We have rentals for the cautious, lessons for the eager, truth-telling for the fearful,
repairs for the clumsy, concerts for the devoted, and free coffee for all.
McCabe's® is a musical instrument store and concert venue in Santa Monica, opened in 1958. We specialize in acoustic and folk instruments: guitars, ukuleles, banjos, mandolins, dulcimers (both hammered and plucked), fiddles, bouzoukis, sitars, ouds, ethnic percussion... you get the idea. We also carry electric guitars, basses, and amps.
*kinda
Services
Instrument Sales
When you buy a guitar from McCabe’s (or a banjo, uke, mandolin, etc.) you get a lot more than just a receipt and a “have a nice day.” In addition to the assistance of our friendly and knowledgeable sales staff, you also get our in-house, 3-year warranty on almost every instrument we sell. That includes set-ups and adjustments, and anything else that the instrument might do to itself (i.e. not broken strings). We also offer rentals and lay-away plans, and a 3-year 70% trade-up option for when you’re ready to step up to the next level. Browse through some of our stock online, or, better yet, drop by the shop. It’s a nice, comfortable place to visit and try things out.
Repair Service
Got a crack in your axe? If your guitar (or uke, dulcimer, etc.) has suffered an injury, if it’s buzzing, or hard to play, or even if it won’t make any sound at all, we can probably help. McCabe’s has a team of veteran luthiers who know what they’re doing. Restrings, new gears, pickup installation, troubleshooting – “No job too weird or too small” is what our repair shop motto would be, if we had a repair shop motto. And there is never a charge for estimates or advice.
Music Lessons
Here at McCabe’s, we’ve taught tens of thousands of aspiring (and many already aspired) musicians how to play, and we can teach you, too! For private lessons, see our list of incomparable instructors, each of whom you can contact directly for scheduling or info. If you’re feeling more social, or you just want more bang for your buck, have look at the group classes we’re currently offering. And if you don’t find the class you’re looking for, suggest it, and we’ll see what we can do. McCabe’s is here to help!
Upcoming Events
McCabe's at 50
Featured Instrument: Morin Khuur
Our featured instrument is the horsehead fiddle, more commonly known as the Morin Khuur. The Morin Khuur on our walls comes from across the globe, constructed by the luthiers of the Egshiglen Magnai Co. in traditional Mongolian styling (sans the f-holes, which are inspired by western instruments.) These fiddles feature two strings tuned to Bb and F. Each string is made of horsehair, coiled tightly below a headstock shaped like a horse’s head. A bridge feeds the sound into a trapezoid soundbox that creates a timbre similar to a cello. To produce a sound, the player must pull the bow’s hair while placing his/her/their fingernails underneath the string. Drop by and ask Louis to play you the Morin Khuur video on the iPad. He’ll know what you’re talking about.
Employee Spotlight: Kevin Lopez
This month's Employee Spotlight is none other than our Web Administrator, Kevin Lopez. Kevin got started on our concert crew a few years ago and, once work dried up with his other gig running a small chain of hotels in Long Beach, we hired him on to our day staff.
Kevin is a real jack of all trades here at McCabe's: excellent guitarist, wire wrangler, penguin enthusiast, pez dispenser designer and computer master, plus he has a beautiful head of hair to boot. No one really knows too much about Kevin but the story goes that he once was a spy in Texas, crashed a stolen car when he was 19, invented something called "The Quarter Baffle" and that his real name is actually Brian. He neither confirms nor denies any of this, and likely resents us all for even implying it.
He's working wonders for us on the concert staff, floor staff and upstairs keeping this website afloat - we're lucky to have him. We just wish he would stop drinking all the free coffee.
