Sweetwater Reviews 1,829

The Staff at Sweetwater are truly professional at what they do.
I purchased a few items from them and I was very impressed with value and quality.
One of the items slightly damaged during shipping, and Sweetwater moved quickly to expedite a replacement with overnight shipment.
Thank you,
Sweetwater for your service and support.
Al- R.

Over the past 5 years I have bought at least 4 guitars among pedals and cables from SW and have been pretty happy with the service and products. I have been a customer in their system for at least 20years buying much equipment for myself and my church. I have been through several assigned Sales Engineers most being very accommodating. They are trained and have autonomy to some degree to run their assigned areas as if its their own business and that means they can take things very personal as they profit and and lose depending on sales transactions. This last rep I have assigned to me did not like that I sent a guitar back that had a cosmetic defect not caught from their inspection. Then the replacement had a problem with the neck (which he proceeded to gaslight me on ) so I asked for a refund for both as well as the shipping. That did not sit well with him and he made that clear and reluctantly refunded all. I began to inquire about another guitar make model at which point he was very put off with me. I cut the conversation short asking to check on the inquiry I had for the one guitar but of course he never called me back. I don't buy from SW now but have found GearTree who if you contact them can give you sweet deals on gear as I have discovered, and since have purchased 3 other guitars from in the past three months. I kinda have a bad taste for SW right now. I like them overall and will likely go back, but will wait out the "Sales Engineer" who will eventually move on.

**Reply to John @SW - John it would be more impressive and satisfactory that you lookup my contact info and instead knock on "my" door. You have my name that is fairly unique and will be in the SW system. So please contact me if you are truly interested. Thanks for the attention.

Great customer service. My sales engineer, Josh Sackett, was great at helping find the gear I wanted and following up after If you're buying equipment online I wouldn't hesitate to check out Sweetwater

I had a frustrating experience with Sweetwater that reflects serious issues with their billing and customer service.

I initially ordered a JP electric guitar for over $4,000, but changed my mind the next day and requested to cancel the shipment. I was told it had already left their facility, so I agreed to refuse delivery and wait for a refund once it was returned and processed.

I then placed a new order for a different guitar priced over $4,200 using a 6-installment payment plan, which was confirmed. However, a few hours later, I was contacted and told they could not honor the installment plan and instead charged me $2,903 upfront. The explanation was that the first guitar had not yet been returned, and adjustments would be made afterward.

After they received the returned item, they deducted $62 from my refund for shipping—even though the item was within the return period and the original shipping cost was only $43. This was not clearly justified.

More importantly, they have still not corrected the second order. The $2,903 overpayment has not been refunded, and the agreed installment plan has not been reinstated. Despite multiple calls, I was told there is nothing they can do.

This is especially disappointing as a returning customer who has spent over $7,500 with them in less than a year. For a company that promotes strong customer service, this experience was inconsistent, unclear, and poorly handled.

Very speedy order processing and delivery with especially fragile costly equipment packaged and very well protected, arriving in great shape.

Payton Vieth has been a rare gem in helping me with purchasing my musical equipment from Sweetwater. He is patient, intelligent, considerate, thoughtful; he listens quite well and his responses are to the point while providing the information I needed, or requested. Sweetwater has had everything I wanted, everything I needed. Payton is an outstanding example of the highest quality available from Sweetwater. I have no hesitation in recommending Payton and Sweetwater to other musicians I know, including members of our local symphony orchestra. Thank you! Job well done!

I bought a physical gift card from the Sweetwater website. When it didn’t arrive in a week, I tried to track it using the tracking provided in the order email and it said that the order was still processing. I called Sweetwater and was told there is no tracking because the item was mailed via “Mail Innovations” which does not have tracking (despite the order email saying it did). The representative said it looked to her like the gift card would arrive the next day. It didn’t. I looked up “Mail Innovations” and this is a cheaper, slower alternative to UPS ground. Per the description, it is designed for companies that want to ship bulk, lightweight items. I called back Sweetwater today. When I asked why it was send this cheaper method that is slower, I was told “I don’t even think it was shipped Mail Innovations”. I asked him to look it up multiple times. I asked to have the gift card voided since the birthday is this weekend. Eventually, 15 min into the call, I was told the gift card could be converted to electronic but not voided (so I could go and get another last minute physical gift). If you can “convert” it, you can void it. I recommend thinking twice before buying a giftcard from this website and if you do, do it a month in advance…. I hate egift cards unless I am geographically separated from a person.

Sales rep Max Rapp is exceptional. Always helpful and honest. I buy from Sweetwater because I don't want a knockoff or fake gear. I want OEM equipment with full warranty.

Bought a Fender American Pro II Strat; not my first purchase from Sweetwater, and it won’t be my last. Great stuff and great people to deal with. The guitar was packed perfectly, arrived quickly and was set up just fine. Great experience with Nick.

My Sweetwater experience begins and ends with Garrhett Kidd. His title is Sales Engineer, but as I was beginning my podcasting business and building out my kit, he became a trusted friend. He's dealt with my learning curve and handled more than a few unusual requests. He's been a teacher and mentor to a guy who's probably 30 years older than he is, with a lot of experience in broadcasting but precious little in my new endeavor. I couldn't be more pleased with my overall experience with Sweetwater.

For the past 6 years, I have been buying my gear from Sweetwater. I run a working studio in California. I get no better service from anyone else. Plus, there's a "fulfillment center" in AZ. I have even gotten things the very next day, like magic.

Excellent customer service and order tracking! When was the last time a customer service rep called you to make sure your order was received as expected? That’s been my experience with Sweetwater over dozens of orders placed over the last 5 years. This is the best place to buy instruments and music gear!

I called to order one of the two brands, Gator or Hosa, for my new setup. My sales rep, Nick, gave me some prices and I asked if there were better deals in a two or four pack. I placed the order to find out the next day on my order history page that the product was a higher priced brand that I didn't ask for. I called back and Nick told me told me something along the lines of, "you said Cableworks was fine", when I did not. I paid more than anticipated for a brand I was not wanting.

Such a great, smooth experience. They called after I placed an order (even just for a violin shoulder rest) to thank us for the order. We received the item in a couple days, free shipping. It was even a couple dollars cheaper than Amazon and same shipping speed. They even threw in a candy bag in the box. This is exactly how a small business wins over big box! Personalized service. Thanks!!

Sweetwater is the best! Get hooked up with an agent for a truly epic experience. My guy Alex always has my back, puts me in line for the newest swag and works with me anytime I need him. Best online music hub out there.

I purchased software through Sweetwater. Literally as soon as the sale went through, an actual person from their support team contacted me to offer help with installation and configuration - a real live person, not some generic automated email. I eventually did have a slight problem registering with the manufacturer and when I contacted Sweetwater they were extremely responsive and helpful. They even checked back the next day to make sure everything was working. Amazing service. I will always buy my software through Sweetwater in the future.

Ordered a microphone on Jan 7th - which was in stock. It is now March 4th and still have not received the microphone. It never shipped. I called twice to check on the status and was told it was "back ordered" until April. If I had known it was not available, I never would have ordered it. If I had also known I would be waiting four months, I would have ordered a different mic. Very poor communication and disappointing experience here.

I've recently ordered 3 separate times and every order is PERFECT! WELL-packaged and on time! The sales associates were each different, but ALL had exceptional customer service skills including not making me wait :) Gear was readily on hand, and overnight shipping was also spot on. Thank you, Sweetwater and I really do look forward to my next order!

Mick Moreau
Dallas, TX

The staff at Sweetwater are outstanding at taking care of my musical instruments purchases.
I highly recommend them for purchasing an instrument. Their professionalism is exceptional.

What can I say - these guys do it right. I have been buying from them for a few years now, and while they aren't perfect, and neither am I, they strive to make the customer experience top notch. If there is a mistake, or any type of problem, Sweetwater goes above and beyond to make it right and ensure that I am pleased with the outcome. Owen, my sales engineer is prompt, courteous, and knowledgeable.