Walked into Guitar Center looking for a pack of guitar strings. James slowly emerged from behind a…read morewall of amps like he'd just been summoned by the opening riff of Sweet Child O' Mine. He looked at my guitar, closed his eyes for a few seconds, nodded thoughtfully, and said, "Yeah... she's got potential, man." Then he scratched his beard, stared at the ceiling like he was downloading a firmware update directly from the Rock Gods, and quietly said, "Follow me." What followed was less of a shopping trip and more of a spiritual pilgrimage. We wandered Guitar Center for what felt like three business days. Along the way he high-fived a drummer, had a philosophical debate with a bass player about whether tone is a mindset or a lifestyle, explained signal chains using a slice of pizza, a lava lamp, and what I'm pretty sure was quantum physics, then disappeared into the acoustic room. He eventually reappeared riding an office chair, tuned three guitars without looking, handed me the exact strings I needed, recommended an obscure pedal from 1987, and an album I'd never heard of that has since changed my life. Before I could thank him, he simply nodded, muttered, "Rock on, dude," and vanished back behind the amp wall like a cryptid protecting the sacred tones. I still don't know if James actually works at Guitar Center or if he only materializes whenever someone's tone is in danger.

We come here to get all the things that we need to make a good music. They have everything that I…read moreneed and i'm very grateful for the people that help me.

Sam is the man! Did a great job setting up my Gretsch and Fender P Bass. Thanks againread more

Awesome work and knowledgeable owner. Highly recommend. Really cool shop. Sam is great. Thanks.read more

I finally got around to visiting Angel City Guitars and I came at a time where there weren't a lot…read moreof people in the shop which is just fine with me. I got to play in their acoustic room my first Santa Cruz and Collings acoustic guitars, which are very expensive boutique guitars but for a reason. I own 10 acoustic guitars most of which are middle to high end brand instruments. Had a lovely conversation with the owner Olay who comes off as a really decent & happy fellow. Someone it's a pleasure to do business with. Most of their stuff is relatively high-end. Olay wants to stock the good stuff and that's just fine by me since I can afford it. Just a matter of time before I buy a guitar here. They just moved to this new location and I think it's great they exist because their set up is far superior to most any other place I've been to. Not to mention their friendly attitude. No stinkeye like at other places. Plenty of room to try out instruments here.

What an amazing collection of really cool guitars, amps, and everything else you could need to…read moreplay. It's an awesome shop, and if you're looking for something different or unique, look no further than Angel City Guitars!

These guys are great. I stepped in just to check it out as I grew up in the valley but never…read morestopped here. Immediately it felt like I was with family. Had a great conversation with Cyrus as I checked out their very cool boutique inventory. If I weren't saving for a dumb quad cortex I would have bought several guitars and pedals as their deals are stellar. Highly recommend.

Love, love, love this place…read more Mr. Phil is a true gentleman--kind, welcoming, and professional. My child comes here to learn guitar, and I ended up joining the class myself. It's been an amazing experience. We also bought a new guitar from them, and they fixed our old one as well, which was a huge help. Ethan, the teacher, is incredibly professional and a pleasure to learn from. Highly recommend.

1 1/2 minute read: On 05/06/2026, Greg Sinclair and I,…read morearrived at NORMANS RARE GUITARS as previously planned by Greg. 1 1/2 minute read Today (05/05/26), ahead of the invitation extended (to me) by esteemed colleague- Greg Sinclair, Administrator of a FACEBOOK renowned Surf Group "TUBES", today I went on a scouting mission. Relying on GOOGLE'S Siri, I arrived around 09:15 hrs m, to find business hours had been slightly rearranged at Norman's Rare Guitar Shop. Not being one to waste time, in the same little strip mall (TOPEKA VENTURA PLAZA) I saw a coffee shop (PEET'S) and decided to treat myself to some (coffee), and I did. I went in, got hot black coffee & a Blueberry Muffin. Before realizing it, it was 11 am. So I mozied'on'over to NORMAN's. The video I took, as I approached the guitar shop main door, will tell you more than words could ever say. Once I was in the guitar shop, I felt a nostalgic Deja-Vu pinching me. The same atmosphere, feel, sounds surrounded me like when I used to go to Sam Ash and other, now gone, guitar & Pawn shops. Be that as it may, I hope my photography will satisfy your curiosity of this scouting mission I went on today and as always ... ... thank you for stopping by! 05/06/26 ... UPDATE As promised, Greg Sinclair drove from Redondo Beach (I think) up to my place in North Hollywood, and picked me up. AS YOU RECALL. Greg has been inviting me to accompany him to go to NORMAN'S RARE GUITAR SHOP. We first had lunch on Venture Blvd at BLU JAM. It was very trendy for me, at least. Then we got to the guitar shop and Greg introduced me to Michael, whom you will see a short clip playing one of their guitars. Greg and I had a very satisfying visit at NORMAN'S, as we strolled around inside. We also met another guitarist who works there-Joey, I believe and if I'm wrong, I will correct my error. They have live music on certain days and as soon as I can get their schedule, I'll share it! All in all, THANK YOU, GREG, for your considerate invitation, picking me up at home, treating me to a fabulous lunch at BLU JAM restaurant, a fun time at NORMAN'S RARE GUITARS, and best of all ... your companionship. Update, 05/17/2026: Click link https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=pfbid02sSQznzKewuHeGR2yfjHRxaA7qc6x88RgkhxcGj3FtyF6DHE6u1HKH878WtavKUvUl&id=1222849448&mibextid=wwXIfr

You don't really find out about a business until something goers wrong and you get to see how they…read morehandle it. My co-worked was retiring soon so I ordered him a couple of t shirts because he always would talk about how many great guitars this place had. So I ordered him two t-shirts last month but one of them they sent was the wrong size. So I emailed them the day I got them about it and I got a return email telling me to send them a picture to prove they screwed up and they would then send me a return email detailing the process of how I could get what I paid for. So the same day I got the email I retuned the email with the pictures proving they sent the wrong size in one of the t-shirts and then I heard nothing... So I emailed them multiple times over several weeks with no reply. But then last week I got an email saying sorry we screwed up and your t-shirt will ship out that day. Well, I never got a shipping confirmation and a week later I still have no t-shirt. This has been going on for weeks. Luckily, I didn't order anything expensive from them. If they can screw up something so simple as a t shirt and fail to quickly remedy it, how are they going to treat you when you have spent thousands of dollars and there is a problem?? If you are not famous or in the music business, probably the same way they have treated me.

Big shout out to the West Valley Music Center. I co-founded the West Valley Ukulele Group with a…read morecouple of friends. The owner of West Valley Music Center, Jeff, has been so generous and kind to let us meet there on the second Wednesday of the month, in the performance room. Our group is all about community & bringing people together to play music. We're grateful to the West Valley Music Center for welcoming us and giving us a home. www.westvalleyukulelegroup.com

I rented a saxophone here for my son. We got a beat up old thing which I wasn't too happy about but…read moresince my son was just beginning, I thought it would be ok. Well after a few months things started just falling off the instrument and my son couldn't hit some of the notes because it was in such bad condition. Then a piece kept falling off so we finally took it in for repair. The owner, Jeff (I believe) took one look and started accusing my son of denting it and not taking care of it. He exclaimed that the instrument was like new and my son created all these new dents! I honestly couldn't believe how he was accusing my son, all arrogant and condescending. Telling my son how irresponsible he was! How would he know, Jeff wasn't the person that rented us the beat up old instrument in the first place. He never inspected it, and this instrument was a piece of crap when rented to us! Because I had the insurance, I paid the $50 deductible for the repair and they gave us another instrument. One that was in better condition (but not great). But my son still had trouble with it and he still couldn't hit some of the low notes. My son started to get discouraged and thought about switching instruments (to trumpet) because he thought he was a terrible saxophone player. My son told me all the other students had really nice saxophones rented from Nick Rails. So we decided to switch. When we turned in the crappy saxophone, Jeff then accused my son of denting this saxophone! The dent was there previously but Jeff refused to acknowledge that and insisted (quite rudely) that my son dented it. Then he exclaimed the sax was corroded! It was NOT. Can you believe this guy? He took my deposit for this and I was so sick of dealing with this rude, arrogant guy over the past several months I didn't bother arguing anymore. I'm so glad we took our business elsewhere. Nick Rails in Agoura Hills rents superior good quality instruments. My son is so happy with his new sax from Nick Rails. He can hit all the low notes, no problems at all. The issue wasn't my son's skills, it was those crappy instruments from West Valley Music Center!

Great customer service. Nice gentleman. They gave me a very fair price for my jewelry. I am very…read moresatisfied with the relationship I've made with these guys.

Jeremy is always cool and helpful. Thank you Jeremy I appreciate you…read more Pros: Good prices Good items A lot of parking spots Clean location

I am a beginner and though Mory works with lots of professionals as well, he treated me with…read moreattention and care and helped me get my used clarinet up and running. He recommended a great mouthpiece and reeds for me and has taken care of me twice since with minor repairs.

I was referred to Mory by my sons middle school teacher (who was a student of Morys)…read more I first went to Mory for a simple saxophone inspection. (I've been back several times since). From the very first moment I met him when he opened the door I immediately felt how amazing he is. There's just something about him thats impossible to describe, but you just know he's has a genuinely good soul. Mory is friendly, welcoming, patient, detail oriented and extremely knowledgeable. Mory's repair skills are unmatched, he is a literal instrument wizard. On top of that his pricing is very reasonable. I would highly recommend Mory for any woodwind or brass instrument needs you may have, you absolutely wont regret it!

Great spot! Mark the owner is easy to communicate with and…read moreis very friendly. The rehearsal rooms are nicely sized, well equipped, and they sound great! Highly recommended!

Very impressed with Resolution Studios. There was plenty of room. The stage alone would have been…read moresufficient for practice space, but the seating area more than doubled the space. There was enough room for at least 12 to be comfortable. The equipment was perfect, from the drum kit to the PA, everything was well kept and worked perfectly. Mark was awesome! He set us up with 2 extra mics and an extra guitar amp. We got to hang out with "All Rush" and he is just good people. He is passionate about music and was also jamming during our time there. We wish him all the success! This was an nice change from our garage practice night. The sound and mix in the room was awesome, the entire place was super clean, and best of all, we had an awesome time! If you can, check out Resolution Studios. So happy that we finally have a place like this in the West Valley!

Brought my Les Paul in for a quick repair, some cleaning, and stringing, never sounded or looked so…read moreclean since I've owned her. Thanks guys defiantly coming back again soon

I brought in my guitar for repairs, and Josafat and Alex did a great job. I highly recommend them!read more