Despite the convenience and low-cost of digital downloads, there's nothing that can replace the experience of actually getting out of your house and searching for music. Fortunately, the concept of a local record store is alive and well in San Francisco. From large, warehouse-sized buildings to small basement shops, there are many stores throughout the city that cater to a variety of tastes. Visit a few of these places next time you're in the mood to stock up on some tunes.

Amoeba Records
1855 Haight St.
Amoeba is considered by music fiends to be the holy grail of San Francisco record stores. This legendary spot has it all- Rare vinyl/45's, racks upon racks of new and used CD's, DVD's, and free, live in-store performances every week from some of the best local and national touring bands. Occupying a 24,000 square foot former bowling alley, the store is an easy place to get lost in for several hours. Many people have put serious dents in their wallets while shopping here over the years and you probably will too after spending some quality time in here.

Rasputin Music
69 Powell St.
Rasputin's Union Square location is known for it's interesting layout. The store takes up 5 stories and customers have to take a staff operated elevator to gain access to the 3rd, 4th, and 5th floors. They have a great selection of popular and obscure music with some of the most competitive prices you'll find in the City. Their DVD section is also strong and you can find a lot of great titles in their used bins for cheap.

Streetlight Records
3979 24th Street & 2350 Market St.
There are two locations in the city, with the Market St. shop being the larger one. Whichever one you choose to visit, expect to find a well-stocked store with helpful, friendly staff. Streetlight is the place to go if you're a looking for a smaller store with a balanced selection of music. You can find a lot reasonably priced mainstream albums and, if you're willing to spend a little bit of time digging, you'll discover a few surprises.

Aquarius Records
1055 Valencia St.
Established in 1970, Aquarius Records is the oldest independent record store in San Francisco. This tiny store has a pleasant vibe that makes it a great place to visit if you don't feel like fighting through the crowds at Amoeba.
The staff members are very knowledgeable and will answer any questions you may have in detail. They also write excellent reviews on many of the albums that are in stock. This is the spot to search for records in obscure genres like drone, black metal, and avant-garde electronic music. Don't expect to find too many mainstream albums here although they do have a good selection of indie rock, punk, and bluegrass albums.

Open Mind Music
2150 Market St.
After being out of commission for a while, Open Mind Music is back in business at their new digs on Market St. The store has a reputation for being a vinyl-junkie's haven, specializing in used records from many different genres. Their hip-hop and electronic music sections contain many hidden gems if you're willing to dig around a little bit. It's a great place to go if you're looking to trade or sell your old vinyl. They also have over 10,000 CD's in stock for those without turntables.

Rooky Ricardo's Records
448 Haight St.
A long-time staple of the Lower Haight, Rooky's is THE store to check out if you're into to purchasing 45's. They have a killer collection of classic soul, funk, gospel, jazz, and rock albums. All of the records are catalogued extremely well and you can listen to everything before you make your purchase. The owner is very charming, cares a lot about the music he sells, and will go to great lengths to help you find the tunes you're looking for.

Groove Merchant
687 Haight Street
This store is geared towards serious collectors. If you're looking for rare, out of print vinyl and don't mind paying the extra dough, Groove Merchant is your spot. They have an awesome selection ranging from soul, jazz, latin, disco, hip-hop, and reggae. The owners DJ around San Francisco and are constantly traveling the globe in search of quality vintage records. This is one of the best specialty record stores in the Bay Area.

Tweekin' Records
593 Haight St.
If you're into house music, then duck your head down into this basement store. They carry all of the latest dance floor cuts, from minimal to deep house. There's also a solid downtempo and funk collection in the back room. Even if you're not a DJ, you can still find a few interesting things here. They have a nice rack of mix CD's and you can pick up flyers for many upcoming underground parties.

101 Music
513 Green St.
The lone independent record store in North Beach is worth checking out for the spectacle alone. The top floor is stuffed with enormous stacks of musical instruments and gear- banjos, reel-to-reel tape decks, turntables, speakers, amps, and many other items. Then, if you have time to search, the basement has literally thousands of vinyl records at 5 bucks a pop. Of course, none of the records are organized in any sort of coherent manner so expect to spend a couple of hours digging if you're serious about buying music from this store.