Encore Music

I have mixed feelings about Encore Music, so let’s break it down a little.
Pros:
— Chad (the owner) is a cool guy who really knows his stuff about guitars and loves to talk with his customers. He’s a bit like the mildly surly neighbour who becomes your best friend when you say something to him like, «Damn kids wreckin’ lawns, eh?» He’s happy to share his knowledge about guitars, and that’s helpful.
— He does guitar setups for the best price in the area…$ 10 – 20 less than other places.
— His shop has a pretty wide variety of guitars, and in varying degrees of (dis)repair and cleanliness. So if you want some obscure old Teisco from the 60s, this is the place to go.
Cons:
— I’ve never seen a more cluttered shop ever. Guitar cases and broken guitars all over the place. Seriously reminded me of my garage when I used to have a house. There’s a very narrow path that winds down to the far bass guitar wall and back, and if you stray from the path… well…you CAN’T stray from the path, because you’d be walking on more guitar cases.
— Piggybacking on the variety of guitars comment above, a lot of the guitars look like they were taken straight from under someone’s bed and put up on the wall. They’re dirty, the strings look like they’ll snap if you look at them funny, and they’re not really inviting to play. Not saying they have to set up the guitar and make it look brand new, but maybe if the strings are actually rusty, swap them out with a new pair (and yes I know strings cost money, so I don’t need a lecture on how that would be dipping into his inventory).
— It’s only open until 5pm during the week. So for those of us who have regular day jobs will have to either leave work early or go in on Saturday.
The bottom line is that this is a good guitar shop that could become great. I’ve bought and sold gear there, and Chad is very fair in his dealings. I’m glad it’s only a mile away from my apartment. But if Chad were able to hire someone to work evenings, and maybe they were able to clean up the shop a little more, I think the overall impression would be much stronger and better.

I have been doing window shopping and actual business with this place for years. I think since shortly after they opened. It is a real old-​school used guitar shop. If you want a real old or real used players grade guitar or amp, you will find it here. A top dollar vintage instrument is a maybe, but a vintage instrument that has something changed or altered, yes. To me that is cool as I find more high end shops dealing in refins and fakes so a genuine player/​beater is cool by me. Shiny and new with warranty is not happening here, but gig ready stuff is here. Also, funky projects abound, and if you are serious you can haggle a deal here and there. Not for fans of roomy, clean, comfortable. Plus with Twin Town moving away from older cheaper used players and pushing their Fender franchise, you can find more of that here. The chaotic nature of the place can be a something you aren’t in the mood for, but if you are cool with stepping around things, have fun here.

I was in the area recently and had to stop by based on a friend’s description. Here’s the lowdown: some cool gear, some of it priced competitively, and weird/​bad service.
Let me expand on that.
First, the place really does feel like a combination swap meet and bad used book store. The product is everywhere, some of it inaccesible because of guitars or amps stacked on top of other guitars and amps. I greeted the clerk (I think the owner?) on entering and told him I was stopping by to take a look after hearing about his shop.
He was nice enough initially, but after looking around I asked if I could check out a few cases. I read on Google that the owner was touchy, so I thought I knew what to expect, but was still surprised. It seemed like he was trying to be both helpful and a dick at the same time. Looking back, I think he probably just didn’t like the idea of moving his stacks to access stuff.
Would I go back? Maybe. They actually had some vintage gear that was well priced. But I can’t imagine that if I had a problem with something they sold me that they’d stand behind any of their goods. There are actually plenty of other guitar shops (including vintage) in town with good service to really tolerate bad service (especially when he doesn’t have an edge in terms of either product or price). So…

I was in here a couple years ago and I will never go back. Here is why:
I went into this place with a pretty straightforward question — do you have any spare 500k volume pots that I could buy? I need to replace one on my guitar.
The über-​hipster behind the counter then gave me the 10^th degree about my guitar, in what seemed like a very weird attempt to demonstrate that he knew more about guitars than me. It was very condescending.
After his convoluted inquisition, HE decided that yes, I do in fact need a 500k volume pot. (Thanks???)
He then told me he would sell me one, but I have to buy something else. I reluctantly did (I have no idea why…).
The whole experience was negative. His attitude, his customer service, and his forcing my hand to buy something if I wanted to get what I went in there for.
I refuse to go in to Encore, and I have actively recommended that others stay away. I don’t know the owner at all, but I suggest he drop the assholes behind the counter for somebody that won’t cost him (more) business.

Hmm, Travis you can find plenty for less than $ 1000. Less than $ 500 if you really look. Chad the owner is awesome. Only reason they don’t get five is that sometimes when Chad is not there, there has been some hipster wanna be with attitude behind the counter.
He behaves (not as well as the dog, who is great) when Chad is there, but still likes to side-​cop the pseudo attitude. I bet that most real hipsters make fun of him. They can probably play guitar better too and handle themselves with more grace after their second Zombie at the Red Dragon. But hey what do I know anyway?
I am not talking about the shorter guy with with all the tats who more often than not can be found smoking next door or maybe at the CC, or the a little bit larger guy with the pony-​tail. No. Both these guys are great.
Anyone who has bothered to read this far knows who I mean. Still Encore kicks ass and I would highly recommend it above any other place like it in the twin cities that I have been to.

Don’t get me wrong, going to guitar shops and playing around with great guitars that you can’t afford to buy is pretty fun, but after awhile it gets depressing. Encore music embodies that depression.
Every time I go in there is something new that amazes me. A ’65 Fender P Bass or a early 70’s Gibson guitar is not uncommon there but most of the time they are well into $ 3000. Now maybe by «collectors» value that’s accurate but come on, how many so called «collectors» in Uptown Minneapolis can afford that? Not many because those guitars hang on the wall for pretty long before they get sold. Probably to some rich guy from the suburbs.
There isn’t much middle ground either. All you’ll find is that high end stuff hanging there or some pretty low end stuff that they’ll sell to beginners and intermediate players. All that aside I will say that the repair jobs they do are very well done and affordable. All the staff there that I’ve met have been very friendly and helpful. It’s a great shop with lots of cool gear to go play around with and look at, unfortunately, unless your Donald-​freaking-​Trump, look is all you’ll ever be able to do there.