) I discovered that they were selling some utter bargains. Classics - 3 for a fiver, some books were even 2 pounds, which is incredibly cheap! And, Jeanette Winterson on sale for a mere few quid - how's that for something a little bit special?! Awesome stuff, I may have to pilgrimage back. Again, I can't seem to find a particular theme on what books they do, the classics were bunched and so was modern fiction, but I couldn't discern much more than that so you'll have to be prepared to hunt. Saying that, if you're in the mood to just pick up something new, and don't have your heart set on a particular volume, this place is ideal to have a trawl. The TK Maxx of books, per chance? Nope, better, it's way cheaper than that!