Preston City – Top 14 places for music shops14 recommended music shops in Preston City

I had one of the most positive guitar store experiences anywhere at Acoustic Music.

I called ahead specifying the guitars I was interested in checking out, arrived with them all ready to go in a dedicated room to play them in. No straining to hear the guitar over other players, no need to feel self-conscious, nobody hovering over me. Huge thanks to Ian for being super helpful, friendly and making it a great experience!

Great staff! Walked out with the best guitar I’ve ever played (let alone owned)

I stopped in to play some of the nicer acoustics on my journey to buying a better guitar to age with. I also brought my Taylor, which needed a slight adjustment. My guitar and I were both treated with the utmost care and respect. The gentleman even made a point to wash his hands before touching my guitar and left me to peacefully play some of the superb and rather expensive instruments in the shop while he adjusted my Taylor’s neck. If I were ready to spring on a purchase, I would feel 100% at ease to shop here and make an afternoon of playing everything until I was confident in my choice. Superb shop, superb service, superb care for the customer. 5 stars. Once I’ve tried some of the other guitars I need to cross of my list, I will come back here for a Collings or Martin if those guitars win the next spot in my studio.

Had a guitar cable when I needed it.

No prices listed

Thé Owners are lousy business

Not many mandolins

Great shop for rentals and purchases!

Chuck was very friendly and accommodating, and he has lots of great music stories!

Great place, run by great people.

Great store love this place can’t wait until I go back.

I took a pedal building class, that was both fun and educational. Instructor was fantastic, and EXTREMELY patient with me. I learned a ton, and came home with an incredible sounding Tubescreamer that I built myself. Can’t recommend this experience enough.

Martel has lots of effects including everything Strymon makes! Nice people.

Interesting store with some interesting gear. They don’t seem to carry Fender or Gibson. They had a stomp box manufacturing class going on when I visited.

As one reviewer already stated. They have a terrible return policy especially with online purchases. Good store as long as you know you’re going to keep the item but who really knows, its musical gear, its hard to tell if your going to dig it or not until you play it with your rig. Returning a pedal (or probably anything) is just not worth it due the return fees. 2 stars because I received it pretty quickly but definitely wasn’t packed that well. Without a doubt this will be my last purchase from this store. There’s plenty of other great stores to choose from that won’t bend you over on return fees. **Edit for response to the owner** Yes you do clearly state your return fees online. “Small restocking fee” is a bit of an understatement…your restocking fee is 10%. If I pay $250 for a guitar pedal. Right off the bat you’re keeping $25 of my return. I couldn’t imagine purchasing a guitar online through your store.

Purchased a guitar for 750, now walking out with 637. Unfortunately I was not told about a very unfair and sneaky return exchange policy until I had asked after already completing the purchase. Also could not see clearly a visible sign inside that states anything about a return policy. When I asked where the sign was upon trying to return this guitar he pointed to have a corner and I still did not see the sign. I do believe that a return policy sign should be at the register for full disclosure. The law does state you are entitled to a full refund if you are not told about the refund policy during the time of the transaction, which I was not informed of that. Limited selection and unfortunately subject to a very steep restocking fee or store credit, if you are a serious musician make sure you know this first as you know that buying instruments is quite expensive and it is hard to want to get locked into something that you do not truly love.

I bought a Yamaha U3 from Caruso Pianos last year and was very happy with the whole process. They were very easy to communicate with from start to finish. The piano had to be shipped across the country so I appreciated it being shipped for free to a local rail hub even if I had to pay for local delivery from there. I will definitely take advantage of the lifetime trade-in when it comes time to upgrade!

Brittany at Caruso was excellent to work with. I bought a Yamaha U1 in Harbor Blue, it is absolutely gorgeous and sounds so smooth. I’d highly recommend Caruso for both quality and service.

Excellent service, professional, friendly staff, free delivery. Very happy with my experience.

I went to their store and also called them multiple times showing interest in one of their pianos. Despite the fact I showed interest and called/messaged multiple times on a piano, that piano was sold to an online buyer. There was no follow-up or a courtesy call to let me know that the product I was eyeing was gone or was about to be sold.

Nevertheless, I think that they have a good variety and a great knowledge base on pianos. I wish they were a little bit more responsive and courteous as buying a piano is a big purchase and takes time and thought.

EDIT: After my initial review, Caruso Piano contacted me and let me know that they have not reached out to me due to not getting a piano that was comparable to what I was looking for. Which is understandable. I truly appreciate them reaching out to me. I have to write that I learned a whole lot about piano buying from them when I first went to their store. I wish them good luck and hope they continue to be successful as a local business.

UPDATE October 5 2018: Richard Caruso promptly called me the day after I posted the review below. He apologized again, and very willingly reimbursed me for my travel expenses. I feel this was the ethical and right thing to do, and am glad that he made things right with me.

Original review: I flew in from Chicago to try out a Steinway B I had on deposit. The staff knew of my travel plans, and were very hospitable and welcoming. The piano, however, was noticeably out of tune on my arrival. While more accomplished pianists might not have seen that as an issue, it completely stopped me from getting excited about the piano. No sale for them, no new Steinway for me.
They were apologetic and realized their mistake when I pointed this out, but were unable to get the piano tuned while I was there.
This is a shop with perhaps good intentions, but they completely dropped the ball in this instance. I’m writing this review because I don’t want this to happen to anyone else.

I purchased a used U1 3 years ago from Carusos.

Please be aware: these are GREY MARKET pianos. They were originally built and sold in the Asian market. You will have proof when you remove the knee board and see the holder for the lease agreement. And due to that fact, the wood of the pianos is dried to standards for Asia. Not the U.S. or Northeast U.S.

I do like the piano, BUT I and my piano technician are having a heck of a time keeping the damper pedal from squeaking BADLY.

I had the piano saver system installed almost immediately. It has helped the piano hold tune very well.

But because this instrument was not built to the specifications of an American instrument (or North America) it is expanding very badly from the humidity.

I have a dehumidifier in the room with the piano, no heat or doors or windows near it. And I have my technition here AGAIN trying to shave down the knee board to try and eliminate this terrible groan/squeek.

My opinion? Buy a piano through a local piano tuner/technition or through a referral from a tuner tech. If you are going to purchase one of these grey market instruments bring your tuner with you. Pay them for their time and have them tune the instrument you choose BEFORE you give Carusos your money.

This is a really good local music store friendly and professional!!!

Very pleased with my experience at JC Music. I thought they were very knowledgeable, able to assess the instruments I brought in, make repairs and sold 2 items for me. I got a fair price, sold sooner than I expected and I received a check promptly. I have dealt with another music consignment shop and was not satisfied with them .This store was very efficient. I would recommend them for buying or selling any musical equipment.

My family has rehomed a few instruments and musical accessories through JC Music. The employees were so kind explaining the consignment program and taking the time to get us the best value according to the market. Everything proceeded smoothly and we will definitely continue visiting!

Would like to obtain some nice brushes and some type of top hat set used and very sturdy since I break percussion instruments all the time when I perform?

My son, Roberto Luis and Rosa live in Meriden. Are you far from the mall? I have spent a lot of time jamming in Puerto Rico to salsa, merengue, etc but my favorite is funk like Buddy Miles.

My grandson really enjoyed the music lessons and they are very professional and knowledgeable. Highly recommend them.

This was a horrible expierence. They need to get their stuff together, they had already-sold instruments on shelf. They had an amazing guitar sale and when I went to buy, it was already sold! They got my hopes high and let it down and I will not give them my money any longer.

Completely disappointed. I placed an order in store on a instrument that was never placed with JC music. The customer service was poorly displayed and the options they gave us was not acceptable. I asked to speak to the owner several times and would not get on the phone and made his new employee talk to me. I ended up going somewhere else that was amazing

Never have any of the literature or instrument parts I’m looking for. Took 3 months to repair a trombone. I tried to return an item and they wouldn’t give me back the cash to go to another place. The owner has blatantly disrespected my mother on several occasions and doesn’t have much knowledge of much of anything outside of rock music. As far as i’m concerned, this is the worst music store i’ve ever set foot in and would not recommend to anybody.

Knowledgeable, helpful, and enthusiastic staff, can’t wait to shop here

I am learning to to play cello from my sister and needed a decent quality instrument on a reasonably fast timeframe. I called about 15 storescand received miserable service over the phone. I was looking at cheaper cellos at pawnshops vs buying lower quality student one. The minute I was referred to this store- I called and spoke with Justin and I was thoroughly impressed with his knowledge sound advice and professionalism. He walked me through process of yearly rental helped me tune and sold me accessories in a hassle-free friendly manner! If you are looking for a fast easy and top notch experience at a great price make this place your first stop!

I used to come here as a kid when I was learning guitar. Came back after all these years and they still give good vibes and friendly, helpful staff.

An error in judgment when I decided to place an order for them to send out my two guitars I STILL to this day can’t string myself worth beans. Decent store for the most part but what really got me sore was the fact that the clerk said that they send their instruments out to a repair tech in E. Hartford but then found out that for whatever reason they have to send the guitars to a tech in BOSTON and the woodwind and brass instruments are the only instruments they ferry back and forth for repairs to EH. Misleading and wonder if it were intentional or whether or not someone else over there neglected to tell him that the different instruments get repaired at different locations. Not my fault I didn’t get the right info but certainly my fault I opted to not take my precious guitars back before the start of business last week so I could either try once again to string them myself or have someone else nearer to me I’d forgotten momentarily about do it for me instead. Ideally I’ll see if I can learn the proper way to string them from now on to save on the cost and also to not feel helpless and at the mercy of someone else whose repair shop happens to be out of state yet.

Was told my contract goes through June. Beware! They end your contract in May and charge $45 more for June. So you will not make it through the school year with the agreed contract, however, you will not be made aware of that information.

Will never take an instrument there for repair again. They still have the instrument after more than a year, cannot give me an answer as to when it will be ready & don’t seem to care about customers. Repeated calls and visits only result in messages left for manager who never gets back to us. Seriously think twice before ever purchasing or getting service at this store.

The details pertaining to the boxes in and around the location are not what I am interested in anymore. Absolutely in poor taste to remove something biodegradable without thinking. I’d give it a 5 star if the app let me!

Dan and the rest of the crew at Brian’s were a pleasure to work with. I live out of state and they made working a deal with them remotely as easy as possible. Super happy with my purchase and I hope to shop from them again. 10/10!

Great shop! Very professional and great customer service. Great atmosphere and vibe to just sit and demo some really great guitars.

Knowledgeable and friendly staff with an awesome selection of high quality guitars, amps, and pedals.

BUYER BEWARE: If you’re shopping used online, call ahead and ask them to send you updated pictures of the instrument before you buy.

I just purchased a used guitar online, from Brian’s Guitars. It sounds and looks great.

HOWEVER: the pictures and listing posted online were not accurate. The listing said “near mint” condition. The pictures showed all the tags and plastic seals on the components still intact. When I received the guitar, all the seals were gone. There were scuffs on the pickguard, and there was a screw completely missing near the volume/tone knobs. After an email exchange, I learned that the pictures were posted from when the guitar was new. Still, why was a screw missing?

I may have scored a guitar at a sweet deal, but now my confidence is shook. Even though everything sounds fine, I’m left wondering if a screw was removed to mess around with the internal components. I’ll get that checked out, but given the inaccurate listing, I’m not sure if I would buy from Brian’s Guitars again.

Love the layout and they have beautiful guitars. However, customer service is lacking. I advice those that are interested in buying a high-end guitar and enjoy collecting these musical art pieces to look elsewhere as I was told so rudely. Especially if you are a minority. The stereo typing is real!. If you think this is a rant of someone that is not able to afford this level of guitars, well, think again. I have a small collection that keeps growing of high-end to medium range guitars, bass guitars , and amps. I Hope this helps someone that does not want to be profiled while shopping for their next piece of happiness.

I recently had a vintage bass repaired and appraised here. I left it with them to have the electronics fixed and a general setup done. I got a call that the guitar was ready to be picked up a few weeks later, but had to remind them to also do the appraisal.
I get the bass home and the jack is incredibly noisy. I called and was told that they would make it right at no cost. I take the bass back and the tech puts a new jack in. They still charged me $10 for the jack, the making it right part only included the labor (about ten minutes). I couldn’t care less about $10, but making an extra trip out (about half hour from my home) to have something fixed that should have been done in the first place, guarantees I will never go back here or recommend it to anyone.

I want to give a shout out to the Music Center. My out of town husband needed to practice an instrument during an visit to CT, and at the last minute, the owner kindly arranged for a short term rental for him. During our pickup we couldn’t help but overhear the extremely high quality of teaching and student performance. Even more impressive was the joyful ambiance in this cozy, charming music store. It’s a gem and this community is lucky to have this resource.

Mark your awesome thank u

Very friendly and helpful staff. Both of my sons have been taking lessons here since Sept. 2016 and have thrived with patient and attentive instructors. Thank you!

First experience here, but guy greeted me immediately and helped me pick out a capo. Nice feature to have a cafe inside.

Great instructors. Great atmosphere.

Great place to get music!!

UPDATE: To clarify, the small bag of “trash” was a small bag of shirts and pants that were out grown and not trash which the owner stated several times and now denies. He also forgets that I was sitting there in my car for several minutes trying to figure out what the poorly sprayed wording actually stated or if it was just covering up something and i even took out the clothes in the bag and showed it to him but he didn’t care and continued to argue with me. Again, I had donated to this location before it was deemed abandoned and was accused repeatedly to get my trash out of there. I did go down the street and donated the clothes to Goodwill. The issue I have is how the owner handled the situation and the accusations that were thrown at me even when confronted with the proof that they were wrong and I was clearly trying to donate a small amount of clothes and left when asked. Move this very prominent former donation bin to the back our your lot or put a proper sign up, chain close the handle or just politely tell someone its closed.

This music center used to have a clothing donation bin out front which I have donated to many times before. It has since been painted over with illegible spray paint saying bin closed. I was standing by the bin trying to figure out what the writing said and employee came out and screamed at me to take my trash somewhere else and was extremely rude shouting at me like I was doing something illegal. He told me to bring my trash to Goodwill. Would never bring my kids here for their music needs with staff like this.

This is a review for the musical forest cafe. I wish I could have enjoyed the food at this place, but this business is a mess. I came here a month ago on a Tuesday and they were closed out of the blue, so they granted me a 10% discount coupon for my trouble. I decided to give this place a try once again today so I called in advanced, but no one picked up the phone. I then googled their hours and noticed it said they opened at noon (I tried calling at 11:00 a.m.) but that they were opened today. To be completely sure about that, I checked their facebook page that stated, in fact, that they were open. When I arrived to the restaurant the owner greated me and stated that they have been closing on Fridays for the past 9 months and that I should have checked their facebook page prior to coming in here (REALLY?!). After explaining to him that I DID checked facebook he apologized and said he will change the facebook hours for his restaurant and offered to give me another discount coupon. I didn’t even bothered to take the coupon and left very disappointed by the lack of reliability and professionalism of this place and won’t ever be coming back. Places like this just reinforced my belief that going out of business is a conscious effort and wouldn’t be surprised if this happened to this cafe in the near future.

Guitar tech could not look at my guitar because he busy making egg sandwiches.

They were very friendly and had great prices. This will be my regular music shop from now on!

Our 13 year old son has been taking private saxophone lessons at ” The Music Shop” for over 4 years, starting with Leo Liddle. Keith Wilson, a very talented musician took over as his teacher and we love his dedication and perseverance to help expand our son’s musical knowledge with the sax, while also making it fun. The expansion of his new location makes the updated atmosphere a wonderful learning environment, and also has great on site repair service.

Knowledgeable people

So during this pandemic we are dealing with I felt myself wanting to start jamming again. So with almost every retail store being closed and having to rely on online and waiting, (I’m not patient,lol) I took a shot to see if any guitar stores were possibly doing curbside in Ct. Found the music shop in southington,ct was doing curbside. Upon calling I spoke with Scott, great customer service!! After talking to Scott about my music style and and what I was looking for, within 20 mins I had received pictures and fell in love with what scott suggested. Normally when I buy a guitar, its multiple guitars i play and usually takes a couple hours to choose. Let me tell you scott nailed it!!!! The guitar, an ibanez art120 and a 75watt peavey amp with effects and cab sounds built in…and let me tell you both products are hands down amazing!!! On top of that within 20 mins he threw a new set of strings on and did a full setup!!!! Totally worth the hour and a half ride!!!! These guys rock, thanks again scott!!!!!!!

Very nice small music shop. I went to purchase a drum throne and received excellent customer service. I believe the gentleman’s name is Scott? He was very pleasant. I will definitely shop there again.

Used to go to guitar center all the time till one day the worker wasn’t there, gave a chance over here and wasn’t disappointed! Gave me help on my Billie joe Armstrong replica by installing a new neck and saddles and I have to say this has to be the best set up I’ve ever played, I feel like I’m playing a custom shop on a squier! Such great help, friendly faces and now my go to for setups and help! Have a custom Strat there being worked on and I can’t tell you how tired there gonna get of me bringing in guitar after guitar to get setup in my collection one comes back to me and I give them another the same visit haha, thank you Scott, Jackson and Tyler!! Feels like a family and not business and that’s the best type!

– Michael

The cellos were in not in good shape and we had to pay a luthiere to redo repairs that were poorly done when we received the instrument.

Great place but website could be better such as pics of some used equipment. I’m a drummer and would like to see what they have for new and used cymbals,stands,drum kits etc. And prices. I have done business with them and always had a great experience the reason for three stars is the website doesn’t do the music shop justice. All and all great store great people.

Friendly service every time I shop their… always helpful and knowledgeable of the products they service and sales.

First time at this location killer store, prices are better than guitar center for sure.

they restrung my guitar and shined it up for a very affordable price.

Excelente

Over priced, but they have the essentials.

Good selection of musical instruments

Brought a Roland 150w bass amp in for sale and was denied a bid because “it has carpet upholstery and no one will buy it because it’s old” like i bought it myself ? And it took 25 minutes for paperwork to be processed on a pedal they bought from me, same process took less than 5 minutes for me at Orange GC. Never visiting Sam Ash again, Guitar Center(s) have historically treated me much better with instrument/gear trade-ins.

Used to be a great place to go browse.. now it’s like walking onto a used car lot.. within ten minutes I had 6 people asking if they could show me anything, one guy asking me twice.. I was only planning on buying a guitar stand, but was so annoyed I went elsewhere….

A friend who had just purchased a few hundred there went back with a question about a necessary piece required. This young man in the store responded with do your research. Well I was thinking of purchasing a guitar but not now ….Guitar Center was much more helpful and nicer…I will be sure to spread the word

Awesome place to get information and pick up an instrument! Thanks for the help!!

Great music store! Full selection of electric and acoustic guitars. Went in to get some GHS Strings and ended up playing a dozen or so guitars. Will be going back to pickup a new LTD guitar!

Best guitar and amp. store I been to yet.
Owner George is the most knollegable guitar and amp. Dude I’ve ever met, that’s saying something since I’ve been a pro. guitarist for 51 years now.
He carries PRS. Suhr, and has MANY pre CBS. Fender amps as well carries Messa Boogie!!
Great guy, great store, what more do you need?

Norm Cote

If you’re not looking to go too far to get musical instruments. Look no further. Expensive though. But if you don’t care about prices, go for it. Not much of a selection though.

Meh

Nice shop

After going to this place; I must say I will never go back there again. The owner is so rude and disrespectful. Its not even funny. The owner needs get off his anthropocentric state of mind.

This place is just awful. The owner is so rude to us that i will never go back. We rented an instrument from him because our normal music store didnt have the instrument and when the instrument broke he said it was our fault and that it wasnt covered and then bad mouthed our local music store.