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  #1  
Old 04-06-2013, 12:13 PM
pbankey pbankey is offline
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Default Guitar shops in NorCal-bay area?

Hey folks,

I'll be vacationing in the Bay area this coming week; specifically staying in Santa Clara but will be going around town and to San Francisco as well.

Any great guitar shops to check out? Preferably ones that don't mind a schmuck like me coming in a browsing with (no planned) intention to buy
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Old 04-06-2013, 12:29 PM
kydave kydave is offline
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Old 04-06-2013, 01:12 PM
ii Cybershot ii ii Cybershot ii is offline
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For acoustic guitar selection around Santa Clara your best bets are Guitar Showcase and Guitar Center Santa Clara. Fifteen minutes north with get you to Gryphon for an amazing selection of acoustics, vintage and new.
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Old 04-06-2013, 01:46 PM
WordMan WordMan is offline
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Big vote for Steve Swan's - great guy; no signs outside the shop. You should call to confirm he'll be there. Typically a great selection of cool vintage stuff...
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Old 04-06-2013, 02:16 PM
Bridgepin Bridgepin is offline
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If you can swing over to Tiburon to Schoenberg guitars oh what a treat, it's a small shop with a outstanding collection of guitars. very laid back folks, I was the only one in there for a good hour played anything I wanted. I would google map it, it's a little off the beaten path

106 Main St.
Tiburon CA.
94920
415-789-0846
www.om28.com
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Old 04-06-2013, 02:39 PM
FranK_S FranK_S is offline
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I would recommend a trip over to Santa Cruz. It's only a 30 minute drive over the hill and I'm sure you'd enjoy it.
If you have an extra hour, while you're there, go on a tour of Santa Cruz guitars. They have tours on Tuesday and Thursday. You have to reserve a spot.
http://www.santacruzguitar.com/tour-the-shop/
http://www.sylvanmusic.com/
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Old 04-06-2013, 04:17 PM
seannx seannx is offline
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I would like to add Bananas Music on 4th Street in San Rafael. It's a full on music store, with great people, a really nice selection of keyboards, drums, electrics, amps, etc., and an acoustic room filled with Taylors, Martins, Guilds, and other brands, all well cared for, properly humidified, and with fresh strings.
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Old 04-06-2013, 04:53 PM
Hotspur Hotspur is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by pbankey View Post
Hey folks,

I'll be vacationing in the Bay area this coming week; specifically staying in Santa Clara but will be going around town and to San Francisco as well.

Any great guitar shops to check out? Preferably ones that don't mind a schmuck like me coming in a browsing with (no planned) intention to buy
It's a little out of your way, but I'm a big big fan of Blue Note Music in Berkeley. The guys who run the store are super cool, and if they're not busy happy to sit around and talk guitars. I told them right up top I wasn't buying that day and they still were super cool.
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Old 04-06-2013, 05:05 PM
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rampix rampix is offline
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Hey KyDave,
Thanks for the trip down memory lane! I grew up in Atherton, went to high school in Menlo Park and bought my first house in Redwood City. My first guitar came from Gelb Music in about 1969...a Yamaha dread. I took a few lessons from Mr. Gelb while in jr. High.

OP, definitely try to get to Gryphon in Palo Alto, and sorry for the off topic ramble.
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Old 04-06-2013, 08:16 PM
jseth jseth is offline
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DEFINITELY make a trip over to Santa Cruz! Great beach town, great Mexican food (Manuel's, in Seacliff Beach - State Park Drive off of Hwy 1), Sylvan Music is a wonderful store, lots of nice acoustic guitars; played a Lowden, A Goodall, a couple of Santa Cruz Guitars, an R Taylor or two and a Bourgeois on my last visit!

Gryphon is a stellar store! AND, Doug Young lives in Mountain View; check to see if he's performing anywhere, if you want some live acoustic music...

Have fun!
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Old 04-06-2013, 11:26 PM
buddyhu buddyhu is offline
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Schoenberg's in Tiburon is a pretty special place (lots of terrific used and new acoustic guitars) and Tiburon is a pleasant place to stroll around. Gryphon is a great place to go to play a wide array of instruments. Sylvan is a delightful place to spend some time playing, especially if you like Goodalls and Santa Cruz guitars. Bannanas at Large in San Rafael is good if you want the full range: acoustics, electrics, keyboards, drums.
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