Services
Guitar repair, restoration and upgrades
- Pickups
- Fretwork
- Electronics
- Hardware
- Nuts
- Buzz Feiten Tuning System
- Proprietary Quick-Disconnect Strat Pickguards
Location & Hours
1455 West Hubbard StreetChicago, IL 60622
Tel: 312.226.9668
Email, Directions
Monday - Friday: 11am - 7pm
Saturday: 11am - 5pm
Join Our Email List
Stay up to date on what's happening at Schroeder. Join our no-spam, about once-a-month email list. Join
Reviews & Testimonials
Tim,
I picked up my '59 Bassman Ltd. RI, yesterday and found myself having to wait one full day before I was able to sample it's now spectacular Carmel core.
This former "Milk-Dud" of an amp has now been transformed by your shop, into a luscious confection of astounding subtlety and nuance. Needless to say, all the options you suggested were in fact the very thing this amp needed. You might be scratching your head at my chocolate simile, however, while playing every guitar within reach through this amp, I found a sweetness and complexity I did not believe possible from a mass produced box like this...
The original manufacturer's badge should be replaced with a new one that reads, "Schroeder Confections". As you promised, the tone and sonic range of this amp are positively inspirational. Those are the magic words any musician wants to say when picking up their instrument."Life, might be like a box of chocolates", but this amp as customized by Schroeder Guitar, is a consistent guarantee of sweet, satisfying sounds anytime you open it up.
Thanks, I cannot wait to hear the AC30 when it's finished.
Tom Cvikota
Pickups
Installation
One of the most common upgrades guitarists do is to change out their pickups. The right pickup selection can define a guitarists tone. Our shop carries some of the best pickups on the market. We are particularly fond of pickups made by Lindy Fralin, Jason Lollar, L.R. Baggs, and TV Jones. However we stock many other brands as well (please see our manufacturers list). All of the electronics that we sell are products that we believe in and have personal experience with. We would be happy to assist you in selecting a pickup that would be in keeping with your desired tone and playing style.
Acoustic Pickups, Preamps & Microphone Systems
We only stock products that we strongly believe in, products that we use in our own instruments. The only acoustic pickups that we stock are made by L.R. Baggs. We have several different models that we recommend depending on musical needs of each musician and will order anything we do not stock.
Fretwork
While roughly half of the fretwork that we do is to rectify problems that arise out of regular wear and tear, many of our clients bring their new guitar straight to us from the store to have it re-fretted. The fact is that the big companies and even many small high-end boutique brands just don’t want to spend the money and time required to do a top notch fret job (more often then not they simply don’t have the highly skilled technicians on staff to deliver such a job). When we re-fret an instrument we heat up the old frets with solder to carefully remove them. Then the fingerboard is planed straight and each fret slot is individually cleaned and resized to the proper width. We then install the new frets, bevel and taper the ends, level, crown and then polish them using a combination of labor intensive hand and machine work.
Our clients are always amazed with the results of new frets on their favorite instruments. New and level frets with proper crowns intonate better and are easier to play on. They solve buzzing issues, while allowing the player to adjust the action to the height that best suits their playing style. The tone of the instrument can also be affected by the size and nickel to silver ratio of the fret wire. Our shop has all of the sizes of wire that we offer mounted on a neck so that the player can feel the difference before committing to a size.
Electronics
Another common upgrade that many knowledgeable guitarists choose, (often when their guitar is right out of the box) is upgrading the electronics. The inside of the guitar is hidden. This is where many builders often cut corners to save a little money by using sub-standard electronics. Most people don’t know the difference right away. The builders get away with it because most guitarists don’t open up their guitars, or know what to look for if they did. But bad wiring, cheap parts and poor or non existent shielding can cause many problems ranging from noise and shorting out issues, to weak tone. Our upgrades range from installing premium quality tone capacitors to complete re-wiring and shielding. We use only the highest quality pots, wiring and switches.
Hardware
Many people are surprised at the tonal changes when upgrading bridges, saddles, etc. There are many ergonomical and protective upgrades available as well. Lightweight bridges and tuning machines can help to reduce the weight of your instrument. Strap locks, locking tuning machines, locking bridges can all add to the security of your instrument.
Nuts
Nut replacement can make a big difference in a guitars tone. Most manufactures use plastic which can suck tone from your instrument. Plastic can also expand and shrink which will lead to tuning problems. The majority of nuts that we make are made of bone. The material is dense and has a neutral tone. While we prefer bone, occasionally we will make a brass or graphite nuts for clients if that is what they prefer.
Buzz Feiten Tuning System
We are an authorized Buzz Feiten retro fitter. The proprietary shelf nut, in conjunction with patented pitch offset adjustment for the bridge, works to solve intonation problems on guitars that need it. Because intonation problems can come from a variety of sources, we can diagnose the instrument to see if the Buzz Feiten Tuning System can solve the intonation issues.
Proprietary Quick-Disconnect Strat Pickguards
Proprietary Quick-Disconnect Strat Pickguards: For those who are experimenting with different sounds, we offer a variety of Strat pickguards with different pickups and electronic configurations. There is a vast array of possibilities with phasing, high output/low output pickups, push/pull pots, switches, etc. All of these are on a quick-disconnect pickguard, so that you can swap it out yourself if you have more than one combination that works for you. The possibilities are truly endless. Tell us what you’re going for and we can help you reach it.
Tubes
The average life of a vacuum tube ranges from 6 months to a year and a half, depending on both the player and the amplifier. The lifespan of a tube can be affected by a number of conditions, but it all begins with the quality of the tube.
Other Factors That Contribute Largely to the Wear of Tubes:
- how frequently the tubes are in use
- the duration of time in which the tubes are in use
- the volume at which the amplifier is being played
- physical abuse from being thrown about, etc.
Benefits of New Tubes:
- to protect your amplifier
- optimal tone/custom tone from your amplifier
Biasing Tubes
It is necessary to have your amplifier biased each time you replace the power tubes for the security of the amplifier. However, there is also a wide spectrum of tonal characteristics that are in the “safe� range depending upon your taste. Biasing will also ensure your amplifier is running at its best.
Capacitors
Electrolytic capacitors generally have a life expectancy of about 10-15 years. After that, the important dielectric begins to dry up, and the capacitor loses its ability to hold a charge as it should.
Some of the benefits of replacing old capacitors with new ones are:
- clearer, richer, fuller tone
- better signal to noise ratio
- less noise/60 cycle hum
- better bass response
Circuit Modification
- Blackfacing
- Master Volume Installation
- Tone Stack/EQ Mods
- Replacement Transformers
