Matt Umanov Guitars

Hey — great staff, killer guitars and a cool shop. True aficionados hang here and you should definitely check it out!

I brought in a OK shape original $ 20,000 (more or less)1962 Cherry Red Gibson 335 Guitar for a potential sale/​trade, consignment, whatever and was quoted a value of $ 2000-​$ 3000 –maybe!
What else can I say ~ thanks but no thanks ~

I have taken all of my guitar repairs to Matt Umanov since the early 1980s and am always impressed with their conscientious work. Each time Matt’s repair department has done careful and fastidious work for me at a fair price. His technicians possess an obvious respect for and knowledge of vintage instruments and go the extra mile in sharing information on their care and preservation. I would not consider taking any of my guitar repairs to another shop!

I like this music store, because it has a selection of acoustic guitars, electric guitars, bass guitars, banjos, ukuleles, and mandolins. Carl Lukert works in this store, and I tell him all the singers, and their record labels. I like the Gretsch guitar, because it sounds rockabilly. Chet Atkins, Duane Eddy, Bo Diddley, and George Harrison played a Gretsch guitar. I also like the Fender Stratocaster guitar, because it sounds like classic rock. Buddy Holly, David Gilmour from Pink Floyd, Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Mark Knophler from Dire Straits, and Dick Dale played a Fender Stratocaster guitar. Chuck Berry played a Gibson ES 330 guitar.

I truly love this store. Not simply because of the bounty of beautiful guitars but due to the service. Each person I have come in contact with at this store is pleasant, and knowledgeable about guitars! It is so cool to see people sit on the stools available and strum away at an item they may purchase. since I am new to this world, I am thankful for the gracious way that each person has treated me in answering my questions and thoughtfully considering my lack of experience in this world of guitars, and also in their suggestions on what I should buy and what I can come back for after playing for a while. (not trying to up-​sell me due to my inexperience.) The store is small but to me, it is full to bursting with so many items to choose from. They sell electric brands and acoustic models like Taylor. They sell amps, pick ups, tuners, straps, and other cool accessories for your guitar. They have an onsite repair shop and are usually backed up with orders so turn around times are usually not readily available. Danny, Nate, Ardell and others at this shop have been so wonderful with their awesome customer service and experience, and I am looking forward to going back, not because I want there to be anything wrong with my guitar but simply to be in the atmosphere of this place. It is unassuming and very, very cool. This place takes card for payment and one can bring their guitar in for inspection if they feel something is wrong with it, or for tips and advice. Some who work at this store can also teach you how to play! You kind of have everything one can ask for in a place like this. Definitely worth a stop in for all who love music, even if you never pick up a guitar to play.

I think this place is awesome. One of the things that made it so great was the customer service. Ardell (hoping I’m spelling that right) helped me pick out the perfect Christmas gift. I went in looking for an acoustic guitar, and I left with a reasonably priced gorgeous guitar. I felt super confident by the end that i wouldn’t be disappointed with my purchase. Ardell was super nice and helpful, I never felt rushed or pressured and he showed me options within my budget for the guitar and all accessories (tuners, strings ect) thank you for making this a stress free experience!

Great little shop that hopefully sticks around for quite a while.

This place is completely unremarkable. I’ve been here a number of times over the years and somehow I forgot that I shouldn’t go back. They probably have a few okay guitars but you’ll never find out unless you have the patience to deal with the terrible staff and layout. I went in with some questions about pricing for getting an acoustic pickup replaced in my Martin, the man behind the counter was arrogant and unhelpful and very directly spoke down to me. He didn’t ask any questions about what I needed but he did imply that I knew nothing. The general attitude here seems to be «We’re always right and the customer is always a simple idiot.»
The layout of the store projects a lack of trust and if it had a voice would say «Excuse me, you’re not important enough to touch that.» Which is strange because buying a nice guitar is an experience that requires connection with that guitar, this place treats guitars the same way banks treat money. If you walk into a bank they’re not gonna let you just hold the money to see how it feels, they keep it locked up far away from the public. I think 4 salespeople asked if they could help me within 35 seconds of walking in to this store, maybe just to make it known that they’re watching me? It didn’t feel helpful.
Guitars should be about the sound, not about guitar store staff feeling self important. There are a lot of really great guitar shops in NYC, stay away from this dump. Luckily it’ll probably get bumped out of the neighborhood in favor of a frozen yogurt chain or some shop that sells yoga clothes for dogs.

Maybe it was just their salesperson, Zeke, but the experience was exactly what you would expect of a village guitar store in NYC. Like the set of a movie, and Zeke was the laid back understated star. In addition I spent less than I expected and feel more confident than I hoped. I think an accomplished musician and novice aficionado would be equally comfortable. And I didn’t pay a dime extra…

i mentioned on FACEBOOK i was going to buy an acoustic guitar. my goal was to try at least 5 or 6 before i bought. all of a sudden i had about 25 comments and many said to go to MATT UMINOV’s. it’s a «goldilocks store». not too big, not too small. just right. then i met DANNY. there were other people in there but he gave me 100% of his attention and i was buying an inexpensive guitar. he knew exactly what i wanted and without prompting picked out the same one that i had found thru research. i ended up trading in my epiphone and got a very fair deal. this place is now my first place to go to. and danny is my go-​to guy. could not be happier.

I’ve just begun teaching myself guitar and had a couple of strings on my guitar that needed replacing. I took my guitar in to get the strings and not only did they advise on the right strings, but they also installed them for me. The guy that helped me was very friendly and did a great job. Highly recommend this shop. They have some gorgeous instruments available to buy.

My number one guitar store in NYC. Great guitars and cool place with warm people. Always a pleasure stopping by to browse or to shop. About the price, in my opinion, you get what you pay. Good stuff is never inexpensive. But worth it, because it’s for yourself and probably for a long time! I love the store and the team is awesome!

I got my ukulele here after a great deal of research and I couldn’t be happier with my choice. My gretsch has a beautiful sound but bonus, I got a free soft case and a set of strings (aguila-​the best). They have a gorgeous selection of vintage and new guitars alike and practice rooms available for lessons.

Awesome little boutique shop. Beautiful inventory & a knowledgable staff. Great for electric & acoustic-​minded enthusiasts alike.

Had a fantastic experience purchasing a ukelele yesterday. Tried several ukes in the $ 400‑1500 range. One of the guys there, Zeke, got a feel for what I wanted out of my uke (performance) and turned me on to a much more affordable item but one that would play just as well through a PA or amp than any of the others I was contemplating. It was probably clear to him that I was willing to spend at least $ 900 (not counting the $ 100 – 200 I would have plunked down on a pickup/​installation) and he sold me a $ 270 Gretsch (with pre-​existing Fishman pickup) because he knew that it was incredible bang for the buck and I did not yet need a collector’s item but rather a functional and great sounding performance uke. Thanks for your candor, Zeke, and for saving me $ 600 – 800 dollars with something that I will really use. And thanks for the history on Mike Lewis, who is responsible for this Gretsch and apparently a lot of other very special stringed instruments.
To the people who have rated Matt Umanov low in the area of staff quality, I say this: Ask for Zeke.

I own about 20 or so higher end acoustic guitars so I’m pretty well acquainted with the usual lineup, Gibsons, Martins, Taylors, and so on. On their web site, I saw that they were official dealers of Guild guitars, a particular favorite brand of mine. So I headed over there to check out if they would have their D-​55 model in stock, which has received really good reviews lately, for instance in the latest Guitar magazine.
First of all, when you enter the store, the first thing you see is a massive counter effectively shielding off the customers from any interactions what so ever with the guitars, which hang behind. In the area not covered by the counter, they have (I kid you not) a museum-​style rope separating you from their guitars. Wow.
Ok, that’s new. Love on first sight. Not really, but sure. So I walked into the store (which was almost empty, can’t understand why) and tried to make eye contact with one of the guys behind the desk. The third guy (or so) down the isle actually looked up and said hi. That’s nice!
So I told him the reason I was there. He broke up in a huge, smirky smile. «Guild? Guild, guild? Hrmm… Oh, nah, they aren’t for us. The quality just isn’t there. We had a few of them a long time ago, but they don’t really meet our standards… Have you heard of Martin Guitars?» Yes, thank you. I have.
What surprises me is that this guy clearly had no knowledge what so ever about Guild. That’s ok I guess, but he does work in the acoustic guitar section of a small, self-​proclaimed customer-​centered guitar store. You’d expect them to know a little more than your average Guitar Center employee. But apparently not.
If he’d known ANYTHING about Guild, he’d known that the quality of their guitars have tended to vary greatly over the years. I have a D-​52 made in RI that’s terrific. They’ve also had a factory in Hoboken for a while. Then things went south for a while when Fender bought them and moved the whole thing to Corona, CA. A few years later they moved again, this time to Tacoma, WA. Finally (hopefully) a few years ago they moved to New Haven in Connecticut. The quality is now really good, they look the part, and the sound is distinctively Guild, different from both Gibson and Martin. Anyway. I’m not going back.

Incredible customer service!
I was visiting NYC and had brought my Oscar Schmidt ukulele. I was having trouble with its action and thought I needed an upgrade. Matt Umanov Guitars has such a great reputation, I brought it there to see their ukes and to see if new strings would improve my current instrument. The salesman could easily have talked me into a nice (much prettier) Gretch but advised against it. He told me how to lower the bridge to improve the action on my Oscar Scmidt. I bought a great new gig bag (much cheaper and great quality), thanked my salesman and left.
I live in Massachusetts and don’t get to NYC often. However, next time I’m ready for a new instrument, I think I’ll drive in for the day at least. These folks are more interested in giving you the best musical experience than in getting the biggest sale. If I lived in NY I’d visit often.

walking without a destination around the west village i found this guitar shop and decided to come in to see and hopefully play all the beautiful guitars i cant afford. the moment i walked in, a guy behind the counter said hello to me and offered help if i needed it, or if i had any questions. sweet. thats pretty standard from sales reps but since i wasnt really going to buy anything, i just nodded with a smile.
i went straight for the acoustics. dios! beautiful selection. i did not resist so i grabbed a stool and started to play a bit. this nice girl approached me and said that i was more than welcome to jam, but that i had to take off my backpack to avoid scratches. fair enough, she was very polite about it. so i took off my backpack, put if behind the counter as i told her ok, im leaving my fancy camera here. she nodded with a smile.
i probably played around for 10 minutes. i fell in love with this acoustic. but our affair was soon to be over as i had some day drinking to do and was not going to be at a fancy guitar shop masturbating my brain. so i left her (the guitar, you follow?) where i found her, grabbed my backpack and as i was about to leave i thought, hmm i do need strings for my guitar at home. lets buy some. so i got a couple of string sets and also a capo which i always lose. same girl who asked me to remove my backpack rang me up. she seemed sweet so i asked her about a good place for day drinking thats not too far away. she not only suggested it but she wrote it down on a little piece of paper for me. sweetheart!

I went in to see the guitars on sale here. Not bad, but I wasn’t totally blown away. I think the mandolins were cool.
Not seeing anything for me today… Good service and friendly staff.
Unilocal 365 Challenge: ¹⁷³⁄₃₆₅

This is a great guitar shop. None of the pretentiousness of some of the 48^th street shops. The staff here is very friendly and accommodating.
They are one of the few shops in the tri-​state area with a soundproof amp room. How can you try a good tube amp without turning it up? They know this. Crank it up and immerse yourself in tubey goodness. They won’t tell you to turn it down.
My only complaint was a lack of legit vintage guitars, but they have one of the best selections of new Fenders I’ve seen in a shop its size.
Don’t hesitate to shop here.