Exclusive selection: The top 20 music shops of South Elgin

Nichole is a great teacher. She has the knowledge and patience necessary.

Nicole is a great teacher! My daughter counts the days until she can go to voice lessons and piano lessons with Ms. Cooper! Not to mention, her voice is phenomenal!
Recommend heart of singing for all!

New Vintage Strings was the perfect touch to our daughters wedding! The guests were entertained beautifully throughout the ceremony and then into the cocktail reception. It was an easy decision to go with the full quartet and Jeremy was a delight to work with. I highly recommend New Vintage Strings!

New Vintage Strings performed for our wedding ceremony and cocktail hour, and they were amazing! They were very helpful coordinating details prior to the event, and I felt at ease knowing they would be there when promised. And they have a very long repertoire list, ranging from classical to modern pop and we had so much fun choosing selections that all of our guests would enjoy. We enjoyed their performance!!

New Vintage Strings played at our wedding (4/25/21) and we couldn’t be happier. Jeremy, Emily & co. showed up early and were ready to play. We were running a little behind schedule (like most others do) and NVS were extremely accommodating. Every interaction from picking music to going over time lines was stress free. We danced our first dance to a song they played and it was perfect in so many ways. Our family and friends enjoyed listening to them work. We highly recommend reaching out to New Vintage Stings for your next event. You won’t be disappointed.

Fast, Professional service with incredibly fair prices.

Scott’s the man!

Scott is my go to guy for all my guitar repairs upgrades and Custom builds!
Always delivers more than what you can ask for! Done right the 1st time and always on time. Best luthier in the area…I’ve tried the rest and gotta say Fat Cat guitars is the best!

The most fire studio ever!!!

The Groovepusher is truly a master. His studio rocks and his ear is on point. Highly recommended!

Phil is great at everything he does. Great service, reasonable pricing.

never been here but the name is rad

Highly recommended. Purchased 100-year-old cabinets expecting to have to do some work on them. I found them in the show room with the pieces already cleaned & restored with fresh stain. The items in their stock are treated like the treasures they are. John provided an excellent experience. He answered all of my questions and gave all the historical information about them. Looking forward to purchase from Ye Olde Shoppe again.

This was a great place to find!! Many antique/vintage items! Felt like “American Pickers”.

CAUTION BUYERS!… the items in this shop may be stolen goods! They posted an item from the shop on eBay, which happened to be an item stolen, locally from my family’s property, only a couple months ago. When brought to their attention, via eBay messaging, they did not show any concern or remorse, and continued to renew the posting. Their response was “Sorry man, I have it on display in my shop”, and they refused my generous offer to buy it back at a slightly lower price. (Posted for $450, I offered $350). After a little digging, I was able to locate the shop location, and we purchased the sentimental family valuable back from them, at pretty much full asking price. We are VERY thankful to have the item back, but it’s disgusting that they were trying to sell it, especially after knowing it was stolen. Did they steal it to begin with? We may never know. The item is still listed on eBay right now, even though we already bought it, which obviously holds its own set of violations, especially because they sold it in-person outside of eBay, which will block eBay from getting their cut of the sale. A report is being filed with eBay for the violation as well as with local authorities for selling stolen goods, and also with BBB. Sorry man, you should have taken my no questions asked $350 offer and ran… but now we will go the hard route.

Great service

Very helpful people.

Amazing employee, very knowledgeable, very nice attitude

Sells the normal Best Buy stuff, most of the staff is nice, but some of the staff isn’t too polite

The customer service was great! You are greeted at the door. That was awesome so you didn’t have to go around looking for an sells associate. They’re True to Returns! I bought an radio system and ended up returning it an day later only because I was looking for more watts. The air fryer i also bought we love it! One of the bestest Investments I’ve made.

I bought a TV. I had to ask for assistance, there was a guy selling a TV to some other people but he didn’t acknowledge me at all. After I found a salesman, things went swimmingly. The transaction was fast, and the salesman loaded it into my car for me even in the midst of the heavy snowfall. I was super appreciative.

Very few items in stock. What you see in this small best buy is not avalable. I have only purchased a few things here and I just go to look every so often and if I want anything they say they have to order. Also do to covid they have the staff but they just walk around not helping people, but a good greeter.

Ok shopping experience
Not great
People were not friendly

I bought a $1500 laptop and a 2 year warranty. 6 months after the warranty expired my charging port stopped working. I was really disappointed that no one found that to be wrong. The repair they quoted me was over $800 plus $30 to look at it. I’ll go to the Apple site in the future. To tell a customer the nearly $2000 they spent on an item means an $800 repair as soon as the warranty is expired is wrong. Never again

I like the one at the Thornton’s in South Elgin- you can also buy used movies at that location.
There are 4 others I can go to wthin 2 miles- this is the one I like the most.

Found a lot of great deals here watch for the sale paper you won’t be disappointed

I liked

Great prices.

Over priced!

Good place to buy groceries

Because what I went for it was all there. The one in South Elgin. Nice and clean.

It’s a quick run in spot. No frills – no thrills.

No me gusta

I only gave this place one star because I had to.the can goods are way too expensive and the meat is always spoiled i believe that’s why it’s so cheap! I brought 2 packs of drumsticks both spoiled rotten! I will not be visiting here again!

Friendly knowledgeable staff, great service.

I’ve been going to Goodtime for over 25 years. This is the best service and expertise out there. I can buy guitars lots of places but I don’t know if they’re going to stand behind their products. Pat stands behind every sale and is a wealth of knowledge. Pat and his team work on all my guitars. He built a PA system for me. You won’t be disappointed.

Awesome set-up on my P-bass. Recommended!

This is not a music store it’s a guitar store

Two words. Good time.

Great selection

DO NOT GO TO THIS WEBSITE AND BUY STUFF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

☆☆Scammed website.☆☆

DO NOT GO TO THIS WEBSITE AND BUY STUFF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

good place if it opens in time. 12 pm don’t hold your breath maybe 1pm maybe 2pm

Certainly not what you’d expect you’d paid for.
I had brought two guitars there. One was an Anniversary Edition SG with a Min-ETune (Tronical) robotic tuner on it. I bought it used and intended to keep it as a collector’s item. The other was a brand new Diamond Series C1 Schecter which will be a second issue.
I didn’t know what had been done previously to the SG, so I wanted a full setup. My strings, moving from 10s to 9s, action, intonation… the works. I’d do it myself but I don’t have the time. So I chose to pay to have it done. My regular guy was a 40 minute drive away and had retired, so I was looking for a new relationship with someone else that would do a nice job on my guitars and would treat them as if they were their own.
I specifically asked if they were familiar with the Min-ETune and how to string it. Of course they did! Bottom line is I got it back and thought I had bought a piece of junk because it just would not stay in tune. The action was fine so I cased it and put it away for safe keeping. I recently pulled it out as I do to clean, tune and maintain my guitars and reassessed what was causing it to not stay in tune. The E string popped out of the tuning post. It was not wrapped and locked correctly. Neither was the D string and this after I was told they knew all about the Mini-ETune and how to string it. So I restrung it myself. I cleaned the fret board as is standard procedure in a setup and found the neck was filthy. There were string scars on several frets I had to properly clean as well. See the picture. “Seriously?” They didn’t even clean it.
After I did it myself it stays in tune perfectly as I expected it would. I’m not even going to bother checking intonation on it. I’m sure it isn’t there.
They were nice to me and all but must have made the assumption that I was not any kind of musician or guitar tech and that I would not recognize that there was no true setup done on this at all.
I would have taken it back to them, and I’m sure they would have fixed the issue. I’m sure that is what they would rather I do. But then nobody else would know the experience I had there or what to expect.
The Schecter? It’s brand new. Same BS. I’m not concerned about cleaning, it is brand new. 10s to 9s. Action is fine, intonation is way off. Only one string was almost there and the rest were not even close. I guess I will have to do that one myself too after paying to have it done.
Bottom line is that you pay for a setup and all you get is a stringing and action setting. Hmmm. In my opinion, not worth the price I paid.
Hey, they have a nice quick turn-around though. I can see why.
Sorry guys, but get your $#!* together if you want a bunch of return customers. These are a musician’s tools and expected to be in top condition. Honestly, I would not go back and would rather wait for it to be completed at Guitar Center.

Edit:
I know you would have done something had I brought it back. Should I really have to bring it back? Should I really feel the need to check the work that was to be done? Didn’t I avoid doing all that by bringing it somewhere? Should I pick it up to play it and everything above open is flat? I’ll admit being harsh about it.
Put yourself in my shoes and work on your guitar. Do you tweak the intonation or say that it is within 5 cents so that’s good enough? I really don’t care to take my guitars out in the elements unless absolutely necessary and wasting time and gas driving it back and forth is unacceptable to me.
Perhaps I should have just brought my tools with me and checked it before it even left the counter. Perhaps a white glove to see if the fret board had truly been cleaned and conditioned. But I didn’t expect I would need to.
I know that you guys have the ability and that if you have guitars of your own that they are tweaked right on after 25 years of doing this. I’ve been playing for over 40 years and I only get better at it.
If all the things claimed to be done were done, why did I find them to not be done?

Stopped into on a hope and a pray that I could get immediate help (I knew a full repair was out of the question) for two saxophones with bent upper octive keys. Both were put in a usable condition within minutes. I will be back for a full repair soon!

Great place with a home vibe! John is fun and approachable. Comparable prices. Support this place! Shop Local!

Edited because I am dumb and hit the wrong button

First off I wanted to say I LOVE this store. I knew of this store for a while, and went there for a pack of strings back during my first year of high-school. I remember every single detail about me wanting a gig bag for my Lauren LA 125 Acoustic, and asking Jon to play me something on it. I had gotten that guitar at Kidder Music with my Grandmother as my first acoustic of my very own. Back then Ken used to work there as well. Now Jon owns the store. Both of those wonderful people have helped me out with Countless things, from guitar repairs, simple life lessons about waiting and being patient for repairs to be done, Saving money for thing that I really want. They both are amazing people, and Jon and Ken are both my best friends. Also, So is Bloo (Jon’s beautiful puppy)
I have taken so many photos that if I uploaded them all they would take years and years to process and stuff.

Over all 10000/10 would (and will still) recommend
Best music store in my area!

I really enjoyed this location. Clean and well kept… The young man in self check was extremely professional and helpful. I think this will now be my “go to” Target.

I love Target’s products and prices. The employees are very helpful, nice and easy to find.

Everything was in stock and the cashier was very friendly

Wasn’t able to find help, but really didn’t need it. The isles were so organized and clean it was ready to find what was needed.

It is exactly as you would expect a Target to be

I have called this store 6 times and when it tries transferring it disconnects the call!!! I have tried every department! It would be great if they could answer their phone!!

Really rude bakery lady with blonde short hair. I can tell she hates her job. Wil not return to this bakery.

Trying to get someone on the phone is near impossible. It rang for 3 minutes before the phone automatically hung up. I had to call 4 different times to finally get someone to answer, and just to ask a simple question.

2 stares because their drive up service is convenient.

Not the best prices and bad customer service. I find it funny how rude the employees become once you tell them you aren’t interested in a Target credit card account.

I have nothing but positive things to say about this shop. I love piercings but sometimes don’t feel comfortable in tattoo shops and other piercing shops due to social anxiety, but I felt welcome and appreciated by the sweet staff at the front when I walked in.

I love how sweet and friendly the receptionists were, and how they genuinely seemed interested in the piercing I was getting with my boyfriend. The first thing I noticed when I walked in was how clean the shop was. The floor was freshly washed and there was probably not a speck of dust anywhere.

The covid precautions they follow are very nice as well, they all wore their masks properly and even require a negative covid test for facial piercings that require masks to be taken off.

I went in to get my industrial piercing redone in my left ear, because I took it out a few years ago. Chux was my piercer, and was very thorough in measuring my ear and even helping me pick out jewelry. The amount of jewelry they had to chose from was staggering, and I was able to have the bar match the rest of my earrings (which is something that bothers me a lot about other piercing shops I’ve been to.)

Chux explained the process well, was very informative to aftercare and even educated me on the importance of high quality titanium piercings and that if I were to ever go to another shop to make sure they’re APP licensed. Chux was being a mentor for an apprentice who’s name I don’t remember, but he was explaining the piercing to her but it didn’t slow the process down at all. The team was funny, welcoming and genuinely a pleasure to be around.

The actual piercing was very painless, and I was shocked at how little it hurt compared to the first time I had got an industrial bar done. Chux explained they used high quality piercing needles that do less damage to the skin (which is something I didn’t know existed.) He also recommended that my boyfriend get different piercings for his first earlobe holes since the ones he had in were low quality and dirty.

All in all, I had such a wonderful experience here. I don’t think I ever want to get another piercing done anywhere but here, because the service and atmosphere was excellent. They even gave us each a free bottle of aftercare spray, something other shops charge for. The experience and quality of jewelry/piercing was absolutely worth every penny. I’m so glad I came here to get my industrial redone and can’t wait to be a return customer soon!

Fantastic customer service. Great selection of piercings. Staff is knowledable and skilled at craft. I love taking the trip from the city to get my work done here. Very worth the visit.

we went here after missing the piercer twice in a row at another local shop, I guess fate really wanted us here! Everyone was incredibly kind and warm, the jewelry selection is amazing, carrying higher end brands like BVLA and everything is high grade. Without a doubt the best piercing experience I’ve ever had. I got my septum done by Chux and he immediately knew what jewelry would suit my face best and was super friendly, funny, and knowledgable. couldn’t be happier!!!

Great place to go for piercings. Staff are pleasant and efficient. They counsel and assist you in making tright choices on type of piercing and best location. These folks have skills! Prices on services seemed fair….some of the handmade jewlery can be pricey but of good quality and awesome artistry. Make it a family event !!
Parking can be difficult. Allow adequate time to park. Spaces in front fill quickly. Lot at side of building shared with
several businesses . You have been warned! Good Luck!

Took my 9 yo and they were so kind and patient with my daughter’s fearfulness.
It was WAY to expensive though…I paid $163, including tip.
HEADS UP!

Both my mom and I have gotten piercings and jewelry from Chux. He is an awesome guy who takes the time to make the customer feel at ease. I followed him from another shop, now this is his place! Great jewelry collection. Good jewelry, so it’s kind of pricey.

i am disappointed with the tongue piercing service here. chux asked me to come back 2 weeks after i had pierced my tongue to replace a smaller ring size. then i did it 3 days a go, and after 3 days i changed my ring, i broke one of my teeth because of the ring, apparently they didn’t change to a smaller size. after i removed the ring from my tongue and what i found is they gave me the same size ring, and that caused on of my teeth to break. they lied to me and now my teeth break. i am disappointed with you guys.

Wasn’t feeling the vibe when I walked in. Was not greeted until well after I had been in there for 10mins.

My mom went there to get a nose piercing. She asked what it would cost and they clearly stated $25 more than once. After it was done, they told her the total was $78. They weren’t honest about prices and she would have never gotten it done if she knew what it was going to cost and wasn’t lied to. Would not recommend.