Our Promise to You
Who we are:
Audiofeen LLC is a brick and mortar store, located in Chicago's North Side Albany Park neighborhood, with the biggest in stock inventory in Chicago/Midwest USA.
We Know Gear is lead by Skender Makota - a Berklee College of Music (Boston, MA) graduate in Music Production and Engineering / Jazz Piano.
Skender is also an accomplished composer, performer, DJ, producer, engineer and multi instrumentalist (Piano, Bass, Guitar) in various styles and genres of music - from jazz/funk/soul to electronic music (House, tech house, techno, drum n bass and ambient etc.).
For more info, you can check out his work at www.skendermusic.com).
Mission:
Audiofeen was created with specific focus on offering the best customer experience in purchase, support and usage of NEW and USED Musical Instruments (both electronic and acoustic, such as guitars, drums, synthesizers etc.) and Music Production/Engineering gear (recording and studio equipment).
Our USED GEAR program offers musicians a place to sell their used gear at our showroom and our website, while offering the lowest service percentage of all similar programs!
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** UPDATE ** Due to Covid19 situation, all of the classes have been suspended until further notice.
You can give us a call, sign up for our newsletter or contact us via email (audiofeenchicago@gmail.com) to inquire about lessons program restart date.
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Education/Classes:
Additionally, we offer affordable and fun Music Education programs at our 25,000sq. feet showroom in Chicago - home of blues, also a birthplace of house music!
Our classes are taught by some of the best industry professionals around, all active in the city’s music scene, and some are world known touring artists/DJ’s.
We offer classes in:
- Music production (Ableton, Logic Pro, Pro Tools, Reason)
- DJ Performance (From beat matching ACTUAL vinyl on Technics turntables, to Pioneer setup you would expect at all pro venues (CDJ/DJM setup), to full software control of various platforms such as SERATO, Traktor DJ etc.
- Piano Instructions (private and ensemble/class)
- Guitar Instruction (private)
- Vocal Instruction (private)
- Drums and Percussion (private and ensemble/class)
- Music composition/songwriting (From hip hop, house, soul, blues, to rock, funk, rnb, ambient, chill out/trip hop etc.) DJ classes, as well as private instructions in guitar, piano, bass, drums and vocals.
Additional Services - ADVANCE you show!
We encourage every musician to get proficient on controlling the live sound elements, practice the venue setup prior to show, and be active in creating the visual aspect of their show (or at least know the basics of) - a full blown DMX-based lighting rigs, controlled by software, MIDI, controller or a combination of all three.
This final stage of your hard work is crucial, as this is what the audience can see and hear, thus, this is what you'll be judged upon.
Why study about Lights and Sound, I'm a a musician, not an engineer....
Though crucial, this element is often overlooked, and omitted from music education programs and instructions/workshops and clinics.
Bad sound system (or bad engineer behind a good sound system) can and will make your (otherwise great) music sound - bad.
Same for the visuals - if visuals don't follow the sound in unity, the show will simply be - incomplete.
Don't ever settle when it comes to your art, your music, your heart!
All it takes is 2-3 hours of instruction, to be able to understand the terms and possibilities, which you can then communicate to FOH engineers, or lighting engineers at your show.
Coincidentally, all of the technical staff at pro venues will at least try to do a better job of making you sound better, if you show them that you know the basics and have specific preferences.
They like the challenge, and you want to look/sound your best, everywhere you play.
To round off the knowledge acquired in performance, we offer class-based and personal instructions and classes in:
- Sound reinforcement/Live PA setup, running anything from small/portable PA systems to large, concert size JBL line array systems, including proper speaker/amp selection (for the kind of sound you're going after), speaker placement etc.
- Live Sound mixing and processing - hands-on instruction on analog and digital mixers and sound processors - which are all permanently installed at our facility here in Chicago.
- Pro Lighting - from small, sound/auto activated setups, to sophisticated DMX/MIDI/console controlled setups with multiple shows, scenes etc. In addition, the newest MIDI-based lighting control is a God send for bands and DJs/live act performers, who can now learn to simply add lights as if it were just another track on the mixer! The savings on not having to pay the light show operator could ultimately increase your show profits as a result!
Setting up a basic lighting rig, including proper DMX addressing, software control etc, is crucial and essential for today's professional musician, as their show success is largely dependent on the visual aspect, and proper live mix - not just ability in songwriting and performance.
Today's advances in merging lights and sound (such as MIDI based control of LED lights, through Ableton Live for ex.), have finally paved the way for musicians to get full control of their visuals and have a lot of fun doing it too!
Ultimately, knowing the basics of sound reinforcement/PA systems, and basics of lighting equipment, allows you to run your own professional sound system the way YOU want it to sound, and your own professional level light show without the additional expenses of a sound/lighting engineer!
Events, Workshops, Clinics
We also host workshops, gear oriented events and clinics (often accompanied by the manufacturer reps), and production/music composition classes on a regular basis.
Our students are encouraged to perform at our weekly student showcase events, hosted in our large showroom auditorium, with large PA systems, lighting rigs, video walls and full blown DJ, stage setup.
AUDIOFEEN MEMBERSHIP (Customer & Student)
We also offer the biggest discounts to our members/students!
Our members are automatically extended 10% DISCOUNT on all of the products we sell!
The more you work with us, the bigger the discount over time!
OUR GOAL
Our goal is to not just sell the gear, but to lead you through the process of using the gear, encourage the creativity and help you ultimately produce your own music, which you can be proud of!
OUR PROMISE
While we strongly believe that anyone can (and should) make or play music (your voice is an instrument as well), we will not try to sell you illusions or push you to purchase some piece of gear, while assuring you that your purchase WILL make you an instant rock star.
Nor will an expensive microphone make you sound better, for ex.
It will most likely make you sound worse (since nice mics would expose inaccuracies), thus, increase your insecurity and decrease desire to do music at all.
It is a downward spiral, encouraged by dishonest music educators, and instrument dealers, whose goal is profiting on someone's dreams - even if it means misguiding them and crushing their self-esteem.
This is where WE want to help, and this is what makes WE KNOW GEAR a different place, a real Musicians friend.
HOW do we deliver on our promise?
That being said, the best way to start is telling you the truth which ALL musicians already know - Only YOU can ultimately better yourself, improve your skills and there is only one way to do this - Love what you do - unconditionally, and do it often, do it now.
There are no shortcuts here. Anyone promising to "make" you a better musician is lying, unless YOU yourself are willing to make this effort.
Either cancel your beer drinking, game watching nights with friends, and turn that energy into bettering yourself (read: practice), or come clear with the fact that even with all the talent and ear, mediocrity will always shadow you around...
OUR ADVICE
Music is not a money making career. Music business IS a big money industry, but being a musician is a risky bet on making a living.
BUT, if you love and feel your music, and PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE, then yes - money will follow, because people will follow. Audience loves people who are true about their feelings, especially in music performance settings.
Most importantly - HAPPINESS will follow. Peace of mind will follow.
A unique feeling of accomplishment will follow.
And yes - envy will follow, from those who failed to get real and get into it, cause they wasted their time doing something else, while you worked hard on your craft and your skills.
Enjoying this status of being an accomplished artist, this is something money can not buy, because you either have it or you don't.
If you're reading this, then you probably think you do have it... and if you do, then we are here to help you, guide you through the process and set you on the right path with the right tools by your side!
The best of the best never though of money or materialistic benefits when they spent 4, 6, 10 hours/day immersed in music... Be it playing an instrument, transcribing a solo, producing your new songs using the software, or combination of all of the above.
But remember that practice makes perfect.
Nobody else can practice for you. Nobody else can pour the knowledge in your brain, regardless of how much gear you get, how many social networks you're the star on, how many classes you take with us, or anywhere else.
If Matrix was music,
we are Morpheus showing you the door,
and you are Neo, opening it.
The red pill made us musicians, producers, DJ's, engineers, and it was taken by all of us - including you, long time ago :)!