Sound Spectrum

Had such an awesome experience here today! Sold awesome records, –shirts, CDs, and nic-​naks for great prices. Gives off a laid back, hippie vibe. The guy working there was extremely friendly! Definitely a Laguna Beach treat!

My boyfriend and I stumbled on this store because we were looking for something to do after our stay at Victoria Beach. My boyfriend bought me a record player for my graduation and I was looking for new records to buy.
This place is awesome! So many vinyl records, new and used, and from so many genres (R&B, Classical, Rock, Rap, etc). They’re organized by genre, then by name so it’s pretty easy to find what you’re looking for. If you can’t seem to find a specific artist or album, the staff is super helpful! The person who helped us, he said his name was Wave, found albums for us and gave us a lesson on how to maintain and clean records. He also let us have free buttons because of our purchases! I will definitely be coming back to buy more!
Purchases: Frank Sinatra — Sinatra’s Sinatra $ 18, Johann Sebastian Bach — Brandenberg Concertos $ 5, Daft Punk — Daft Punk $ 26.99, Chariots of Fire Soundtrack $ 3. And all records were in great condition!

I had heard about this place for many years, but it was just terrible. Beat up copies of records that were way overpriced. The place looks like it hasn’t been cleaned in years. The owners apparently stopped trying a long time ago. Parking was bad, too (tourist area, not their fault). A long drive for nothing!

Great selection of music and posters. The owner, Wave, is also a very cool man with a lot of stories to tell. Definitely check this place out when in Laguna.

This is it, the place to go for vinyl records and more. Love Wave, he makes it extra fun to shop here.

This place rocks pun intended. Wave and Greg are awesome souls in this spiritual journey we call life. I can’t wait to learn more from these music gurus. A+ prices and service

I really wanted to like this place but I was a little disappointed. There were hardly any prices on the records and when I inquired the guy stared at them and spit off an amount. I’m sure I over paid but they were a gift and needed to purchase now. He was nice and friendly but I’m not sure how they stay open with such a poorly run operation.

Cool place. Great selection. The owner is very helpful and friendly. If you are into vinyl, this is a MUST visit if you are in the area!

First off I have to say Wave is the nicest guy I’ve ever met. I told him I was buying my first ever record and he actually sat with me picking out the perfect one! For anyone looking for a really good rock selection and great service, you’ve got it here. Wish I could give more than 5 stars

It could be OK if you know what’s the records really worth.
Let me share you my experience to explain my rating. I was interested to some records without tags yet, the guy noticed my strong foreign accent, chat a bit and try to be friendly. He told me that he needs to check the quoted value and ask from 20 to 25 $ for each record saying that some are sold more than 100 $. It could have been possible but I only took 3 of them as the condition of others was not so great, to not say bad for the price.
When I entered them in my discogs
collection, I’ve noticed that none of them are sold above 10 $.
Either the guy take advantage to people who don’t know the value or he doesn’t know how to check the real quoted value, that’s not my definition of a good record store. That’s why I wouldn’t recommend it if you don’t know the price of what you want. In my opinion, it’s more a place for tourists who wants a souvenir of a record store from Laguna beach than for real vinyl passionate people.
Happily, few days later, I had better experience in record stores from Los Angeles and Berkeley!

I always come to this store and recommend it to friends! It’s AWESOME and straight out of the 60’s. This place has everything a record store should have: tie dye shirts, bananas, tapestries, flags, posters, records, record players, dope ash trays, zig zags, incense, etc. The guy who always works there (not sure if he’s the owner but pretty sure) is a super laid back, no bullshit kind of guy. He’s not super into customer service but I don’t see a need for him to be, I like browsing without interruption. I hope this place stays semi low key though ;) it wouldn’t be as awesome being really popular.

There should be more than 5 stars available for a review here… are you kidding me? This is the best store for music I have found in my 61 years! I’ve been a patron since Jimmy opened… if you have not been, do yourself a favor. Don’t miss it…

Love this place and I always have. Been coming here since the 60’s. They know what they are talking about and they are very helpful.

I really wanted to like this place and maybe at some point in time it was a good store but I just can’t see any reason to come back here. It’s small, dirty, dusty and has more of a thrift store vibe.
I shop at record stores all over SoCal and to me the most important thing is the titles. The used selection here seemed really tired and the new titles they stock are mostly Top 40 obvious pop type stuff at retail prices. The used stuff is very picked over and a lot of it looks like its been sitting there collecting dust. It doesn’t look like they buy much or rotate their stock very often.
Anyone who keeps a record store open is a hero in my book but they could sure use a fresh approach here.

I have never been here, but I am planning on going. Anyone who has been here before or goes ofter, do you possibly know if they sell any «The Strokes» records?
Thank you

Really cool guys working there, and there are TONS of vinyl classics, along with a nice selection of new vinyl. There are several albums I had been looking for at other stores, and this place almost all of them. The only thing I noticed were some of the prices were slightly above what I would expect to pay for them. I would have bought a lot more had they been 3 – 5 bucks cheaper.

It has been awhile since I’ve stepped foot into a record store, and I’m glad I stopped in at Sound Spectrum. This place is packed to the gills with vinyl. The guy behind the counter was chatting with young guy about the Grateful Dead, which was cool to see. Most «kids» these days haven’t had people point them to legendary music. Recently it was rad when my «baby brother» thanked me for making him listen to The Clash and The cure.

I like the place even though it is small there seem’s to be a nice selection of what everyone wants.
Some of the product in this little place include:
Turntables, 45’s, CD’s and LP’s, poster’s, and shirts.
I’m one though who is spoiled by The Electric Fetus and Cheapo in Minneapolis & St. Paul where I can listen to things before I buy them. So for that and how tiny it is, minus one star. But in no way is that a reason not to go to this store.
A couple of private spots for parking are available in the back if you don’t find street parking.

So we were driving along in Laguna Beach (which is stunning, btw) when we stumbled across Sound Spectrum. I was with two men that are more obsessed with music than I am so we quickly decided to find parking (that was a task in itself) and we wandered inside. The shop is owned a a burnt out hippie (trust me on this one) but he’s awesome! He puts together surf music mixes and sells them for $ 10.
The shop isn’t that big but it’s full of all sorts of music. All used CDs are half-​off, which is pretty nifty. The music playing is relaxing. The entire place gives off a very cool vibe that makes you want to flip through CDs and records and just hang out for a bit.

I love the idea of this store more than the actual product contained within. I’ve been aware of its existence since I was a kid, but this is one of those mythical stores that I somehow never managed to set foot in for over 20 years. After having done so, a part of me wishes I’d kept it that way, but I’m glad I finally know what’s inside.
The place looks bitchin’ from the street, with a dark wood exterior & a large front window full of records, posters and large cutouts. Inside, it looks like it hasn’t changed much since it opened some 40 years ago. One thing that’s obvious as soon as you enter: this is a realm made for fanatics of The Beatles and The Grateful Dead. If you love either of those two bands, you’re likely to find all kinds of gems here. I myself am not, so I stuck with browsing the used rock section. I was impressed by their prices. Most of their used CDs, even some that were relatively new, went for as little as $ 4.99. There was some semblance of order to things, but it’s slightly chaotic. A small back section held various posters, promotional art and other ephemera.
The guy running the place seemed cool — very personable & full of musical knowledge. I also noticed that they support local artists, and you can even buy tickets to many of the local shows here. The fact that a relic like this store has survived through the decades is reason enough to at least stop in and give it a look. You never know what you might find.