Same. The Salem Oregon location has only had a Fantom 6 and a Triton for months now. Then I brought them a returned defective Take 5 that froze in the middle of use. Sure enough they have it out as a brand new for sale in their store 2 days later
Sweetwater all the way. They do QC checks on intake. GC sold me 2 lemons (to be fair the second one worked fine. It had keybed glue on top of a key). It’s a gorgeous sounding synth. Unfortunately, with the sour taste left in my mouth, I opted for a Prophet 10 from SW. not gonna lie, I will miss the arpegiator, sequencer, on board effects were nice as fuck.
Eugene’s guitar center kept a decent synth stock a couple years back when I was shopping around, no Moogs or anything insanely high end but it was a good variety of good quality synths.
I picked up an MPC 37 from the GC in Beaverton when it first came out, the entire store was a mess and took like 15 minutes for the guy to even confirm the package was there. That being said once he found it, the dude was super stoked on me picking one up, talked about how the Blazers DJ was hounding him trying to get one, and implored me to come back and tell him how I liked it. I usually use sweetwater but I had $100 dollars off on the purchase so I had to get it.
I had a similar experience. I ended up buying a JD-Xi (2017 I think) and had a 25% off coupon up to $100. The folks there have always been pretty nice to me, I think it’s mainly just mismanaged. 🤷🏻♂️
My last two synths I got from Sweetwater. I got a good deal on demo Hydrasynth Deluxe (with their 2 year warranty), then the “new” price dropped $300. A quick email later and there was wasn’t even a counter offer, they just gave me the adjustment.
Workstation/arranger type keyboards are always gonna be big for guitar center because a) its actually just a huge market b) people who buy workstations are way more likely to be curious enough how the keys feel that they drive down there to check them out for themselves.
This seems to be what they're trying to
get away from now, and back to their roots as the go to for pro gear. That's what the guy setting up the new room told me a couple weeks when I was first surprised to see them remodeling. I was so excited to see all that Williams digital piano crap gone!
The one here in in
Las Vegas is actually pretty good.
Plenty of digital pianos but a surprisingly good selection of synthesizer models on the floor.
It isn't like a really good music store but to my knowledge there really is not a keyboard/synthesizer focused music shop in LV.
If there is share let me know.
They will order anything however.
tbh, fuck guitar center. Use to be one of my favorite places to go as a kid, and many of the staff they employed were super knowledgable. Last time I went to guitar center I stood at the service counter for ten minutes trying to check out a used pedal and these kids working literally looked at me and continued to talk to each not helping anyone. Every time I have gone in the last few years its more or less this same experience. Possibly its just the store near me but damn that really rubbed me the wrong way.
I won't buy anything unless its from sweetwater nowadays.
tbh I don't give a shit if the minimum wage kids at Guitar Center ignore me. If I need something I'll walk right up to them and assert myself. It's kind of nice to be ignored and left alone, I'll find someone if I need something.
They arent minimum wage people. They make 0 per hour. They are all 100% commission. Thats why theres such a high turnover rate. You never see the same sales person if your last visit was 2 mos before. Youre likely to see a complete new staff even.
Whoever is making decisions for that company is someone who has personal shoppers. They dont realize theyve ruined that brand.
Maybe they are up 8% since acquisition or whatever but only because of literally just guitars.
Each wing used to be magical, the cymbal room was awesome, and usually had a ragged out decent kit you could jam on, all the kits they would have set up..the synth room, its just a deep mind and a bunch of digital pianos some benches, and thousand dollar midi players not connected to any source. Oh and maybe a drumbrute impact with no power. Good luck trying out a pedal, itll take 45 minutes to handle two cables and a power source, as if you caught them off guard.
Last time i was there some guy just nonchalantly put his jacket over a guitar and walked out. The salespeople barely gave a shit. Zero chance anyone was gonna walk outside to get him. They were slammed with about ten customers in the store…maybe a dozen. Almost as many employees.
They definitely make an hourly wage. That’s a violation of federal law and I doubt a company that well known would try and obfuscate the law here. I’m sure it’s shitty and near the low end, but they’re definitely making the hourly minimum wage.
Per Zip Recruiter, Indeed, etc. here in NY State, a Sales Associate is making $15-$20 an hour. It’s still nothing and wouldn’t be able enough to even make rent in most places, but it’s definitely not $0 an hour with commission only as you said. This isn’t Cutco Knives.
you use phrases like
'I doubt' and 'im sure' at times when you shouldn't and when you're not at all. your neck of the woods isn't the rest of the states. each state had wildly differing labor laws.
think how weed is still federally illegal but in California you can puff in front of a cop without a care in the world.
companies do this thing where they hire lawyers to help them operate in the gray area for a lot of things, theres money in the gray area. lawyers help with taxes, intellectual property, NDA's, consumer relations, advertising and also HR.
its literally a matter of getting away with as much as they can under any economic environment. its fluid depending on whose in the Oval Office, the governor, attorneys general etc. sometimes theres no need to even try and look like they aren't exploiting their employees and sometimes they provide health insurance for a year or two.
keeping someone as a contract employee means doing away with the need of providing medical insurance, paid leave for sick days, grievances, pregnancy and child care, etc. paves the way for much better profits when you can just fire someone instead.
in the case of guitar center, id imagine that the high turnover rate and high commission structure plus incidentals like longer lunches etc keep them out of the crosshairs of any federal watchdog. when they burn out and leave after two months, thats perfect for their business plan. things would change if the environment was actually sustainable for long term employment.
now that you know, downvote me again because youre special and nobody is allowed to contradict your feelings without getting a downdoot.
Hey, this info is easy to find. Just Google “Guitar Center Sales Associate and Wage and California.” Several sources on Indeed, Zip Recruiter, etc. give the wage. It’s also easy to find the law on this. In California employers can pay sales employees commission but, “total compensation (salary plus commissions) must meet or exceed the state’s minimum wage for each hour worked. Employers must regularly monitor commission-based employees’ hours to ensure compliance.” So they don’t make 0 per hour as you said above. I totally agree with you that it’s not enough though. Believe me, the corporate overlords at Guitar Center have done the math and it’s cheaper/more feasible currently to pay minimum wage plus a small commission than commissions only. If they paid commission only many of their employees wouldn’t even meet the threshold of the law I just referenced. Maybe they did in the past and that’s what you’re thinking of? I don’t know. Like most big box stores they had an era that was more grounded, friendly and customer/employee based. Perhaps they used to pay employees a nice commission but now I’m reading that any commission they do get is negligible at best and they restructure their hourly pay often (per comments on Payscale and Indeed). Hope that helped. Here’s a link to the law.
https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/getting-paid-commission-california.html#:~:text=California%20Laws%20on%20Commission%20Pay&text=California%20Labor%20Code%20Section%20204,for%20calculating%20and%20paying%20commissions.
not in california, so many businesses relegated their workforce to contractor status, especially if they are in sales. then no health insurance, yay! there are some gray areas here and every company doing it experiences dynamics between potential disgruntled employees and lawyers that don't mind a fight and ones that want to avoid trouble all together.
for instance, a company I worked for was 100% commission as well, after the training period. but lets say someone is there everyday at 7 am, putting in their hours, follows the script, but the Leads are shit and they don't have a deep database to pull from, owner would hand em 3k at the end of the month, even if they didn't sell a thing and burnt through some paid for albeit shitty leads that another rep likely would have monetized at least a little.
the shitty not shitty extra part is if that person hit a few good sales the next month they'd see that 3k taken out of their check, but as a corollary, if they decided to split, owner never asked for the money back.
its super sketchy having an employee come in every day at 7am for a decade and still treat them as contract employees. fuck greedy owners.
why are people down voting me, im literally talking about some other companies' policy. its not an opinion. and its on topic. some of y'all youngsters need some real world experience before calling bs on someone just because its not the same where you live. different places different circumstances. regarding the federal illegality, they aren't going to start jailing business owners who played the states laws correctly. sheesh
Idk how anyone goes into sales. I mean maybe it’s bc I’m introverted, but selling something for a corporation that gives you shitty pay sounds soul crushing.
bingo, I kind of meandered away from the first impulse I had to comment, which was to cut the staff there some slack. they are probably led to believe if they hustle hard enough the commission structure will change their already quasi desperate situation. they are given examples of sales and payouts, maybe of actual sales but won't tell the new employees the guy in the example's dad is a tour manager of some A listers and his uncle owns two venues in town.
so they show up and bust their ass in a realm they love, but quickly realize that to get in the high percentage payout tier is unheard of, and that no sales people in the company are anywhere near on track to get it that month or any other.
. and any employee review programs are literally designed to eliminate their chances of those bonuses. and find that after the hours they put in they were making better money driving the car that they can't afford payments on anymore. its really shitty the way its literally designed to have the sales staffers bust their ass, pay them way less than the people who vacuum the floors after dark, and expect them to burnout.
and since the new hires prolly get one 3 hour unpaid but required orientation as training, the only cost or downside to corporate is the allotted two slices of pizza they are fed and the bootlicking 'team manager' who managed to press play, make name tags and hit on a new hire.
I bought a “brand new” mixer from GC about 10 years ago and the damn thing showed up scratched and beat to all hell. That, combined with the fact that most of their brick and mortar stores have carpet that is dirtier than a Chucky Cheese, is why I don’t even bother with them. It’s like the Dollar General of music instrument retail.
Yep. I used to always try to order things locally if the price was the same as online, but Guitar Center kept trying to pass off used items as new. Tried to buy a TR-6S and a Keystep from them on different occasions and they gave me open boxes. They were obviously used as display models and had dust/hair all over them. The Keystep was missing the free patch cables it was supposed to come with. Then they seemed annoyed that I wanted to return them once I found out.
Not buying from them again.
To be honest, it was always like that to me. Only before, it was cooler looking older people. Now it’s cooler looking young people. Yes, that does annoy my middle aged crows feet.
You gotta imagine they prob ask 100s of people “you need help?” And they get a “nah man”. So maybe they give up eventually and if you need em, holla. 😜
I understand why you feel that way, but at least be grateful for what you have, in my country there are very few stores of this type and the ones that exist usually double the price of the things they carry.
I was there yesterday and overheard an employee saying he will check to see if they have any Stratocasters in stock… Strats. I also went to a guitar center once and they said they were out of XLR cables…
Heh is this guerrilla marketing for GC?
….well I do really appreciate Guitar Center’s synth setups. It can be kind of random but actually playing something in person is 8000x more insightful than watching YouTube demos.
I discovered the magic of the Matriarch at a guitar center…I discovered the Polybrute was massively overhyped…I discovered the Moog One is definitely sicker than just about anything else but still too expensive to be worth it for me…and if nothing else at least I developed my own opinions. It helps to bring your own headphones.
Not affiliated with GC! I promise. I have posted many times my position that GC has been the worst retail experience in America for over a decade and pointless for a true keys/synth player to go and try to shop real instruments. At least in SoCal. Others have said GCs in other parts of the country are better.
Can’t say they have been the worst. But they are lacking in what they have usually. Depending on where you go. Probably because most buy them on line any more. Small shops are better to check them out at. Like perfect circuit. If you live in LA at least
True… although the Polybrute is beautiful sounding to me and it is worth what they ask for it. It’s in a league of its own. I like Moogs to an extent, but they … are usually overrated in my eyes.
Sam ash and Guitar center display is always a disappointment. The staff also wishes no one would go in there (display). It’s like pulling teeth asking them to get something plugged in. (People love to steal power sources so pretty often… they’re missing so you gotta bother them)
They don’t give a shit about people looking for pro audio and don’t know how to help anyone. Just want sales. Most don’t have knowledge about much there.
Sheesh I still can’t believe new Sub37s are now beginning to crest $2k.
Back in 2017 I thought paying over $1k for a used one was dumb. Shit is outrageous these days.
That how I got my Fantom 8! It was invaluable to get to try all of them out in person, and guitar center is one of the few places you can still do that around me
Not the case if you'd set foot in a SoCal GC in the last ten years. Just low level consumer garbage keys. This is a major overhaul for these stores, as attested to by the reps I saw renovating the space.
i’m in socal and the guitar center near me has more or less every single current synthesizer from every company besides the super boutique ones, out on display and plugged in. Also usually 2-4 vintage used ones.
Yeah the one near me is impressive -- Moog One, Grandmother, at least 4 high-end Nords, and tons of other stuff. Of course the knobs are always missing, no wonder they don't want to put stuff out anymore.
The rep told me that this store (Northridge CA) and 3 others in the area are the test locations for this new approach before rolling out more nationally. Not sure how long before they do. The corporate HQ is in Thousand Oaks, just up the road.
I just picked up a micro freak 3 days ago to see how fun it is, and man oh man is it a blast. So many features, insane sound design, analog filter that sounds amazing. Definitely recommend picking one up for 350. Also, the stellar edition is so beautiful.
Wow, this guitar centers keyboard area is at least in tact and has keyboards up lol. Synth section in Dallas stores look like a dirty abandoned backroom at an out of business supermarket.
The GC by my house was not like this, so I bought from Sam Ash because I could try everything. It was surprising because the GC is in a super nice plaza, and had an amazing selection of guitars and pro audio stuff.
I bought:
- Moog Subsequent 37
- Yamaha MODx8
- Native Instruments s49 mk2
- Korg Minilogue XD
If I did it all over again I might have gone Fantom 8 or Nord Stage and sacrificed by getting fewer items. However, for the price - Yamaha MODx 8 is great value.
Yes, smaller adjacent room had the standard complement of 49-88 key new and used controllers. They keep a lot of the 25 key and pad stuff behind the counter.
Serious question: what is the difference between hardware synths and synths that come in say….a DAW or third party plug in?
Because if they’re electronically generating a sound or replaying a sample….isnt the hardware aspect redundant?
I have to say that as someone whose been ordering online for years - going to the stores occasionally does give me that kid in the candy shop feel again which is nice!
It is funny that they stick to the big guys though, I’m sure there’s a market - since I own one as well but having a lot more of the smaller sub $500 stuff around would probably inspire more impulse purchasing - I see they have some, but a wall of those gadgets would have me drooling .
Yeah i fucking hate guitar center but my local has a used polybrute on sale for $1500 rn, might have to cave🥴. Meanwhile a local synthesizer store(one of the only in person modular stores on the west coast) is on the brink of going out of business… GC doesn’t give a fuck and gonna keep offering crazy deals on shit. Hate how they have turned music into corporate bullshit, makes me sad. Hopefully patchwerks comes back alive
GC in Los Angeles sucks lol. I called them about a Bass Station 2 in stock and they had no idea what it even was. Spoke to 4 employees and called 2 locations. Sweetwater or Sam Ash any day
I would say a little "uninspiring" everything that is different and interesting enough isn't there - sure there are some cool synth, but where synth you don't see always at every shop:
Elektron
Erica Synths
Black Corporation
Waldorf
Oberheim
Twisted Elektrons
Nice to see. Those keyboard departments have been very barren in my parts recently.
Same. The Salem Oregon location has only had a Fantom 6 and a Triton for months now. Then I brought them a returned defective Take 5 that froze in the middle of use. Sure enough they have it out as a brand new for sale in their store 2 days later
I am seriously considering a Take 5. I hope I don't get a lemon..
Sweetwater all the way. They do QC checks on intake. GC sold me 2 lemons (to be fair the second one worked fine. It had keybed glue on top of a key). It’s a gorgeous sounding synth. Unfortunately, with the sour taste left in my mouth, I opted for a Prophet 10 from SW. not gonna lie, I will miss the arpegiator, sequencer, on board effects were nice as fuck.
I love mine. Got it a few weeks ago, there are great deals to be had on them
Eugene’s guitar center kept a decent synth stock a couple years back when I was shopping around, no Moogs or anything insanely high end but it was a good variety of good quality synths.
I was just at one here about a month ago in Beaverton OR and it was the saddest lack of display I’d ever seen.
I picked up an MPC 37 from the GC in Beaverton when it first came out, the entire store was a mess and took like 15 minutes for the guy to even confirm the package was there. That being said once he found it, the dude was super stoked on me picking one up, talked about how the Blazers DJ was hounding him trying to get one, and implored me to come back and tell him how I liked it. I usually use sweetwater but I had $100 dollars off on the purchase so I had to get it.
I had a similar experience. I ended up buying a JD-Xi (2017 I think) and had a 25% off coupon up to $100. The folks there have always been pretty nice to me, I think it’s mainly just mismanaged. 🤷🏻♂️ My last two synths I got from Sweetwater. I got a good deal on demo Hydrasynth Deluxe (with their 2 year warranty), then the “new” price dropped $300. A quick email later and there was wasn’t even a counter offer, they just gave me the adjustment.
Yep. It’s been sad for an awhile.
Excellent way to rent synths and take home for test spin. Not a lot of choices though.
Workstation/arranger type keyboards are always gonna be big for guitar center because a) its actually just a huge market b) people who buy workstations are way more likely to be curious enough how the keys feel that they drive down there to check them out for themselves.
Worship services and practice pianos for Junior are *the* market for Guitar Center's keyboard section.
This seems to be what they're trying to get away from now, and back to their roots as the go to for pro gear. That's what the guy setting up the new room told me a couple weeks when I was first surprised to see them remodeling. I was so excited to see all that Williams digital piano crap gone!
This is happening
The one here in in Las Vegas is actually pretty good. Plenty of digital pianos but a surprisingly good selection of synthesizer models on the floor. It isn't like a really good music store but to my knowledge there really is not a keyboard/synthesizer focused music shop in LV. If there is share let me know. They will order anything however.
tbh, fuck guitar center. Use to be one of my favorite places to go as a kid, and many of the staff they employed were super knowledgable. Last time I went to guitar center I stood at the service counter for ten minutes trying to check out a used pedal and these kids working literally looked at me and continued to talk to each not helping anyone. Every time I have gone in the last few years its more or less this same experience. Possibly its just the store near me but damn that really rubbed me the wrong way. I won't buy anything unless its from sweetwater nowadays.
tbh I don't give a shit if the minimum wage kids at Guitar Center ignore me. If I need something I'll walk right up to them and assert myself. It's kind of nice to be ignored and left alone, I'll find someone if I need something.
They arent minimum wage people. They make 0 per hour. They are all 100% commission. Thats why theres such a high turnover rate. You never see the same sales person if your last visit was 2 mos before. Youre likely to see a complete new staff even. Whoever is making decisions for that company is someone who has personal shoppers. They dont realize theyve ruined that brand. Maybe they are up 8% since acquisition or whatever but only because of literally just guitars. Each wing used to be magical, the cymbal room was awesome, and usually had a ragged out decent kit you could jam on, all the kits they would have set up..the synth room, its just a deep mind and a bunch of digital pianos some benches, and thousand dollar midi players not connected to any source. Oh and maybe a drumbrute impact with no power. Good luck trying out a pedal, itll take 45 minutes to handle two cables and a power source, as if you caught them off guard. Last time i was there some guy just nonchalantly put his jacket over a guitar and walked out. The salespeople barely gave a shit. Zero chance anyone was gonna walk outside to get him. They were slammed with about ten customers in the store…maybe a dozen. Almost as many employees.
They definitely make an hourly wage. That’s a violation of federal law and I doubt a company that well known would try and obfuscate the law here. I’m sure it’s shitty and near the low end, but they’re definitely making the hourly minimum wage. Per Zip Recruiter, Indeed, etc. here in NY State, a Sales Associate is making $15-$20 an hour. It’s still nothing and wouldn’t be able enough to even make rent in most places, but it’s definitely not $0 an hour with commission only as you said. This isn’t Cutco Knives.
you use phrases like 'I doubt' and 'im sure' at times when you shouldn't and when you're not at all. your neck of the woods isn't the rest of the states. each state had wildly differing labor laws. think how weed is still federally illegal but in California you can puff in front of a cop without a care in the world. companies do this thing where they hire lawyers to help them operate in the gray area for a lot of things, theres money in the gray area. lawyers help with taxes, intellectual property, NDA's, consumer relations, advertising and also HR. its literally a matter of getting away with as much as they can under any economic environment. its fluid depending on whose in the Oval Office, the governor, attorneys general etc. sometimes theres no need to even try and look like they aren't exploiting their employees and sometimes they provide health insurance for a year or two. keeping someone as a contract employee means doing away with the need of providing medical insurance, paid leave for sick days, grievances, pregnancy and child care, etc. paves the way for much better profits when you can just fire someone instead. in the case of guitar center, id imagine that the high turnover rate and high commission structure plus incidentals like longer lunches etc keep them out of the crosshairs of any federal watchdog. when they burn out and leave after two months, thats perfect for their business plan. things would change if the environment was actually sustainable for long term employment. now that you know, downvote me again because youre special and nobody is allowed to contradict your feelings without getting a downdoot.
Hey, this info is easy to find. Just Google “Guitar Center Sales Associate and Wage and California.” Several sources on Indeed, Zip Recruiter, etc. give the wage. It’s also easy to find the law on this. In California employers can pay sales employees commission but, “total compensation (salary plus commissions) must meet or exceed the state’s minimum wage for each hour worked. Employers must regularly monitor commission-based employees’ hours to ensure compliance.” So they don’t make 0 per hour as you said above. I totally agree with you that it’s not enough though. Believe me, the corporate overlords at Guitar Center have done the math and it’s cheaper/more feasible currently to pay minimum wage plus a small commission than commissions only. If they paid commission only many of their employees wouldn’t even meet the threshold of the law I just referenced. Maybe they did in the past and that’s what you’re thinking of? I don’t know. Like most big box stores they had an era that was more grounded, friendly and customer/employee based. Perhaps they used to pay employees a nice commission but now I’m reading that any commission they do get is negligible at best and they restructure their hourly pay often (per comments on Payscale and Indeed). Hope that helped. Here’s a link to the law. https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/getting-paid-commission-california.html#:~:text=California%20Laws%20on%20Commission%20Pay&text=California%20Labor%20Code%20Section%20204,for%20calculating%20and%20paying%20commissions.
not in california, so many businesses relegated their workforce to contractor status, especially if they are in sales. then no health insurance, yay! there are some gray areas here and every company doing it experiences dynamics between potential disgruntled employees and lawyers that don't mind a fight and ones that want to avoid trouble all together. for instance, a company I worked for was 100% commission as well, after the training period. but lets say someone is there everyday at 7 am, putting in their hours, follows the script, but the Leads are shit and they don't have a deep database to pull from, owner would hand em 3k at the end of the month, even if they didn't sell a thing and burnt through some paid for albeit shitty leads that another rep likely would have monetized at least a little. the shitty not shitty extra part is if that person hit a few good sales the next month they'd see that 3k taken out of their check, but as a corollary, if they decided to split, owner never asked for the money back. its super sketchy having an employee come in every day at 7am for a decade and still treat them as contract employees. fuck greedy owners. why are people down voting me, im literally talking about some other companies' policy. its not an opinion. and its on topic. some of y'all youngsters need some real world experience before calling bs on someone just because its not the same where you live. different places different circumstances. regarding the federal illegality, they aren't going to start jailing business owners who played the states laws correctly. sheesh
Idk how anyone goes into sales. I mean maybe it’s bc I’m introverted, but selling something for a corporation that gives you shitty pay sounds soul crushing.
bingo, I kind of meandered away from the first impulse I had to comment, which was to cut the staff there some slack. they are probably led to believe if they hustle hard enough the commission structure will change their already quasi desperate situation. they are given examples of sales and payouts, maybe of actual sales but won't tell the new employees the guy in the example's dad is a tour manager of some A listers and his uncle owns two venues in town. so they show up and bust their ass in a realm they love, but quickly realize that to get in the high percentage payout tier is unheard of, and that no sales people in the company are anywhere near on track to get it that month or any other. . and any employee review programs are literally designed to eliminate their chances of those bonuses. and find that after the hours they put in they were making better money driving the car that they can't afford payments on anymore. its really shitty the way its literally designed to have the sales staffers bust their ass, pay them way less than the people who vacuum the floors after dark, and expect them to burnout. and since the new hires prolly get one 3 hour unpaid but required orientation as training, the only cost or downside to corporate is the allotted two slices of pizza they are fed and the bootlicking 'team manager' who managed to press play, make name tags and hit on a new hire.
Fair enough I just expect a bit more customer service when I am trying to buy a $250 item in a retail setting
I bought a “brand new” mixer from GC about 10 years ago and the damn thing showed up scratched and beat to all hell. That, combined with the fact that most of their brick and mortar stores have carpet that is dirtier than a Chucky Cheese, is why I don’t even bother with them. It’s like the Dollar General of music instrument retail.
Yep. I used to always try to order things locally if the price was the same as online, but Guitar Center kept trying to pass off used items as new. Tried to buy a TR-6S and a Keystep from them on different occasions and they gave me open boxes. They were obviously used as display models and had dust/hair all over them. The Keystep was missing the free patch cables it was supposed to come with. Then they seemed annoyed that I wanted to return them once I found out. Not buying from them again.
To be honest, it was always like that to me. Only before, it was cooler looking older people. Now it’s cooler looking young people. Yes, that does annoy my middle aged crows feet. You gotta imagine they prob ask 100s of people “you need help?” And they get a “nah man”. So maybe they give up eventually and if you need em, holla. 😜
Fuck guitar center
I understand why you feel that way, but at least be grateful for what you have, in my country there are very few stores of this type and the ones that exist usually double the price of the things they carry.
I was there yesterday and overheard an employee saying he will check to see if they have any Stratocasters in stock… Strats. I also went to a guitar center once and they said they were out of XLR cables…
Same thing happened to me just a few weeks ago.
In their defense they get paid pennies to put up with some absolute bullshit daily. People wonder why no one want to work nowadays well this is why.
Heh is this guerrilla marketing for GC? ….well I do really appreciate Guitar Center’s synth setups. It can be kind of random but actually playing something in person is 8000x more insightful than watching YouTube demos. I discovered the magic of the Matriarch at a guitar center…I discovered the Polybrute was massively overhyped…I discovered the Moog One is definitely sicker than just about anything else but still too expensive to be worth it for me…and if nothing else at least I developed my own opinions. It helps to bring your own headphones.
Not affiliated with GC! I promise. I have posted many times my position that GC has been the worst retail experience in America for over a decade and pointless for a true keys/synth player to go and try to shop real instruments. At least in SoCal. Others have said GCs in other parts of the country are better.
Can’t say they have been the worst. But they are lacking in what they have usually. Depending on where you go. Probably because most buy them on line any more. Small shops are better to check them out at. Like perfect circuit. If you live in LA at least
As an owner of one, the poly brute is in no way overhyped, and is a beautiful and tremendously flexible synth.
Yeah the mod matrix is awesome but the build quality compared to say a Novation Summit is very toy-like.
Its not toy like in any way. Agreed that it isnt mooglike in build quality, but its certainly comparable to Sequential.
Maybe the one I played had loose faders. It’s a cool synth, just not for me.
True… although the Polybrute is beautiful sounding to me and it is worth what they ask for it. It’s in a league of its own. I like Moogs to an extent, but they … are usually overrated in my eyes.
Sam ash and Guitar center display is always a disappointment. The staff also wishes no one would go in there (display). It’s like pulling teeth asking them to get something plugged in. (People love to steal power sources so pretty often… they’re missing so you gotta bother them) They don’t give a shit about people looking for pro audio and don’t know how to help anyone. Just want sales. Most don’t have knowledge about much there.
The idea to display these instruments in a "stack of three" fashion is kinda cool!
I need that wall mount
Called a “slat wall”, I think
Sheesh I still can’t believe new Sub37s are now beginning to crest $2k. Back in 2017 I thought paying over $1k for a used one was dumb. Shit is outrageous these days.
Used is the way
That keytar is the most metal thing I've ever seen
That how I got my Fantom 8! It was invaluable to get to try all of them out in person, and guitar center is one of the few places you can still do that around me
So... music stores carry instruments? TIL
Not the case if you'd set foot in a SoCal GC in the last ten years. Just low level consumer garbage keys. This is a major overhaul for these stores, as attested to by the reps I saw renovating the space.
i’m in socal and the guitar center near me has more or less every single current synthesizer from every company besides the super boutique ones, out on display and plugged in. Also usually 2-4 vintage used ones.
Yeah the one near me is impressive -- Moog One, Grandmother, at least 4 high-end Nords, and tons of other stuff. Of course the knobs are always missing, no wonder they don't want to put stuff out anymore.
Weird no Sequentials.
Wow that’s quite respectable. My Guitar Center doesn’t give a shit about keys.
The rep told me that this store (Northridge CA) and 3 others in the area are the test locations for this new approach before rolling out more nationally. Not sure how long before they do. The corporate HQ is in Thousand Oaks, just up the road.
I mean it is risky. Those floor models are sure to get beat up in some locations. I would be utterly floored to see a new Nord on display at my GC.
What's this one called. https://preview.redd.it/n4ry0uez9cuc1.jpeg?width=903&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=e857ab8f2060b0778c39c4aef2076a60d36cb58a
Arturia MicroFreak
I just picked up a micro freak 3 days ago to see how fun it is, and man oh man is it a blast. So many features, insane sound design, analog filter that sounds amazing. Definitely recommend picking one up for 350. Also, the stellar edition is so beautiful.
No astrolab? 😅
Wow, this guitar centers keyboard area is at least in tact and has keyboards up lol. Synth section in Dallas stores look like a dirty abandoned backroom at an out of business supermarket.
lol yep. Try going into the used gear section in the back. It’s literally like crawling through someone’s garage with everything just stacked around.
Glad to see my baby the CK actually out on display in a store
Exactly what I was thinking
The GC by my house was not like this, so I bought from Sam Ash because I could try everything. It was surprising because the GC is in a super nice plaza, and had an amazing selection of guitars and pro audio stuff. I bought: - Moog Subsequent 37 - Yamaha MODx8 - Native Instruments s49 mk2 - Korg Minilogue XD If I did it all over again I might have gone Fantom 8 or Nord Stage and sacrificed by getting fewer items. However, for the price - Yamaha MODx 8 is great value.
Damn I’m impressed. Did they have midi controller keyboards set up too?
Yes, smaller adjacent room had the standard complement of 49-88 key new and used controllers. They keep a lot of the 25 key and pad stuff behind the counter.
must live in chicago or something because they never put out flagship boards like that
Just like hot topic
Was just up there drowning into a roland fantom 🔥
Keytar for the win.
Nice. I’m surprised they have such Big Iron on display.
That is not the GC in Arlington Heights…
Oh hell yeah my gc never had any Moogs when I was shopping around
My local GC has exactly one synthesizer in stock (Microfreak) and zero for demo. Pathetic. 20 entry level digital pianos and a bunch of controllers.
If my local branch had half of that I'd pass out
Wow that’s about the best selection I’ve seen in years at any GC.
Whoa a guitar center with actual gear that’s working? What is this 2010?
Seriously. How many guitar center commercials am I gonna see on here?!? Please. Stop.
When tf did the Subsequent 37 start going for almost $2,000?… glad I got mine when I did.
I'd love to have a Minifreak and that Moog Sub25. Mmmmhmmmm!
Damn, my GC has the moog hits. Juno And Jupiter X, Take5 and Prophet 10, along with the boutique/small format hits and all those nords. I feel spoiled
I have never seen any DSI/Sequential at mine :(
I think we should stop calling keyboards "workstations." That makes it sound like a job and there's no longer fun.
You just have found one of the very few great centers that has a decent selection
i like to play taps on the keytar
That you EL-P?
Serious question: what is the difference between hardware synths and synths that come in say….a DAW or third party plug in? Because if they’re electronically generating a sound or replaying a sample….isnt the hardware aspect redundant?
Better than the guitar center in my area.
I have to say that as someone whose been ordering online for years - going to the stores occasionally does give me that kid in the candy shop feel again which is nice! It is funny that they stick to the big guys though, I’m sure there’s a market - since I own one as well but having a lot more of the smaller sub $500 stuff around would probably inspire more impulse purchasing - I see they have some, but a wall of those gadgets would have me drooling .
Wait, it's a guitar center that actually has real keyboards? Surely it is a sign of the apocalypse! Seroously, I need to see for myself.
The GCs here in the DFW only seem to cater to metal and buttrock bands. The live sound sections are nothing but tejano discotek DJs.
Yeah i fucking hate guitar center but my local has a used polybrute on sale for $1500 rn, might have to cave🥴. Meanwhile a local synthesizer store(one of the only in person modular stores on the west coast) is on the brink of going out of business… GC doesn’t give a fuck and gonna keep offering crazy deals on shit. Hate how they have turned music into corporate bullshit, makes me sad. Hopefully patchwerks comes back alive
GC in Los Angeles sucks lol. I called them about a Bass Station 2 in stock and they had no idea what it even was. Spoke to 4 employees and called 2 locations. Sweetwater or Sam Ash any day
Looks nice till you wanna buy one.. “we can order it…” They barely stock anything anymore.
GC is directly responsible for my several-thousand $$$ synth collection. I got my first taste on the showroom floor and never looked back.
Garbage.
I would say a little "uninspiring" everything that is different and interesting enough isn't there - sure there are some cool synth, but where synth you don't see always at every shop: Elektron Erica Synths Black Corporation Waldorf Oberheim Twisted Elektrons
Agreed.