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Sweetwater has a rating of 3.4 stars from 1,193 reviews, indicating that most customers are generally satisfied with their purchases. Reviewers satisfied with Sweetwater most frequently mention customer service, sales rep, and free shipping. Sweetwater ranks 2nd among Music Equipment sites.
This company responds to reviews on average within 4 hours
Sweetwater's customer service is phenomenal! They have a good range of products and with good prices. The guitar we bought was affordable and great quality. It arrived quickly with no damage - it was packed well. I was surprised and impressed to get a call from Sweetwater just a few days after the guitar was delivered. They were just making sure everything was good. That's great customer service!
Ordered some products then the next day A representative reached out and said they were sold out & products would not be available till January and wanted to know if I still wanted them. I let them know I did. They reached back out two days later saying their was a glitch in the website and I could not have the products for the price I purchased them for. I was fished to their website to buy the products on a sponsored advertisement from Google. False Advertising is Illegal. My Wife has got me gear from these guys for years. I have advised her and she will no longer make purchases through them.
My Pedalboard was low on real estate but I needed a volume pedal to finish it up. The Erie Ball pedal I was using didn't fit, for one and it didn't silence the signal. I turned to Sweetwater for a solution and found it in the Boss FV-30H. Perfect fit and golden silence! Thanks Andy Rice, you guys at Sweetwater Rock!
Date of experience: March 23, 2017
Jimmy Hart has been such a great help in my search for new gear. Loving Sweetwater's quality products, packaging, and fast shipping too. My only go to for musical equipment and gear.
Tip for consumers:
Don’t be shy if you’re unsure, their customer service is great
Products used:
Guitar amp & studio headphones
Date of experience: May 11, 2021
Shopping at Sweetwater, whether by phone, online or at the store is so easy. Your staff is so courteous and helpful, plus I always save $$$. Keep up the good work. You guys & gals ROCK.
Date of experience: May 15, 2019
Hello, I'm a big fan of music and can't even imagine my life without it. Thanks to your service I'm in love with music more. The earphones I got from you are amazing. Thanks a lot.
Date of experience: October 26, 2019
As a percussionist and drummer for 40+ yrs it don"t get no better. Service Dept and sales are Awesome. Never in the 10 years that I have used them never a problem and always free shipping
Date of experience: March 10, 2019
Ive been doing business with Sweetwater for many years. The Experience was great then and it's even better now. It's obvious that they strive to be the best in the industry!
Date of experience: May 25, 2018
I have been purchasing my musical equipment from SWEETWATER for many years now, and have always experienced the very best in customer service, quality, and assistance from ALL the Sales Engineers there! It is always a pleasure to shop at SWEETWATER, as I am assured of receiving the very best equipment for the very best price. And their "Service After The Sale" is absolutely Second To None! Many Thanks, SWEETWATER - I'll be back Again and AGAIN!
Tip for consumers:
When you deal with SWEETWATER, know that you will receive the very best equipment, value, expertise, and customer service in the business!
Products used:
Guitars, amplifiers, cables, microphones, DAW software, speaker stands, guitar straps - MANY items!
Date of experience: May 28, 2022
Mark - We're thrilled you had such a positive experience, and we appreciate your kind words! Thank you again for allowing Sweetwater to serve you! We look forward to working with you again soon.
Ethan K - Customer Experience Specialist
I am a musician. About 16 years ago I purchased a Roland 2480 DAW recording studio and have used it and used it and then used it some more. I have tried several of the new units out there but always fell back to my Roland.
While ordering something from Sweetwater I mentioned I was having an issue with my Roland. Michael told me to hold on, and I did. Minutes later I spoke to a technician who specializes in Roland recording equipment. He immediately knew what my issue was, naturally it was something I had mistakenly switched to a different position. He was right.
I asked how much for the tech service. He said, Nothing, we will support your Roland as long as you own it until it dies or worse. Who supports a unit 16 years later? Sweetwater does. Found out they personally support everything they sell, everything. Their customer service is absolutely the best.
I had purchased some software and needed help with some of the language they used and some functions. No problem, I had a tech on the phone within minutes and he helped me.
I recommend Sweetwater to anyone and everyone who needs musical equipment or software. Don't go it alone or wait hours for some tech from out of the country.
If I could give them more stars I would.
Date of experience: September 28, 2015
Great place to purchase from.
Competitive prices, wide variety, great service and most importantly put customer's ahead of profit.
A very honest and reliable company.
Date of experience: March 8, 2019
I have been dealing with Sweetwater for about a year and made enough purchases through them to convince me to shop nowhere else. My first experience was impressive, to say the least. My Sales Engineer is Aaron. If Aaron is any indication of the rest of the crew, just, WOW! I had an issue with a tube amp I purchased And not only had a resolution but was up and playing in a couple of days.
My most recent purchase put the icing on the cake for me. There was an incident that I can not give details for, but I can say this, it was a total nightmare for Sweetwater and myself. In the end, they stepped up to make everything right. Working with everyone I did during both purchases, have totally convinced me there is no better company to purchase music gear from.
I have bought a lot of gear from other well-known name stores, and none of them can hold a candle to Sweetwater and their crew. Their process to ship a guitar is the best I have seen in the industry. Their shipping is fast and convenient. The payment options are the best. You can not go wrong with trying them out. If you do you will get hooked as well.
Rev. E
Tip for consumers:
Work closely with your Sales Engineer
Products used:
Fishman Loudbox, Marshall Origin 50, several pedals, cable and strings
Date of experience: January 28, 2021
Thank you for taking the time to write and for your kind words for Aaron. I am so thankful for the hard work that Aaron does to make sure that his customers are taken care of, and we are truly fortunate to have him on our team! As Sweetwater continues to grow, our level of excellence must grow as well. With Sales Engineers like Aaron leading the way, I would say the future of Sweetwater is in great hands!
In the world of music equipment, we recognize that you have countless choices as to where to shop for your gear. We are incredibly thankful that you chose Sweetwater and that you truly understand the Sweetwater Difference. "Always do the right thing" is the simple motto that we operate by here at Sweetwater, and I am so glad to hear that xxx exhibits this so well!
We truly appreciate your feedback, Rev. E! I know your words will make his day, so I will be sure to pass your kind note along to Aaron and the management team here at Sweetwater so we can celebrate him.
We are grateful to have the opportunity to earn your business, and look forward to taking great care of you for many years to come!
- Zach Bloom, Customer Experience
My guitar I order on 10-25 -21 it finally came in, in may, 2022 the guitar was reserved for me I was called by my sales engineer Geoff who held my guitar another week till my funds posted shipped it out it arrived in 3 days perfect and beautiful great job Geoff and sweetwaters finest crew make the the music that never dies
Tip for consumers:
The back order length
Products used:
Guitar
Date of experience: June 2, 2022
David - Thanks so much for your great feedback and your business! Geoff is fantastic, and we're glad he was able to help you out! We'll pass your feedback along to him! Enjoy your new guitar!
Ethan K - Customer Experience Specialist
I dont know whether Sweetwater has absolutely the lowest prices, but I do know that their tech support is the best in the business! I ordered a full protools MacBook Pro, system. It is now a year after purchase and when I have a frustrating tech problem with the system, they troubleshoot it on line and find the problem (last issue was a basic cabling problem... my bad). They identified it in about 5minutes and I was on my way.
Really awesome team!
Date of experience: November 17, 2017
The store may be special but their online shopping experience is pathetic.
If you're a beginner and need advice, this IS NOT the place to buy from.
Find somewhere else, your business is not wanted.
Tip for consumers:
The reputation doesn't match reality.
If you're a beginner, shop somewhere else.
Date of experience: April 3, 2023
Edit: I updated this review from 1 start to 4 as someone from the company actually reached out to me and worked with me to solve the issues. He gave me a discount on the items I bought and assigned a different sales rep, so quite happy with them. But I will still be cautious about buying from them again.
I've heard about Sweetwater's customer service and exceptional support. Instead of going again to guitar center, I thought let me work with them and have my personal sales support engineer. But working with sweetwater has been a continuous pain for the past two weeks now. From sending me a wrong item, to not replying to calls and emails, to wasting my time while I try to return the stuff they sent wrong. As its not enough to wait for two weeks to get the stuff, but then I get it wrong and have to do their job to send it back to them. When I tried to get the pickup information so I can follow up with the shipping company, they claimed that they don't get confirmation numbers. My sales rep unfortunately made me loose so much time, and stopped responding, the only way that I would get him to respond is if I asked someone else in the team for what I needed. Not to mention the false promises of huge discounts, while they mark up their sales and provide mediocre quality products. Sorry I thought I will be your customer, but the sweetwater customers service is way overrated and inefficient.
Date of experience: December 10, 2020
Thanks for sharing, George. We are beyond disappointed to hear of your experience. We'd love the opportunity to make this right. When you have a moment, could you please send your order number to WeCare@sweetwater.com? Our Customer Service team will be glad to look into this for you as soon as they can. Thank you again, we truly appreciate you taking the time to post your review.
I had a great experience with this supplier... it was a small purchase, but arrived lightning fast, perfect little SN-2 tuner, at the best price I had found on internet.
Date of experience: April 26, 2014
I am always pleased with them, great customer service, great knowledge of products, financing options, and they work hard to fix errors on the rare occasion that they make them.
Date of experience: July 12, 2017
I have purchased several item from Sweetwater and have had nothing but good experiences. They follow up on how your purchase went and are always there for questions and support.
Date of experience: December 1, 2017
Wanted to learn the guitar but don't have a lot of money to spend, so I looked for about an hour for a cheap but good guitar once I found the one I liked for 300. I wanted to do the 3 month payment plan then some guy calls me to tell me I didn't get approved for the payment plan and I'm like ok I have bad credit I understand, but then he asked if I just want to pay the whole thing so I can still get it. Hello if I could afford to buy it all at once I wouldn't have chosen the payment plan. I just felt like they didn't care at all about getting me a guitar or even wanted to deal with me since I couldn't buy something so now I guess ill just go somewhere else, disappointing will never buy something from them and will never recommend them to anyone
Date of experience: April 24, 2017
We purchased a new Behringer digital mixing setup from Sweetwater recently - X32 console, P16M monitors, and the S32 digitial snake along with the necessary supplies to hook it all up. Had a very positive experience working with our sales rep, Chris Barry, and he was incredibly helpful even when we had to make an upgrade/switch out of one piece of gear at the last minute. He processed our return authorization and had the new piece of gear shipped out to us free of charge in a matter of an hour. No sales tax and free shipping are a HUGE bonus feature too. Great experience - would definitely recommend!
Date of experience: November 13, 2017
I have used Sweetwater over the years on a couple different projects. Their main emphasis is knowledgeable salespeople. I was wanting to upgrade my entire studio and was hoping to let them know what I had and how I used it. I figured they could then give me some recommendations on the new products I would need and why. But basically the salesperson told me to just go on line and download some different software and playground with it until I found the one I liked. If all I need is to go to different sites and play with the demos, why do I need them. I can just buy direct or for a mail-order site with the cheapest price. I know they are suppose to give good support after the purchase, but if the support I got before spending money was nay indication, I would be afraid to purchase. I told them I wanted to get all new gear, but yet I have never been called back, no follow up. There was a certain amount of arrogance in the call, and really was not left in an encouraging way. I was excited at the start and really discouraged at the end of the call. Im not sure why it has to be this way. But I would not talk to that salesperson again. I just want be treated like I matter, I would like them to qualify me with their experience and help me in selecting the gear that best meets my needs.
Date of experience: January 18, 2022
Hi Richard,
I am so sorry to hear about that experience, that is not what we want for any customer interaction, especially a repeat customer! I'd love to address this directly, would you mind shooting me a quick email so we can try to make this right with you?
Zach Bloom, Customer Experience
zach_bloom@sweetwater.com
Service, the best. Customer care, top notch.The person who helped me with my purchace: Josh Hacker, he is the man to talk to in my opinion.He has done everything and some for me to make my purchase gratifying. SWEETWATER ROCKS, POINT BLANK
Date of experience: November 1, 2019
WARNING! The item is in stock when I ordered, but nothing shipped more than a week. I asked that it's out of stock and takes a few weeks. They already took the money out.
Date of experience: February 1, 2021
Thanks for reaching out, Hiro! We'd be glad to look into any issues involving your order. Please feel free to contact us direct at (800) 222-4700 or WeCare@sweetwater.com. We truly appreciate you sharing your experience!
Makes a musician feel like they are part of a family, a small town feel for a great company. Got the gear over night free shipping, a bass amp among other things. Very impressive.
Date of experience: August 18, 2018
Not only is Sweetwater competitive price wise, their staff is personable, helpful and friendly. We will continue to deal with Paul Rowan and Chris Carter for the foreseeable future.
Date of experience: May 3, 2017
I bought my first guitar online with Sweetwater this past month, and it was an absolutely fantastic experience. I was so impressed with the excellent communication and overall professionalism that the sales team demonstrated throughout our interactions, from the initial selection and purchase to delivery.
I placed an order for a guitar from the Ibanez prestige series, and within 10 minutes, a sales representative from Sweetwater called me to personally confirm that they had received my ordered. He answered all of my questions and told me that he would call me personally if there would be any delay with my order. He called me back later that day to confirm my payment details and to tell me that my order had been placed.
Over the course of the next few days, I received multiple emails from the Sweetwater team, which let me track my order from shipment to the minute it arrived at my apartment. The guitar arrived in perfect condition and sounds amazing. It was packaged well - clearly a lot of care was taken to ensure it would arrive in great condition.
I will absolutely purchase from Sweetwater again, and I can't recommend them highly enough to anyone in the market for music instruments or equipment.
Products used:
Ibanez RGR652AHBF - Weathered Black
Date of experience: December 25, 2018
Sprawling megastore featuring high-quality musical instruments & studio recording gear.
How do you go from a portable 4-track recording rig in a Volkswagon bus to being the nation's leading retailer of professional recording and music equipment?
Chuck founded Sweetwater as a recording studio in Fort Wayne in 1979. The business was first located in his home on Getz Road, then moved to a subsequent home on Bass Road. Initially the fledgling company focused on providing recording services to local and national artists and businesses.
Two things prompted the leap from recording studio to music retailer. The first was Chuck's frustration with being unable to find a reliable, knowledgeable music technology retailer. Prices were outrageous, and after-sale technical service and support for the sophisticated electronics he used in his studio were non-existent.
Then, in the early 1980s, the revolutionary Kurzweil K250 appeared. This groundbreaking keyboard gave musicians and composers access to realistic orchestral and other sounds, opening new possibilities for music composition and performance. Chuck created his own sound library for the keyboard, and quickly gained a national reputation as an expert at programming the instrument. Renowned musicians such as Stevie Wonder, Kenny Rogers, and other top names began consulting with Chuck, purchasing K250 factory options and upgrades through him. Recognizing the industry's need for a new, dependable, customer-oriented approach to the musical instrument and professional audio sales channel, Sweetwater became a Kurzweil dealer to fulfill these requests.
As Chuck's expertise became known and the industry grew more sophisticated, those original K250 customers returned again and again for product advice. The company began representing more product lines, and rapidly developed and implemented its unique philosophy of relationship-based selling — treating customers as friends —and unmatched pre- and post-sale customer service.
Sweetwater's primary emphasis quickly shifted from recording studio to music retailer. A new building was constructed on Bass Road and was expanded four times to keep up with the skyrocketing growth of the company. But even that wasn't enough, as the company quickly grew to nearly 220 employees. In late 2005, Sweetwater began the process of moving to their new headquarters, located at the intersection of Kroemer Road and U.S. Highway 30. The location's 38,000-square-foot building will be expanded to a total of 150,000 square feet with the addition of a 40,0000-square-foot state-of-the-art distribution center, a rich-media auditorium and recording studios designed by world-renowned acoustician and studio designer Russ Berger, and a technical training center on a 44-acre property that will allow plenty of room for Sweetwater's massive projected growth: 175 additional full-time employees and $150 million in annual sales by 2009, and $180 million in annual sales and 450 total employees by 2010. Most recently, $1 billion is annual sales and over 2000 employees by 2020.
Today, Sweetwater is recognized as one of the most successful and fastest-growing music retailers in the nation. The company has been named to Inc. magazine's list of the 500 fastest-growing private companies three years in a row, and has received the Music Inc. magazine REX Award for excellence in retailing.
Hi Jenny,
Thank you for the positive review! We are glad to hear that your Sales Engineer, Jimmy has been a great help during your search for new gear! Thank you for your loyalty to Sweetwater for musical equipment and gear!
- Quincee Musselman, Sweetwater Customer Experience