I love a good music store. Such stores are few and far between, mainly due to a shift in how we…read morelisten to music. We are more into streaming it than physically owning a copy in some form, be it digitally as music files, or on a CD or record. Frankly, I've adopted both methods. I stream music wherever I have a wifi connection. However, at home, my music collection is a combination of digital files from my years being an iPod fan (the best device to go on a road trip and bring your own music without thinking about data charges), and playing albums on my record or CD player. I was recently in Leslieville, waiting for a pizza order. It would take thirty minutes for the pizza to bake. You can't rush a good thing. I decided to take a stroll around the area. I found In the Groove. I was first elated to see a music store full of records (vinyl to those who like that hip term), CDs, cassettes, and more. My heart sank when I saw that this store was closing for good. Wait a minute, though. A man walked out of the store. Is it really closed? I stood in front of the store and read every posted sign. The closing date was January 31st, 2023. It was February. I looked at the other sign that said that the closing sale was held over. Yes! I still had mixed emotions. It's always sad to see a music store close. I went in to check it out. I am the type that I can spend hours in a music store, looking at everything and ending up buying some good albums to add to my collection. I only had fifteen minutes before I had to leave and fetch dinner. It was the best fifteen minutes and I made it count. A man behind the counter said hi to me. We would later trade first names. I got Sheldon's business card, who is the owner of this fine business for 25 years. He lives in Richmond Hill. We both talked about how it does take a bit of time to get to Leslieville from York region. I found two albums that caught my attention. The first was Duran Duran's Seven and the Ragged Tiger. It's a classic. It was my first cassette tape purchase in my life. I still have it. I want to return and get the record version. There were two copies of the album in the store. What I settled for instead was Peter Cetera's Solitude Solitaire. I have always enjoyed listening to his music, either with Chicago or his solo work. I oddly did not own anything by him until I decided to get this album. The downside was that I did not come prepared with cash. Sheldon said that he had disconnected his payment machine the prior month and only accepts cash. He let me know that there was an ATM machine down the road. He asked how much the album in my hand was. It was going for $8. He was generous to offer it for $5 if I had cash. If you know me, it is rare that I have cash on hand. I had a $5 and a twoonie. So rare. He didn't want the latter. He was fine with $5. I got a $5 album from a generous man. He saw that love for music that we both shared. His kind gesture meant a lot. Besides being a music lover, Sheldon is a professional photographer. He told me that he has loved what he has done over the years. The pandemic caused him to lose a ton of money having his store closed. Although he originally had the end of January as his closing date, he is playing it by ear and will decided at the end of this month whether he is done for good. I need to drop again by before it shutters for good. I am hoping that his store is still around a bit longer. It's a gem, with 45 and 78 RPM records that I still need to explore. Part of me wishes that I had found this store sooner. However, I'm glad that I did recently. I met a nice man behind the business who sold me an album than now has more meaning than meets the eye. (45)

Sheldon is super friendly and chatty. I didn't find anything that I wanted, but my friend joyfully…read morebrowsed the plethora of records and ended up taking four home. While he was browsing, Sheldon kept me entertained, and another regular customer came in and joined the conversation. I can see why the other reviewers found him too busy to help since he's so chatty, but it's fine to interrupt him. He's just that neighborhood shopkeeper that enjoys chatting with customers, not necessary the corporate employee who maintains professionalism at all times. Stop by and find a good record, or just go chat with Sheldon.

Great records great prices! They moved from sammon to a new location at 1374 Queen St E!read more

I have been buying vinyl from Baxter's for a few months and I always find good quality used…read morerecords. Owner is very friendly and his prices are very reasonable. Only open on Saturdays 12-5. Give this place a try you won't be disappointed.

This is one of the best record stores I've ever been to. The staff is amazingly knowledgeable. I…read morecan bring up and artist or album be it rock, jazz or blues (my particular favourites) and they will not only know what I'm talking about, but they'll recommend similar stuff that is always bang on! If they don't have something they'll do their best to get it in. The prices are quite fair and reasonable too. Highly recommend!

Nice big store. Well organized with a huge selection of new and used vinyl and CDs. The staff was…read moresuper friendly and chatty. See usually these shops are run by unfriendly gruffy types. They never acknowledge you or offer help. I was shocked. Shocked I tell you at how welcoming and nice the staff here was from the moment I walked in. Helpfully and friendly. If you're shopping for records in Toronto I highly recommend dead dog records

Awesome gem tucked away in downtown Toronto area! Owner and…read morehis shop have been around for years..! Found a couple great dub records and even a 7" Of my own NoCal punk band! Awesome hang and highly recommend to anyone looking to dig through some bins!

Very rude female staff. Absolutely no care for customer service, with a passive-aggressive…read moreattitude. Owner himself is a nice gentleman and offers good prices with a great collection of records and cds. Too bad he got this female staff who just destroyed his business. After the nasty encounter with the female staff, I will no longer want to return to this store again. Owner needs to beware of what this fenale staff is doing to his business. Such a pity and a waste.

Teeny tiny little records store on Dundas Avenue on the north side of Bellwood Park. Definitely…read moreworth stopping in to see what they have. Good tunes are always spinning...staff is laid back and friendly

No list of Top Toronto Vinyl Stores is complete without Shortstack Records…read more While the shop is smaller than some of the others in Toronto, it more than makes up for it with its customer service. The owner Cal MacLean is a true vinyl aficionado who has helped me track down several of my most sought after LPs for very fair prices. I also highly recommend selling/trading your unwanted records here as it has the fairest prices in the city.

This is a great place to find old (and some new) DVD, Blu-ray, CD, records. DVDs are 3 for $10 and…read moreBlu-ray are 3 for $15. Have the store is dedicated to records. Everything looks in good condition. They also have some old record players and VHS TO DVD transfer service.

This place is kindof a mess…read more The records aren't well organized at all. Everything starting with the same letter is all jumbled together. So if you're looking for Bowie, his records will be scattered throughout the "B" section. That's okay I guess if you've got all day to browse, but the records are also packed in super tight. So browsing, usually a pleasure, becomes a real chore. Another bummer, there is little to no current music here.

Great selection of quality records. I purchased a talking heads album stop making sense. Sound…read moregreat an in mint condition kudos to boys in Scarborough from a boy from Scarborough.

Wow what a place!! Ya looking for Vinyl? Check this place out…read more Reggae 45's, tons o 12" of rap & R&B. Rock and soul..... Everything you need. Hard to find thou. It is way in the back of an industrial complex. Just follow the numbers.

I couldn't possibly say enough to adequately sum up the quality of this shop. A true neighbourhood…read moregem that deserves to be on the shortlist of best in the city. First: a lovely vibe inside, an impeccable collection of records, and friendly, knowledgeable staff. But where Tonality TRULY shines is their unsurpassed customer service and expert-level hi-fi offerings. Julian and Tino go above and beyond with their repairs and vintage gear sales to ensure a truly top-tier experience across the board. They worked diligently with me to troubleshoot a particularly fussy piece of old equipment (an SA-700, which is now purring), and found the perfect set of speakers to compliment the 1978 receiver. If you need old gear fixed, if you're in the market for your first-ever stereo setup, if you need a modern reissue or a rare pressing ... RUN, don't walk.

I knew you'd comment back because you're absolutely desperate for ratings. You deserved a piece of…read moremy mind and this wasn't about "restoring a nice piece" you wasted my time on several occasions and you just didn't want to admit it and completely gaslit me on several occasions including your response here on yelp, which is not accurate... and were always rude. I settled for your lowball offer 25% of what I bought it from you for, (~$650 after tax) and you wasted my time yet again after you said you'd take it and didn't. It's in a nice home now, but not because of tonality. Like I said, shop anywhere but here. Owner Julian doesn't belong in the record business. Just another price gouging business owner capitalizing of the recent record boom. There's plenty of cooler stores with more reasonable prices down the street! Have a great day! (Everyone else)