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Guitar Center
4.3 ★★★★☆ 1,454 Google reviews · Guitar & music store in Pasadena, California
Music store chain with a wide range of instruments, amps, and recording equipment.
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 (626) 535-0108
- 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
“Great selection of guitars, both electric and acoustic, pro sound, DJ lighting, keyboards, everything music.”
“My very first Fender guitar was purchased there, along with my other Fender guitars, Telecaster, snare, and more.”
“The consumer keyboard area transitions into a more advanced keyboard space, then into a used gear section with additional keyboards and mixing equipment.”
“I also run a piano, violin, and guitar YouTube channel, so I’m always paying attention to how these spaces are set up and how easy they are to actually use.”
“The guitar selection is strong, and there’s a dedicated lesson area as well.”
“The store is split into two main wings, with a full drum room off to one side.”
“I also run a piano, violin, and guitar YouTube channel, so I’m always paying attention to how these spaces are set up and how easy they are to actually use.”
“I also run a piano, violin, and guitar YouTube channel, so I’m always paying attention to how these spaces are set up and how easy they are to actually use.”
“Great selection of guitars, both electric and acoustic, pro sound, DJ lighting, keyboards, everything music.”
Brands they deal
“My very first Fender guitar was purchased there, along with my other Fender guitars, Telecaster, snare, and more.”
What players say again and again
“I also run a piano, violin, and guitar YouTube channel, so I’m always paying attention to how these spaces are set up and how easy they are to actually use.”
“The DJ and recording section is well set up, and the staff was super friendly and easy to talk to.”
From the reviews
Guitar Center is the best place to buy anything music-related! They don't just focus on selling guitars—they have a wide variety of sound equipment like speakers (including for DJs), microphones ranging from super affordable to professional level, plus you can find pianos and tons more music-related items.
Staff is friendly and super helpful. They repaired my daughter's bass guitar for free, on the spot. Great selection of guitars, both electric and acoustic, pro sound, DJ lighting, keyboards, everything music...
As a musician and the author behind The Grant Colson Thriller Series and the SERA Archives, I make stops like this when I’m traveling and resetting between writing sessions, and Guitar Center in Pasadena is a very well-laid-out store.
I drove all the way to Pasadena from koreatown to buy a used guitar. Immediately when I went in the store an associate who, although was busy assisted me in finding the used guitar. He looked all over and couldn’t find it but went above and beyond to find it. The guitar was in storage!
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.
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