I need to quit online shopping.
 

I'm going to try to wean myself. I hope this doesn't turn into a rant, because Sweetwater, Strings and Beyond, and Musician's friend have been real good about helping me buy stuff. They are all attentive to my every need and quick to ship. When all else fails, Amazon is there. I like to go shopping online, look for something to buy and it is so easy to do in my spare time. And I have lots of spare time. It is starting to get ridiculous what I'm buying lately. Buy buy buy, and it isn't guitars, it is the little stuff. Convenience is over rated.

So that is one thing. The other is that I'm always looking for a deal. I hear a lot of people say that they don't mind buying local even if it does cost more. My last three purchases at the proverbial mom and pop store says that mom and pop can kill it on price. We were actually the only mom and pop there, but you know what kind of store I'm talking about. New Guild Guitar, $300 less than my above mentioned online stores and just one heck of a good deal on the trade in. Also, they had it in stock, which both online retailers did not. Same store, I was in the neighborhood and dropped by yesterday, picked up a Henry Heller leather strap $39.99 in the store, $64 at Amazon. Left with two of them, one for me and one for my wife. Elixir Nanoweb PB lights, a dollar less a set than anywhere online. My new mantra, looking for a good deal, go downtown.

Good return policy online. The local stores don't? Before I got my deal on the two Henry Heller straps I ordered a Levy's strap from Sweetwater. I didn't like it so I'm returning it. I'm paying shipping, a third of the cost. Not cheap and not convenient. I'm not slamming Sweetwater, I bought it because it looked good in the picture. It is not their fault, I should have just driven down to the store and thrown them over my shoulder until I found one I liked. That's what I did anyway. I don't know the return policy, but I'm probably not going to return it because I tried it out before I bought it. But regardless. I'll not be making that mistake again, buying before trying.

So bottom line, from here on out convenience, price, and selection, there is all that, plus a great experience, less than an hour down the road. If I need something enough to make the drive, I'm going down there. Otherwise, if it isn't worth the drive, I don't need it.

Thanks for listening.

I don't mind paying more (if need be) and like to give the few local retailers left the business. The problem is they almost never have what I'm looking for, let alone a selection to choose from with helpful reviews. The past several weeks we've been hitting local stores looking for items only to find them not in stock and oftentimes not even carried. With the price of gas it makes no sense driving around looking for items that you end up just having to buy online anyway.

It's the nature of the way business (and everything else) has evolved. There's no stopping it and trying to fight it is akin to yelling at the squirrels to "GET OFF MY LAWN!" It just ain't going to happen and I'm not a youngster either. I've embraced it. But I do understand and agree that it can be WAY TOO EASY to buy stuff and you have to be careful not to get into the habit of ordering stuff online just to have something coming in the mail. I blame the cereal companies for that.

Look at it this way, if you needed information on something would you forgo Googling it and instead drive to the library and look it up in an encyclopedia?

Hence why my guitar collection grew from 4 to 10, amps from 0 to 2 and pedals from 1 to 14 plus a whole pile of "other stuff". Not absolutely 100% online but it has made it WAY easier.

I'm doing a 12 step program

I try to buy local, but the closest music/instrument store worth going to (Elderlys) is 2-1/2 hours away from me. I am careful to plan accordingly when making a major purchase.

I regularly order from Strings By Mail. Even though they do not have a storefront, I consider them a local mom and pop being only 45 minutes away.

1 guitar a month for 12 months?

Then repeat until your cured?


Sounds like a plan to me!

You're never alone when you've got friends at Sweetwater! :ha:

For things that you don't need to try before you buy, like a tuner let's say, or the Seatrain songbook/sheet music from 1972, online purchasing is convenient. I purchased two tuners this week from Amazon. They arrived in one day. Some things you cannot find locally unless you luck out at a thrift shop, used bookshop, estate sale, etc. (I mention the Seatrain songbook for this purpose) and online is the only viable option.

For a guitar, especially one that costs some $$$, I have to play it, hold it, make sure I like the smell, meditate about it, light some candles, and even then, it's no guarantee we are going to live happily ever after together.

Because even in these past few months, how many times did I think I was IN LOVE with a guitar, only to find out a few hours, days, weeks etc. later that I actually was not? (My husband reminds me of this as my guitar budget keeps creeping upwards.)

If I were extremely experienced and could somewhat accurately predict what I might be getting, or if there was no other way to get a guitar, online would be great. As long as it was a good merchant who stands behind the product, takes returns with no hassle, etc. Buying online does open up a whole huge world of inventory that shopping locally can't provide.

Which can be good and bad, depending which step you're on in the guitar 12-step program.

The GAS 12-step, that's something I could use...

Starting a new dance craze ??

Don
.

First step is to admit you have a problem, then abstain, then have a relapse and buy another one. ;)

Good post OP, I agree

I'm lucky - I have Andertons a 10 minute drive away. Plus 2 other big stores with high end selections less than 30 minutes away (guitarguitar, and Guitar Village - each with the likes of Atkin, Collins, Santa Cruz, Bourgeois, Lowden, Furch, Eastman, and lots of custom shop from the big brands.

can you pm my wife???

!LOL!

RIT music in GR is a great shop. They don't carry a lot of higher end acoustic brands but the service is great. Been going there for about 10 years and my son has taken lessons there for 8. Elderly is a great shop. Have not been there in a few years.

This is the problem. We have one local chain (about five stores) that carries a broad range of guitars, but when it comes to accessories the just have the most basic stuff. The same is true of Guitar Center. The independent store closest to me survives on lessons, and they appear to be just holding on. I have to go online to get the fingerpicks, flat picks, and strings that I use.

My two recent guitar purchases have been local: one from Craigslist and one from Guitar Center, both used guitars. I've been thinking about an OM-sized guitar recently, but although GC and the local chain carry the brands I'm considering they don't stock the models, and I won't buy a guitar without playing it first.