Tokyo guitar shops?

[Jakem]

I like those for high end and used gear. Bigboss is good for anything affiliated with ESP.

Start scouring digimart.net for gear before going. Just use a translator extension in you browser. You can get an idea of sore inventory and do research before hitting the stores.

Lastly, most of the prices include a 10% sales tax. While haggling is frowned upon in Japan, it is absolutely reasonable and i encourage to aske if they can discount the 10% tax if you show them your passport. Some will do this and some wont. ASK

I think all the prices showed price w. tax and the sales tax was listed below it.

 

[Jakem]

Bumping this post up. I am planning a trip for this coming November. How much time would you consider to just enjoy the area? I don't want to bore the wife too much

I think it was visitjapan or similar where one could fill-in the passenger info before the trip so the border check goes faster. Then after filling in this info there was this 2nd option where one could apply for the tax free part for sales tax. You will get this QR code sticker in Your passport and You will get the sales tax deducted directly at the shop or You will get the sales tax back at the airport when visiting the customs. It was something like that…

 

[BenoA]

@Jakem thanks for the tip

 

[Jccobb2]

I’d spend a few hours on ochanomizu. Honestly some cool stuff but the days of deals on what you are looking for are mostly over. There is always the off chance you’ll see some cool obscure thing you didn’t know you needed, and the store layouts are pretty unique that keep you coming back. Ishibashi has stores off ochanomizu in major metro areas of Tokyo that I honestly enjoy more. Better selection usually and they have higher end things, just with a higher end price tag that reflects that they were imported against a weak currency.

As other guys said, make sure you bring your passport book with you to shop in Japan. It’ll get the tax taken off in most places, or you can hit a store on the same street and get the refund in cash.

 

[BlueParfait]

Half a day and You’ll get to see all the shops but if You want to test stuff out then it takes longer. Ishibashi and Ikebe shops in Shibuya were nice as well.

True hahaha I only got to try at a few shops

Well it was raining and my legs were getting stiff from days of walking, so I'm not too miffed about that

 

[narad]

I’d spend a few hours on ochanomizu. Honestly some cool stuff but the days of deals on what you are looking for are mostly over. There is always the off chance you’ll see some cool obscure thing you didn’t know you needed, and the store layouts are pretty unique that keep you coming back. Ishibashi has stores off ochanomizu in major metro areas of Tokyo that I honestly enjoy more. Better selection usually and they have higher end things, just with a higher end price tag that reflects that they were imported against a weak currency.

As other guys said, make sure you bring your passport book with you to shop in Japan. It’ll get the tax taken off in most places, or you can hit a store on the same street and get the refund in cash.

Yea, like literally any day you would visit Ochanomizu, it's another half a dozen guys' guitar vacation trip day to visit Ochanomizu. There's like no way anyone's getting an actual great deal on something -- at best slightly under market due purely to exchange fluctuations and duty free (which would cancel out if you actually declare it on entry to your home country).

 

[Eazy-ESP]

I got lucky visiting there just after covid restrictions lifted. There were not many tourists and I managed to talk them down on an ESP. Been there since and because of the yen to USD there were heaps more tourists so prices are back up.

I wouldn’t go there looking for a deal. I’d go because you might find something unique. For someone like me from Australia it was awesome. Someone from the main parts of US it would still be cool and jam packed for sure, but you guys are already spoiled with a lot more product than most lol.

Ochanamizu was cool. Half a day is more than enough really. It’s only a block, but jam packed. I’d also go into the guitar shops in Shibuya. I played a Caparison in Shibuya for example which I didn’t see any of in Ochanimizu.

 

[BenoA]

So any guitar brands outside of the regular Ibanez/ESP I should be looking for? Edwards may be? Others?

 

[VonBonfire]

So any guitar brands outside of the regular Ibanez/ESP I should be looking for? Edwards may be? Others?

Edwards, Navigator, Momose, and any of the Deviser brands like Seventy Seven Guitars and Bacchus, Tokai, Greco, Burny.

 

[Jakem]

So any guitar brands outside of the regular Ibanez/ESP I should be looking for? Edwards may be? Others?

Made in Japan Fenders.

 

[scottosan]

Yea, like literally any day you would visit Ochanomizu, it's another half a dozen guys' guitar vacation trip day to visit Ochanomizu. There's like no way anyone's getting an actual great deal on something -- at best slightly under market due purely to exchange fluctuations and duty free (which would cancel out if you actually declare it on entry to your home country).

My observation is that the best deals to be had are modded guitars. It seems unlike the states, a pickup upgrade or pot upgrade will devalue a guitar. Additionally I feel that guitars with cosmetic issues in Japan take a much larger hit than if in the US

 

[narad]

My observation is that the best deals to be had are modded guitars. It seems unlike the states, a pickup upgrade or pot upgrade will devalue a guitar. Additionally I feel that guitars with cosmetic issues in Japan take a much larger hit than if in the US

I'd agree with that, but I think most of those wind up going to like unisound and not put in a shop, but put to yahoo auction, and then bid up by overseas people who don't feel the devalue. I have a good example tonight actually...

https://auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/show/bid_hist?aID=q1242148045

There was a time not long ago that this probably wouldn't have gotten more than 50,000Y in the jp domestic market.

Before overseas people got access to the auctions I would get such awesome deals at auction on things where like, "oh, it doesn't make any sound" NCNR, and then you get it and fix some broken solder joint in 5 mins and you're all set. Those really seemed to scare away a lot of people, but were almost always superficial. Now overseas bids shoot them up and usually win.