Rock N Roll Vintage

I’ve purchased 2 guitar pedals here in the last couple weeks. Andrew (I think?) was immensely helpful each occasion I have been in; I didn’t know exactly what I was looking for, and he helped out in getting me set up with a couple awesome pedals. Both guitars I used to demo the pedals were perfectly set up. He’s also been able to get me a great price on brand new items (lower out-​the-​door price than anywhere on the internet!).
Overall, the selection leans heavily toward higher-​end items ($$$), but prices are better than can be expected. I wish they were open later in the evening, but that’s really the only negative thing I can say about this store.

My comment has nothing to do with music but, instead, with humanity. The guys working at Rock N Roll Vintage Guitars last night proved people in the world still give a damn. They threw themselves into the middle of a scary altercation involving my dogs and two other dogs that was happening right outside their store and, in the process, became my local heroes. My gratitude reaches beyond words for you guys. I am so, so sorry to everyone involved. To say it was traumatic would be a blistering understatement but you all stepped up, helped get Charlie off of the little guy, watched my goofball, Brando, and kept checking on Charlie and I down the way in 4Legs. Thank you sounds too generic for how much I appreciate all of your help but it’s the best I can do at this point. So, thank you so much!

Im a newb when it comes down to tuning or setting up a guitar but i know some things, came in for a basic guitar set up, the guy setting it up was very friendly and recommended some strings for my acoustic, the shop is tidy and the guitars are pretty nice, some used some new. Will return if i need to :)

Very pleased with my experience here. Had a vintage Gibson in desperate need of repair (snapped headstock). Their repairman, Ben, did an excellent job fixing it at a very reasonable price and had it back to me within a week (other shops were quoting 2−3x $ and a 4 – 8 week wait). They were still in the middle of their move, but let me play some gear and I ended up getting a pedal as well (for a deal too!).
Overall very happy, will definitely return again. The new location is quite nice with lots of room.

I bought a vintage acoustic guitar here a few months ago. They patiently watched me come in several times to keep trying it out, and every time gave me space and simply asked if there was anything I needed. No pressure at all. Once I decided to make the purchase, they were willing to address the few small issues I had and were available for follow up in the weeks following. It was a reassuring place to buy a vintage instrument and I’m happy I went there.

After a two year hiatus I thought I’d give them another try. They have expanded quite a bit and the staff is great! Always make the right suggestion and aren’t pushy. Very fair on trades and working with you on a price. Great selection of pedals too.

Boutique selection without the boutique attitude.
Awesome selection of vintage pedals & new pedals. I just picked up a Strymon Deco the other day — it nails the vintage studio tape deck sounds. Nice selections of new & used amps too. Rock N Roll Vintage is a great store that only carries higher end gear. The staff are friendly, knowledgeable, and low-​pressure. Chicago Music Exchange is about mile away (also recommended) but I will note that Rock N Roll Vintage’s inventory is VERY different, its quite amazing that they’ve got this complimentary thing going on — just great store to visit.

If your looking for a guitar shop look no further! I was looking for a Lakland Bass guitar. I drove into the city on a Saturday afternoon in «Chicago». My mission was to try out what everyone I talked to said was a dream to play, a Lakland P-​bass. Well, I was not disappointed ! I had been to the competition to play and possibly purchase a Fender P-​bass. I learned on one 38 years ago in high school. Well, to my dissatisfaction I could not find «that feel» I remembered back when I was a kid on the new Fenders. I arrived at Rock & Roll Vintage. The variety of Lakland basses was more than I could have asked for. The sales associate was very well informed, his product knowledge was impressive. I told him what I was looking for and he guided me to a Lakland P-​bass. I could not believe the silkly smooth feel and incredible action this bass had. I had found the bass «feel and sound» I remembered way back when. (the fender vintage P-​bass could not compete, at several hundred dollars more). I had found what I was looking for, a great store, great people, and a great bass guitar! if your serious about quality service and quality gear, you have to check out this store and the Lakland bass !
Thanks guys,
Mark Cymbo

I recently purchased a used bass here. The bass was accurately described on their website. The staff was mellow and helpful, and not at all pushy or aggressive. They worked with me on price. Nice store, without the ‘big box’ feel of G.C. Thanks, guys!

I really can’t say enough good things about Rock N Roll Vintage.
They just are the nicest, most helpful music store in Chicago. I can say this, because I’ve actually been to ALL of them.
If you have a question, they can help.
If you have a problem, they can fix it.
If you want a piece of vintage gear, but don’t want to pay a arm and a leg, go here.
Seriously, I don’t work for them, I promise.

While this shop is a hidden gem with great finds, twice I saw something I wanted on their website and then drove and hour to the store only to find out the stuff wasn’t in stock. They really need to keep their website updated properly.

Recently picked up a Teese RMC4 Picture Wah from Rock N Roll Vintage. Buying online from them is very easy. I also called in with a few questions and their customer service is excellent! I live in North NJ and had the pedal at my door in 2 days.
I’m very pleased with their overall service and they have an excellent selection of instruments/​pedals. I highly recommend Rock N Roll Vintage and will definitely buy from them again.

Bueno, en primer lugar, me gustaría decir que el diseño de sitios web es un poco torpe.
Yo, sin embargo, al igual que el «rápidamente encontrar nuestro stock Popular guitarra, bajo y amplificador» utiliza fotos de los cabezales de los instrumentos respectivos. Se burla de compras y fácil. En general, el sitio no está mal, no es sólo el más organizado. (Hablando de órganos no vi nada de eso.) Por lo tanto, puede tomar un poco de tiempo para encontrar lo que estás buscando.
Son un minorista grande y tienen una variedad bastante amplia de mercancía. Un montón de cosas buenas junto con otras malas (estoy mirando a ti, JMI). Sobre todo tienen una buena selección, como su nombre lo indica, los equipos vintage. ¿Quién sabía? Bueno, ciudadanos de Chicago en el saber. Eso es quién.
JustNIck es el hombre demostración en video y lo hace un excelente trabajo. Las demos que hace son muy informativo y entretenido (aunque hablar demasiado para mi gusto). Su forma de tocar y el conocimiento, sin embargo, es insuperable.
Me gusta este lugar.

Favorite guitar store in Chicago. Great selection of new and vintage guitars and amps. Best selection of effects and accessories around. Very friendly and helpful staff. Definitely worth the trek north.

Place not only had the exact rare hand-​wound pickups in stock, in a strat, but was kind enough to let me come test them out, to make sure they are what I want.
AWESOME AWESOME AWESOME!

It really doesn’t get a whole lot better for guitar junkies, especially jazzers who want a decent selection of archtops and hollowbodies to choose from. Unlike other guitar boutiques where the salesmen have minimal knowledge of the equipment they’re selling, these guys seem to have some hefty guitar knowledge. The luthier, in particular, was extremely helpful, offering to change the strings and do a basic setup on a jazz box that caught my interest. It was an artful move on his part because I ended up buying it four days later!
Additionally, it’s nice to walk into a laid back shop frequented primarily by guitar aficionados, instead of having to listen to six teenagers struggle through Little Wing (and for some reason playing it so loud that everyone in the shop can hear their myriad mistakes). If you want a chill, vintage, and mature atmosphere to peruse guitars then check this place out; if, on the other hand, you want an impersonal and stressful overall experience, then check out one of those Guitar Wal-​Marts I keep hearing about.

When I scored an old early 60’s Gibson acoustic from a local guy off Craigslist for $ 25 that was on the verge of becoming firewood, I knew exactly who to take it to…
Ben does amazing setup work in Chicago for a great price. He took my early 60’s Gibson LGO that was literally breaking apart at the seams and now it plays like it came out of the factory yesterday. Like butter up and down the neck. And it has that great old-​school acoustic tone, too. This thing was literally almost tossed into a garbage can, and now it’s my main acoustic.
Awesome work, guys. Keep it up.

Went here to browse and to see if I could find a gift for my nephew, who does play guitar. Found a pedal with two options on it — looked like something he’d enjoy, so I bought it.
The staff here was polite and helpful, but they actually didn’t sell me enough or give me enough information. I told them I was totally ignorant about guitar equipment and wanted their assistance. After I bought the pedal, I got to thinking that it would also require a cord to connect it to the guitar to the pedal — I ended up buying that at another guitar store that was closer to me. The item also could use a converter to plug into an outlet — I’m still trying to find one of those as the instructions that came with the pedal were minimal.
The store was nicely kept and did seem to have a few interesting guitars in it.

t’s the first time that I went there for a quick set up on my Fender Telecaster. Honestly, I don’t recognize my guitar, the guy did such an Amazing job.
Not only he set it up perfectly but also did a Lev, Fret Crowning. The result is unbelievable. And all of that for only $ 80 and only 2 days at the shop.
Magnifique! great job guys I’ll make sure to pass the info around!
Bravo

Yes, you will find super awesome old guitars and amps here. Yeah, the ancient acoustic guitars here are all gnarly and raw and sound absolutely killer. Sure, you’ll find a whole pile of intense effects pedals (many of which were totally new to me). And of course, the prices are incredibly high.

I got my acoustic guitar set up there the other day. The guys behind the counter were friendly and quick to help me out the minute I walked into the door. When I came to pick up the repaired guitar a couple days later they informed me that I can call back if I have any problems with the repair. I thought that was great customer service and another bonus was the set up was only $ 40. I will return to Rock N Roll Vintage for another set up for sure. Maybe some day I even purchase one of their beautiful vintage guitars. Definitely a place to check out if you love guitars.

I love going to Rock N Roll Vintage and checking out the cool vintage equipment they have sitting around. Their stock tends to rotate in and out very quickly so there’s always something new to check out. The staff and owner are all extremely knowledgeable about everything, helpful, and friendly. Plus it’s nice to go to a vintage music store that actually keeps the guitars in tune and the amps in mint condition, instead of missing strings/​mismatched tubes.
Usually the guitars are slightly out of my price range as they are highly collectible, however, they do stock new and vintage pedals, and are more than happy to let you try them out through their amps, so that was very helpful when I needed an overdrive pedal.
4 thumbs up!