About Dawsons Music
Dawsons Music is one of the longest serving music retailers in the UK. Throughout our many years on the high street we’ve always been at the forefront of the latest music products, as a consequence of our forward thinking, we have steadily expanded the Dawsons brand, and now boast 11 stores and a leading online retail business. In addition, we have a Mail Order division, an Education division and Music Schools in most of our stores.
We sell all things musical to all type of musicians, and are dedicated to maintaining our position as the UK’s most efficient, trusted and customer-focussed music retailer.
There are currently 11 Dawsons Music Stores in the UK. All stores stock a wide selection of products, including acoustic and electric guitars, amps & effects, pianos & keyboards, drums & percussion, PA & DJ equipment, orchestra instruments, sheet music books and the very latest in music technology.
The Dawsons store teams are all musicians, many of whom have had professional careers as musicians, and still gig on a semi-professional basis. Their friends in the music industry reads like a who’s who of the world of music, which would be cool if it wasn’t uncool to say that!
One thing that is certain, is that they are all highly trained to provide outstanding customer service with helpful, expert guidance based on excellent product knowledge. Whether you’re a seasoned professional musician, an enthusiastic weekend player or are just starting out, our staff are on-hand to give you jargon-free advice and great service.
Here at Dawsons, we’re committed to supporting musicians as they develop - that’s why we regularly host in-store events to ensure our customers can not only find out more about the brands that could help them succeed, but also get the chance to win great prizes or pick up some fantastic freebies.
We also feel it is vital to get out of the store environment and go to where musicians feel most at home, so we’ve developed strong links with many live venues near our stores.
Dawsons have had an online presence since 1998, coincidently, around the same time that Google was being formed.
Our website has always, and will always, feature the latest approach to Internet retailing. The Customer Service team behind the Dawsons website have all been trained to the same high standards as our store staff. This ensures that home shoppers are treated to the same positive purchasing experience as the customers who visit out stores. Like are store staff, they too are excellent musicians – you should hear our jamming sessions, superb!
The website is the first place to go to read the latest product and music industry news. It’s also the place to go to buy the latest music equipment from all the leading brands.
Our online store is supported by a massive warehousing and logistics operation, which ensures efficient despatch of all goods to our customers, very often delivered the next day. We are one of the few online music retailers that have items in-stock. Whilst others say they have the item in-stock, we actually do.
Dawsons Music Description
Dawsons Music is one of the longest serving music retailers in the UK. Throughout our many years on the high street we’ve always been at the forefront of the latest music products, as a consequence of our forward thinking, we have steadily expanded the Dawsons brand, and now boast 11 stores and a leading online retail business. In addition, we have a Mail Order division, an Education division and Music Schools in most of our stores.
We sell all things musical to all type of musicians, and are dedicated to maintaining our position as the UK’s most efficient, trusted and customer-focussed music retailer.
There are currently 11 Dawsons Music Stores in the UK. All stores stock a wide selection of products, including acoustic and electric guitars, amps & effects, pianos & keyboards, drums & percussion, PA & DJ equipment, orchestra instruments, sheet music books and the very latest in music technology.
The Dawsons store teams are all musicians, many of whom have had professional careers as musicians, and still gig on a semi-professional basis. Their friends in the music industry reads like a who’s who of the world of music, which would be cool if it wasn’t uncool to say that!
One thing that is certain, is that they are all highly trained to provide outstanding customer service with helpful, expert guidance based on excellent product knowledge. Whether you’re a seasoned professional musician, an enthusiastic weekend player or are just starting out, our staff are on-hand to give you jargon-free advice and great service.
Here at Dawsons, we’re committed to supporting musicians as they develop - that’s why we regularly host in-store events to ensure our customers can not only find out more about the brands that could help them succeed, but also get the chance to win great prizes or pick up some fantastic freebies.
We also feel it is vital to get out of the store environment and go to where musicians feel most at home, so we’ve developed strong links with many live venues near our stores.
Dawsons have had an online presence since 1998, coincidently, around the same time that Google was being formed.
Our website has always, and will always, feature the latest approach to Internet retailing. The Customer Service team behind the Dawsons website have all been trained to the same high standards as our store staff. This ensures that home shoppers are treated to the same positive purchasing experience as the customers who visit out stores. Like are store staff, they too are excellent musicians – you should hear our jamming sessions, superb!
The website is the first place to go to read the latest product and music industry news. It’s also the place to go to buy the latest music equipment from all the leading brands.
Our online store is supported by a massive warehousing and logistics operation, which ensures efficient despatch of all goods to our customers, very often delivered the next day. We are one of the few online music retailers that have items in-stock. Whilst others say they have the item in-stock, we actually do.
Reviews
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🚥 #RaivePA: Super affordable battery powered PA speaker for Musicians, DJs & entertainers! 🔊
🌝 #Gibson: The next chapter👇
🥁 The drum shrine at #DawsonsManchester. 🙏
🎉 And the winner of the MOOER Audio Baby Bomb is... Scott Beveridge! Congratulations! We'll contact you shortly to get this over to you safely. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ 🙂 Thank you to everyone who took part and got involved in the discussion! ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ 👀 Keep an eye out for further competitions coming shortly with more great prizes! Follow us to make sure you don't miss the next one.
📣 Buy Reason (full version) between April 1 2019 and April 30 2019, and get over £320 worth of best-selling plugins for FREE!
You can now get the KRK app to help with setting EQs etc. on your monitors! 👇
#SweepPicking: Want to uncover the magic behind this technique? Check this out 👇
#GAS: Don't sweat. There are support groups available. 😨💦
🔊 Want a more affordable (but no less quality) alternative to #Bose #PA speakers? Check out the awesome new Neo Line Array speakers!
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🎉 #Competition: WIN a MOOER Baby Bomb micro power amp worth £84! ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ To be in with a chance of winning: ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ 1) Like this post... 2) Like our page 3) Comment on this post with why you need this! ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ No right or wrong answer! Feel free to share with your friends and get them involved in the discussion. ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ Winner picked at random and announced on 04/04/2019. UK only.
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Reading...Thank you for all your patience and help today... I think I am going to be as happy with my new amp and looper as I am with my guitar I got from you a few years ago. This shop is amazing and the staff are so helpful.
Purchased my first guitar from Dawson’s this week and after a slight misunderstanding with delivery I had a guy called Rob assist me in getting my guitar to me in time for my trip abroad today. Awesome service and fab prices. I will definitely use Dawson’s again having chosen them due to their YouTube videos which prompted me to buy from these guys as they took the time to make a review video on my particular guitar.
Well done guys.
(P.S) just read the negative comments below and had to make a comment on it. How can people blame Dawson’s for a fault with their product and leave negative feedback ? The truth is, my guitar might fail, it may be a piece of trash but how could that be Dawson’s fault. They didn’t make it so even if a fault occurred I would give them a chance to fix it before leaving a negative and trying to ruin the reputation of a great store. #rantover
Purchased a digital piano online after some super helpful information. The cheap folding stool we wanted was not available but they offered us a far nicer (More expensive) stool at no additional cost. Would recommend to anyone.
Delivery was great came in 2 days driver helped get it into the house and was helpful.
Brilliant service, allowed me to exchange a dj controller for one that would work with my software
Bought a little jazzer on Saturday from Huddersfield, the action was a bit high so Alan got to work on the truss rod. Meanwhile I had to get my car as my parking time was up.
Came back, wife and guitar were perfect!
Great service!
Absolute perfection. From ordering to delivery.
I also called helpline and the gent on the phone was helpful and patient. I work in CR and had some bad experiences with other music dealers back in the past so I was a bit unsure and wanted to try someone new. Recommending online services, hopefully I will pay you visit one day. All the best to you! :)
Went in to buy a G string. They didn't have any but got a nice discount on a full set.......very nice staff and would love to give 5 BUT.....a guitar shop really should be able to sell individual G,B, e strings...... consider this a 4.5/5
If I wanted to buy a new steel string acoustic guitar in leeds this would definitely be one of the places to check out....can't comment on the electric toys downstairs but I'm sure they're as impressive
Where can I start? I ordered a guitar on the first of December which was in stock, a couple of days after the purchase I was informed by email that they’d sold the guitar to someone else and they wouldn’t have another guitar in stock until the end of January 2018 as anyone would be I was pretty disappointed, so I rang and they explained that the email was wrong and that they had one coming into stock on the 15th December, when it got to the 15th December and still no sign of dispatch I rang again and they’d told me that it was actually in Holland and That it would be here on the 19th and ready to be dispatched to me before Christmas, yet again, I rang them up and I was told that it wouldn’t actually be here until the end of January, and that all the above information was completely made up and he didn’t know why his employees had told me such a thing, after offering me a different guitar I simply refused and said I wouldn’t be shopping here again, low and behold, my guitar was dispatched next working day and arrived. I’m not by any means slating the company, but the information on there website and the customer services need to be improved, so they’re not misleading customers, just thought it was a lot of hassle over something that could’ve quite easily been avoided.
EDIT: When it arrived the box was damaged and the body of the guitar was chipped and damaged.
Went into Dawson's reading and found a lush epiphone 1984 explorer EX priced on the tag at £399 in the sale I tried it out and loved it and off I went to buy it to then be told nope it's back to retail price £599 this wasn't acceptable and above budget but the manager was willing to make it £499 as far as I'm aware if your advertising at £399 regardless of if it's gone back it should be sold at the tagged price very unhappy and very disappointed �
Went in to Dawson's reading to buy a guitar today, my little 2 1/2 yr old daughter (who is currently being toilet trained ) needed to go toilet & they refused to let her, pointing us in the direction of TGI Fridays and other shops. Needless to say I will never buy anything from any Dawson's store again. I'll go to Andertons or Guitar village.
Visited your manchester store earlier today, and was helped into the guitar demo booth to try a serious of pedals by a member of staff. After 10/15 minutes of testing a guitar and various Boss pedals on the wall, me and my friend were ushered out by the same member of staff telling us "we need the booth now". He didn't ask any questions to ascertain whether the products we tried were suitable or enquire if we needed any help with the products. He simply came in to get rid of us. Me and my friendly quickly left the demo booth and went back to the cabinet to look at the products and to price up some combinations. He was present near the till chatting to another member of staff and did not make any attempt to talk to us or ask us if we needed help. Im not certain but I think I overheard him saying something about us being annoying when a colleague brought the guitar we were using back to the till.
Now I had previously visited Dawson's the other week and purchased a product (which I now regret) and asked the same member of staff at the time whether the pedal wall was working and whether it was ok to demo them, he of course said yes. I returned to the store today with the intention of spending quite a considerable amount of cash. I was not impressed with the way me and my friend were treated and I even went out of my way to talk to a member of staff downstairs to find out who the manager was. Upon speaking to the manager, I was made to feel that my grievances were not valid, as he told me "the booth usually isn't available for testing at weekends" (which was clearly a lie) or "that it's the busy period up to Christmas" as an excuse when I explained I felt pushed aside and that I was treated like I wasn't a legitimate customer. As if I was only in the demo booth to mess around.
I was annoyed at the initial treatment, but I was even more shocked at the lack of understanding from the MANAGER of the store.
I shall be taking my money elsewhere, and doing my very best to make sure friends and colleagues who I work with do the same.
Over recent years I've bought a piano and two guitars from Dawson's in Chester. After recent water damage at our house I need to buy a brand new replacement piano. My insurance company just needed a letter or an email with a quoted price for a new piano (not a valuation or anything complicated - just a price). Dawson's wouldn't give me this without charging me £25 for the privilege. I grumpily agreed but then they said I couldn't pay over the phone but I had to come into the shop to pay. I've got a wet house and better things to do. I will be shopping in Manchester for my new piano - not Dawson's. They have lost my custom I'm afraid. What a ridiculous non-customer centred approach. An emailed price quote would have taken them all of 3 minutes I would think and would show that they actually cared about musicians and supplying musical instruments to them.
Ordered a power supply for a Blackstar 3 practice amp 3 weeks ago and it still hasn't arrived. They are now not answering my emails but were happy enough to take payment for the power supply weeks ago.
Not impressed and would advise against anyone ordering anything from Dawsons Music definitely will buy else where in future.
I've sent the page numerous messages about this but have yet to receive an answer to my complaint. About a week ago, I went into the manchester branch to buy a pedal power supply and a loop pedal, as well as try out some basses. First of all, I only discovered after a 5 hour train journey back home that I'd been given a tuner pedal rather than a power supply despite having pointed out what I wanted from the cabinet and clearly asking the staff member that I was looking to get a power supply. I hope you can sort this issue out for me.
As well as that, the same staff member was very unhelpful and was completely unwilling to give any sort of assistance when I was in the store. Has very much discouraged me from visiting again.
Another thing I should mention is the condition of the display instruments. I tried a couple of basses and the action and intonation was completely out of whack. An ibanez fretless I'd tried had fret buzz all the way from the 1st to 4th frets. Surely if you want to try selling these instruments to people, you should be keeping them in good shape at the very least.
Once again, I wait for your reply to my message regarding the power supply.
I ordered a White Sterling By Music Man Sub Ray 4 from Dawson's online store back in January, it's now April three and a half months later and after experiencing what I thought was just a bit of fret buzz took it to a local repair man who found these problems:
- The jack input socket was loose which caused the grounding wire and the two signal wires to break off the circuit board.
- There was a hum of four high frets(9, 10, 11, 12) Which needed to be levelled and crowned.
- The nut was too high and had to be shaved down so the guitar could be set up properly.
- Various screws(including the screws that hold the neck on the guitar body) were loose.
- The guitar was generally not set up very well, it needed a truss rod adjustment, saddle height adjustment and intonation adjustment so the bass could play in tune.
Dawson's are shoddy and a poor excuse of an Instrument retailer, I have zero trust in any of their products and will be taking my business else where.
I ordered a Fender Custom Deluxe Reverb 68 amp on the 27th for £799. I have just been told on the phone that these were over ordered and the online system didn't update quick enough so now my order hasn't went through. I am extremely disappointed to hear this. Especially now online in the shop it's showing you have one in stock in Manchester and one online going for the original price of £1112. I have now been credited to my pay pal which I have to go and sort out. Not going to be in a hurry to use you guys again.
I have ordered 2 guitars from Dawsons (foolishly). The first was a Gibson LP 3 years ago.
The Gibson arrived absolutely dogged with problems. 1, the neck was warped and no matter how much my Luther and I tried to fix it just wouldn't stop buzzing. Also the rosewood fretboard was crumbling and had splintered down the side. This was finally replaced with a non defected model.
Stupidly, I ordered another guitar from Dawsons, an Epi EJ200ce which arrived little over an hour ago. Once again, Dawsons crappy QC didnt let me down. The guitar's bridge was covered in black dye finger marks that wont scrub off. Also the electronics pick up switch has a big chip in it and also... does not work. Surprise surprise.
Along with this order I did order some Elixer medium gauge strings and clearly states on my order but was sent light gauge.
This is my first review on facebook but I warn anyone coming on here for information before ordering off Dawsons. I urge you to look elsewhere as the 2 times I have ordered I have been sent shoddy, not even defected item worthy guitars.
Dawson's have had my ES 335 for four weeks now and not one person has got back to me to tell me what's going on, this is not great customer service, I appreciate they say it's gone back to Gibson but I didn't buy it from Gibson I bought it from Dawson's,actually it's five weeks tomorrow, what's going on? Are you going bust??
Can’t comment on the products quality, but got utter bs and dishonest service in the shop. I decided on an item to buy and we were going to do the transaction at the till when the man changed the price saying it had now changed to £150more! Apparently he had received some mysterious email saying the price had increased! Even if this was true (I doubt it) a shopkeeper should honour the price given on the item! He then said that ‘they would lose money if they sold it at this price.’ This is a blatant lie; as if a shop actually loses money by selling pianos at the listed in shop price! The shopkeeper also tried to hard sell the ‘non interest free’ credit option of buying a piano. I think it likely he wouldn’t sell us the piano at the listed price because a) I wouldn’t buy a more expensive one he was trying to sell b) I wanted to buy via interest free credit (which is a stated option).