Buying a guitar in London

Dante_A

Hi all,
After a long break (10+ years) I wanted to go back to playing guitar and would like to buy a spruce Cordoba C7 or C9. I know nothing about the guitar scene in the UK, though.

Hence a few simple questions:
(1) What is the best place to buy a guitar in London? I am after good prices and return policy (in case any defects are found after the purchase). Availability of financing is a plus, but not necessary. (... or maybe I should consider buying online / taking a cheap flight to XYZ city in Europe where the prices are much lower?)
(2) How should I go round actually buying the guitar, if my skills are really rusty and knowledge is minimal? I know that Cordobas sometimes have manufacturing defects and I am afraid I might not be able to spot them immediately. Do you know any really honest shop (e.g. where the salesperson will say "oh, the bridge/action/whatever on this one seems to be a bit off... let me give you another one, or ask our luthier to quickly correct it", etc.), or some good way of finding a nice-and-knowledgeable person who wouldn't mind going with me to the store (in exchange for reasonable ££ or dinner etc.)?

Thank you all for your help!

Winny_Pooh

If you want a decent returns policy then buy online.

Xsmnmy

A little research tells me that Cordoba are distributed by Rose-Morris in the UK - they have a store in Denmark Street in central London. The shop has a long history and I assume they know what they are doing, though I've never bought anything there. I couldn't see any other obvious UK dealers. Worth talking to them.

https://rosemorris.com/collections/cordoba-classical-guitars

[edit: hmm - they don't seem to have much of a range...]

The German online business Thomann would be a good bet if buying online.

Xsmnmy

aha, more here
https://guitarvillage.co.uk/products?utf8=✓&keywords=cordoba

Guitar Village is in Farnham, about 30 mins on the train from London. Again they are a well respected shop with used as well as new stock.

Rabs

Sadly the shops arnt what they quite were all round...   A chain DV247 used to be REALLY good but they have sold out now to some German company and went from like 6 shops down to 1.. And that shop isn't very good any more.

Denmark St in London is one of the most famous places to go, theres like music 10 shops all in one street BUT my last experiences with them wasn't very good either..  The shops staff were often arrogant and the prices got silly, its almost more of a tourist trap now..  Granted I haven't been there in a few years so it may have changed again but it is still a cool place to visit. Wunjo guitars is a really cool shop with interesting stock AND the staff there are actually quite nice (or they were on my last few visits)  https://www.wunjoguitars.com/

After that theres a shop called PMT who have a few stores around still.. My dealings with them has been ok.. But cant say much more than that.

The problem with buying online is you never know what you are going to get.. Guitar specs are very personal and different to each player. So I find that really playing a guitar is the only way to know if its the guitar for you.

So, sadly not much actual useful advice there..  But that's just the state of things at the moment.

Whitecat

smnmy said:

aha, more here
https://guitarvillage.co.uk/products?utf8=✓&keywords=cordoba

Guitar Village is in Farnham, about 30 mins on the train from London. Again they are a well respected shop with used as well as new stock.

More like nearly 60 mins plus a taxi or a good couple mile hike, but worth a visit. 

Dante_A

Thank you all for the responses!

Wow, that is really flabbergasting... I thought that the most populous city in Europe would have a fully-stocked warehouse with all sorts of guitars, and buying a guitar from a popular brand like Cordoba would be as easy as ordering a Steinway piano... I guess it all has moved to the online world now as the margins became too thin... 

Does anyone know GuitarGuitar in Camden? They seem to have a large selection of guitars, inc. Cordobas. (admittedly, at £100 premium to online stores... it might be more sensible to order a guitar online and pay some expert to help with assessment of a particular model...).

Among online stores, do you have any views on www.projectmusic.net , www.guitarsound.co.uk or the German www.thomann.de ?

Barrivee

Winny_Pooh said:

If you want a decent returns policy then buy online.

This 100%

earwighoney

Dante_A said:

Hi all,
After a long break (10+ years) I wanted to go back to playing guitar and would like to buy a spruce Cordoba C7 or C9. I know nothing about the guitar scene in the UK, though.

Hence a few simple questions:
(1) What is the best place to buy a guitar in London? I am after good prices and return policy (in case any defects are found after the purchase). Availability of financing is a plus, but not necessary. (... or maybe I should consider buying online / taking a cheap flight to XYZ city in Europe where the prices are much lower?)
(2) How should I go round actually buying the guitar, if my skills are really rusty and knowledge is minimal? I know that Cordobas sometimes have manufacturing defects and I am afraid I might not be able to spot them immediately. Do you know any really honest shop (e.g. where the salesperson will say "oh, the bridge/action/whatever on this one seems to be a bit off... let me give you another one, or ask our luthier to quickly correct it", etc.), or some good way of finding a nice-and-knowledgeable person who wouldn't mind going with me to the store (in exchange for reasonable ££ or dinner etc.)?

Thank you all for your help!

If you are looking for a nylon string guitar (classical) then London Guitar Studio I believe is the best shop in London.  Great staff as well. 

Any particular reasons for the Cordoba C7 or C9?  I can't really seem to find them in stock and sold by many European sellers so I can't seem to get a realistic street price. 

I don't know what your budget is but there are other classical guitars under a £1k I'd be more inclined to go for, Camps make some great guitars and are made in Spain as well. 

scalino65

What about Ivor Mairants or has that gone too?

Dante_A

Thank you all! That is very helpful. 

Earwighoney - I am not an expert, so I necessarily rely on third party advice. But, assuming nobody minds this little off-topic...

Having looked through hundreds of reviews and threads on various fora, Córdoba seems to be very often (more so than any other brand) recommended as providing extraordinary quality at this price point. Spec wise it offers solid spruce top, solid mahogany back and sides, truss rod, bone saddle, mother of pearl rosetta, looks amazing, allegedly sounds great (this is obviously subjective) etc. all at £700 (C9)...

Happy to explore alternatives and other recommendations, but I haven't come across anything comparable. NB: my findings might be US-biased, given that most discussions happen on international fora, so there might be many smaller brands which offer better value for money which are not as well-known. 


//edited: those Comps guitars actually look quite good (ebony fingerboard, yay!) ... though most of those in the uk are in flamenco style rather than classical . 

earwighoney

Dante_A said:

Thank you all! That is very helpful. 

Earwighoney - I am not an expert, so I necessarily rely on third party advice. But, assuming nobody minds this little off-topic...

Having looked through hundreds of reviews and threads on various fora, Córdoba seems to be very often (more so than any other brand) recommended as providing extraordinary quality at this price point. Spec wise it offers solid spruce top, solid mahogany back and sides, truss rod, bone saddle, mother of pearl rosetta, looks amazing, allegedly sounds great (this is obviously subjective) etc. all at £700 (C9)...

Happy to explore alternatives and other recommendations, but I haven't come across anything worth adding to the comparison. NB: my findings might be US-biased, given that most discussions happen on international fora, so there might be many smaller brands which offer better value for money which are not as well-known. 

In the USA Cordoba value than they are here where in competition to Spanish built guitars (Cordoba are built in the far east) that are often cheaper.  

The Camps CP-6, is all solid with Indian RW back/sides and is Spanish built and is less than the Cordoba C9.  FWIW, I think their instruments are superior to Cordobas. 

jellyroll

For classical, I'd recommend Ivor Mairants and London Guitar Studio both near Oxford Street (though at opposite ends).

DrCornelius

Project music are great , I've bought a few guitars from them and returned a Strat within 2 weeks as I couldn't bond with it . I got a refund, no questions asked.

Dante_A

Thank you all! I will stop by London Guitar Studio. Would you  trust them 100%, or should I still try finding somebody more skilled to go with me? 

Earwighoney - I think you have made a great point. I will search through this forum and open a separate thread to discuss the options available in the EU. Camps do indeed look great. 

TheBlueWolf

Wunjo are pretty good and one of the few still surviving guitar shops in Denmark Street. I've yet to visit GuitarGuitar but others on here have and the reviews have been positive.

I wouldn't say I'm an expert but if you want someone to tag along and check for any obvious flaws on the guitars I'm in and no need for payment either

fandango

TheBlueWolf said:

Wunjo are pretty good and one of the few still surviving guitar shops in Denmark Street. I've yet to visit GuitarGuitar but others on here have and the reviews have been positive.

I wouldn't say I'm an expert but if you want someone to tag along and check for any obvious flaws on the guitars I'm in and no need for payment either

But wouldn't turn down an offer of a slap up lunch and a few pints as appropriate recompense ... 

markblack

Been over to the new guitar guitar in Camden a couple of times. Nice shop. Good range for a London store which are always smaller as rents are high. 

As for Denmark st. Wunjo lot are nice. Two shops now. Some interesting stuff. 

Regent sound is a nice shop. Mainly fender & gretsch 

No Tom is nice for vintage. But it's London prices. 

Vintage guitar boutique in shoreditch is a nice shop. Mostly fender and gretsch. Few Gibson's, few accoutics. Vintage selection can be ok. 

If you want true range I'd guess out of town - andertons etc. Would be the place to head. I've yet to go to then yet. 

TheBlueWolf

fandango said:

TheBlueWolf said:

Wunjo are pretty good and one of the few still surviving guitar shops in Denmark Street. I've yet to visit GuitarGuitar but others on here have and the reviews have been positive.

I wouldn't say I'm an expert but if you want someone to tag along and check for any obvious flaws on the guitars I'm in and no need for payment either

But wouldn't turn down an offer of a slap up lunch and a few pints as appropriate recompense ... 

I don't drink so I would turn the pints down

bwets

Every guitar is different so it is best to go to the shops and try as many as you can. All you have to do is find one that sounds, feels and looks good to you. Take a guitar player with you if you can.

jellyroll

Dante_A said:

Thank you all! I will stop by London Guitar Studio. Would you  trust them 100%, or should I still try finding somebody more skilled to go with me? 

They're a decent shop but can be prone to a bit of sales patter; taking someone along might be helpful but not absolutely essential.