Bought a string, and manager set it on my guitar and tuned it.
Our only *real* local music store.
So helpful and wonderful. Good selection. Single strings available.
Selection is really good. Nice instruments, And I like the atmosphere. A classic old store, kinda historic. A little pricey (for this I blame the insanity of real estate in the area, not them). Some music store staff are great. Some are typical.
I have found that music store workers are mostly of two varieties: the typical kind, who tend to have this undercurrent of rather sexist, judgmental pressure, and those who just love to connect people of all kinds to what they need.
Sigh – this place has both.
Unfortunately, there are a LOT of the typical kind in this world, and female (or otherwise not “Rock Star” types) really feel it. It is like they somehow need to prove that they are more knowledgeable than me, or something. Very tiring. I want to tell them, “look, I know you wanted to be a professional performer and it feels degrading to be working in a music store, and that you feel like selling stuff to female musicians makes you feel even further from your standards of your own self-image. But you really need to heal that, not surround yourself with a bubble of asserted wannabe dominance. It is not helping you at all. this is actually a really cool .”
To be fair, I only really got this attitude a little here, and it was pretty subtle (but there). Everyone else has been fine. But even a little makes it hard to want to come back. I think music store owners need to screen this, and train people out of it. Or better yet, hire some good female staff.
But I do come back, because the location is good and they have good stuff and they are historic and small. I like them overall. And it is very rare to find places that do not have that phenomenon. So they are not losing my business any time soon. I just hope that one issue gets fixed. Everywhere.
Price is not the best
A totally legit local music shop selling name brand instruments as well as higher-end and vintage gears. There is a room full of just amps. Staff is generally very helpful and would let you try things out. Be careful reaching up for guitars and gears since it’s a small space. Always ask for help unless you want to drop something and end up paying for it.
Tried to shop here but the entrance was barricaded with a table, alcohol gel, and a sign saying that masks were required to enter.
It’s late August 2022 and covid is as much past history as it likely ever will be. Get a grip or go out of business. Turning potential customers away at this point is crazy.
Act as though your doing them a favor by comming to their store .drum shop clutterd and sales person un interested in helping rather be looking on lap top then doing much of anything else certaianly not cleaning or organizing i used to go to the old drum shop in the 80s cool vibe then .theres a reason sweet water is killin brick n mortar stores
I just experience the worst service, something that was going so good, ended up leaving the me (customer) unpleasant and dissatisfied. Im in need of a power supply for a unit which i purchased from Gelb music store about 6 years back. In fact it would’ve been my third time getting an adapter here. I saw online that they have it stock, i drove from Napa to redwood city due to familiarity. Multiple staff tried to help find an adapter that works. One older staff insist to take over. He found one unboxed among spared ones without a price tag. The older staff therefore told another staff to charge me(customer) $25 for that old charger.. (let it be known, newer charger/ adapters are between $10 and $20)
How do you come up with that figure?
Oh the black man has to pay more huh?
Omdb they’ll never have my business again.
The older staff viciously took back the adapter and said i was assisting his time. Thought you were working?..
i got my merchandise (in Texas) in 2 days !! I’ve never had faster service, and i will definitely shop here again…thanks
Warm and helpful staff! Has almost everything we are needing and looking for . . .
A fabulous store with an awesome owner!
Fun music store. Bought an electric kazoo. Nice native Americans flute selection. Slow service.
I was looking for this other used DVD store in the Haight, but I guess they closed their doors so we ended up here just walking by. They have tons of DVD’s, though some of the pricing was odd. They had better deals with box series. They have both new and used so you have to pay attention to what you’re getting. I like the way they organized the movies in categories and also had a series and BBC section.
Don’t be fooled by the name: this is a guitar center more than anything.
I bought a Rick high gain bass pickup from the shop over 18 months ago. I live in Australia so the staff had to go to a bit of trouble to arrange the shipping (via ebay) and I thank them for that. When I eventually decided to put the pickup in, I found the screws didn’t fit. After taking it to a reputable guitar repairer, he found that the threads hadn”t been cut into the pickup housing so there’s no way I could fit it to my bass. I’ve emailed them about five times without any response…
Walked in there interested in trying out a few electric guitars. I picked up one and started playing and the employee was rude to me. He said “we don’t do that here”. I left and will never come back.
I was in there with a couple band mates while on tour, the owner kicked us out because people “don’t normally play their instruments”… Lol
6. The California Conservatory of Music
Address: 777 Woodside Rd C, Redwood City, CA 94061 , Woodside , California , United States
My son has been attending for a few years now and we have had only the best experience! The teachers are top notch and the staff have always been kind and professional. I’m so glad we are part of this community!
The California Conservatory has been a wonderful experience for our daughter. Her violin teacher, Jasmine, is so kind and patient and encouraging. The staff are very accommodating when we need to reschedule lessons, and we *love* the regular recitals the Conservatory organizes for its students. Strongly recommended!
Passionate teachers.
7. Zon Guitars
Address: 780 Second Ave, Redwood City, CA 94063 , Woodside , California , United States
Quick and easy to grab a bunch of piano sheet music.
Very friendly and helpful staff. Even though the store doesn’t look that big, my fifth grader is always able to find what she needs. The instrument rental process was also very efficient.
Great repair for saxophones the past 15 years or so.
9. Gilbert Tuners
Address: 2440 Bay Rd, Redwood City, CA 94063 , Woodside , California , United States
I just received my tuners and installed them. They’re beautiful and work wonderfully! I’d highly recommend them.
I have had a very good experience. I bought them in 2016 and they are still intact. The tuning of my guitar is firm. I have traveled for a month several times and when I return the tuning has not moved. The best!!!
Are you still in business? I’m a return customer and your phone number no longer works a d you have not responded to my email ?! Please respond
10. Music Box Repair and Restoration
Address: 605 Wallea Dr, Menlo Park, CA 94025 , Woodside , California , United States
This is not a music store…it is an instrument museum! Tons of horns, saxes, etc., in display cases. It is worth just walking through, though if the mood strikes, I’d say buy something from the friendly, helpful owners.
Awesome store. Loaded with all kinds of brass and saxophones. Very satisfied with repair shop/service.
Super helpful and kind! Highly recommended!
My dad has played trumpet since the ‘80s and has shopped at this establishment in the past. He has had multiple experiences where the staff was dismissive and rude. Most recently he wanted to sell a few of his trumpets, as he enjoys a fluid collection of buying and selling different horns to compare the artistry of the different brands. The clerk said that the police will let him know if the horns were stolen and that the store has no liability, strongly implying that she believes he stole these instruments and wants to pawn them in the store. Living in the Bay Area I would hope that people are aware that calling the police on a black man for no real reason isn’t a kind thing to do, and that it causes a lot of worry. I would hope that this review causes the staff to consider how they treat their customers in the future. She had no reason to assume that the horns were stolen. He has a thorough, years-long knowledge and experience of being a musician, marching in drum corps, he is a veteran and plays taps with the local veterans group, and her comments were absolutely uncalled for.
12. Guitar Center
Address: 53 W Hillsdale Blvd Suite A, San Mateo, CA 94403 , Woodside , California , United States
Nick and another associate helped me out with a bad amp I got. Great store
Unfortunately I have to be honest and say this is the worst Guitar Center out of the immediate 3 in the area. I’d suggest that anyone go to either the one in San Jose or Emeryville before this one.
I have always told my niece it’s better than Disneyland. Now that she is 6, she always asks to go so we can play drums and guitars and pianos!
Nice place Big selection of new Guitars ! !
horrible customer service skills from management !
there focus is what they can sell you !
The worst place for to take music lessons. they are racists ( Samantha N Conlon and Zachary loses)
Went to the store at 7 am on Black Friday. I wanted to buy a Bose L1 stick (a $2,000 purchase). I spent over an hour demo-ing several configurations. I was told they had the one I wanted in stock. I made up my mind to buy it and then I was told… oh…. sorry… it’s in the back but it is an opened box and we can’t give you the sale price. Then I was told 5 minutes later, actually we only have one of the two pieces and we can’t discount it. I was really bummed…. I live 5 hours away and came to buy something. They had two floor models that were priced $200 below the sale price of the new units. They were both scuffed up and they were unwilling to budge on the price even though I had been there for 3 hours and was told they had what I wanted and then they changed the story. If they would have given me a reasonable price on one I would have bought it and been happy. The guy that helped me was nice and professional and he did what he could but the manager wouldn’t budge. I ended up driving to Palo Alto and bought $2,100 worth of gear direct from Bose. They gave me a better price and discounted a mixer for me that Guitar Center didn’t have. All in all I made out with a better deal and now if anything goes wrong I deal with Bose, not GC. I have bought lots of gear from Guitar Center over the past 20 years. I will never buy anything from them again. By the way… If you want a Bose L1 system…. buy it direct from Bose. They will price match Guitar Center and their customer service is superior. I never leave reviews…. but this experience really turned me off. Shop elsewhere. Sweetwater online, Amazon, Bose, anywhere but Guitar Center.
13. J ACE J Music Corporation
Address: 2692 Bay Rd, North Fair Oaks, CA 94063 , Woodside , California , United States
Excellent environment, very nice people. Teacher Rongrong is amazing!
I am so grateful that I was led to Ms Bai as my son’s piano teacher. Her kindness and patience is amazing. My son is 5 and it is not an easy task at times as one could imagine. She gets creative in terms of findings ways to encourage him to practice, and very gentle but clear on techniques that he needs to focus on. She listens and accommodates my son’s interest so he is very engaged in her lessons. He has steadily grown his confidence and passions in playing piano, and always looks forward to Ms Bai’s lessons every week.
Truly a national treasure. The vibe of the place alone is worth the visit. Cannot recommend the Record Man enough if you love classic Vinyl or even old school games and movie in their Planet Mix!
Best place ever to find music treasures. I found a KISS album that was difficult to find and it was a reasonable price. If you are an I Love Lucy fan, they’ve got DVDs of all of the old classics. Lol.
Classic vinyl in a vintage setting but with customer parking at the gravel lot immediately adjacent to the records shop. Tens of thousands of classic vinyl records and some memorabilia and instruments. Expect pennies on the dollar for any records you sell to the store, unless classic rock albums in excellent condition. Most your records will likely be donations, but better than sending to the landfill. A smaller CD, DVD and Video Game shop is behind the record shop. Expect to be accompanied by the friendly house dogs while you browse.
Friendly service. However all used vinyl is very overpriced. I spent over an hour picking out used 80’s records. They would be rated G for sleeve and maybe G+ to VG in vinyl quality. They are very dusty and not cleaned. They wanted 24.99 each for records that maybe would fetch 12 on discogs. I bought two new records for that price ea and passed on all the used vinyl. I’ll never go back.
Friendly staff and ecclectic assortment of instruments! I am a collector of world instruments and love shops like this which offer a wider variety than your standard wall of boring guitars and one ukulele. Glad they’re here!
Great Service!! Friendly!!
Nice instrument. Closed when sing reads open.
Cozy place, new and used instruments, variety of sheet music, they also suggested cello lessons.
Fraudulent. I rented an instrument for my daughter’s school year then returned it. They continued to charge my card so I called them and they said they would stop charging and refund me. They didn’t and continued to charge me. Then 3 months later ($350 extra in EXTRA rental fees) and I call them and they say they don’t have the instrument! They want me to pay for it! Absolutely insane. Don’t EVER use them.
Musical instruments shop with a few sound proofed rooms in the back for lessons. They carry unknown brands and charge a premium for rental, even for elementary students.
I came in to sell my 2013 gibson. Right when i walked into the store i was greeted by a lady who worked there who immediately said “sorry, not interested”. She didn’t even take a look at the guitar. I’m a little annoyed that the front of their store says “buy-sell-rentals” but it doesnt seem like they buy anything. Drove all the way here for nothing…
