Does Your Town Still Have A Guitar Shop ????

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  • sev112sev112 Frets: 2739
    Reading we have Dawson’s and Hickies  - pretty much corporate 
    Lost Amen Corner last month (owner died :( )
    Apex music - nice non- corporate, some interesting used electric stock, and range of acoustics,  also drums, and other bits and pieces including amps 


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  • proggyproggy Frets: 5827
    I live in the borough of Camden, so I've got Guitar Guitar Camden Town and Denmark Street.
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  • AlnicoAlnico Frets: 4616
    Liverpool.

    We've got Dawsons in the city centre which is quite a cool shop and the staff are great.
    We've also got Curly Music / Pro Tone who sell used gear and they're great too, I've known them since my teens in the 80's.
    I think Rimmer Music is still open but I honestly don't know, I don't think I've ever been in there. As far as I remember it's on West Derby Road on the way into Tuebrook, which is nowhere near the city centre.

    There's Harmonics Music in Crosby, roughly 7 miles north of the City and then I think the next closest is Sound Affects in Ormskirk, which is about 45 minutes drive from here and they are excellent.

    There may or may not be a Music shop in Southport, I don't know.
    I haven't been there since the 90's.
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  • KebabkidKebabkid Frets: 3301
    edited July 2019
    Philly_Q said:

    I live in Streatham, South London and as far as I know the only guitars for sale are in Cash Converters.

    There used to be a guitar shop within walking distance, Gigsounds between Streatham and Tooting, but it closed at some point, I have no idea when.  I only went there once to buy some strings, I think that was in pre-internet days - or at least in the days when online music stores were useless places which listed loads of things which weren't actually in stock.

     

    I bought my first guitar and amp from Gigsounds in 1980 and used to rehearse and record there in their basement studio. It was a great shop.

    The owner, or one of the owners, used to be Eric Lindsey and he had shops in Reigate, Surrey and south-east London but only the latter remains and he was great to deal with.

    Great shop in its days that carried some great stuff and not the usual Hondos, Columbus, Eros stuff of local, independent shops.
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  • ennspekennspek Frets: 1626
    There are two in Leicester last time I looked, Music Junkie and I can't remember the name of the other one.

    I'm not overly enamoured of either personally. 
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  • KebabkidKebabkid Frets: 3301
    edited July 2019
    We used to have a music shop in Carshalton called Bum Note and you could get some decent used stuff in there at knock down prices.

    Sutton Music, Sutton is ok. Whilst it doesn't really carry big US brands like Fender and Gibson, the guitars are mainly sub-£500, like Cort, Squier, Yamaha and Tokai but it's lasted a long time and had 2 sites at one time. It covers lessons, beginners and school children really well or if you need some strings or drumsticks.

    A couple of miles up the road, I have Guitar Guitar, Epsom and just a little further afield are Andertons and they're the two I tend to use a lot, especially Guitar Guitar. Guitar Village is a little further on and they're my 'Surrey Ring of Shops'.

    I still use Charlie Chandlers in Hampton Wick (40 min drive) and did most of my shopping in the 80s and 90s up the road from there at Chandler Guitars, Kew.

    So, I suppose I can safely say that within a 10-20 min drive of me, I have local guitar shops that serve my needs and up to an hour away, there's plenty of choice.


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  • ESBlondeESBlonde Frets: 3576
    VimFuego said:
    hmmm, there are several music shops in Exeter (including 2 specialist guitar shops) and I guess that's what counts as local for me. There is a general music shop in Barnstaple, but I've never been there, and a guitar maker in Bideford, that's about as large as towns get round here, everywhere else wouldn't even be classed a village in more populated regions.  


    Sounded in barnstable were very accomodating to us a few years ago when we dropped in. Not much high end guitar rand stuff, but that's par for the course these days.  
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  • gringopiggringopig Frets: 2648
    edited July 2020
    .
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  • dindudedindude Frets: 8534
    Pinner Middlesex. A few miles up the road in Northwood is Stompbox, a specialist pedal shop that also now has some guitars and amps at the beginner end.
    https://www.fxpedal.co.uk/

    Ive bought a few pedals from them but for a proper purchase it’s into London to GuitarGuitar Camden or a 45 minute drive to Coda.
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  • ESBlondeESBlonde Frets: 3576
    Ipswich had a 4 general music stores that stock guitars. EES,  Chummly, music centre and west end music. Nothing overly expensive but a general selection. 
    Colchester has Peach these days. 
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  • tweedphantweedphan Frets: 50
    There is one 2 mins walk from my house. Bought my first guitar there some 30 years ago and also my sons first bass ;)

    https://www.langleyguitarcentre.co.uk/

    Brilliant !!  So glad they still exist. I bought my first “proper” electric guitar there, an Eko semi acoustic. And it would have been in 1968 !!
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  • richardhomerrichardhomer Frets: 24793
    ‘Guitar Shop’ covers a lot of different types of retailers which sell guitars - but if you mean ‘Specialist Guitar Shop’, Amp in Macclesfield is the nearest to me - tiny place with lots of used guitars and amps. The rest are pretty much exclusively generic, corporate-run chains, or more generalised music shops which stock guitars....
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  • idiotwindidiotwind Frets: 387
    ennspek said:
    There are two in Leicester last time I looked, Music Junkie and I can't remember the name of the other one.

    I'm not overly enamoured of either personally. 
    Music Junkie shut down in February.  Sheehan's closed back in January 2017.  The only other one is Intasound on Narborough Road.   It's pretty poor for guitars, so I tend to head over to Birmingham instead
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  • jdgmjdgm Frets: 850
    My nearest town is Farnham so yes, Guitar Village and Anderton's is about 20 mins drive away.
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  • BlaendulaisBlaendulais Frets: 3316
    crunchman said:
    In Chiswick, West London.  Nothing nearby.

    A long list of those that have closed that were reasonably local
    Chandlers
    Peter Cooks
    Unplugged
    Flying Pig
    ABC Music
    Digital Village Acton branch
    One in Hammersmith I can't remember the name of
    One in Chiswick - but it was rubbish and not missed.  That one went well before the internet.

    Those were all within 4 miles of me.  There were probably one or two more that I' forgotten.

    I do have repairers within reach.  Richmond Guitar Workshop and Monty's Guitars are both local.
    Also a Chiswickian- there was a shop under the Kew arches that shut as well.  Really miss Peter Cooks it was quality

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  • JezWyndJezWynd Frets: 6021
    Barnstaple. We have Soundpad, it’s a well stocked store with friendly knowledgeable staff; mostly new stuff, some used and occasionally good vintage pieces. 
    https://www.soundpad.co.uk/
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  • Paul_CPaul_C Frets: 7669

    Lots have come and gone, currently I think there's PMT and St Giles Music (who have downsized).
    "I'll probably be in the bins at Newport Pagnell services."  fretmeister
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  • lovestrat74lovestrat74 Frets: 2489
    tweedphan said:
    There is one 2 mins walk from my house. Bought my first guitar there some 30 years ago and also my sons first bass ;)

    https://www.langleyguitarcentre.co.uk/

    Brilliant !!  So glad they still exist. I bought my first “proper” electric guitar there, an Eko semi acoustic. And it would have been in 1968 !!
    Blimey you must have been one of their first customers! Still owned and run by the same family :+1:
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  • LestratcasterLestratcaster Frets: 1079
    Used to have a shop nearby (Peter Cooks in Hanwell) but that went bust many years ago. Now the only ones I can go to are Andertons, GAK and Guitar Guitar. Nowhere else nearby has the level/choice of stock they do.
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  • simonhpiemansimonhpieman Frets: 681
    I'm just outside Farnham and have Guitar Village, though it costs a bunch to park there and even more to buy anything off them.

    I prefer to go the extra 20 minutes to Guildford and Andertons, although the last 2 things I've bought there (other than strings) have coincidentally had to go back...
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