Austin Music Center

Fantastic local music store. I started my clarinet journey by getting my first instrument for a great price from here, and I am currently studying music as a double major in Music Education and Clarinet Performance at my college. I find myself coming back consistently if I am in need of repairs/overhauls. Always looking forward to my next purchase from here--the staff is great, and the service is spectacular!

The service here is very friendly and knowledgeable. They are direct to the point and have high quality service for the instruments. 3rd year in a roll and we happy to come back to the store every time.

I was asked during my craft class at Dole Center, if would lend them some items I had made because they were doing a display in their window of local art. I lent 2 vases and necklaces. I got the necklaces back. I kept asking for the vases and never got a response. Finally, I called the shop itself. They couldn’t see them around and they would get back to me. I got an email saying they were ‘90 percent sure they were in a bag’ that was returned. Another person and I unpacked that bag together, and they were not there. I can’t believe that they would be so careless with another person’s property!! And not only careless, but they didn’t take responsibility to even respond to me until I called the shop. And I get a ‘story’ that they ‘are 90 percent sure’ they returned them. No! Where are they? This they decide to keep my property?? Did they break them? How could they lose them?? They are not to be trusted!!!

I just bought the guitar of a lifetime at AMC. I really didn't know exactly what I wanted. And I am well versed with acoustic guitars. Their outstanding inventory was overwhelming. Chris MCKEE. Was my guide through the musical jungle. His knowledge and patience was only outdone by his genuine care for customer satisfaction. He made me feel so comfortable that I was able to relax and try many things I normally would not have. Ultimately he helped me negotiate a high end Martin guitar that I have wanted for some time but did not think I would be able to put together a deal. Thanks again to Chris and Cooper for you guidance and making me feel like part of the Austin Music Center family. I will definitely be back. They have my business and everyone I can tell! Aloha guys!

Great shop, super nice owner, best service. Park right in front on North Avenue and get the music going.

Cool little shop. Has a little bit of all the essentials at a good price. Very friendly staff.

Fast, reliable, well-priced instrument repair. Good people. Highly recommended.

Great service, fast and reasonable!

Doug and his team at Austin Music Center have been great to me, I'm so happy I found this store. As a saxophone player and general music store aficionado I've been to my fair share of stores out there that claim to be 'music stores' and yet they don't stock the basic accessories that a musician would need. AMC has decent hours and whenever I find myself in Oak Park I swing by to stock up on reeds or the occasional accessory (tuners and stands etc). I'd rather see my money go towards a local business rather than the big box online retailers. Whenever I'm in the shop I make a point to check out their other accessories and they have a relatively good selection of saxophone and clarinet mouthpieces, brands of reeds, and what have you. While it seems they are a bit more directed towards beginners and students, if you were ever in a pinch there is a substantial enough selection to get you through a gig. They sell a variety of other accessories, microphones, cables, etc. I didn't get the impression that their instrument selection was of top-tier caliber, just taking a cursory glance over inventory. But considering the costs of maintaining said inventory as a dealer, you wouldn't really expect to find that outside of a dedicated specialist shop. They do have a good selection of affordable and playable, quality instruments, if you're not too particular about the brand name on them. To top it off, the taco shop across the street is actually pretty darn good, too!

This business is extremely helpful, prompt, reliable, and friendly. They repaired our trumpet to good as new. I thought their prices are very fair.

We came here to rent our son's instrument for school band. The owner couldn't be nicer - patient, honest, informative. He talked us through our options and answered all of our questions. There is an excellent selection of instruments, accessories, music books, etc.

Austin Music is one of those old-time shops -- a little dingy, with that strange musty smell. It serves a lot of the elementary school music students in the area, and their service is pretty good. When there were no oboes available, they weren't much help in finding one, but I was able to get her instruction book and reeds there with no problem.

Extremely helpful and efficient. Needed minor repairs for my son's trombone. They were able to replace the pad in less than ten minutes and were only going to charge me a few bucks. I went ahead and bought a few replacement reeds for my Alto Sax which I've played three or four times in the last thirty years. I really appreciated the fact that I didn't have to drive to Mount Prospect to Quinlan and Fabish where they would certainly have charged me significantly more. It doesn't seem like they do more extensive brass repairs, but they certainly treated me well. I always worry about places like this hanging on in bad economic times, but fortunately they seem o.k. If the other review is accurate and they have the Oak Park school market , they should continue on for years to come.

I went to Austin Music Center for years for my kids' instruments. Such a warm friendly place and the owner really knows so much. They were always ready to help in any way. And the repairs were quick, right and very fairly priced. Oh and check out the cool, ever-changing window! An Oak Park gem.

Our family has been very pleased with the service at Austin Music Center. We have rented and purchased instruments that were of the best quality. All of the necessary repairs have been completed efficiently. The staff has always been extremely helpful and friendly giving a personal touch to their customers.Highly recommended.

I called Austin Music Center on a Tuesday looking to rent a violin for my daughter's first round of lessons. I really didn't want to deal with a large rental company, and was hoping that I could find a local place, easy to deal with. Austin was wonderful! From the moment we walked in, we were greeted warmly, treated well, and were able to accomplish our goal in about 20 minutes. No attitude, just helpful service!