Is there a good music store anywhere near Boston?

Mr. Music in Allston is a great little store with a very knowledgeable staff.

 

South shore music in weymouth and crossroads in hanover.

 

+1 on Mr Music in Allston. Its the only old school place left from the EU Wurlitzer era. They have some nice vintage guitars and amps in stock. Its a small shop, but they get a lot of traffic, so stock turns over pretty regular. I used to have a loop id hit as a teenager, EU, Daddy's Junk Music, and a couple others, all long gone. GC killed all of them, and the Boston GC sucks, too many wannabee rock stars who last a couple months and then bail due to bad pay and no benefits. The GC in Braintree is smaller, but the staff is a little more stable.

 

Aghhh. That's a shame that those shops near Berklee are gone.

In a previous life, I used to go to a conference that was held at Copley the week after Thanksgiving every year. I think I went there for 17 years running. I used to always find some time in the evening to hit Wurlitzer and Daddy's. One of those visits, a Pedulla ET5 followed me home! That bass is gone; but I do still have a Tobias 6 that I located through Craigslist or eBay that a Berklee drop out sold to me in the bar at the Westin.

I'm a bit surprised that the all the activity surrounding Berklee can't support at least one shop that is a step up from GC. Most unfortunate.

 

Music Mill, Manchester, NH

 

I bought my first real bass at EU Wurlitzer, 1979 Ric 4001 and an SVT head. The original Lead Sled, got sick of lugging it around after about a year and traded it for an Acoustic 360, young and stupid. We used to see Joe Perry all the time at EU, tiny guy around 5'-6". GC is ok if you know exactly what you want, the staff is clueless.

 

I bought my very first bass and several others from Jay at EU, I lived right up the street on circuit ave, I still talk to jay often, he's still one of the best guitar tech's around

 

I got my mesa D800+ from Georges music center in CT they had a pretty good stock of bass amps and cabs, they had some fender stuff but im not sure about peavey, you might find that at Union music in worcester

 

There was a cool little music place up near Harvard Square I called into last summer...I can't remember the name now...but it had some interesting basses...

 

I purchased my entire Mesa rig (D800+, 2x10 & 1x15) about a year ago from George's Music Center (mail order - he was the only retailer at the time that had the complete rig in stock). It was a pleasure doing business with George and one of the smoothest online transactions that I have made in a long time. You should definitely check out what he has in stock!

 

I used to work part-time weekends at the Seekonk Wurlitzer store. I spent more money there than i made! Always some great gear in there. Places like GC are great and all, but they lack that mojo.

 

Union usually has a great selection of Peavey bass gear and I know they stock some Fender stuff now but not sure how much they have. I don't shop at Union very much but I rented space there for years and it's a great store...Carl (owner) is one of the nicest people you will ever meet; he is also an amazing guitar player.

 

Daddy's was the raddest. While I was at BC I bought a couple basses there. Didn't realize they were history.
I'm sure the online shopping effect on brick and mortar stores (of which the GC franchise is certainly a part) had as much to do with their closing as the Boston GC itself.

 

Try Empire Guitars in Providence. Great guys, very knowledgeable, and always have a bunch of interesting things. It's on 9th street, off of North Main, around the back.

Edit: Just reread the OP--they won't have what you are looking for, but it's still a hell of a store and worth the visit (especially for pedal junkies!)

 

I LOVE Empire here in Providence. Not alot of bass gear, but I was surprised on what they actually did have. It is a MUST for pedals though (One of the few places to try out all the cool pedals, and actually have them all in stock).

Another place I tend to love is Music-Go-Round just south of Boston. It's got that "Daddy's" vibe as you will never know what you will run into when there. Small shop, but you can find some good used gems buried in there.

I've heard a good amount about Mr. Music, but haven't made my way up there quite yet.

Honestly, though.. If I wanted to try out some serious gear, as far as basses go, and I was in the market to buy some, NYC is a 3 hour train ride away. Grab an Amtrack down to Penn Station. From there it's a short walk to a number of high end shops.

 

Are Ray Mullin's and Luca Music still open in RI? That's where I got all of my stuff back in the 70s...

 

http://mouradianguitar.com

And this one - they are definitely more guitar-oriented but they do have great bass stuff and they carry the Darkglass line.

World class guitars, amps, pickups, gear, and tech services - The Axe Palace

 

Luca kinda closed, but they still have some stuff still there (I think its now "Musicians Corner" or something like that). Ray Mullin's is still there. Never been to that shop though.

 

Mr. Music is always on my stop if in the area, though it's been quite some time, glad to hear it's still going.