How to find a discount deal on guitars, amps, effects.

As you have probably noticed that good guitars, amplifiers, effects pedals, recording equipment are expensive. Getting the guitar and equipment that you dream of can easily add up to thousands of dollars. The good news is, there are some ways to find some good deals online. The bad news, it might have a blemish, dent and scratch, be refurbished, open box item but it has a lower price! Many online retailers devote special sections of the web sites to just "dent and scratch" and clearance items. If you check often and shop around you can sometimes find some fantastic deals with a great discount.

While you might find a good deal on a blemished guitar, remember that it does have some sort of blemish! The big problem with blemished items is lack of detail from the sites selling it. However, when it comes to the other equipment, who cares if an amp has a dent, or an effects pedal is a little beat up, all that matters is that they work and sound good. I have an old Shure SM58 microphone that has a huge dent in the screen, works perfectly fine. My one piece of advice is to verify the return policy and warranty, most of "scratch and dent" products are given the same satisfaction guarantee as new products and a warranty that will exclude cosmetic damage.

Links to the best sites for deals:

Site	Comments
Music 123 Outlet Store	Music 123, in my opinion, offers the best layout and category assignment for their clearance merchandise. They breakdown each product's condition into one of eight categories that are described under Item condition. I recommend you check here first.
zZounds.com Blowout Specials	zZounds is another great site to check out. They provide decent condition categorization, they're layout is simple, just note that each category on their home clearance page is just a sample of the blowout specials. Click on each category to see even more great deals.
Musician's Friend Clearance Center	Musician's Friend, one of the giants of the web and owned by Guitar Center. They offer a huge selection of clearance merchandise but their condition categorization is bit weak.