Phoenix – Top 20 places for music shops20 recommended music shops in Phoenix

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Just picked up my 1984 Guild guitar that I had set up at Brandolino’s. They did a fantastic job, ( in record time may I add and at a very reasonable price), it plays better than it did new.
I highly recommend them, and will not go anyware else for my musical needs. Thanks Bob

The best kind of mom and pop place with awesome people who do their best to provide awesome service.

This store is amazing! not only did they everything I needed for my new drum set but they let bang away on their showroom drum set for hours like Lars Ulrich from Metallica. Im new to drumming so I’m sure it sounded like I was beating a baby with a cat. but after countless hours and many annoyed customers later I was surprised that Bobby and his team hadn’t kicked me out. Thanks again Bobby and the team I’ll definitely be back!

I didn’t wanna have to ask to play the guitars, but other than that, it was perfect

This place does not do instrument repair, and has not every time I call for the past 6 months. I finally took my Electric Guitar to West Side Music Center. I haven’t actually been able to go inside for some time because they leave their neon “OPEN” sign on even if they are closed.

Very pricey and will give you outrageous quotes for repairs when you can get the work done much cheaper elsewhere

They gave me a quote on fixing my guitar that was out of this world. They said it would cost more to fix it than the guitar was actually worth. Whoever I talked to said they would have to send it out to a different tech. Long story short I got a second opinion and it only cost me $15 to get it fixed…… Good place to take lessons but don’t take your instruments here to get fixed.

Amazing experience in the guitar and drums

Very friendly staff and very knowledgable. The instrument repair was faster than they said. Very efficient and great service. Highly recommend them for music sheets or instrument repair.

Didn’t end up finding exactly what I wanted, but the associates were very knowledgeable and informative! I’ll be coming back here.

Great place with very friendly staff members. They’re always willing to help. I used them for instrument rental for a couple of my kids.

Good

Very friendly and welcoming place. Had an issue with a repair but they corrected the problem. Took more than stop to resolve the issue, so 4 out 5 stars. Would still recommend and will continue to shop here.

Pretty legit place. I like it.

Super friendly!

Great place!

Friendly and helpful staff very knowledgeable prices are competitive. Love them been going to this store for 2 generations. My wife took lessons here and now our kids do as well. Friendly family atmosphere where they encourage every to achieve greatness.

Lovely place.

Friendly people, very professional and very very great & fast service. My son trumpet fell and was so banged up I just knew it was a trash, took it in to Melody Mart and it was fixed in less than a day, turned out to look almost new, myself or my son couldn’t believe the great work that was done to bring his trumpet back to life. Melody Mart will always be our go to place.

It’s a good place to get your kids to start learning how to play an instrument.

Very rude staff. I approached the counter and asked if I could complete the online registration for music lessons in person. The staff member spoke very rudely to me. When I notified this person of his unprofessional attitude, he told me I had “interrupted [him] while he was doing something important for a customer”. I told him he was so rude that I probably wouldn’t even sign up for the lessons. He responded “fine” and took the paper with my information on it, balled it up and threw it down onto the floor directly in front of me before turning his back to me while I was speaking. Meanwhile, a second staff member stood by watching and smiling. If you enjoy being disrespected, this place will be perfect for you.

** Thank you for your response, Melody Mart. There is no misunderstanding. Don’t backpedal now, keep your same energy as you displayed in person. There were NO customers at the counter and you asked “How may I help you?”. Your unprofessional behavior from that moment forward was totally inappropriate and out of proportion for the situation. Not sure how you can justify throwing a customer’s information onto the floor. Keep your services. I’ll take my business elsewhere.

Parking is terrible. Some of the instructors are not very good, but a few are..kinds a gamble for your money..no refunds on missed lessons…instructors and staff will tell you anything to get your money oh did o mention terrible parking …make sure you have your walking shoes on

Always great to see Jerome!

Grant and his staff are the most honest and passionate staff I ever met. I went there to buy a pretty expensive drum set we talked on the phone I told him I had a drum set from 20 years ago that had some broken misc parts.
I brought them in and he suggested getting new heads that he suggested would work well with my kit he called guitar center and got me the best price. I brought heads back and he made the repairs and replaced drum heads for 100 labor . Needless to say I didn’t buy that 3,000 dollar drum set and now have a great sounding kit everyone says sounds amazing.
Thanks for all you’re help grant your a blessing to the drumming community.

Always fast and friendly service.

Unbelievable music experience

My 13 year-old son has been taking drum lessons at North Shore Music for 2 years. He’s also in the studio’s band camp which places him with other students to form a rock band. They perform in public around Wilmette. He absolutely loves it and so do we parents. Alejandro and his staff are terrific!

This is an awesome place to improve your skills in music. The owner really knows his stuff and the staff is always helpful when it comes to rescheduling lessons. Can’t recommend enough.

Great place to take guitar, drums or bass lessons! My Son’s been in 3 sessions here and has progressed immensely.

They have serviced my Taylors, Martin and a premium Tak all-with great care and skill defiantly to go to place if you want integrity and workmanship.

First class service!!!
I received my guitar in California in just a couple of days in perfect condition.
The knowledge and consideration from Paul T. is proof of his capable hands.
Thanks so much.

Great guys, beautiful guitars and a warm store with a cool vibe!

I went in to check out a Fender used acoustic and walked out with a Taylor! I played the Taylor GS Mini and I’ve always wanted a smaller guitar to transport easily….I was hooked when I played her. Paul showed me another finish that was available and the case that came with it. The case was really nice considering the Taylor I was getting was on the lower price tier. It was easy to pull the trigger. Ken and Paul (son & father) couldn’t be nicer & more helpful. They are “guitar guys” and know their guitars.

The selection of Martin guitars is very nice and the Taylor room is…WOW! They have some gorgeous guitars. Also, check out their Eastman guitars. I have an Eastman and you get a great value for the $! They also carry Michael Kelly, Washburn along with a couple others as well as some used guitars.

My experience there is ALWAYS great.

***EDIT***
So, I am knocking down my review from five stars to three; due to my most recent experience a couple months after the first one. So I reached backout to buy another guitar (place order) as I really wanted an AD22e or another model I can’t remember, but after confirming they could place the order I let them know that I wanted the AD22e and to provide me the full price so we could close the deal and they went silent, mind you I didn’t even get a copy of the receipt from my AD27e that never came which I had also requested from the last conversation.

I did finally get my guitar ordered but I had a national retailer place the order. I was disappointed I didn’t hear back from Tobias Music about completing the purchase and obtaining a copy of the receipt for my AD27e that never came.

** original **

Just bought an AD27e (Taylor) from them after finding it for sale online. it was a great buying experience. I’m a lefty, buying guitars online is the norm, and most of the time guitars I buy take a day or two to pack and ship. we had a few emails back and forth and they were quick to respond and very professional. These guys had it packed and shipped the same day, and I didn’t place my order until after lunch; that’s service.

They also took the time to dial the guitar in; it came with the action set and was tuned ready to play out of the box. Paul did a great job and really made this buying experience easy, and hassle free. I’ll have to check back often to see what other lefty guitar they get in. If I have the chance, I will buy from them again.

They are more of a acoustic guitar place not really a place for bass players .

Amazing selection of quality guitars, mandolins, banjos, and other stringed instruments. Steve and Molly are very knowledgeable about all the instruments they sell and always friendly and helpful. Also a great place for workshops, seminars, and concerts.

Where do I start??? I cannot say enough about Steve and Molly. While deployed to Afghanistan, I saw they had a Lowden Richard Thompson Signature model at a substantially lower cost than other retailers. We went back and forth with correspondence; I phoned in my deposit and a couple days later the rest of the payment. Steve’s and Molly’s customer service was wonderful. Down Home Guitars is going to make my homecoming that much more special!! I cannot thank them enough… I look forward to do more business with them in the future!

Kids been taking piano lessons from Mr.Bob for years and still loving it. Can’t wait for them to take singing lesson. Thank you!

The store carries beautiful high-end acoustic instruments. They also hold some impressive seminars and concerts. If you want the very best and can spend 6K on a guitar then this store may be for you. With a larger wallet, perhaps you will receive better treatment than I did. The red-haired owner of this store is probably the rudest retail store owner I have ever experienced. Of course, I wasn’t there to spend thousands of dollars. I simply went there to buy picks, strings, tab books, and to explore and discuss instruments with other music lovers. My initial visits were often greeted by cold, stiff, and awkward personalities. After multiple visits, I expected things would warm up, and while some staff were friendly, it was never a comfortable experience. This was especially true whenever the owner was present. Pompous and arrogant seem apt descriptions, and small talk and small wallets are beneath him.

One of the best guitar shops I’ve ever been to. The place has so much great stuff that it is overwhelming. If you’re looking for a great guitar or bass, come to CME and make sure to plan on spending the day there

Everything about The Chicago Music Exchange is excellent

Da bomb. I love that my Lakeview bike shop is a neighbor to this gem. come on..
Bikes and music..
I mean when I ride my bike with my ukelele on my back…la dolce vida

Cool guitars, but expensive as all hell.

I bought my Taylor 144ec from CME. I am loving it. When i went in I was Immediately attended by an employee. I was offered help to find a perfect guitar for me. They tuned my guitar and gave me a gig bad. I would recommend this store.

I had seen it online so while I was in Chicago last weekend decided to check it out. Unfortunately I got there at 6:30, and only had a half-hour to look around. They ended up chasing me out at 7:00. They had a huge selection in all price ranges. I just wish I had more time to look.

First time I came in to check out some synths and was informed that half of the rooms power was out and the synth guy was out of town for a few days. The drum guy got the synth I was interested running after me pushing him a bit. However he had no knowledge of how to work the synth so I held out. Got a guitar as a Christmas gift. We are local to Chicago so my family member called and made sure it was there when we were informed it had to come from the warehouse and when she went in the next day they sold the guitar on amazon. They had a different color so it worked out I suppose. Today I placed an order online for in store pick up and when I called to confirm they had it. They said it would not be in until tomorrow. Again, not ideal but it is what it is. I had three instruments I wanted to drop off for repair and when I got there I was informed that they were not taking repairs. Two hours round trip for nothing. There should be something online stating that it will not be same day pick up and that they are not accepting repairs at this time.

The guitar I got is set up well and the inventory is awesome. I do think I’ve just had a stroke of bad luck with the store.

I was in there to buy a Gibson 1959 reissue, close to $7k, and was scolded for my mask slipping just under my nostrils, not intentionally wearing under my nose. So, I decided to take my business elsewhere. I would not recommend going there unless you would like to be demeaned and scolded like a child, all while multiple employees were wearing their masks under their chins.

If you play guitar I guess this would be the place to hang out. If you are a drummer you might want to find somewhere else to go. They have the drum dept. jammed in a tiny space an 1/8 the size of the guitar area. I think the acoustic guitar room might be larger than the drum room. So unless you know what you want this might not be the place to start looking for gear. I have not tried Vic’s Drum Shop yet but I do believe from what I have heard, that this is the place for drummers period. Nothing against CME, but for drummers there isnt a whole lot of good here.

I had a great experience, and Lincoln was super professional. I went in with a beat up Guitar and he fixed it right up for me and told me where to look to start learning how to play

I play the guitar and I was indeed of new strings so I stop by. They have great prices and the staff was friendly & very helpful. It’s now my go to place for all music instrument supplies. I recommend you try this place. -Orlando

We called Kagan and Gaines when we needed a drum set for one of our children who wanted to be able to continue drum lessons online. The customer service was fantastic, and Kagan and Gaines was able to deliver a drum set to us within a few hours! Our son LOVES the new drum set. Thank you, Kagan and Gaines!

45 dollars for an on the spot (30 min) electric guitar restring, minus the price for the strings, is a little steep, folks. I appreciate the good work, but I can get the same treatment for a lot less at A Sound Education off Ogden.

Really great staff, knowledgable and well stocked.

Unfortunately I won’t be able to justify shopping there any longer for my business because their three day return policy and extremely limited store hours make it difficult to get back over there within the period.

(I’m unwilling to pay a 20% restocking fee for unopened cables)

Hate to say it because I wish my business was going to an independent store rather than the corporate or online big boxes.

I gave this place a bad review after dealing with a younger employee But when the manager was alerted to the situation (A few days later) it was dealt with fairly. Kagan and Gains has a long time reputation in their neighborhood of being the first choice for musical lessons of any instrument and Fair pricing on instruments and accessories. It may not be the best place to shop for a new guitar But they can handle all your needs afterwords. I recommend them for all your strings, Guitar cases, Band instruments, ect. You will find all of them are of good quality and pricing.

I hate to agree with the user below who complained of a dishonest experience, but we are going through the same. I’ve read all of the other 5 star reviews and notice a pattern: it seems that for violin and stringed instruments, this is a great place. For renting brass/woodwind instruments via their monopoly with the school districts, they are subpar and dishonest. We should have just purchase a used instrument which would have resulted in us obtaining a superior instrument at, I am not exaggerating, 1/4 the total cost. We just had to call them to stop processing our credit card when we noticed we had been paying an abnormally long time on my daughter’s VERY USED, VERY DENTED saxophone (4 years!). We were “reassured” that, coincidentally, they were just going to call us as well as our payments happened to be completed. Yet they have no records of all the payments that we made, and are asking us to provide payment records going back to 2017 to “prove” how much we have paid in total. Luckily for us, we can easily provide them as they have all been made on the same credit card for years. We are also disputing the amount owed as our daughter’s original “nicer” model saxophone broke, was taken in for repairs, and she was given a loaner, student-model, older and dented sax. Her other one was never repaired and instead she’s just had this one forever. We were told at the time it would be “worked out.” Now they want us to pay the same amount as they were going to charge for the initial instrument to keep this replacement instrument permanently, as they also claim to have NO record that any switch was ever made or that the original saxophone was ever brought in for repairs. Typically, I endeavor to support neighborhood shops, but not when their record keeping is straight out of Mayberry. This is taking a lot of our time and energy to sort out, and we’ve ultimately laid out over $2300 to own an instrument that I have found at multiple music stores online for around $600 and under. We understand that renting the own is typically more expensive, but this feels like being swindled in every way. Extremely disappointed. My husband has been playing music for over 40 years – he also used to play saxophone – and his mother is a professional classical musician. He is used to dealing with all sorts of music shops and has never had an experience like this one.

I saw on another website that they were selling one of my dream guitars, so I called them up and asked them a few questions and a few minutes later I was the proud owner of said guitar. They had shipped it within the next couple of hours and it was at my door 24 hours later. After owning this guitar for a week I saw that the manufacturer had a black Friday Sale for the exact model I purchased. I contacted Make’N Music and a week later they were able to refund me money for the sale price. The manufacturer is in Israel by the way. This place knows and understands customer service to the tee! I hope I am able to purchase many more products through them. They went above and beyond for me! Truly an awesome business!

Was in town and decided to stop in and have a look around. One reviewer wrote, “Guitar Center is for kids.” Ha! Hysterical but true!

Truth is, this is THEE place to shop if you’re in the Chicagoland area. Teddy and the crew are top shelf and know how to take care of their customers. So much to choose from, eye / tone candy for days, impeccable customer service and the list goes on. I always know to check Make’n Music first.

High end amps, guitars and lessons.

Great service

check em out

Great people. Real nice, know what they’re talking about. Take their gear over the local competition because they just know it better, even if it isn’t spooky. Their techs are very likely great but weren’t in-site available when I visited. It’s still a beautiful shop.

Store is really different from the earlier locations off Milwaukee Ave., Ohio St., and Artesian. Even the store off Hubbard – after the move from Artesian – had far more inventory.

Though I could be wrong, it seems as though the days of finding tons of high-end boutique, FCS, GCS and PRS guitars hanging on the walls is gone. Also gone are the days of 8-10 really cool high-end amp makers being represented, including several products on the floor from builders like Elmwood, Bogner, Matchless, Victoria, Fuchs and on and on. The effects offerings are also a small portion of what they used to be.

Not quite sure what happened to the store the past couple/few years. Used to be, far and away, the finest boutique shop in the country (used to get regular visits from cats like Billy Gibbons, Keith Richards and many others that would fly in just to buy gear).

I wish the current guys the best of luck. And hope they have a long and healthy ride. Would be cool to see the store return to its former glory years, when it was The Grand Daddy of cool gear.

I was in the market for an American made Telecaster and they had nothing to show me. I had my brother n law tell me he wanted to take up bass and they don’t carry basses. I don’t understand what their market is? Another example of how bad the Chicago area music stores are.

THESE GUYS THINK THEY ARE SO SMART!!!!!!!!!

Great LOCAL guitar shop.

Went in looking to trade in a guitar, and although it was found to be in need of some repairs, thanks to Tim and crew, a very pleasant outcome was made possible. Tim made a suggestion for a strat type guitar that would fit my trade value, and I made the purchase then. Brought it home and did a little practice with it and it seems to play very well. Plan on being a regular visitor and customer as well. Nice to find a place who cares about the customer still.

i’ve been in music all my life and playing stringed instruments for over 50 years. this shop is without question the best experience(s) i’ve had with any stringed instrument shop in that time. the maintenance/repair shop is the finest i’ve seen, staff treat your instruments with loving care, as if they are working on their own instruments and their communication about options/techniques for the work they are doing is first-rate. i will take my instruments (fender/ gibson/ martin/ ibanez) nowhere else.

Great local place with friendly staff!

They do not always have the instruments they say they do!

Pleasant place and ppl. Decent prices. They know their stuff!

Brought in two guitars over the summer. An old Ibanez musician and a newer Eastman semi-hollow body. They thought it would be done in about a week and turns out they were busy and that is fine. Several weeks later i was contacted about the Ibanez and I appreciated the recommendations and ultimately did not have any work done on it. The other guitar was supposed to get a new pick-up selector switch, re-strung and set-up (I had already taken the strings off). I picked the guitars up (paid) and did not think to open the cases to look at them. I got home and they had literally not touched the Eastman. No strings, no new selector switch , nothing. I couldn’t believe it. Still can’t…

I had the worst experience, I left my guitar for strings replacement and calibration. The gave my guitar back with the truss rod !loose! And the neck with a giant bow. I ended up calibrating the guitar myself.

Brought my five string J Bass in for repair. They were not able to fix the problem, and even worse they forgot to put the battery cover back on the bass, lost the screws, and didn’t even offer to replace them!

A class organization that is going to make sure you’re happy.
I got a ukulele that had a very small imperfection in it. I was unable to exchange it for another one because, as luck would have it, that model had become discontinued. Rather than take a discount, I returned the 1st ukulele for a Kala KA-SCAC-T8 Tenor 8 String. It arrived in immaculate condition and was setup perfectly. Matt was very professional, patient and understanding throughout the whole process. I’m extremely happy with my new ukulele and Aloha City Ukes and I highly recommend you check them out.

I was so excited when my uke teacher told me about a ukulele store nearby. Aloha City Uke in Park Ridge is a beautiful store. I was a bit of a kid in a candy store. If I didn’t already love ukulele, I now have all the best to choose from to start a collection. I wanted to get a Kala Elite Series Tenor. Matt had a beautiful Myrtle Wood Kala; I loved the warm, bold sound. It was lovely to chat and ask questions, and play some of the other Ukes in the store. Buying online is nice, but actually holding the uke and playing it in person is best. Matt is super helpful. Once I decided on the Myrtle Kala,
Matt got her all set up with some nice touches. I’ve not been able to put Myrtle down the last few days.

It was a pleasure to do business with Aloha City Ukes and Matt.

Just received my new Kala KA SA B uke, only 3 days after having placed the order, fully set-up and with a nice set strings on it, too. It’s beautiful!Great products, great price, great customer service all around. I love that they provide free set-up. You guys are great!

Bought my first uke here. The customer service was excellent and equaled the quality of my beautiful sounding new uke. Will be buying from Aloha City Ukes again. They also set it up.
This is an update add-on. Took my Lanikai Flame Maple baritone uke to an acoustic jam session last night (no amps allowed)and was floored when my uke could be heard over 5 other acoustic guitar players, Cajon and violin. Excellent instrument for accompaniment for my song choices. “ABSOLUTELY MAKE SURE you are aware of their small timeline for returns. My second uke same brand but tenor turned out to be a bummer of an experience, plus I had to beg for a refund after 7 days. The uke looked like it had been strung with thick cables and looked as if it was strung by a child. I have NEVER had problems barre ing but it was IMPOSSIBLE on this uke. It was touch and go as to whether Id get a refund plus I had to pay $45 to send it back. Wont be shopping Aloha City ukes again. First time was a charm. Second purchase was a nightmare.

Got there 10 minutes to 4 but they closed early. I gave 2 stars for the online store.

Would give zero stars if I could. I’m very disappointed with how they treated my father. He bought a ukulele here to increase his skills & knowledge after a long & hard battle with cancer. The owner was kind during the sale, but his demeanor rapidly changed after it. My father tried asking questions afterward, such as how he could get the most out of his instrument.. to which the owner replies with “just don’t play it.” I’m genuinely disgusted to know that this is how the owner treats their customers after a sale. I’m in such disbelief by how manipulative and unprofessional this business is. I will be letting everyone we know in our music/ukulele community that they should never come here. I hope the owner learns to be kind to all after this.

I have been taking lessons from Keith for the past year. I’m learning a lot and having so much fun. I just bought a Fender Stratocaster and it sounds excellent! I look forward to going their each week.

Very professional, kind and attentive employees, even better environment. Great higher end shop with some beginner/affordable guitars/basses/etc as well. Prices align perfectly with what you buy hands down, instruments are treated with great care before leaving in your hands.

As it is not uncommon for me to find different ways of doing something everyone else has done, I managed to break my tuner peg on my bass in a way most players have never before encountered.

While initially worried about labor costs, I took my instrument to Midlothian Music and it turned out an upgrade on all of the pegs would be in my best investment, especially in the pocket-book. Turn-around time was perfect for my needs and the cost came in less than what I had initially set aside to get 4 strings back on my bass.

This wasn’t my first time turning to Midlothian Music in the past 15+ years and love having two stores to choose from!

I love all the products but at times the service was bad, other visits there were good service. Thanks!

False/Misleading Product Description and no follow-up. I purchased a used Yamaha Student Alto sax that was advertised as being above excellent and completely cleaned (being taken apart, soaked, and cleaned with anything necessary being replaced to play perfectly). Transaction started out 5-Stars. Requested pictures, they sent the next day. Placed order and sent out the same day. When I received the package, the instrument was filthy on the inside and out. The mouthpiece was dirty and covered with scale and did not appear to be cleaned or sanitized. A few pads were completely decayed, several were cracked, some were caked with dirt and crystalized sugar. Food buildup on tone holes made playing extremely difficult. A handful of the rods were corroded. Requested refund a week ago. Emailed and messaged them several times. Silence from seller since.

Update: Response from vendor is false and misleading. Instrument was reported as in bad condition and not playing well within an hour of receipt and an RMA was requested 30 minutes later. Almost a week later with no response from the vendor a claim was filed. Instrument was purchased on Reverb and shipped 2,100 miles. If the vendor won’t respond, simply bringing it in isn’t an option. Reverb’s claim agent was unable to get any response from Midlothian either for several days, so they took the instrument back on their own policy.

Instrument was misrepresented. It was in an older-generation case, so it was not a “newer horn”. One of the pictures was from the actual instrument body showing it was in no way “super clean”. I did remove the keys to clean the pads and the holes to try to be a good customer and avoid an unnecessary return. It was when I did this that I saw how bad the instrument was. Purchased through Reverb, so all communication history (one-way) is well-documented. The seller admitted the instrument was a mess that wouldn’t play. The sad thing is the instrument was sent back to them in much better condition than I received it.

I asked for an estimate to repair a leak on my daughter’s flute. With no parts needed, they wanted $40. I declined their service and the man on the phone hung up on me. When I picked up the flute, somehow additional keys were bent and leaking. Ridiculous!

Stopped in to inquire about purchasing a used guitar and was treated rudely. I won’t be returning.
I wasn’t going to post these details but since they replied with incorrect information, perhaps confusing me with another customer.
When I responded that I wanted to spend $100 (not $75) the person behind the counter told me I needed to go to Toys R Us, did not offer me options or ask me any questions. THAT is why I walked out. I gave my $200 to Evolution Music. Their customer service is outstanding.