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Your Favorite Bass Store & Why..?

Not exactly a bass guitar store, (yet) But I have to give a shout to Bassstringsonline.com.

Jason is the model of perfect customer service. He is very eager to help, he knows his products inside and out. He will follow up with you to see if you are happy with your purchase and will fix it if you are not. He provides avenues for feedback and review of strings. The website is very sensibly laid out, full of information and he even carries the oddball string sets. He offers VIP pricing to TB members, little random giveaways via facebook and he is offering more and more accessory products to the site all the time.

I worry about him though. His ability to respond to emails so fast makes me wonder if he is a shut-in insomniac hovering over his computer 24/7or whether there are no other customers but me?
 
And locally, I love New Jersey Bass & Guitar in Menlo Park, NJ, but that place is jammed full of gear and it's difficult to move around .... if you strap a bass on you cannot turn around without hitting something ....

During a driving trip from Raleigh to NJ last week to see Bruce Springsteen, I decided to stop by that place. I set the GPS, expecting to end up at a relatively generic store on a suburban strip. I was surprised to find myself in the middle of a town, and walking into a hole in the wall. Well, this turned out to be a real highlight of my trip. Jay the owner was a delight. My only lingering question is how I managed to walk out of there without plunking down my VISA card to buy the '71 P Bass I spent 20 minutes playing. Anytime I'm in NJ in the future, I am returning to New Jersey Bass and Guitar!
 
Nev375 said:
Not exactly a bass guitar store, (yet) But I have to give a shout to Bassstringsonline.com.

Jason is the model of perfect customer service. He is very eager to help, he knows his products inside and out. He will follow up with you to see if you are happy with your purchase and will fix it if you are not. He provides avenues for feedback and review of strings. The website is very sensibly laid out, full of information and he even carries the oddball string sets. He offers VIP pricing to TB members, little random giveaways via facebook and he is offering more and more accessory products to the site all the time.

I worry about him though. His ability to respond to emails so fast makes me wonder if he is a shut-in insomniac hovering over his computer 24/7or whether there are no other customers but me?

Thank you so much! To read this in the same thread where other shops are mentioned that I have so much respect for and have shopped at really means a lot to me! The goal is to become the place for Bass Support Gear. I am very happy to see what we are doing is appreciated and found helpful!
 
I'll second the uneasy vibe in Bass NW. It's right down from my building and I could easily go there, but I've been a couple times and it just felt kind of awkward. Friendly but not pushy staff is a huge thing in retail from my experience on both sides of that counter.
 
I liked Sam Ash, in HS then I couldn't stand them when I was in college - felt like they were rude - specifically the one in Brooklyn, NY.

Now I've come to like them again. Manhattan 48th st is probably my favorite store - Larry Hartke has always been cool, you can bargain with them, they have a good selection of stuff, and I recently bought a P bass from them.

Even the Brooklyn store has seen a little attitude overhaul the past 5 years or so. I bought an Ibanez Destroyer from them.
 
Bass Central of course like everyone else has said. I got my Dingwall ABZ5 from there, and a friend ordered his Alembic through there. We each had smooth trips through there. Also in Atlanta there is a place called the Atlanta Bass Gallery. Smaller shop, but its the only place like it in Atlanta. I take lessons out of there, and have had all my work on my basses done there. Great quality, selection, etc.
 
Dan B said:
Anybody mentioning the Northeast...

We REALLY need something up here. It's not just Boston that doesn't have anything, but the entire state of Massachusetts has nothing at all. Daddy's was decent but they went under; there is no Guitar Center close by in Western Massachusetts (come to think of it, there aren't any until Worcester), and the small places, while nice, are very limited.

In my area, we have 3 decent music stores: Gerry's Music in South Hadley, MA, Amherst Music in Amherst, MA, and Downtown Sounds in Northampton, MA. Amherst Music is run by a great guy, but focuses more on guitars than basses (put it this way, he might have 30 guitars but 4 basses). Downtown Sounds has better selection as they are a dealer for Fender and Schecter but again, mostly guitars. That and they seemed somewhat overpriced. The third, Gerry's, is okay but considering they are more general music (they carry wind and classical string instruments, as well as drums), they don't have as good of a selection.

I know I'm probably missing a few; I heard Falcetti's in Connecticut sells things but I've never been there.

tl;dr:
We need things in the northeast!

I am local to Boston and agree. Places like GC have horrible selection. Ive wanted to start something here, but don't have the capital yet.
 
Bass NorthWest is the best.

I have bought many basses there and will buy more in the future. They are by far the most honest music store I have delt with. There service is second to none.

They can be very busy some days, ya got to give the guys a break sometimes.

I was loving it when Bever F. call them trying to buy a bass. The speaker phone was on. i never laughed so hard.

BassNW tries to keep there prices honest. They hate to sell to another store that will shelf insturments of 6 months and jack up prices.
 
Bass NorthWest is the best.

I have bought many basses there and will buy more in the future. They are by far the most honest music store I have delt with. There service is second to none.

They can be very busy some days, ya got to give the guys a break sometimes.

I was loving it when Bever F. call them trying to buy a bass. The speaker phone was on. i never laughed so hard.

BassNW tries to keep there prices honest. They hate to sell to another store that will shelf insturments of 6 months and jack up prices.

I agree that Bass NW has always been great and continues to be. They introduced me to my first high-end bass (an Alembic) and my first fretless (a Rob Allen). They have helped me select amps and speakers as my tastes have evolved. I've sold items through them on consignment and I feel they have set reasonable prices and I don't mind paying their consignment fee since I think they earn it. Evan Sheeley (who I think is the owner) is very knowledgeable and helpful. Chad was a fine store manager and was always easy to work with. I have also found Eddy, the current manager to be great to work with and he is an excellent bass player and teacher as well (I've had a training session with him and he helped me a lot). As far as I'm concerned, Bass NW is a fine store and Seattle is fortunate to have them.