Guitar Center

Went in about a week ago to get my fender strat fixed and it was a Friday night with only 2 people in the guitar section. Not one person ever asked me for help, I just needed some stuff and no one was really there. I finally got ahold of one of the guys, he was nice and called the tech over. The tech mumbled something as he walked past me to get to the counter. I seriously just needed some help and waited 30 minutes for anyone to assist me.

I shop at this store quite a bit from being a DJ in the past and now I play Guitar. The only thing I don’t like is you have to chase some one down to get any help It’s been 35minutes in one area and no one came to me and ask me if I need any help.

Bought two guitars in 2 years here… One acoustic (Martin) and one electric (Epi), and totally happy with the the prices and the service. Good lace for test playing and gear, I think their prices are similar to many online retailers. I also go to the Gtr Center in Fairfax, VA, same good experiences.

One of the better big music retail shops on the area. They have a great selection at very fair prices. I was greeted promptly by multiple employees. The store is clean and well organized.
I’m haven’t been at this shop in a year due to not having a lot of gear needs. I am glad though that I came here first.
I traded in some used gear and left with a great deal on a used Fender Stratocaster. I also left three guitars with Ryan to get set ups. They have the best set up prices in town!
If you like a bit more quiet when you shop Monday’s close to opening is great.
Andrei in guitars is awesome! So is Brian and Rob in pro audio.

That’s a pretty large store, with good options to sit and play the instruments. Most amps are plugged in and ready to play. There are a few guitar rooms and I usually find a spot to try out various guitars, including expensive Les Pauls or Cremonas.
Yes, service is kinda on the low end, but I usually know what I’m getting and don’t need advice. If I can’t find anyone at one counter, I go to another department.

This is a terrible music store. I have gone here a number of times just because it’s the only shop in my area, and each time I am let down more and more. This GC has sold me broken pedals, the employees have no idea what they are talking about (some of them make me wonder whether they have even ever played an instrument), and the employees are always hanging out joking with each other rather than helping customers. Once I bought a Jazzmaster from there which was in rough shape (I bought the demo version). I asked one of the employees if they could just adjust the neck before I left. He said sure. So another employee adjusts the neck and gives it back to me. He asks me «Did you pay for the neck adjustment?» I told him «No, your compadre told me it was covered since you sold me the demo unit.» The guy got all pissed and started to chastise me. Dude… I just gave you guys $ 700 for a demo. No need to be a prick.
But…this past weekend took the cake. I went in with my gf to look at bass guitars for her. She is brand new and we were trying to get her situated. I asked an employee for some help with one of the basses. He disappears and I find him later doing a show for some other customers. Like he is literally sitting there, playing bass, putting on a show for some other customers for about 15 minutes. Not in a «let me play this for you to try to sell it to you» kind of way. It was «I feel like jamming.» We got tired of waiting, so we ended up leaving empty handed.
This GC is full of unprofessional guitar hacks who actually don’t know that much about the instrument section to which they’ve been assigned. Use this GC for what it’s worth, like buying strings or picks if it’s the only place close to you. Otherwise, buy real equipment from real professionals who are actually willing to help customers, and who know what the hell they are talking about. Head to Atomic Music, Action Music, Chuck Levin’s, or buy off of Craigslist.

I’m slightly stunned by these customer service reviews. We had a great experience coming to sell a guitar and buy a new one. From start to finish. The manager offered us a fair price for our used guitar, definitely comparable with what we would get selling privately and the young man who dealt with the transaction was very knowledgeable about the guitar we bought.
Most of all, their enthusiasm and clear enjoyment of the place, in the last hour on a Saturday, was palpable. They took my 14 year old daughter seriously and treated her with absolute respect. It was really great to be around people who share her love of guitars. We chatted with other customers, who all seemed to be having a good time also.
I’ve gone here for years and will keep going. It’s corporate America done well by people who actually know what they’re doing and do it with friendliness and professionalism.

So, here’s the thing,
I’ve been visiting this store for many years to get my strings and other related items, and i’ve seen it at its greatest and lowest; in its good and bad days. I’ve dealt with the dorky clerk from the know-​nothing level to the clerk who knows a lot about instruments and service.
There are plenty of things I dislike and enjoy about this store. Some employees, of which mostly are young, treat adults as adults, but others as their buddies or «dudes» or «guys,» and that’s very unprofessional. This review aims at one particular thing that i noticed on my last visit. The store greeting policy.
Every time I’ve been there I’ve gotten someone to say hello or the classic «need help,» because Guitar Center is a corporation that aims at selling musical instruments and trains – or tries to train – its employees to sell stuff, and i have no issues since that is the expectation out of a business. Retail stores are there to sell stuff. Deal with it or shop in a vacuum online. But, as I’ve read some other reviews here on Unilocal,I’ve noticed customers at the store that react negatively and take offense because one of the clerks greeted them. What?! If it were my store, i’d kick you out for being a sour bastard, and a coward, for not telling the store manager, in person, your unjustified and childish annoyance.
So, in this regard, i gotta give points to the store. Still, store manager, please train the guys with bad-​social skills.
…and to the « Unilocalers» with a bad experience, express your dissatisfaction right there and then and don’t hide behind your keyboard. Otherwise, the problem will not be addressed.

This particular guitar center is a caricature of how bad corporate music stores can be. They are poorly stocked, the entire staff without exception is plagued with apathy and rudeness, and you also have to deal with all the other bullshit that comes from buying something at a chain store. No wonder their neighboring stores haven’t been pushed out of business because this location gives the already embarrassing brand a bad name.

Skip this store filled with teenage employees who don’t know music or instrument knowledge. Save your time and money and go to Chuck Levins at Wheaton. Guitar Center is a joke. Customer service is awful. I asked a employee in the guitar section to find an adapter for the Blackstar fly rig so that I can try it out. The kid left me hanging and went off to text on his phone. I used to be a loyal customer. Not anymore. The men at Chuck Levins know the products and are very friendly.

I love going to a store where employees actually enjoy their jobs. I purchased a floor tom (from another store), and the bolts that came with it did not fit. After talking to the drum department, they advised me to bring the tom in. They were able to find me the right size bolts and fixed another issue on the tom. They fixed it for me right then and there. I couldn’t ask for better service. I would highly recommend visiting Guitar Center.

Rude and arrogant service. One salesperson handed me off to another. The second was the «Sales and Training Manager.» While he was waiting on me, he took several sales calls and spent most of his time helping another salesperson deal with another customer on the phone. What should have taken ten minutes took 25.

This is a mixed bag, but mostly a bad bag. To give some background, I worked in a small-​town music store for five years as an instructor and repair tech. I am very familiar with the wide range of difficult customers (musicians are temperamental), and go out of my way to be polite to the employees, knowing the other side of the counter all too well. I’ve heard «Stairway to Heaven» or «Seven Nation Army» mangled too many times to count.
That said, this was a markedly sub-​par experience. On a rainy Tuesday morning I was looking at a small guitar amplifier online, and called the Rockville Guitar Center to see if it was in-​stock. I got a friendly, if somewhat brief, salesman who wasn’t sure if it was in, but took my number and promised to call me back with a status update. Surprisingly, he did — and his appraisal of the amp in question was totally honest and on the level, which I appreciated.
The problems came later in the day, when I actually showed up (with guitar in tow), looking to try and most likely buy the amp I called about earlier. The first issue was when I came in the door: I was asked to check my guitar at a stand up front, which I understand and was fine — except the way it was accomplished was gruff, and decidedly unfriendly. No explanations, no small talk, no jokes, nothing… despite ample opportunities for all. It wasn’t a good introduction to the store. More of a «HEY YOU… over here, we gotta check that in.»
I then asked for the salesman I had reached earlier on the phone. I was told by one of three employees who were visibly not working, just idly chatting in a group by the entrance, that the man I was looking for was «somewhere in the guitar section, I think…,» after which he turned back to his coworkers and completely ignored me.
Sent off on my own to find this salesman, I discover a rather dirty showroom, with a visible amount of dust over many things, rather slim selection, and a paradoxically cluttered layout that clearly discouraged browsing or sampling. My salesman was nowhere in sight, and I circled the floor about three or four times hoping to find him, or anyone, to guide me in the right direction.
No dice. Finally, I spy the amp I was looking for in the accoustic room. OK, I think. I wander in there, plug in on my own, and start playing. The amp itself had serious cosmetic issues — I was a little insulted they would sell as «new» it in the shape it was in, at the same price as their competition. There were deep scratches all over it, and the front panel was poorly aligned.
Another salesman finally came in to tell me the guy I was looking for was on his lunch break, and he brought me another amp I asked about. Not bad, but again there was a total indifference to me as a person (or as a musician). Not one iota of curiosity. Not to mention the second amp didn’t turn on, had a burned out light, and continued to cut out throughout the tryout. I left with the definite impression that no one there took the equipment seriously, and that they sold equipment that was misused pretty badly.
Finally, since I figured out that they had absolutely no interest in selling me anything, I packed up my guitar and took off. The second salesman did ask me on my way out what I thought, but it was a definite formality «I ask everyone this» type move — since he had absolutely no reaction to my comments beyond an impassive poker face.
I was really disappointed. I ended up going to a local music store up the road, and finding an even better deal with much more personalized, involved service. The rest of the comments here are pretty accurate: the service is extremely lackluster unless you are, presumably, shopping the very high end, or catch the salesman whose personality matches up perfectly with your own.
Definitely not going back unless I have no other choice.

Guitar Center has excellent customer service, a huge inventory, and really great prices. Don’t let the name throw you off; they have plenty of other instruments, such as Keyboards and drums as well as several rooms full of guitars. The guitars are much less than they are at small businesses as one might expect. I guess the internet and catalogs like Musicians’s Friend really put some competition on music stores, but I’m happy to find a place like this that has such great prices and a great staff.
A while back, I bought a fixer-​upper Fender that a previous owner had butchered. Guitar Center fixed the electronics and threw in a new pickup for $ 30. The neck is off a little bit, but it works and sounds great nonetheless. I appreciated the speed and politeness of the technician in getting it ready to play. I even bought a harmonica to try out and Andrew, who was on the floor for his first day, was very helpful in picking one out that sounds beautiful and fit my budget.
Every time I’ve been there the staff are very helpful and nice. It can be a busy place, especially when they have events or bands playing there. All in all, it’s a really cool place with a lot of things to consider purchasing, etc. It’s very convenient as well, being close to Rockville Pike and the Twinbrook Metro with fairly late hours as far as music stores go.

This place is just so awful. Their selection is decent and prices are basically what you’d expect from a retail store. However, the absurdly horrible customer service ruins any good feelings you might have from the decent selection. At any given point they have probably twice the number of employees working than they would need and it is still impossible to get anyone to help you. What’s worse, not only will they not help you, but they will actually HINDER your shopping experience by standing around talking and playing around with each other in the middle of walkways or in front of the register. It is truly an awful place that, after last night’s horrible customer service experience, I don’t plan to go to anymore unless I absolutely have no other choice. Seriously, just avoid it, it’s not worth the frustration.

I visited here today and was very pleased. I came to pick up a guitar I ordered last week and the second I was through the door an employee offered us his help finding our way around. I stepped up to the counter and was almost immediately helped by another employee. While we were waiting, no fewer than six people asked me if I had been helped yet. My guitar was out in less than five minutes giving me ample time to look over their selection of guitar strings. The employee had kindly taken both my guitar and case out of their boxes and put them together. I went into the acoustic room and played it. It sounded perfect.
Thank you Guitar Center. I will definitely be back.

Guitar Center has a lot of guitars and the prices are ok. The sales people are mostly jacka****. One of the first things I purchased there was a short scale guitar for my kids. The pickups had some rust on them. The guy told me to take the guitar home and he would call me when some new ones came in and I could exchange it. He never called. As far as I’m concerned that’s just some guy who lied to me. Anyway, I took care of the rust and the guitar is fine. The point is most of those guys will just say whatever and let you buy the thing.
If you know what you want and don’t need help this is an ok place to go.

Customer service stinks! Came here for Presidents Day sale. Not helpful and very rude. Asked two different sales rep for help and got curt short replies.

If you’re a teenager, don’t bother coming here.
If you need assistance, you’ll be ignored.
If you try out any instruments/​musical gear, you’ll be given dirty looks.
I guess customer service isn’t a priority here.

So the guitar is finished. Guitar Center went above and beyond for my and my friend. They did as promised and more. You would be stupid to go anywhere else. The guitar looks gorgeous and I had to put in little effort and worry about it. Money well spent at a fraction of the cost going directly to a guitar maker for a custom.
The GM Rob called to let me know the guitar was ready at about 1pm the day it was ready and waited past the time he should have left of 5pm till 8:30 on a Friday just to apologize and make sure I was satisfied, that is dedication to the customer. He made sure I left happy and made sure I knew everything before I shipped the guitar to my friend.
Remember this key detail, musical instruments are expensive and its best to have a place with knowledged people that love music eager to help you. There are three people I really trust here; Guillermo, Tom the sales/​training manager and Rob the GM. These gentlemen as with the rest of the staff are not just dedicated to music but to the people that want to make it.
If you ever have a problem talk with either Rob or Tom and they will work with you to make sure you don’t leave feeling cheated. They have good deals from what I noticed and a nice private lot with ample parking with a fully stocked store to satiate your musical needs with even collectible gifts for the music fan.
The company usually have good sales going on and you can’t go wrong with the Rockville area Guitar Center.
Thank you Rockville Guitar Center and Staff, you did not let me leave unhappy.