Alright, I just can't get into the "gym rat" thing. At all. I have tried. SO hard. I don't know…read morewhy, but I just don't like it. Ok, whatever I KNOW why, but I mean something besides the fact that I'd rather stuff myself with carbs and champagne than do squats and cardio. Then I figured it out: I don't like all the "gym people" milling about. For as long as I've been working out in gyms, I just don't like the strange social chaos that bursts forth from workout facilities. It annoys me. So, HiFi, where everyone works out with a trainer. I basically see this as a way to corral the gym chaos, as each person is being monitored, guided and disciplined. There is no "chit chat" at the water fountain when your trainer is demanding you do more crunches. There is no screaming and grunting in the mirror from ape-like men when a trainer is watching. I mean, there's a bit of all of that, but the level is so much lower here...and, I like it. Otherwise, I'd stop going...like at my other gym :) Anyways...besides that long diatribe (blame the endorphins), here's the skinny (pun intended).... Parking. Free. Not validated free, just free. So, unlike many other fitness jungles that offer "free" parking, but require you to take a ticket, carry ticket in with you, get ticket validated, have problems in the garage, etc...this is just free. Pull up, park on the 3rd floor if you can, and you are just steps away from hifi. Nice! Space: Open without feeling bare. Enough machines to get your heart pumping, and plenty of equipment to keep all those trainers busy, busy, busy with all their peeps in motion. Huge, bright windows with a fairly cool view of the river, a choo choo train, and Goose Island. (the actual Goose Island, not the brewery). It's clean, too. Very clean. Location: Right in the thick of things, just west of North/Sheffield. There's a Whole Foods close by, so like when you are done feeling all strong you can go grab healthy (albeit overpriced) lunch. Close to the expressway (west on North Ave), and easily accessible by the 64 bus, or walkable from the Clybourn red line stop (or Sedgwick brown line, but that's a bit of a hike), then again...it's a gym, and maybe we all need a few more steps to log into the pedometer, eh? ;) The trainers: Well, of course I've been hanging out with one of Yelp's finest personal trainers at hifi: Rob Lekan (Rob L on Yelp). He's a gem, obviously...but all the other trainers I've witnessed have also been friendly, considerate and genuinely dedicated to whipping their clients into shape, in the nicest way possible! ;) Other perks: massage room, clean locker rooms/showers, water cooler.

Wow- this place is impressive! I can't believe I've never heard of it until now...but thanks to…read moretrainer Rob Lekan (more about him soon...he deserves his own review) I've now experienced Hi-Fi Personal Fitness for myself. I've been a member of Equinox for the past 5 years and while the gym and classes are amazing their trainers absolutely suck (sorry Equinox- i love everything else about you). I've found a few trainers outside of the gym that I would love to train with, but where to train has always been the problem...since you can't bring someone into Equinox who isn't a member. But Hi-Fi Personal Fitness is the solution to anyone with this problem! It appears that anyone can train anyone at Hi-Fi Personal Fitness...I'm sure the trainers pay Hi-Fi a small fee, but so worth it for a location to train people! And they have every piece of equipment imaginable...and even a little spa area where you can get a massage after trainers such as Rob kick your ass. It was kind of crowded here for a Wednesday night at 6 pm, but there's so much equipment to use that we never had to wait for a machine. Not near where you live? No worries there cause parking is free!! So if you're looking for a place to train head on over to Hi-Fi Personal Fitness. And if you don't have a trainer I'm sure Hi-Fi has plenty of suggestions for you. And I have a suggestion as well- Rob Lekan!

While I should have posted a review when I purchased a pair of speakers here, or when I purchased a…read moresubwoofer - better late than never. AND, it reflects so incredibly well on the business that this review is not the result of a direct sale, but instead the result of blue ribbon customer service and outright kindness. I recently acquired an integrated amplifier which was not cheap, and on which my subwoofer was not producing volume like it had with my much cheaper amplifier. I spoke with Joe at Saturday Audio, who has helped me in the past. Not only did Joe provide some options for me to test, he offered to come around to my place in person to try to help me out. And come around he did - he wouldn't accept any payment was so terribly helpful. WOW!!! We couldn't quite figure out what was going on, and he offered to interface with the manufacturer's US distributor. I received an email a few days later, and even paid a visit to the store. I'll be heading back soon with a bottle of something nice in hand. It doesn't happen often these days, but service and attention to detail (along with plain ol' generosity of spirit) are not entirely gone in this world. MANY THANKS, JOE!! And we ultimately got the subwoofer working to specs again. Go to Saturday Audio for all your audiophile needs!

These guys are fantastic in their service as well as their prices and selection. I came looking to…read moreget a turntable and hi-fi system as a graduation gift for myself, and the staff were all incredibly friendly and helpful in walking me through everything the system would need. The store has a fantastic selection of turntables, speakers, records, and receivers at a variety of prices friendly to newcomers and high-end audiophiles alike. My friend and I (who studied audio in college and work on audio hardware) were extremely impressed, particularly with the very reasonable prices on some excellent turntables they had. Joe and Tony showed us some awesome vintage pieces that the shop had rebuilt, and it was fun to geek out - it truly shows they are passionate about what they do. They were very welcoming to me as a newcomer to the hi-fi space and also did a great job of being mindful of my budget (which isn't easy given how much cool stuff they have in there). Andy walked me through the store and gave me gear recommendations from the start, and Evan helped me with invoicing, cables, etc. Many other staff members whose names I did not get were also helpful in getting everything ready for me. On top of all that, their service quite literally goes the extra mile. They even let me stay past their closing time, and Joe very kindly offered to drive me home with my new gear himself, which was a great help since I came via bus and would've had to Uber or something otherwise. The entire staff helped load everything in, and Joe was a pleasure to chat with on the drive home and he even helped me carry my things to the lobby. I remain impressed with how helpful and good-humored Saturday Audio's staff were, and I'm super glad I chose to shop local here in Chicago. My new setup sounds awesome and didn't even hurt my wallet as much as I expected, haha. If you need anything turntable or hi-fi related, absolutely go here - can't recommend them enough!

This place has some deep cuts and the folks behind the counter can tell you about them. Great…read moreneighborhood record store run by people who really care about music and are glad to talk about it. Definitely check this place out and grab something "new" for your collection. Even the dollar bin has some good finds.

Lots to dig through here. Like a lot. Records packed tighter than skinny jeans up in hereread more

Ken Christianson is an audio savant. He helped me to cut through the crap and get the best I could…read moreget within my budget. I enjoy music so much and with Ken's help my Naim/Quad system has truly made my life better. He even came to my house to set it up!

Brought in my Victrola suitcase record player to have my needle fixed and was met with the most…read morecondescending 'we don't do that here' response. They said "this isn't what I would use to play records". I didn't ask you. They referred me to another audio shop where I will hopefully be met with more respect. Sorry it's not a thousand dollar sound system. Even if it was, I wouldn't go to you.

My experience with Holm Audio was very good. The installation with JJ and Ronnie is exceptional…read more They are professional, informative with recommendations and very good at what they do. They leave with the premises cleaner than when they arrive... would highly recommend!

I went in on a special event night with some manufacturer reps that were there to demo and answer…read morequestions. Had a great time, I was interested in subs at the time and was impressed by the JL audio demo. After the demo, I met Mike, Holm Audio owner. Seemed like a cool guy. He loaned me a couple of E110 subs to demo at home. He reached out via text to see how I was doing and negotiate a possible purchase. When I told him I was interested in demoing the E112's he told me they only one, he tried to sell me the 10 and 12 inch sub at a discount. I wasn't interested, as the size difference would bug me too much. So he asked me if was interested in anything else. I told him I was also interested in a direct to consumer subwoofer brand from Norway. Well I guess that upset him because he told me to return the subs right away, and that I would not be in his "VIP club". Needless to say, I returned the subs and did not make a purchase. This sucks because I really wanted to support a cool local Hifi shop like Mike's. But if he can't accept the fact that people are cross shopping consumer direct brands, he has a rude awakening coming. One star is for the staff, they have been nothing but amazing. In the end, I found a deal online for a pair of E112's that was better than what Mike could offer.

Great service, friendly, affordable! Just a great experience meeting Casper and Blake and having my…read moreturntable repaired. Highly recommended.

This place is an interesting vibe. I accompanied my brother here on a mission to fix his speakers…read more It's pretty dark inside - perhaps due to all the equipment? - and the walls are full of stereo and TV equipment. Music was playing and random dudes were seated on a couch and some chairs hanging out. Once we arrived, we were approached by a tech, I believe, who listened to what repair my brother was looking for. The tech said he was unable to help but provided my brother with contact info for someone who may be able to assist - which was pretty cool.

Roman did a fantastic job fixing my receiver and improving some of the bad soldering. And we had a…read morevery nice conversation!

It's been over two years since I brought a pair of VTL MB-1250 amplifiers to Roman's shop. One amp…read morewas working, the other wouldn't turn on. He assured me that he could fix the broken one. He would use the working amp for a comparison. After six months passed, I started asking for my amplifiers to be returned. It took more than a year of asking and multiple trips to his shop, only to have him agree to return just the broken amp. He will not return the working amp I brought for comparison. I've lost a rare and costly amplifier, along with all the time I've spent trying to have it returned.

I was seeking to update my 2-channel system for my enjoyment in retirement. My vintage system,…read morepurchased in large part from Simply Stereo at their old location, was working fine but I was looking for something better. After answering question after question and really listening to my responses, Dave set me up with an incredible system. He matched a McIntosh integrated amp with a pair of Dali Epicon speakers and a REL subwoofer. He came out to the house, set-up the entire thing and even corrected errors on my video system. The results were incredible. I could not be happier with the component choices and the musicality of the system. It has a great sound stage. Daves interest, attention and willingness to take the time to explain things are second to none. This is the only place to go when shopping for high-end audio equipment.

Stellar experience at Simply Stereo!…read more We were in the market for a new media console, and Salamander caught my husband's eye. He noticed that Simply Stereo was listed on Salamander's website as a premier dealer. He sent an email inquiring about coming in to see some items in person, and we headed there on Saturday afternoon. We were greeted right away by Dave, who was helping a customer carry something out to their car. When he came back in, he listened to what we were there for and showed us upstairs to one of the listening rooms. He patiently answered approximately five million questions from my husband and, as luck would have it, what they had on display almost exactly matched what we were looking for. They were able to to get fiddly with the details of what looking at side panel options and determining how the tv mount connects. It was a no brainer to make our purchase from Simply Stereo. The price was excellent and the customer service was top notch. From the email through purchase, it was a great experience and we'll definitely be back in the future - I think a few speakers caught my husband's eye while we were wandering the store.

The store is very clean and has a helpful and friendly staff. This was my first visit and multiple…read moreemployees checked on me and offered assistance. I was there for less than an hour and spent over $100 on mainly used vinyl soul and disco. I informed them that I was from Charlotte and they offered to box and mail my selections to me. I took them up on the free boxing and decided to mail on my own. The prices ranged from $1-$12 for used vinyl cuts for me. Very fair and prices per record were specific and I felt appropriate. I will definitely come back on my next visit. The store is clean, vibrant and organized.

Honestly, I loved my experience here! I managed to find a couple of nice vinyls to get and was…read moresurprised by the overall selection they offered. It was clean and well-organized on the main floor. The downstairs is a tad neglected compared to the main floor. I didn't find anything downstairs to get. I was a bit shocked at the price of some of the brand new vinyls, but the prices for the older ones were comparable to other stores. I prefer shopping local, and was really happy to have stumbled upon here! Would definitely come back again! No bad experiences with the staff during my visit. They were actually more on the helpful and friendly side. Seems like they took past customer reviews/experiences seriously and improved.

I was in the area and wanted to spend sum money on vinyl records. Whoops! I had to pump my…read morebrakes. They sold off their inventory. I missed the sale the had...a box of albums for $10 then gave the rest out for free. I did find a rare pressing of Dee Lite's classic World Clique for $45. The guy that runs it always cool, informative. Tho I will miss the prior setup I will drop by from time to time. Good luck guys on your new direction.

I have purchased stereo equipment and cd/ LP formats. I have also returned equipment shortly after…read morearrival when it did nit fit as expected. Grat service and professional help. No qualms about dealing with them in the future,