Do half decent shops exist anymore?

[nightsun]

Afternoon all, 

 

After having my main gigging head go bang (luckily I carry a spare), I'm after a new class D head.  The thing is I'm not a great one at buying blind, many great amps in the marketplace but I like to try them before I buy them.  The question is, are there any decent music stores anymore that hold a variety of heads from various brands?  I'm on the Essex/Suffolk border, so any suggestions are appreciated.  I'm not averse to travelling to town, but even then where does one start?  Denmark St is not what it once was.

[PaulWarning]

Don't know about anybody else but I find it impossible to test an amp (or anything else) in a music shop (unless you take the whole band with you and do a gig) gear4music, for instance, have a 30 day returns policy, so you can try them out properly before deciding

[Chienmortbb]

I am lucky in that Guitar Mania is in Poole and just up the road, just across the border in Bournemouth, is Absolute Music. I usually ask them both whether they have an item before buying elsewhere.

[barkin]

I've always found PMT in Cambridge very accommodating. 

Have a look on their website for anything that takes your fancy, then ring to confirm they've got it in stock? 

(They're also in Norwich & Romford) 

[nightsun]

1 hour ago, barkin said:

I've always found PMT in Cambridge very accommodating. 

Have a look on their website for anything that takes your fancy, then ring to confirm they've got it in stock? 

(They're also in Norwich & Romford) 

Thanks, I've just had a look..Cambridge has 2 heads in stock.  An Elf or a Blacksmith, the two extremes 

[BassAdder60]

5 hours ago, nightsun said:

Afternoon all, 

 

After having my main gigging head go bang (luckily I carry a spare), I'm after a new class D head.  The thing is I'm not a great one at buying blind, many great amps in the marketplace but I like to try them before I buy them.  The question is, are there any decent music stores anymore that hold a variety of heads from various brands?  I'm on the Essex/Suffolk border, so any suggestions are appreciated.  I'm not averse to travelling to town, but even then where does one start?  Denmark St is not what it once was.

Ashdown are in Essex and if you called them I’m sure they would allow you to demo an amp or two 

 

Failing that Peach Music Colchester would be your best bet but you need to make an appointment! 
 

Or .. you could buy blind the Magellan 800 for sale on here which is one of the best Class D amps around today 

[nightsun]

15 minutes ago, BassAdder60 said:

Ashdown are in Essex and if you called them I’m sure they would allow you to demo an amp or two 

 

Failing that Peach Music Colchester would be your best bet but you need to make an appointment! 
 

Or .. you could buy blind the Magellan 800 for sale on here which is one of the best Class D amps around today 

Yep, Peach is my usual go-to, but one can see on the site what they have in stock..not a great deal.  Not one for buying blind.

[BassAdder60]

You won’t find many shops ( especially here in Essex / Suffolk ) that will have a lot of stock, especially after Covid 

 

Best U.K. store probably Andertons Guildford but even they have low stock and choice. 
You are buying blind but you can return in 14days so for the returns cost you do get to try them, even take them to rehearsal night etc !

 

Very tough choosing and that’s the benefit of BC most on here have owned virtually every amp made and certainly the current production models !!

[Mudpup]

I can never tell whether an amp is going to work for me unless I've used it at a few gigs. Consequently trying them out in-store has always been a waste of time for me. A perfect example of this was when I tried a Mesa D800, Magellan 800 and Darkglass M900 head to head in PMT. The Mesa and Magellan sounded really good and I didn't like the Darkglass much. I ended up with the Mesa, it lasted 2 gigs with the band. I then grabbed the Magellan for a few months - that lasted about 6 gigs and I moved that one on as well. 

 

You may be better served by popping a post up on here with a bit of detail about what you think you're looking for, get a few suggestions from the gang (try and establish whether they've actually gigged the amp though) and then look for a used version of the contender. Gig it and if you don't like it just flip it. Think of it as gear rental....

 

Edited October 18, 2023 by Mudpup

[Beedster]

With well stocked online stores and distance selling regulations, you're actually buying far less blind than has ben the case for the last 60 years. Show me a 4-walls shop that would let you walk out the front door with £1500 worth of amplification one day, only to walk it back in two weeks later, tell 'em you don't like it as much as you'd hoped, and ask if you could you try again with another one? I've tried £1200 gear recently on trust alone, no cash up front, all I had to do was cover return postage if I didn't want to buy it. I don't think we've ever had it better to be honest, on which basis I cannot understand why anyone other than the few real specialists - e.g., Bass Direct, Bass Bros - would have a physical presence at all 

[Beedster]

Just now, Beedster said:

I've tried £1200 gear recently on trust alone, no cash up front, all I had to do was cover return postage if I didn't want to buy it

 

In fact I've just checked, i didn't have to pay a penny, the store covered all costs 

[mattpbass]

I’m not sure the decimation of high street instrument retail could be classed as us never having had it better, having a local shop stacked with bass gear was actually a pretty good thing. 

[nightsun]

I tend to agree, guess I'm just old school.  I’ve been thumping 4 strings for so long I can pretty much tell if I can get my sound from an amp without getting the band involved 😉

[Beedster]

23 minutes ago, mattpbass said:

I’m not sure the decimation of high street instrument retail could be classed as us never having had it better, having a local shop stacked with bass gear was actually a pretty good thing. 

If there was one locally yes I’d possibly agree, but I always had to travel several hours to find that type of shop even back in the day 

[mattpbass]

Yeah I get that, I’ve always lived within half an hour of a decent sized city so it was the norm to be able to pop in and pick up some strings, try a few things etc, if you’re more in the sticks then online is great. 

[Mudpup]

20 hours ago, nightsun said:

I'm not averse to travelling to town, but even then where does one start?  Denmark St is not what it once was.

If you fancied a trip to London then the Bass Gallery in Camden probably has the biggest selection of kit in store. Best to go on a weekday and maybe give them a shout prior to your visit. I popped in to PMT in Old St a few weeks back and there was just one Roland bass combo in there 😞 

Edited October 19, 2023 by Mudpup

[nightsun]

I find it amazing that somewhere like Peach, which is my local and a barn of a place has such a small bass amp selection.  I guess bassists don’t suffer from GAS 😂

[ezbass]

16 minutes ago, nightsun said:

I guess bassists don’t suffer from GAS

We’re well known for being content with what we having and making do, everyone knows that.  

[nightsun]

To conclude the tail, I met up with a friend last night at a jam I house bass in. Tried out his GK MB500, it’s now my GK MB500. Perfect for my needs.

[markorbit]

Can't beat the 80s and 90s for a selection of shops with decent stock. Very sad to see how things have gone. Not many big players left now and your typical high street store (if you can find one) tends to cater for the lower end - which is the bread and butter.

[nightsun]

It wasn't even that long ago, we had some great shops in and around Colchester only 10 years ago.  Now Peach or Manns, both have a great selection of instruments, bugger all in the way of amps.  Even a trip into town every so often was a treat, I could spend all day in Denmark St tinkering....... ahh well old man shakes fist at cloud.