An overwhelming majority of our vault-level pieces, the best of the best of all types, shapes, sizes, and price points of instruments, have never made it to our website. When a great instrument comes in regardless of price word gets around fast!

However, it is a shame to keep the stories of the most rare and unique instruments all to ourselves, and we now have a space to share them with you. After years of having our vaults upstairs and separate from the store, it was time to bring the experience down and set it up in a way that people from all around the world can come to Chicago and enjoy. So we are opening The Vault at Chicago Music Exchange to give you the best of the best in person every day of the week! 

To stay up on the latest arrivals in The Vault, you need to CLICK HERE to get registered with one of our Vault Specialized sales team members today! We will start scheduling in-store appointments in September, and in a matter of days, the emails will start going out about the latest arrivals. And, if you too have an incredible instrument or collection of instruments that you would like to sell or consign and get in front of our international audience of buyers and collectors, then please include photos and details in your email! Can’t wait to meet you in The Vault!!

Gibson ES-355 1958 Cherry 

Yes, you read that year, make, and model right—and, no, it’s not a typo. One of just three prototype ES-355 models known to exist in 1958, this guitar and it's history helped shape the model forever.

 1959 Les Paul Standard

Commonly referred to as "the holy grail," the Les Paul Standard hit its prime in 1959, just one year after its release in 1958. The subtle changes introduced piecemeal in the 1950s seemed to coalesce into a singular tone, feel, and look that made the model irresistible to rock and roll icons like Eric Clapton, Mike Bloomfield, Keith Richards, Mick Taylor, Peter Green, Duane Allman, and more. One look at the 1959 Les Paul Standard and you'll see why.

 1960 Les Paul Standard

1960 brought about more subtle changes to the Les Paul Standard. Gibson made the neck thinner, the frets wider and taller, and switched to a new fade-resistant finish formula. This new formula would retain its color longer, but was also more opaque and more orange than past finishes, changing the Standard's legendary color profile, but just for a time. Gibson would discontinue the single-cut Les Paul later that year, making these models highly desirable. The 1960 Les Paul Standard is a beautiful example of this model's dark edges and historic color gradient. 

1960 Les Paul Standard "Scarface"

Every so often, something comes along that stops us all in our tracks and leaves us speechless. That's exactly what happened when we first opened up the brown Stone case and laid our eyes on the absolutely stunning top on this incredible Burst that we're ironically calling "scarface". It earned that nickname because a previous owner (who undoubtedly was a Jimmy Page fan) decided to add an onboard fuzz circuit to the underside of the pickguard which was bulky enough that it required the removal of a small portion of the top in order for it to fit. Fortunately, in July of 1988, a very skilled luthier did a tremendous job of reverting the beauty back as close to its original cosmetic condition as possible by placing a piece of maple which matched the surrounding grain very well into where it was once removed. This repair is completely invisible under the pickguard. No photograph really does justice to the figured top of this guitar, although it does look great in the popular book "Beauty of the 'Burst".

Equally as impressive as this guitar's gorgeous looks are its effortless playability, the impressive resonance of the aged woods, and the astounding sound of the PAF pickups through a good tube amp. It's no wonder why this guitar has become the "standard" that so many builders have based their solid body models on. It's also no surprise that this year and model instrument was used by seminal artists on timeless recordings such as "Blues Breakers" with Eric Clapton.

VINTAGE VIBES: The Bursts

The Burst evolved out of Gibson's very first solid-body guitar, the 1952 Les Paul. Issued initially as a Gold Top, the Les Paul got a new look in 1958, when Gibson introduced a new model with a sunburst finish: the Les Paul Standard. Coloring the solid Honduran mahogany bodies with aniline dye, Gibson's Les Paul Standards featured a deep red hue that, with time, would react to ultraviolet light and other environmental conditions to bleed, fade, and otherwise change. Our '59 Burst, '60 Burst, and '60 "Scarface" Burst are excellent examples of this landmark guitar and beautifully illustrate how each early Burst is different from any other, both visually and sonically.

While the Les Paul was changing with almost every year after its initial release, the debut of the Les Paul Standard in 1958 is perhaps the most significant and substantial change to the legendary model, made more so by the 1957 introduction of the humbucker. 

Gibson Les Paul 1959 "Burst"

Behold—the real deal: a 1959 Gibson Les Paul Standard "Burst"! “This 1959 Gibson Les Paul Standard #9 0830 has been known to us for almost 20 years,” said Chicago Music Exchange CEO Andrew Yonke, “And it has been used on dozens of famous recordings under the stewardship of its previous three owners.”

Gibson LES PAUL "SG" EBONY BLOCKS

"In my first ten years of ownership of Chicago Music Exchange we had never even seen an Ebony Block in store. Then in a matter of one week we were blessed with two incredible examples. Both sold privately in a matter of hours but thankfully we took the time to enjoy them! Both sold to friends of the store and hopefully you will see them on stages and hear them on records soon enough." - CEO Andrew Yonke

Pre CBS Fender Jaguars in Rare custom colors 

These ultra-rare Pre CBS vintage Jags in Burgundy Mist, Sonic Blue, and Fiesta Red custom colors boast their original finish with matching headcaps, owned by Josh Klinghoffer (Pearl Jam, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Janes Addiction, etc.).

1961 Gibson Les Paul (SG) Cherry

One of the earliest examples of Gibson's new double-cut body shape, this 1961 Gibson Les Paul dates back to the style's first production year and features the short-lived sideways Vibrola tailpiece and a beautifully preserved Cherry finish with which the SG would soon become synonymous.

1960 GIBSON NATURAL ES-335 w/ factory-ordered split parallelogram fretboard & bigsby

Here it is, the most viewed guitar in our entire online inventory: the 1960 Natural Gibson ES-335. Special-ordered from the factory with a natural finish, split parallelogram inlays, and a Bigsby, this semi-hollow body beauty was once a part of the Chinery collection and is all original down to the wiring harness and PAF humbucking pickups. 

1962 Gibson Les Paul Custom Polaris White

In the early 1960s, the Les Paul gave birth to the SG and, along the way, created the Gibson Les Paul Custom. Made famous by guitar goddess Sister Rosetta Tharpe, this particular triple-pickup Polaris White model features a trio of golden PAF humbuckers and a sideways Vibrola tailpiece. 

1959 Fender TWEED TWIN

Loud, proud, and supremely collectible, this 1959 Tweed Twin is one of the most sought-after combos on the vintage market, and it looks and sounds just like gold, packing a whopping 85 watts of true tube tone with incredible clarity. 

1959 GIBSON natural es-355 factory black

In 1959, Gibson produced just 123 ES-355s. An estimated three were finished in Factory Black, making this one of the rarest guitars the manufacturer ever built.

1960 GIBSON ES-335 CHERRY DOT NECK

Our 1960 Gibson ES-335 Cherry Dot Neck is well-worn, and for a good reason. Blessed with one of the finest sets of PAF humbucking pickups we’ve ever heard, someone couldn’t stop playing it, and we don’t blame them.

1962 GIBSON ES-175

There are closet cases, and then there’s this 1962 ES-175. The cleanest PAF-equipped ES-175 we’ve ever had, this 1962 model is spotless from headstock to tailblock.

1935 GIBSON ROY SMECK STAGE DELUXE HAWAIIAN SUNBURST

You’ve never seen a Roy Smeck like this. The neck on this beautiful 1935 Gibson has been converted from Hawaiian to Spanish, taking it off the lap to let its extraordinary feel and old-growth tonewoods shine.

1970 Fender Rosewood Telecaster  

The Rosewood Telecaster was designed by Roger Ross Maisel, who started his career with Rickenbacker and moved to Fender in the mid-'60s. The Beatles began their career playing Rickenbackers, so when Fender gave the prototype to George Harrison, they gave him a guitar that was designed by the very same man. A fitting end as George decided to play it in their last public performance on the Apple Corps rooftop in 1969.

1958 Fender BLONDE STRATOCASTER

The neck is from 1957 and because it is from '57 it does have that very subtle and coveted V-neck profile. The body is from '58. Pots from '57. The serial number is from '57/'58 also. Around that time there were Mary Kaye spec Stratocasters as well with the gold hardware as you can see, we got the nickel hardware. If this was a Mary Kaye spec with the gold hardware it would be twice the price. The frets have been rewired with era correct fret wire. The neck has been over-sprayed quite a long time ago and feels very comfortable to play. It also does come with a tweed hard case, the original.

1968 Fender PINK PAISLEY TELECASTER

Manufactured only in 1968 and 1969, the Paisley Telecasters are named for their distinctive finish, which is actually a piece of wallpaper Fender affixed to the body and then covered with a clear coat. This particular Paisley Telecaster has a one-piece maple neck and maple cap, a rare feature only available for a few years with 1968 being one.

1965 Fender LAKE PLACID BLUE BASS VI

The Bass VI was released in 1961, right around the same time the Jag came out. It was really designed to compete with Danelectros UB-4 at the time. The original production line ran up to 1975, which is a really long period of time considering how strange this thing really truly is. The Fender Bass VI is not a baritone, it is actually tuned like an electric guitar in perfect fifths from E to E, but down an entire octave like a bass would be. But it's also not a six-string bass with a huge neck. It's a 30-inch scale with 21 frets. Like a Jag, you have independent switches for each pickup here and also a high pass filter, the strangle switch so you can get a wide variety of tones. Also, the pickups, although they look like Strat pickups in the way that Jaguar pickups look like Strat pickups are actually quite a bit different because of the comb here on the sides.