Olde Town Pickin' Parlor — Local services in Arvada

I bought a guitar from Old Town Pickin Parlor and want to share my experience. I went to the shop based on a posting on their site. The shop is nicely laid out and the staff was friendly and professional with casual interactions no pressure. They let me browse and handle the instruments while working with other customers at the same time. I was comfortable and treated nicely and allowed to take all the time I needed.

I was an informed shopper as I collect American guitars for investment purposes. I was able to bargain for the guitar at a price which was below market, the Rickenbacker was on consignment so they had to check with the seller and promptly followed up with me the next day and I made a great purchase.

I took the guitar to a shop near me for set up. That shop, which has been around for years did the set up and told me the bridge pickup was bad. I called Old Town back and complained about the issue and why I was not informed before purchase. I was told I could bring it back and they would work with me but because it was a consignment item, they had not checked it out in detail.

It gets better. I took the instrument to a luthier for advice. He informed me there was nothing wrong with this instrument, the shop had plugged the guitar into the wrong output jack on the Rickenbacker and demonstrated with beautiful tones the instrument is known for.

I was embarrassed I had complained to Old Town, so I writing this truth to let everyone know they are reasonable and honest. It is a shop which has a great staff and great products. Like any store, you have the choice of paying the price or not. I have traveled globally and one has to consider the local market, as that is where the product is. I shop every shop in Denver looking to add to my collection, and I can honestly say Old Town is fairly priced and some phenomenal bargains if you are a informed shopper.

I still shop their site and when visiting, the wife gets to visit the great ice cream shop next store...a perk. I would recommend this shop as a place to try to find what you are looking for. In my case, the Rickenbacker was 35% less than the price everyone else wanted, even compared to Ebay. Go to look and enjoy the atmosphere or learn and buy, they do not...

I have shopped here for years and have spent thousands of dollars. OTPP has a nice feel, great old school guitars and is well known in the area. I do think they have high prices and can come across as abrasive guitar snobs. They cater to the local bluegrass scene and probably have a small but loyal following of like minded snobs. I believe these loyalists are the reason why the reviews here are generally good. To the average customer however, the place is overrated and the true rating is maybe a 3.

They also advertise on FB marketplace but be careful… I have found that their FB guitar condition reports are a bit favorable to what they actually are. For example, they currently have a Taylor 414ce listed on FB and have given it excellent condition marks. I’ve played this guitar and I believe it has a crack in the back seem from top to bottom! The novice guitar enthusiast may not notice but for the $, that’s a deal breaker for most. Kit (owner) will sales pitch that away to the unaware buyer!

The repair shop rarely answers the phone and is full of entitled millennials that are not helpful, un-accommodating and simply do a poor job own owning their work and / or mistakes. Every time I go in for service, I hear lots of excuses and very little kind, welcoming rhetoric. In this shop, the customer is rarely right!

Most high end buyers are probably significantly older than the chaps that work in the shop and I absolutely believe Kit could do a much better job of bridging the generation gap between shop customers and the shop staff. I have used them for repairs/ installs numerous times and it’s usually a 2 star experience. Workmanship is good, experience is not. Again, in this repair shop, the customer is usually incorrect!

I really want to like this place and I will continue to use them on a limited basis. The overall experience could be greatly improved. Kit’s childish and insensitive comments towards past customers (on these reviews ) tell the tale !

If you’re in the market for a high end guitar, there are far better buying experiences out there. Even in the local area.

Kit, please don’t tear me apart, I’m being honest about my experience over the last 20+ years. My review is from the heart and OTPP...

First...the prices are way too high! The proprietor is a pompous chap to say the least. I walked into The Old Pickin' Parlor today with $1500 in my pocket in hopes of finding a decent guitar. The gentleman who was running the store looked me up and down (sized me up) and went back to talking to the postman who had stopped to deliver the mail. Not a hello or howdy. I just moved here from Portland, Oregon and found that to be out of character from the friendliness I have found in the Denver area. I then started to look at some of the guitars. The store has some nice Martins, Collings, What looked to be Rhode Island Guilds behind the counter, etc.. I also noticed that the prices were inflated. I have been a collector/player since the 70's and Have bought guitars from coast to coast. I know the going rate, and these were boutique prices. The real kicker was the guy behind the counter. After his initial glance, he never said another word to me. He made/answered a couple of calls of a personal nature in which he talked about playing an open mic the previous night. He called the sound man at this venue a 25 year old idiot with a tin ear, but despite that, he and his partner "wowed" the crowd anyway. His tone was abrasive and I thought it was so unprofessional to speak like that in front of a (now not so likely) paying customer. I decided to exit the store, and upon doing so looked over my shoulder. The guy was glaring at me! I had to laugh...wow! He did me the best favor possible, because I went to another acoustic specialty store in town and found a Guild NT-72! They only made 200 of these in 1994 (before Fender bought them) and it is unbelievable. Even more unbelievable is that I paid only $1700 for it. It was only $100 more than one of the stock J-50 Guild's that this guy had at the Old Pickin' Parlor. Look up the NT-72...you will see what a gem it is. Thanks brother! You may have wowed the crowd at the Open Mic, but you left this audience member(customer) unimpressed and slightly offended. NOTE: There are other places that will treat you like an old friend in Denver...Try...