Top-10 of music shops in Lincoln Square

Awesome customer service. Great gear selection

Huge selection of new and used guitars. Private rooms to jam and hear the instruments cranked up to 11.

This shop has incredible gear. I took a shot & purchased a very cool & unique MIJ Strat on Reverb and they shipped the guitar immediately. Answered questions quickly, and packed the guitar extremely well. Super fast shipping. The guitar I received was even better than I imagined it would be – perfectly setup and just an incredible guitar. I originally bought this as a back up guitar, but it’s now my new #1. Will 100% buy from this shop again – highly recommended!

I was a bit disappointed to find out that most of the vintage stuff they have is poorly setup and with barely any fret life. But its all original one of the guys said. When you are asking 3000$ for an ESP that chokes up after the 9th fret, I believe there is room for improvement.
Great range of pedals. No separate booth to turn up volume and be on your own with the decibels.

There are better places to go in the area for musical instruments and accessories, but this place has everything you would expect from a guitar shop. Be aware of their hours as I have tried to stop by on the way to or from work to find that they were closed.

Lots of great amos and guitars. You just have to take your time looking thru everything.

Pésimo. He ido a comprar una guitarra Seagull que estaba en la página web activa y no la tenían. Además la atención de los dependientes fue pésima por no decir que no era “atención” si no despachar a la gente, que por cierto no había gente.
It sucks

this place has a closet worth of gear.. almost nothing. I think they asked to check my diaper bag because I am not white.. don’t waste your time or money here.

God I hate this place.

The owner ripped me off on gear when I was down on my luck..

I understand resale shops having to make a profit but this low class move will never be forgotten.

Becareful when you deal with them. They will burn you when your back is turned, and that’s a terrible feeling when you rip off musicians who don’t have money.

Laurie’s Planet of Sound is a heavenly haven for me. There is a nice record selection, but my favorite is the DVD section. They’ve got tons of campy and cult classics, especially horror movies. For a horror nerd like me, my heart rate goes way up in excitement. There are also some other cute little gift areas which include T-shirts and magnets. The only problem with this store is that I don’t have enough disposable income to get everything I want, like those MST3K sets.

I called in looking for a vinyl that is sold out on all websites and not usually available in the US (UK artist). Lou went way above and beyond to help me find it, even though the store didn’t have it. Awesome customer service. Thank you so much!! Great shop to go to.

You will always find something interesting

Good record store. I’ve found some gems in the discount bin.

Small but they have some interesting stuff. Kinda pricy.

Really nice selection and pricing (I usually find something even if I don’t find what I came in for) but the staff is hit or miss.

When I dropped by after the Liz Phair Girly Sound in Guyville release came out and asked about it, the clerk scoffed and asked if I pre-ordered because that’s all they had and I should’ve pre-ordered if I wanted it.

I’ve had great interactions with other staff members, but they definitely have employees who think they’re in High Fidelity or something, which is disappointing.

i do not hold a small selection against the store but the style was quite limited. the ‘cheap’ records are below the main bins (standard practice) but the bins are so deep that even my 6’4 wingspan could not reach the depths. clerk was standoffish when i inquired about the music he played. overall an off putting experience. smallest jazz selection (as percentage of the whole store’s inventory) in chicago

They let some people use the bathroom, and not others. Which is fair, that is up to their discretion. However, so is my one star.

The people there are not very friendly

Krause Music Store was designed in 1922 by architect William Presto. Ceramics (terra cotta facade) was Louis Sullivan design.

This small and beautiful building with it’s terra cotta exterior designed by Frank L. Wrights former boss, Louis Sullivan, is really a gem. A Chicago gem! Considering how many Louis Sullivan buildings have been lost to the city due to lack of interest in architectural preservation.
Sullivan’s last work before his death — the exterior truly speaks to Sullivan’s genius and vision in his art.
A beautiful edifice. A building you can stand in front of and not have to look up 20 or more stories to glimpse the detail and geometry. It basically surrounds you.
Visually you can take a bite out of it, absorb it and take in all this detail right in front of your eyes. Let Sullivan speak to you.
OK, I’ve said enough! ….get a little architecture on your palate…

Stunning detail!

Have gotten quite a few things from SS Vintage and have been blown away every time! They actually care about their gear.

I always read reviews, but I seldom write one.

SS Vintage has a couple of poor reviews. I considered that before calling them, but there are two sides to every story. So, I called them out of the blue and I spoke with George. I asked to do a layaway on a pretty expensive PRS. He was happy to accommodate me. He was really nice and he told me everything he knew about the guitar that I ended up buying. He gave me a great price and he shipped it right away.

Upon arrival, the guitar was everything that he described and I was very happy. I immediately checked his inventory to see if he had anything else that I liked. I’d would definitely do business with George again.

SS Vintage is a great shop. Highly recommended.

By far, the BEST interaction I’ve had with a store owner. George is extremely knowledgeable, super quick to respond, and simply treats his people with utmost respect. No hesitation to do another deal again.

Rude and over priced. I will never give you a dime!!

bought a vintage amp online and it arrived with a blown speaker.
dishonest seller – no stars

“Our expertise is second to none”
“Impeccable service”

If you have an issue with your purchase, you will regret it. They have fundamentally poor expertise with regard to vintage, and they will weasel out of accountability.

We have been loyal students of Musical Chairs Studio, Inc. for years as the personal attention, care and connection via staff and teachers is unique. We tried other studios in the past that did not compare! Thank you Musical Chairs for your outstanding work!

My family has been a client of Musical Chairs for several years. My family has worked with Lisa and Stuart, and the instruction is excellent. We appreciate that they set goals for our kids and support the kids in reaching the goals. We asked the instructors to provide our kids with music they know – theme songs from a show they watch – and have watched the kids eagerly practice the music without parent involvement. Finally, both Lisa and Stuart have been great throughout the COVID protocols and we are thrilled to have continued with piano.

Trevor is great with our youngest. He is super patient and goes at her tempo. He lets her explore on her own as well as rudiments.

Great service from great people offering unbelievable products at fair prices!

Music Hall Ikura. Color me impressed with this turntable. It had some big shoes to fill. It ran side by side my SOTA and it won . Dead black backgrounds , No motor or grounding hum at all. The Ortofon 2M blue is heads above the red. I have just become a Music Hall fanboy.

All my best audio components came from Music Direct. Brian and the team at Music Direct have been helping me build my system for several years. Each time I add or change a component he helps me find the best one for my listening tastes and budget. Whenever an issue comes up, they are quick to make it right. And to be sure, that is not very often. If you want the best advice and the best audio components. This is the place.

Love it

New to the world of high fidelity, gents there are informative and use language even this moron can understand.

this review is for the physical store, I’m sure the online service is great.

The B&M store is an understandable compromise. It’s a warehouse that sets up a listening room in the back and room full of vinyl. great selection, and the whole catalogue of Mo-Fi masters.

so why 3 stars? because I think most everyone there hate people. You have to enter in through the office where no one acknowledes you no matter how confused you look, nor how long you stand there, Then when pointed to the warehouse door, more employees walk past you disinterested. Then when a sales guy came into the demo room (I was there to hear a particular pair of speakers), he acted like he was missing the finally of the bachelor and gave me very little consideration. It was to the point where I felt bad for asking for his help.

anyway, the vinyl room was great, and I think that if you go into it knowing that you will be talking to a bunch of seemingly disgruntled hipster millennials and other warehouse hermits, you won’t be as disappointed as I was. Long story short, I ended up buying the speakers from a different dealer because of that experience.

Terrible customer service. If your trying to get a refund it’s nearly impossible. Buyer beware. I bought a tube ,and the sent me the wrong one tried telling me it was the right one . Clearly it was not it had a different number on it. Still waiting for the refund. They keep lying to me every time I call

Ordered two sets of Iso-acoustics Gaia II on a Wednesday. Had to call on Friday to find out someone didn’t ship them. Order finally arrived, only to find out the M12 inserts, which were advertised as included with the GAIA II’s, were not included. Was told it would take another two weeks for the screws. One star is a gift! Never again!!!

Beware of your credit cards details for this company. Lied to me that my card will not be charge as it doesn’t have any preorders and the next moment they charge your card with item shipped without your permission.

I recently moved to Chicago after spending four years in NY . I moved to NY from South Africa and was so exited to be plugged in to the NY scene , the NY scene is dead and gone. The guitar stores are filled with staff that are rude and unqualified . So how happy am I to have moved to Chicago and find the CME !!!! The most, and I mean the MOST outstanding guitar collection I have ever seen and staff that makes you feel welcome and will go out of their way to find what you want or need. I love this place .

Amazing store

Cool guitars and you can play them!!! Ask for a room and pick your amp and guitar and you can jam out. ALso get your guitar tuned up if you need to.

Cool guitars, but expensive as all hell.

A great shop for guitars

Has a large selection of guitars and plenty of staff members for help. Is a really cool place

They scammed me 1700 dollars. Please don’t visit this store!

The worst music store I’ve done business with. I’ve ordered 4 guitars with them for a total of over $2,000. TWO have shown up with damage. Zero help from their customer service. I’ve never had this issue with any other dealer.

Do yourself a favor and avoid these guys. They will send you a damaged instrument listed as “new” and jerk you around for a week sorting it out.

Furthermore, we finally agreed on a partial credit for one of the damaged items. Rather than discount the item and recalculate the tax (which is the law) they just took it out of the bottom line number and tried to make me eat the tax amount. What a shady business

Nice store and staff were polite so no issues there. My issue is that I had been looking for a specific bass new in the box (just my preference to not like one that has been handled/adjusted). While I live in Illinois it’s about an hour and half drive to the store so online I inquired if I wanted a specific new in box bass could I pick it up at the store. I was told no problem a new untouched one would be sent to the store and be ready the next day. Drove there (about an hour and half each way) and the box brought out clearly had been opened the bass repacked into the box, etc. Not sure if it was hanging in the store or used for online photos or what. While some may not agree with my preference on wanting a sealed never handled item it is what I was specifically told would be available and as it turned out was not available after making the trip back and forth to the store.