How far/close do you live from a decent guitar shop?

crunchman

simonk said:

15 minutes from the excellent Project Music and Manson's in Exeter.
Secretly I want Bill Greenhalgh's on Fore Street back... the Grace Bros. of music shops.

My first acoustic and my first electric came from Bill Greenhalgh's.  Those were the days.  What was the one up the other end called?  I bought a second hand lawsuit Ibanez in there.

simonk

@crunchman said:

simonk said:

15 minutes from the excellent Project Music and Manson's in Exeter.
Secretly I want Bill Greenhalgh's on Fore Street back... the Grace Bros. of music shops.

My first acoustic and my first electric came from Bill Greenhalgh's.  Those were the days.  What was the one up the other end called?  I bought a second hand lawsuit Ibanez in there.

Music Room do you mean? That's an equally bizarre shop.

jellyroll

Thomann. It's a just a click away!

Jalapeno

Pete's Vintage in Thame is I suppose the nearest, about 40 mins away.  Coda 50min. Andertons 1Hr-ish.  There's a small one in Hemel

Used to have a great one a mile away, now sadly gone to the big business rate-rise and lease-hike in the sky

impmann

Define decent.

Jalapeno

impmann said:

Define decent.

I chose to define it as a place that had the ability to hoover my wallet, rather than the nearest Squier Affinity & strings stockist.

Strat54

An hour away for me for a good new guitar shop at Reidys....but used....lord knows, I live in the sticks....the nearest supermarket is 10 miles away.....but it sure is pretty up here!

Fretwired

I used to have five within a thirty minute drive. Only Coda music left now. About 15 mins away.

impmann

Jalapeno said:

impmann said:

Define decent.

I chose to define it as a place that had the ability to hoover my wallet, rather than the nearest Squier Affinity & strings stockist.

Hmmm - there have been a few suggestions above that I really wouldn't classify under 'decent' - either due to rubbish sales staff or just downright dodgy characters.

I guess for me it would an hour's drive to Coda.

sweepy

PMT and GG at Birmingham for me, about an hour on a good day.

proggy

I live by Regent's Park in central London, I've got a 5 minute walk to GuitarGuitar (Camden) in one direction and a 15 minute walk to Denmark Street in the opposite direction.

usedtobe

About 40 minutes from Richtone, in Sheffield. I really ought to go...

Voxman

Well, I'm in North London and unless I'm missing something there's nothing much near me.  Sound Garden in Barnet and Electrohill in Palmers Green, but they don't sell higher end guitars.  There is the Wembley Music Centre, but in London its not so much about distance as getting from A to B through traffic.  its a little over 10 miles and on a good day if the North Circular is clear you can do it in half an hour - if not, it could be an hour or even longer.  

Coda Music Stevenage is over 26 miles from me - 40 mins if traffic is clear, double that if its not. 

proggy

Voxman said:

Well, I'm in North London and unless I'm missing something there's nothing much near me.  Sound Garden in Barnet and Electrohill in Palmers Green, but they don't sell higher end guitars.  There is the Wembley Music Centre, but in London its not so much about distance as getting from A to B through traffic.  On a good day if the North Circular is clear you can do it in half an hour - if not, it could be an hour or even longer.  

Get yourself an Oyster Card.

rico

Well I have guitarguitar Epsom about 15 mins away, Andertons about 20 mins away, Guitar Village about 30 mins away. Also have a few smaller places in Clapham and on the Kings Road but very much traffic dependent - I hate the tube. 

Guitar techs are a five minute walk or a 15 min drive, rehearsal studios a five minute drive.

I'm pretty sorted. 

sm55onl

Central Scotland: so i am within a 20 min car journey between two GuitarGuitar shops in Glasgow & Edinburgh as well as several attendant shops in either city.

Bridgehouse

A long way. Real long way.

Which is, in my book, a really good thing...

TheBigDipper

Oasis in Ringwood is a 10 minute drive away. They're starting to stock some nice high end amps and guitars, making them more of a "destination" shop than just a local one. Absolute Music in Poole is 20 minutes away and is a decent place with the best-trained staff I've ever met. 

Skipped

MagicPigDetective said:

How far/close do you live from a decent guitar shop?

impmann beat me to it. Can you define decent guitar shop?

One of the shops you have mentioned will not entertain trades AFAIK. I am not sure how that would even qualify them as a guitar shop, a music retailer, or anything else. Never mind a decent one.

scrumhalf

Another North Londoner here.

Allowing for the vagaries of the Northern Line, Sound Garden in Barnet is about 20 minutes away, Denmark Street about 35 minutes. I wouldn't go to Electrohill again, I feel that they've gone downhill since they moved. Wild Guitars in Highgate is about 20 minutes away as well, but at those prices it may as well be on the moon.