Guitar Center Reviews

I met Ian at the Val vista store and was 1000 so helpful. This kind of customer service is what makes us want to spend money. 💰 Thank you Ian for your outstanding customer service. When I first met Ian he let me know that he noticed I needed help and said he was helping another customer. So I said it’s ok and when he did help me. It was over and beyond.

Used to play the guitar 30 years ago, life, work, things got in the way. But a few years ago started to play again. While I like to hunt for guitars at local shops, I found myself buying about 50% of my gear from Guitar Center. For starters if you add something to your cart and don't complete the purchase you get a call from a "Gear Advisor" which just stands for someone that literally knows nothing about gear just trying to pester you to buy. While that is annoying it's not the real issue.

I purchased a vintage bass online from GC that was quite expensive. A few days after receiving the bass, I removed the pickguard and discovered that the body had been routed and modified extensively, which was not disclosed. The vintage bass is worthless with that level of routing/ wood modification. Guitar Center refused to allow me to return it due to their 3-day return policy on vintage instruments. They should be really clear about a 3-day return policy. They could have also easily discovered and listed the modifications in this listing, which they did not.

I purchased a dream ukulele that was on my bucket list. A Flight 10th anniversary edition. It was a high dollar uke. Order was in and purchase was made. Then I got an email two days later simply stating that my order was canceled. No reason why, no apology and no statement that a refund would follow. Unacceptable. All they said in a chat (because there was no email to respond to) was maybe there was a mixup and the store could not find the instrument. Still no apology until brought up. The charge is still on my credit card. I hope it disappears soon. I should have looked at the reviews before buying from them..

Sent me an amp and it arrived smashed, they do not know how to package large items. Loosely packed in a cardboard box with a layer of bubble wrap. I can not advise buying anything larger than 1 lb from them.

I went to your store on Broadway in Tucson in Tucson Az to sell a vintage 1973 Fender Strat guitar. I needed some help with verifying the age of the guitar etc. Nick the store manager was fantastic from start to finish of situation... Took photos to send to someone to make an offer as well as had his tech Ben another cool dude take apart guitar to verify, all at no charge. Offer was made the next day very fair and accepted. I feel both parties were happy. I know I was. Side note, Nick is the only guy in Tucson that would even talk with me lol.

*This review is specific to online purchase* This Christmas eve I found my husband's dream guitar online and "in store" so I quickly submitted my order 'usually filled in ~2 hours' and rushed out to finish the rest of my last minute shopping. Frantically checking email to see if it was ready, no updates, no info.... So I stop in the store to see what's happening, and it ends up that specific model had already been 'sold out', so I ended up spending more $$ to get the next model up. The store clerk told me he couldn't cancel my original order because it was already getting shipped from fulfillment. Mind you still no emails or updates from the online order. He advises me to wait for it to arrive and then return it for refund, as it was the only thing he could do. At this point I'm now out the price of the original guitar and the new more expensive one I just bought.

I bought a used guitar from this location for my child. He had saved money from chores and tasks assisting neighbors, did his research on what guitar he wanted, and found this guitar in his price range. He was very excited about it! 24 hours after purchase, I was informed that the guitar had already sold and Guitar Center's system, which I was notified should have automatically updated after the guitar was purchased, did not update. When I talked to customer service, the representative offered me a list of other similar used guitars, all of which were 2-3 times more expensive and obviously out of my child's price range. The representative also informed me that the guitar listed as a "Fender Nashville Telecaster" made in China, actually had a Squier body with a Fender neck, and this was why it was in my kid's price range.

Once again, I was scammed by this company and left holding the bag. This time, with a mesa amplifier. The item started malfunctioning right after the "return window". Shocker. It kept getting worse, Guitar Center refuses any connection to it, and refuses to address this issue in any way other than "should have paid hundreds for our pro coverage." Avoid these people. Sweetwater always honors their deals, and always goes above and beyond to make sure the customer is taken care of. Go through them instead. I have had guitar center close my account, and remove all data from their back end. Scammers till the end as per usual.

I purchased two different guitars two different times to the app. They were both purchased online. They called the stores for the second guitar I purchased. They had it in the app and all the store out of Jacksonville Florida. The store decided I guess to sell it even though I called a total by purchased online. I checked it for information on it. The guy told me that they'd package it up. Would be shipping it out Monday then a day later on Sunday evening I received the email saying it was canceled. What I called another store because they were closed. Could get hold of them. They said the reason it was canceled is because it's somehow sold in the store.

Poor shipping services and does not do signatures on shipped items no matter the cost and will not honor if package says deans was not delivered. WILL NEVER DO BUSINESS WITH THEM AGAIN. BEWARE OF THIS SHADY IN DEBT COMPANY. THEY OWE 2 billion so they will steal your money and run

Purchased a American DJ fog machine and was sold the extended warranty by salesperson stating that, "Just bring it back in if it stops working and we will give you new one," I thought great I’ll take it, Villa Park, IL location. Nope. Brought it back in. They said, "Sorry we can’t exchange it. You need to go to manufacturer." Called corporate Guitar Center. They said, "Yes you have the coverage. Go back to the store. Get your exchange," I just got a flat out no and, "We don’t have to listen to corporate customer service," the opps manager stated. Ask them to call corporate while we were standing there. They refused that too. I’m personally never going back to the store as I read many reviews of people get abused by guitar center. This really needs to stop.

Guitar stepped up and helped resolve the issue. I am happy to report that they have kept a very loyal customer. I have even purchased a new Taylor since my last review. We all make mistakes, GC corrected and stood by me 100%. I absolutely will continue my loyalty as I need equipment.

You MUST be careful with Guitar Center. I was shocked to find out what I did in the end. So, I head into their store on July 5th to replace a DJ speaker that I had blown. I find their brand at a decent price and buy it. It did decent, so I head back in the next day to buy another one to make a pair and 12 speakers that they had on the floor the previous day were gone...poof. I say to them, Did you guys sell all these speakers or ship them out. They say they sold em...ok sure. So, I order one and ask for home delivery. Home delivery by UPS a week later that brings the speaker in a regular floor box with NONE NADDA styrofoam or protection. The speaker was dented and case busted badly. I couldn't believe how it was shipped. I refused the shipment.

I ordered a schecter 7 string that they had for sale online. They had the wrong pictures on the listing so had to cancel the order. They left the charge on my card for over a week and in that week the guitar I wanted was bought. Tried to chat on the website and the employee just closed the chat without offering any resolution. Had to call 3 different times to find someone to actually help me and even then their solution was to get a gear card or ask for a higher limit on the gear card.

I was in Guitar Center to purchase a new guitar. The first guitar I looked at was a 500 dollar Jackson. I put it back on the rack in 30 seconds. The intonation was so bad it would be a waste of time to even tune it. The next 6 guitars I tried out had the same issue. Intonation is off, some were better than others but not one I could play a full open cord sounding in tune. I was getting frustrated, enough so the I mentioned to one employee that it's really hard to find a guitar I want to buy when I can't find one that will tune properly. I won't buy a guitar that's not intonated, anyone who knows guitars well knows some guitars won't intonate as well as others for a lot of reasons. It may be only one string because the nut is out. I'm not finding that out after the fact.

My business with Guitar Center was plentiful in the past. I have purchased many guitars, high end, mid range, low end. All top brands, Gibsons, Taylor, Yamaha, Jackson, Schecter, Amplifiers, P.A. System, and countless accessories. I applied for a Gear Card many years ago. Excellent credit no problem. I used the card one time for a small accessory purchase. Paid it off. Months later I saw a promo and decided to use the card to purchase a guitar. That's what they do is sell musical instruments including guitars. It would not go through. I call for assistance. I was told it was a banking issue. That could not be because other retailers I buy from have their store cards using the same bank, which is Synchrony Bank. I never had any issues with the other retailers, just guitar center. Eventually a few years later the account is closed because the card was inactive. Why of course.

Wow, Guitar Center has dropped from my list of good retailers & internet sites. My friend & I went to a North Sacramento store to BUY a keyboard. We'd been the prior week, and after an amazing lack of product knowledge from several salespeople, and even their manager, we came home shaking our heads. This store is only a few minutes from my friend's home, so it's a perfect place to buy our favorite toys. After this disappointing experience (one that has also been repeated near me in Phoenix) my friend decided she needed to buy the product there, near her residence to support her local shop (and it cost more than other internet prices), and to make any future contact easy. But again, the employees seemed completely disinterested in making a sale, or in helping the customers at all..??

Called GC in Columbus Ohio a couple of weeks ago to inquire if they had an Epiphone Masterbilt Exellente in stock. The guy had no clue what this was. Finally, after several minutes he came back and said none in stock but they could order it if I came in and paid for it first. A couple days later I made the long trip to GC on Morse Rd. After about an hour of trying to find someone to help me someone finally came. After about a half hour of giving information to put in their system and standing there with cash in hand the whole time ready to count it out when it finally came time to pay I was told they did not accept cash. GC needs to learn that the time of others is valuable, time and inconvenience.

On Saturday, I took two guitars, an amp and a few pedals to sell in GC; something I've done before and accepted many fair and reasonable offers. This time, first the manager explained that they were understaffed (while two employees were sitting and talking, no customers, nothing) and it would take a bit longer for someone to help me. I chose to wait because GC is a 40+ minute commute, and I wanted to be fair to them. About an hour and a half later, the assistant manager, Victor, came in, slower than a sloth, concerned only with his cute hair and lookin' cool. He took a good hour and a half to test two guitars, one amp and three pedals; then the pricing system crashed and he couldn't log in or get any prices. OK, that happens, so upon my suggestion, he took the photos of my gear and promised to check the prices when the system gets back up, and text me the offers. Never happened on Saturday; he was not in the store on Sunday.

The Hickory, North Carolina store has had some great employees like Addison, Brennan, Sara, Daniel, Zack, and others. Problem is, none of those guys are still there. Management has created such a terrible environment, these people left. What once was a great store has deteriorated into garbage. They can't keep good help. They treat their workers like crap. Management don't have a clue what they're doing, and upper management is just as bad. They just don't care. You should try calling and asking for the manager. He ain't answering. I'm done.

I bought an Everse 8 in Athens, GA. That's an hour and 45 minutes from my house. It was kinda blah, so I went to return it, intending to purchase something else. The store had issues processing the return. I waited for over an hour. Nothing got done. They said they'd "call me later." Three days later, a gift card THAT CAN ONLY BE USED AT THAT STORE arrived at my house. In order to use it, I have to shop online, call a representative, place the order, etc. There's no option to enter the card on the website. So their return policy is utter bullshit. If you buy something they'll only process a return as store credit, apparently. Fast forward. I bought a speaker cabinet online. The store at which it originated emailed and said, "sorry it's broken." So I was like, "Cancel the order."

I never understood why do we keep buying anything from Guitar Center. Their merchandise is in very low quality, and their guitars look cheap even though their prices are up in the sky. Whatever you want to buy from Guitar Center, you can find it anywhere for way less. Moreover, the resale value of their guitars is zero, according to them.

Ordered Used DJ controller on 12/11...long story short, they lost it...after being lied to by multiple people, finally got it on 12/23...Then it shows up with no power supply...they say it's my fault.

The South Austin store might be the worst Guitar Center store, but that is debatable. They normally have one person working. As I have heard the one person working say, “ everyone else is in the back”. From not knowing anything about any product they sell, to a limited selection of merchandise. Guitar Center these days remind me of RadioShack before it closed down. Got lessons but no good guitars to learn on. I would not be surprised if they start selling phones and phone service plans.

They own a surrogate scamming website company Musicians Friend. Musicians Friend mimics Guitar Center's business model: for every customer lost we get 5 new ones so why bother being an honest merchant. I purchased a used guitar that was confirmed by email from them in "like new" condition." It wasn't. Their return process did not result in obtaining a return shipping label. Obfuscation is an appropriate label to apply. I asked for a $50 refund instead that would allow me to have repaired.. they refused. Never again will I like others will purchase from Guitar Center or their surrogate Musicians Friend websites.

I ordered a Mackie Thump215 Powered Speaker (Open Box) online. They shipped me a Mackie 12A (Used/Older Model/much less expensive than the 215). They would not reconcile the order (Ship the correct unit and pick up the incorrect unit). They offered me a credit but expected me to eat the $33.22 shipping. They also wanted me to take the large package to USP for them. The customer service representative said that there was no one above him that could do any more than he could. The Mackie215 is a 15 inch power 1400W speaker. The 12A is a 12" 1300W speaker and is much less expensive new than a 215. Don't shop this online provider; they are not reputable.

This review is for rating the quality of work performed at Guitar Center's shipping department. I had ordered a Boss 50 amp but what I received was a useless speaker cabinet in which is not even close to a Boss 50 amplifier. Stuff like this happens more and more due to people and companies not caring to satisfy the customers. You probably could take an 8th-grade kid and give him the pick sheet and I bet he or she could pull the right item reflected on the customer's order. But no not Guitar Center. I blame not only the warehouse worker, but the supervisor as well for this.

I have done business with Guitar Center and its entities for over 20 years. This most recent interaction displays an escalating pattern of poor customer service, deceptive billing practices, siloed management and a general lack of responsibility for issues they have created for themselves. We worked with the institutional department to purchase sound equipment for a marching band. The large order was serviced through a purchase order and the local store repeatedly mishandled the transaction. They asked us to provide the purchase order number and a tax exempt ID and the purchase could go through. Having provided the requirements, they told us they could not process the payment without a Net30 account which would take up to 8 weeks to set up. They also said they could not produce an invoice for us to present to our finance secretary to approve the payment.

The lessons scheduler in Danvers, MA was condescending and snarky when we asked him a follow-up question to a prior conversation (We asked when a lesson would be that he said he'd need to figure out when to schedule). He treated us like we were trying to get away with something, as if we had just not shown up for a lesson. My son pointed out that the misunderstanding was caused by a typo. The scheduler had mistyped my son's email address, so we never got the email stating when the lesson would be. But, even after realizing his mistake, the scheduler still chose to talk at us as if we had done something wrong. Unfortunate. This really didn't have to happen to anyone, much less a customer.