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Guitar Center
4.4 ★★★★☆ 1,508 Google reviews · Guitar & music store in Arlington Heights, Illinois
Music store offering a large selection of musical instruments and related gear.
Plan your visit
- Repairs & setups a repair bench comes up in reviews and the store's own info — call ahead for turnaround, since good techs run a queue
- Buys & trades used gear they buy, trade, or consign used instruments — bring the case and any original parts, and expect trade credit to beat the cash offer
- Lessons lessons come up in reviews and the store's own info — call about openings, instruments taught, and rates before the first visit
- Instrument rentals rentals mentioned — the usual route for band & orchestra season; ask about rent-to-own credit
- Today see hours ·
- Phone (847) 439-4600
- Website stores.guitarcenter.com
Hours
| Monday | 11 AM–9 PM |
| Tuesday | 11 AM–9 PM |
| Wednesday | 11 AM–9 PM |
| Thursday | 11 AM–9 PM |
| Friday | 11 AM–9 PM |
| Saturday | 10 AM–9 PM |
| Sunday | 11 AM–7 PM |
What's on the wall
“I stopped in today on the hunt for a Custom Shop Les Paul and left with this ‘68 reissue.”
“When the arrived the bass didn't have legs or a foot pedal, the standing Tom had 2 of the 3 legs and the snare didn't have a stand.”
“When the arrived the bass didn't have legs or a foot pedal, the standing Tom had 2 of the 3 legs and the snare didn't have a stand.”
“I ordered a used 5 piece pearl export drumset for my daughter for Christmas.”
“When the arrived the bass didn't have legs or a foot pedal, the standing Tom had 2 of the 3 legs and the snare didn't have a stand.”
“Being able to try so many guitars, keyboards, and pianos in one place really helped me get a feel for the instruments before making any decisions.”
“Might get piano lessons for him if he decides he wants to keep learning the piano since he plays the violin as well”
Brands they deal
“The guitar is an Epiphone, and she is a beauty, as you can see.”
What players say again and again
“John helped me out and he was very knowledgeable, professional, personable, and even showed me the other CS offerings along the way to narrow the selection down.”
From the reviews
I was looking for a party speaker. The staff helped me a lot. He was very kind and friendly. So I bought one he recommend
I decided to drive up to Arlington Heights and look for a guitar. I am unhappy with my current guitar, but I don't have a lot of money to buy an expensive one. Dylan, the manager, greeted me as I walked in and asked me what I wanted. I told him I was looking for a hollow body electric with a single cut out.
It’s simply huge. So many different types of guitars, drums, pianos, speakers & accessories of it. Went there today first time and it was a wow moment. They buy good brands secondary musical instruments. Very knowledgeable & helpful people on the floor. Must visit places for any musicians or an ordinary person like me.
Amazing facility wonderful staff. I couldn’t have been more pleased. The customer service was excellent. I love my new guitar.
Selling or trading gear at Guitar Center
Guitar Center comes up for buying and trading used gear — confirmed on their own site. Two things make the trip go better. First, bring the whole package: the case or gig bag, the original tremolo arm or bridge parts, the paperwork if you have it — a complete rig is worth real money more than a bare instrument, and it saves the back-and-forth of "can you bring the case in?" Second, know that trade credit almost always beats the cash offer, usually by a healthy margin — if you're upgrading anyway, price your old gear as a trade against the new one before you take cash. Either way, expect the offer to be below what the gear sells for on the wall; the gap is the store's margin for setup, warranty, and sitting on it until the right buyer walks in.
Lessons at Guitar Center
Reviews and the store's own info mention lessons at Guitar Center. If you're signing up a beginner (or restarting yourself), a quick call ahead answers the three things that matter: which instruments they teach, whether the schedule has openings at the time you actually need, and what a first lesson costs. There's no wrong first guitar — a good teacher will happily work with whatever you walk in with, and a shop that teaches usually keeps affordable starter instruments and rentals on hand for exactly this reason.
Guitar stores near Guitar Center
Guitar Center Lessons
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