Matt brought my guitar and ukelele from "Rustic Grime" to Masterpiece!…read more I brought my 20-year-old Walden Natura D550 and a vintage 1953 ukulele to Matt, and the results are honestly shocking. The '53 uke was in rough shape--old, rustic, and covered in decades of grime. Matt transformed it completely. He finely detailed the body until it was shining like a mantle piece, fixed the tuners, and recommended Nylgut strings that make it sound incredible. It went from a dusty relic to a daily player that I can't put down. For my Walden guitar, Matt performed "wild work." The action was high and the strings were dead, but he used a "cold clamp" technique on the neck and hand-carved a perfect unbleached bone saddle. He even recommended a spectacular cocobolo bridge to match the guitar's aesthetic and tone. Both instruments came back sounding "shockingly fantastic." If you have an instrument that has lost its "soul" or just needs expert engineering to sing again, Matt is the man to see. A true master of his craft and a total professional.

MW Guitar Repair My…read moreGuitar for Repair (Ibanez GB30 2023) Matthew performed a thorough inspection of the Ibanez and explained in detail the work he would be performing. During our conversation I noted that his passion for Guitars was clearly evident. I felt confident that he would bring more musical life to this instrument. Matthew checked fret wear, the string action (and spacing) , the guitar neck, tonality, guitar bridge and stability, string groove, action, tuners, fret buzz, saddle height, intonation, pick up height, stable tuning and much more, He is meticulous and precise. My instrument now has new Life, Vibrancy and now runs on all Musical Cylinders! It is a pleasure to know Matthew and the positive aura that is felt when you are at MW Guitar Repair. You will walk in with a smile and leave with a bigger smile. Thank You friend. I truly appreciate the intense work you perform. Additonally your work is of Heart and Soul, sincerely.. Respectfully Tom E

Neil did an outstanding job setting up my guitar and installing a new nut. The action is…read moreperfect--plays effortlessly with zero fret buzz. He's a genuinely great guy, and even though his shop is clearly busy, he turned the work around in just two days while every other shop quoted two to three weeks. From now on, any guitar work I need is going straight to Neil, and I'll be recommending him to all my friends. Thanks again, Neil!

I would recommend highly. Very knowledgeable and patient. He explained thoroughly any questions I…read morehad. I needed an acoustic guitar set up and he was able to finish it by the very next day. The price is comparable to other prices in Brooklyn for set ups and cheaper than most in Manhattan.

Brought my Jackson American Virtuoso in for a setup and fret level. Easy communication, fair…read moreprices, decent turnaround time, and just an overall nice guy. Guitar is buttery smooth, did a great job. Also offered a free tune up under warranty if anything shifts which is very generous of him given that this NYC winter nearly guarantees a shift in the setup. Don't think I'll need to ever look elsewhere as long as he's around.

I have found my "go-to" luthier in NYC and could not be happier with Farhad's professionalism and…read moreattention to his clients! I brought in my precious Martin HD-28 acoustic for a repair and a setup after reading great testimonials, and he took the time to walk me through not only the process of the repair, but also gave me a necessary lesson on humidifiers for the room and guitar case in these dry New York winters which can cause the wood to shrink and eventually crack on delicate instruments. As a recent transplant from Los Angeles, I had never had to worry about these temperature and humidity issues, but now I'm an "evangelist" about this and I've been sharing this advice to all of my musician friends and bandmates, thanks to Farhad's great advice! He also stands by his warranty on his setups, and just performed an expert tune-up on my Martin after the initial set up for no charge, while I brought the guitar to the shop (by appointment). He is also a very friendly guy, and makes his own bespoke line of electric guitars and pedals, and I've spoken to one of his employees? apprentices? partners? also working on the repair bench at Southside Guitars in Williamsburg, which to me exemplifies a real community of professional craftsmen and musicians who are passionate about guitars. I know where I'll be taking my guitars from now on. I've spent a lot of time finding "my" guitar techs/luthiers in LA over the years, and I'm so happy to have found Farhad here in Williamsburg. I will recommend him to everyone I know in New York.

Darrell gives the rockstar setups. The kind of setups where The action is as low as possible…read morewithout it bottoming out on any frets or anything.. just ringing out like a bell..my Les Paul is sustaining loudly and clearly like an acoustic.. even the acoustic volume increased. Just sustaining power chords is such a pleasure.. my fingerboard looks like polished furniture, and the hardware is clean and shines like when it was new. It looks like he took the bridge apart and cleaned and polished every component, every saddle by hand.. I've had a lot of setups around NYC by some of the best. I've been mildly satisfied before coming to Gilbert Guitar Repair.. now? I look forward to my setups like it's Christmas morning..every guitar comes back transformed so well that they play themselves. Bring your best stuff to him, he works out of his home. It's very secure and the attention to detail is as good as I've seen.

Darrell is super personable, professional, and friendly. Hands down the best person I could've gone…read moreto as a newbie after wrecking my Jackson, Darrell said the job was child's play and it shows in his work and craftsmanship. Not only did he fix my dismantled guitar, he also fixed the intonation for a very reasonable price. You do have to book an appointment, and wait some time for the work to be done, but it is just one guy out of his apartment who's been playing and repairing for years. Highly recommend to anyone looking for repairs, local or far, Gilbert Guitar Repairs is the place to go.

Since changing ownership, the care and customer service from the new owner has declined since CJ…read moreowned the shop. Several other musicians I know have had the same experience. For example, I brought in a Telecaster for a setup. The owner takes my guitar, spews out upcharges for work he says is needed (nope, did not need work), tags the guitar, hands me a ticket and only then tells me that the shop is backlogged and it will take 6-8 weeks for the set up. HUH? Other musician buddies shared the same experience. So, always ask how long will it take to get your instrument back..Better yet, go somewhere else!

Super helpful, very knowledgeable, and a great selection. They definitely rehabilitate guitars…read more Lessons are available on premises and it was really an unexpected find. Definitely a business worth taking a look at.

I brought two instruments to Patrick at the beginning of January. He told me the ETA on the work…read morewould be about three weeks, which was fine with me. Six weeks later, I had heard nothing from him. I called him, I emailed him, and I texted him. No response of any kind. Over the next six months, I've tried periodically to get back in touch with him, but I've received no response. At this point I'm concerned that I'll never get my instruments back again--which represents thousands of dollars of loss. I cannot recommend bringing your instrument to Patrick, as there's no guarantee you'll ever see it again.

Patrick is great. I stopped by to have a damaged guitar accessed. He was super thorough and…read morehelpful. The damages exceeded the cost of an actual replacement. I sincerely appreciate his honesty and time. I wish I could give him business just because he was so wonderful. It's clear that he is both skilled and talented. If you're looking for help don't hesitate to call him. He's super responsive and couldn't have been nicer. Thanks again Patrick!

Chris was awesome, fixed my 3 position switch and also fixed my 1/4 inch jack input. also put on a…read morenew set of strings for me and tuned it

I ordered a new bass guitar from Sweetwater and I brought it in and the luthier / owner was nice…read moreand I just wanted new strings and a setup. I picked it up a few days later paid him and everything was fine until I went to adjust the trussrod and the rod head was broken and over tightened. I call the moron up and he denies everything and he said it came that way, I said why didn't you tell me? You took my money?! Come to find out he has done it a few times to musicians I know. Stay away from this lying, weirdo. Go to Russo's in AP. This guy sux and is a weirdo!!!!

I recently took my favorite guitar, a Gibson SG, here for a setup. My band had an important show…read morecoming up, and my guitar was feeling out of whack. They set the guitar up for me just as I requested, and got it back to me the next day. It felt great. Just two days before the show, there was a huge heat wave, and my guitar started buzzing severely. I called up BL in a panic, and they said to bring it right in. They made the necessary adjustments at no charge, and the guitar felt great for our show. Great work!

I was in a crisis when my guitar was dropped and suffered a crack. After a recommendation to visit…read moreBrooklyn Lutherie was immediately pleases with their customer service. They inspected the guitar, told me exactly what needed to be done. There were no surprises or random charges. They completed it in just one day and were the sweetest humans. Kind, friendly people who care about what they do. If you have anything wrong with your guitar, I suggest you seek them out!

Great luthier. Finished my late 1950's Silvertone / Harmony in a timely manner, and it plays and…read moresounds amazing. Great all around individual. Someone posted about the shop being closed...dunno what that was about.Maybe disregard that one. Also, whatever the case, I'd rather someone take time to do the instrument RIGHT, than rush it out the door. If they're not going to do that, I'd rather them not take the work at all. I've seen many repairs go like this: Bring instrument or amp in, get call in 5 days. Bring said item home, and two days later said item needs work again. I look with a huge degree of skepticism now at ultra lightning fast turnaround times nowadays. Good work, done well, takes a little time to ensure all problems are addressed. These 50's guitars in decent condition are getting rare. There's not much wood like this left. I trusted Old School Guitar Repair with my guitar, and they came through for me. Curt does it right. Highly recommended. J.M.

Fantastic work on my Taylor! It was my first time getting a setup, and I'm really happy I brought…read moremy guitar to Curt. He was very responsive after I contacted him via his online form, and he finished the setup within a day. The guitar plays beautifully, the action is low and nice, and the price was very reasonable. Thanks so much - the guitar is a joy to play!

The short of it......my Gibson ES-335 was broken in shipping (brand new collector edition) neck was…read moresnapped. I tried a local guy, he tried fixing it, and it let loose while playing within hours. Someone mentioned Bobby so i brought it there.......took a while to get it back, but when it was fixed it looked fantastic!! I needed to wait a few months before writing review this to make sure it was all ok and it worked out. I am super pleased, it was a perfect job!! Thank you so much, +++++

Bobby has done a lot of work on my acoustic and electric guitars such as setups, pickup…read morereplacements, neck adjustments and more. HIs work is excellent, fairly priced and professional even if, like me, you're not a professional. I highly recommend Bobby and Guitar Repair Services.