THIS WEEK @ CME
Shop Fresh Gear
This just in at Chicago Music Exchange! Fresh Gear is where you’ll find fresh gear from all your favorite manufacturers, updated daily, so you’re always ahead of the beat.
SHOP OUR 2026 4TH OF JULY SALE!
Fire up the Grill, Light off some Fireworks, and Get up to 59% OFF Select New, Vintage, and Used Gear!
The fireworks aren't the only thing going off this weekend. CME's 4th of July Sale runs Wednesday, July 1st, through Monday, July 6th — 10%, 15%, and 20% off Sale Collections, plus CME Exclusive Deals & Steals and fresh price drops across the store. Whether you’re picking up summer gig essentials or giving your tone a major overhaul, we have exactly what you need, for less!
Highlight Of The Week
From Pre-CBS Fenders to ‘50s Gibsons, our Vintage Arrivals are Incredible!
For over 35 years, Chicago Music Exchange has been a hub for buying, selling, and trading vintage guitars, basses, amps, and more! We’re just as dedicated to that goal as ever, with the freshest vintage guitars to make it to our website, including this 1965 Gibson SG Standard in Polaris White, this 1963 Fender Jazzmaster, and this 1964 Fender Stratocaster! From ultra-clean vintage examples of some of the most beloved guitars ever made, to player-grade guitars with a ton of character, each player can find exactly what they’re looking for when they shop our vintage & used selection!
Charge Forward with the 1971 Flying V Medallion from Gibson!
In 1971, Gibson released a version of the Flying V that featured a 1.5” medallion set into the body, signifying that guitar as a limited edition model. Michael Schenker would later go on to immortalize this model, with a Flying V Medallion that he had refinished in half black and half white. This new version taps into the original’s mojo, with a pair of unpotted T-Type pickups with Alnico 5 magnets for a hard-charging tone! Vintage-spec hardware also adds to the vintage mystique of these guitars.
The John Oates Collection has Arrived at CME!
Stage-played, Studio-Loved, Collector Guitars & Amplifiers at CME!
John Oates isn’t parting with his past—he’s investing in the future. The John Oates Collection has arrived at Chicago Music Exchange—an extraordinary lineup of stage and studio-played acoustics, amplifiers, and electric guitars from one of the most iconic songwriters and performers in American music history. These aren’t just instruments—they’re pieces of living music history, shaped by decades of recording, touring, and performance. From road-worn character to studio-crafted tone, every piece tells a story, and now, those stories are available to you! Whether you’re a serious collector, a lifelong fan, or a player chasing authentic inspiration, this part of his collection delivers rare energy, legacy craftsmanship, and true provenance. The John Oates Collection is available now at Chicago Music Exchange. It’s about real gear, real history, and real connection to the music that shaped generations, and now will continue to shape the next generation!
Chicago Drum Exchange
You can’t beat the Chicago Drum Exchange. Shop the newest gear from Chicago’s best drum shop today.
Visit our Drum Shop to Grab Our Newest DW Performance Series Snare Drum!
Handcrafted in Oxnard California using 100% North American Hard Rock Maple, DW’s Performance Series offers a custom feel, with a punchy and warm resonance! Our newest DW Performance Series Snare Drum features a 10-ply shell, TruePitch tuning tension rods, and quarter lugs for rock solid stability!
From Bursts to Builds! Chicago Music Exchange "CME Spec" Guitars is the Gibson Custom Authority!
When it comes to Gibson Custom Shop guitars, we don’t just sell them—we live them. Chicago Music Exchange started as a vintage guitar shop, surrounded by real-deal Bursts, Explorers, Vs, Specials, 335s, 355s, SGs—you name it. We know what the old ones sound like, look like, feel like. That’s why we spec our Gibson Customs with one goal: get them as close to the golden-era tone and mojo as modern builds allow.
We’re not chasing myths—we’re chasing the sound, with decades of experience guiding every decision. If you’re looking for the real deal in Gibson Custom Les Pauls, SGs, or ES guitars, CME is the only destination you need.
SHOP CME EXCLUSIVE GIBSON
Featured Video
One of the Rarest Telecasters We've Ever Seen! 1968 Blue Floral
Head Guitar Technician at Chicago Music Exchange, Alec, inspects a 1968 Fender Telecaster Blue Floral to verify its authenticity! No Guitar Repair here just a verification. This is as rare as it gets for a Tele and we still can't believe it. Watch Alec walk though the guitar and Nathaniel Murphy plug it in to hear how it sounds!
UPCOMING EVENTS AT CHICAGO MUSIC EXCHANGE!
Wednesday, August 27, 2025
Inside the Custom Shop: Fender Master Builder Dennis Galuszka in Conversation with Nathaniel Murphy
You’re invited to a night of Fender tone, Custom Shop tools, and true guitar obsession. Join us at Chicago Music Exchange on Wednesday, August 27, 2025, at 7:00 PM for an exclusive Evening with Fender Master Builder Dennis Galuszka, hosted by CME’s Master Player, Nathaniel Murphy.
Expect deep dives, big tone talk, and behind-the-scenes stories from one of the best to ever do it—Fender Custom Shop Master Builder Dennis Galuszka, who's been shaping the sound of Fender since the late ‘90s. Holding it down for CME is none other than Nathaniel Murphy, who’ll be hosting and leading the conversation, gear-head-friendly chats, plugging into the latest Fender builds, surely something you do not want to miss!
Guitars will be played! Stories will be told! Nerdy questions encouraged! Don’t miss out!
Effects & Amplification
Let us be your Pedal Plug and Amplifier Tone Shop!
Grab a Matchless Amp at CME!
Matchless are icons of the boutique amplifier movement, and their newest amplifiers at CME are downright phenomenal! Among the newest Matchless Amplifiers at CME is this Clubman Reverb 35, a single channel powerhouse that offers plenty of harmonic complexity thanks to a unique pentode preamp section that utilizes two 12AX7s and an EF86 tube. With an incredibly straightforward front panel, it’s easy to dial in a tone to die for using this amp!
Shop Our Huge Selection Of New, Used, And Vintage Pedals In The Store At CME This Season!
Command Time Itself With the New Strymon TimeLine MX Multi-Delay!
Asheville Music Tools is the brainchild of former Moog engineer Rick “Hawker” Shaich, with assistance from John Snyder, the mastermind behind Electronic Audio Experiments. Hawker took the lessons learned from refining Moog’s pedals, and is now applying his expertise to every pedal that is pushed out of his shop! You can now find 4 of Asheville Music Tools’ creations at CME, each balancing a classic effect with a few surprises that redefine what each effect can be:
-The APH-12 is a 12 stage phaser with a built in preamp, and can be set in multiple stages to go after effects rarely heard in a phaser, such as a high pass filter (1-stage) or auto wah (3-stage).
-The AFG-1 is a flanger with a unique envelope control that interacts with your playing dynamics. AFG-1 also features a 3-mode toggle switch that imparts three distinct flavors of the effect.
-The ACV-1 Chorus/Vibrato has a BBD delay that imparts everything from subtle chorus enhancement, to faux reverb, to flange-like effects, to massive seasick warble! The keys are the variable delay time, and the ability to select different wave forms.
-The ADG-1 Analog Delay features a pair of studio grade Xvive MN3005 Bucket Brigade Devices at its heart, featuring up to 700ms of harmonically rich, floating echoes.
Catalinbread Crooner CB-Range Discrete Console Preamp Pedal!
The RCA BA-31 is a legendary germanium transistor microphone preamp that was the secret sonic weapon behind the warmth and depth of ‘60s vocals and guitars! The new Catalinbread Crooner Console Preamp taps into the magic of the BA-31 and puts it onto your pedalboard, with a wider range of gain than Catalinbread’s preexisting Airstrip circuit. The result is a deep tonal profile with a rich low end and plenty of warmth! Crooner features a discrete op-amp out, providing no gain when the “PUSH” knob is set all the way down, and topping out with a muscular fuzz.
Preorder the New Portable Marshall JTM Series Amplifiers!
The amp that started it all is back! Now in a new portable size, the iconic JTM has been added to Marshall’s Studio range, offering players authentic, smooth, valve-driven break-up at lower volumes. Check out Marshall JTM Studio options now available for preorder at CME!
Featured Video
Are These New Epiphones ACTUALLY As Good as Gibson?!
The Newest CME Exclusive Guitars Reimagine a Transitional Moment In Gibson’s History, With Some of Our Favorite Finishes!Since its introduction in 1955, the Les Paul Special has always carried a workhorse attitude, pushing out immediately identifiable warmth and fatness from two P-90 pickups. Designed to serve an intermediate market between the student-priced Les Paul Junior and the Les Paul Model (aka: the Goldtop), the Special has carved out its own mythos and fandom over its 70-year existence.
We’re proud to partner with Epiphone to bring you two new CME Exclusive Les Paul Specials: the Epiphone Inspired by Gibson Custom series 1960 Les Paul Special Double Cut Reissue in Oxblood and Olive Drab! With underwound P-90 Soapbar pickups made by Gibson USA, these are the perfect way to merge a particular moment in electric guitar history, with tonal and visual touches that complement that era! To be among the first players to capture these new CME Exclusives, call us today at (773)525-7773, chat with us on our website, or simply come into our Lincoln Avenue Showroom!