Even people that aren't into guitars agree that its a truly beautiful place. I've been to Chicago Music Exchange (CME) a bunch of times, and every time it impresses me. Just communicate what you are looking for clearly and the salespeople will take care of you.
It’s more about you and your “all in” commitment to make it happen. But any of the many guitar stores mentioned in this subreddit can provide the same experience. I only bargained a little because I already had $3-4K in travel expenses into the purchase at $7k. I ended up surprising myself in selecting a preowned guitar that was then modified with a specific pickup and shipped to me (with an amp) to California. When I finally narrowed them down to 4, we went into a separate space to amp them up. The sales guy setup 6 stands in-front of me and kept bring guitars as I went through a process of elimination. I spent 4+ hours in the glass enclosed guitar space playing various instruments. A friend recommended CME for their vast selection of new and pre-owned guitars. Three weeks ago my wife and I traveled from my home in Berkeley, CA to the Chicago Music Exchange in search of a new acoustical guitar.
