Music Mart

Such a great local music store! Jeff is super knowledgeable. We purchased an electronic drum kit for my son to start lessons, and he recommended a great drum teacher. Highly recommend buying from them instead of online or a big chain store.

Went in today on a Sunday. Was greeted and welcomed by the manger owner. Great customer service, I was allowed to play any guitar I wanted. I appreciated he gave me recommendations but also space to play and hear and look for the sounds I was looking for. Highly recommend this store. I ended up walking out with my first Martin guitar.

This is an excellent store with high quality instruments and very knowledgeable (and talented) staff. The emphasis is on guitars, especially acoustic, but they also have an amazing number of other products, like drums, keyboards, sound equipment, etc. I highly recommend stopping by to check out the inventory and chat with the staff.

I cannot recommend this place enough. We stopped in to look for a guitar after trying a big chain store with no luck. We were shocked to find that this small store had such a wide selection of different guitar, ukulele, bass, and drum brands, styles and price points. We were helped by John and Tim who were amazingly helpful, knowledgeable, and not pushy or insistent at all. The whole experience with them was delightful and friendly. While we’re only expecting to browse we ended up making a purchase and not only did the purchase include a nice case, but they also polished the guitar, offered to make any adjustments to the neck, and restrung the guitar with the strings we preferred before we left. Next time I need anything, I will gladly make the drive to come here first even though I live an hour away.

Recently bought a Taylor from this wonderful boutique place. John and Jeff are so knowledgeable. John knows in/out about issues that might affect new purchases. His patience and welcoming attitude takes this place 2 notches above any big box stores..
Way to go guys!.

Small shop but a great selection of decent and high end guitars. John was very helpful to answer my questions. These folks listen to your needs, provide valuable feedback and best of all they are not pushy salesmen. Jeff also jumped in to advise why an amp can be useful to a beginner. Pay these guys a visit; you’ll be happy you did.

Did a fantastic job repairing my guitar! Very nice guys and fantastic customer service!

Been a Customer since 1987 and always proud of the sales consultant to the owner how they treated all there customers with a 3 ⭐⭐⭐ Michelin treatment. I
LO❤E Music Mart with all my heart and I will continue to come and see the happy sales consultants and owner with there open arms & hearts with Professional
Advice and big smiles welcoming me when I come through the doors of one of the finest Music stores in Sandiego. Love you all at Music Mart……
Sincerely Tony the Greek

John and the boys are just what you want in a local music shop: knowledgeable, personable, helpful, and experienced. My bandmates and I consider them part of our crew.

This is the age of giant online music "stores" & local chain stores that have driven so many small local music stores out of business. Music Mart "survives," I believe, because they are experts & only carry a limited number of selective brands, including being official dealers of Martin & Taylor guitars. Going in, I had a specific Martin model in mind, but Geoff & John presented me with a variety of Martins within my price range to choose from. They gave me a great price; John asked me what I needed in setting up the guitar (e.g. lowering the action & installing lighter strings); and Geoff invoiced me so I could use PayPal to pay from my phone. Bottom line: warm atmosphere, awesome selection, friendly "we'll work this out for you" staff, and great prices. If you truly want to support a LOCAL small business, Music Mart is worth the drive from anywhere in San Diego County. Highly recommended & you won't be disappointed.

Great shop! I drive by quite a few other closer by shops just to go here. Great selection and, most importantly, the guys that work here are just awesome. Super knowledgeable, friendly, and low pressure with a great sense of humor.

I have primarily played acoustic guitar for the past 20+ years but more recently started getting into electric guitar and decided I needed to get a new pedal. I went in here not knowing very much and asked which pedal they recommended for adding some distortion. The guy proceeded to sit down with me, two guitars, and tons of pedals and gave me a 1.5 hour long low-key masterclass on pedals of all kinds. No pressure, no pushing of any specific pedal, just teaching me and giving me the knowledge to select which pedal to get then (and in the future). It would have been worth it to pay him for the lesson, but this was just customer service at Music Mart. I mean…just wow.

This music store it’s unlike anything I’ve ever been to. It’s the kind of place you can go and spend a couple of hours get lost and just have fun and end up taking home a few new things you haven’t even planned on. The guys there are experts in their field. I used to go to guitar center and I’m not hating on them but this is my new place.

Visiting Music Mart instantly reminds you why local music shops are so valuable and deserve your continued support and business.

I was researching acoustic guitars to upgrade and compliment the dreadnought I have. I started honing in on Taylor options but the online journey became frustrating and difficult to navigate because of all the choices, models, where to buy, etc. without ever actually playing an instrument. I essentially gave up with buying online given the amount of money the guitars were that I was interested in.

I happened to be in Solana Beach last weekend and got the bug to window shop and demo some guitars. Not wanting to experience super store chaos I found Music Mart on Google - didn't know anything about them or what kind of guitars they even had. Within seconds of walking in I was brought back to the feeling of what this should all be about - local experience with knowledgeable musicians in an intimate atmosphere. It brought me back to my first guitar purchase as a 16 year old in a shop just like this. John and Ken were awesome, knowledgeable, and very intuitive as they listened to me play. They just put a few well-thought options in my reach as they listened to what I said I was looking for and they heard me play. And just as you want it to be, my next guitar found me - a beautiful Taylor acoustic in a form I never would have even considered by shopping online or reading reviews on websites or watching videos. I love my guitar and how it found me.

To all musicians - please support your local music shop! This is a great spot and I'm so happy I stumbled upon it.

A hidden gem!
Professional and super kind staff with a huge inventory of high end gear.
Bought a Taylor guitar and got it perfectly set up by John.

Was looking for a piano and having a hard time deciding. Went to Guitar Center first and they couldn't really answer the questions I had. I happen to find Music Mart on a fluke. Called them up and they answered the questions I had no problem. Ken was very informative and knew what he was talking about. Placed my order and will definitely buy from them again!

It was a pleasure purchasing a Taylor GT guitar from Music Mart.
The Web Site was well done. Directed me to what i was looking for. Contacted a Sales person by phone (John). Was very helpful sending me Photos of what they had and explaining my options. Transaction was simple and quick. guitar was heading my way the next day. No issues with the guitar but if there was, i am confident Music Mart would make good.

First time I went to Music Mart and I couldn't be a more satisfied customer. I went in looking for a selection of Taylor acoustic guitars and I'd come to the right place as their selection is second to none. I was afforded the perfect level of answering questions and giving me helpful info vs. just leaving me alone to play the instruments. Came away with a brand new Taylor acoustic guitar and I am loving it! I'd highly recommend this store and I'll be going back there for all my guitar needs - thanks to the crew and great job!!

I had been looking for a Martin or Taylor guitar in L.A. and while down visiting family in San Diego, found this jewel of a guitar store. Ken spent all the time I needed auditioning a wide selection of the guitars I had been anxious to play before making a purchase. I found the perfect guitar for me ( Martin 000-28)
and couldn’t be happier. It was a pleasure to make the purchase there rather than scouring the internet to find the same guitar at a cheaper price on-line. This store maintains the inventory and supplies the product knowledge and environment that I needed and I can only praise this store for providing these increasingly hard-to-find qualities. If customers buy from the stores that actually provide this rather than buying everything online, maybe they’ll stay in business.

This store and its staff are wonderful! Super helpful, accommodating and pleasant! They have a lot of options, especially for guitars, for all expertise and price ranges. I definitely will be coming back!

Knowledgeable and friendly. I got a good deal on a Martin guitar.