I'm a musician and instructor with 2 master's degrees in music and over 25 years teaching experience and the owner of Honolulu Music Lessons Workshop and I not only have all my instruments worked on by Chris Davis at BR Fretshop and his crew, but I send all of my students there as well. I trust them with my most precious instruments and the work they do is outstanding. They have done tremendous work on my Martin OM-21 resetting the neck, installing a pickup, making a custom camel bone nut and doing annual maintenance on it. The work Chris did on my Gibson ES-335 and 1974 Fender Strat was even more impressive. The Gibson was having major tuning issues and after doing a lot of work over a few months on it, custom camel bone nut, rollers on the saddle, putting in the PLEK machine, it's like a different instrument. It's amazing and even better than before. I had almost given up on playing it and now it's just incredible. The vintage strat had all the pots, the input and the channel selector replaced and after being in the PLEK, it's just a dream to play and they say to come back to have it adjusted for free. . Chris also repaired a crack in the top of my Kamaka Deluxe Tenor Ukulele and I swear, if you didn't know where the crack was originally, you would never know it was ever there. They are amazing. I highly recommend! read more

Great work on my ʻukulele by Chris and the gang! Great customer service! Mahalo nui Danny!

I needed help with my baby girl, my acoustic guitar. I'm by no means an expert, and honestly, despite some experience on stage, I'd still barely call myself an intermediate guitarist, so when my acoustic's connections went on the fritz, I was at a loss for what to do. I asked one of my much more experienced and knowledgeable musician friends, and he instantly suggested BR Frets. He was then confirmed by another guitarist friend of ours who was hanging with us, saying they're hands down the most skilled people on island that they both know of, so I went ahead and made an appointment. Both friends said to expect a couple of weeks, maybe 3 depending on how busy they are, as they do get quite a bit of business, and to try and get an appointment when I can, so I did as soon as I could. I was greeted warmly by Chris, who asked me some pertinent questions, took a look at Hayley, and gave me a clear idea of what to expect; either he can fix her, which if he can, he'd try to do so that night. If he can't clean and repair the connections on my pick up, not only would they likely need to send out the pickups for diagnostic and repairs, but the cost to do so would jump up significantly, showing me how much the piece costs broadly and then factoring time and labor. Sure enough, I called the next day, as advised, and Wes said to come back on in to pick her up. I got there and spoke with Wes, who told me Chris stayed up a bit the previous night to make sure Hayley's good and ready to go, and she was back in action! They also only charged for the time and labor, which was more than fair for the quality they provided and all the relief they gave me. Definitely worth coming to them when guitar help is needed. read more

I've been playing more in open D tuning and got tired of retuning my Taylor every time I wanted to play something in open D. So I took my old beloved Takamine F360s out of the closet and decided to leave it in open D. But it was playing rough. The action was very high even after I adjusted the truss rod. Also the intonations were off. I took it to a major guitar store in town and the luthier there said he couldn't help me because the guitar needed much more work than he could do. Then I found Chris at BR Fret shop. OMG what a God send. Talk about someone who cares passionately about guitars and knows the instrument like Wolfgang Puck knows pizza. Chris identified that the problem came from under the bridge where through years of humidity, that area was bulging and pushing the bridge up thus raising the action. He took it apart, sanded under the bridge then put everything back together along with new strings. I was completely blown away at how low he got the action with no buzzing. In fact it made my Taylor seemed hard to play in comparison. So I ended up taking my Taylor in for an adjustment as well. Pro tip : make sure you register your Taylor guitar with Taylor manufacturing and they will pay for the adjustments at certified Taylor shops. I hope Chris and his assistant Wes never decide to leave O'ahu. We are very lucky to have them here in our little corner of the ocean. Happy pickings...or strumming!! read more

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I highly recommend this place for all your guitar needs. Chris, the owner is extremely knowledgeable, professional, and honest.

Chris took great care of my guitar! He gave me a very detailed consultation and the plek was perfect. Super happy to have such competent and great folks to work on our gear at BR fret shop. Oh, and if you've never stopped by definitely check out their used instrument selection which is pretty awesome in its own right. Definitely a satisfied customer and I will be back. read more

BR Fret Shop - Musical Instrument Services Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

Really can't add anything to what's already been repeated here many times over. OK, I'll add this. Everything about this luthier shop, from start to finish, initial callup to consult to the guitar learning that always happens when you're speaking with either of these knowledgeable and well-spoken gentlemen, to the guitar that they hand you back that's suddenly on guitar-steroids, is top drawer. These fellows, consummate professionals each, are running an operation unlike any guitar shop or luthier studio I've encountered in over 50 years of wearing down frets and necks, and bending and breaking guitars. Boring details from this visit: Yamaha "silent" guitar, nylon, covered in splotches of glow in the dark glop from an ill-advised nighttime, darkened room playing scheme, uneven, buzzy frets, draggy tuners*, bunch of anomalies. For not much money at all, I was handed back a guitar that looks showroom new, and plays and responds far better than showroom new. I can keep piling on the kudos, but I'll stop here. You can trust any beloved guitar baby you have with these doctors. *deprived, I guess and didn't even realize it. Wesley even disassembled and serviced the tuning machines. Unbelievable, but true. read more

Amazing work by great guys. He was even able to appraise a couple of guitars. Plek done on an old Martin guitar, Sadowsky and Ibanez bass. Plays like Buddah read more

Amazing work and customer service! I am a forever customer now! Chris and staff are great. Very friendly and their work is meticulous! You're in good hands with them! read more

Excellent customer service. I had a ukulele in desperate need of tuning peg repair. Chris was amazing. Not only did he repair it with great care and professionalism, he also took time to explain, in layman's terms, what was needed and how he went about repairing it. He has over 30 years experience in this business, so he knows what to do and how to do it right. Would highly recommend. read more

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These gentle can make a silk purse out of a sow's ear. Top notch professionals that are extremely passionate about their trade!

I've been playing for over 50 years. My experience here has easily been the most professional. Chris is a master. My set up was hands down the best I have ever played and he is so exacting. He asked questions to get it just right and it was. I'm now taking in all of my guitars to get them set up and especially Pleked. read more

It hurts me to say, but this place is too good. My budget $50 seagull s6 made a rattling sound but Chris the owner knew it was fret buzzing. He gave me two options, a budget fix or a true fix that would make my instrument sound better. No brainer so I went with the true fix to see what all the hype for this shop was about. Chris put a camel bone saddle into my beloved guitar, but not just any camel bone but a racing camel's shin bone. Athletes bones are more dense than others. The most dense bone the market has to offer. Virtually undetectable besides ivory, however: ivory is no longer legal. Chris being a master of his craft was able to find such bone. My $50 seagull now sounds like a $4,000 Martin. No wonder these guys are Martin authorized and certified. You sometimes come across folks like this, whether it be motorcycle suspension tuning or whatever. They get something ordinary and create something absolutely spectacular all without breaking the bank. Priceless. Competitors won't spend a fraction of the time these guy do when dealing with perfect intonation for your guitar. This guitar now all of a sudden seems out of my league. I look forward to catching up to it. I wrote this whole Yelp review and my d string is still resonating, piercing my heart. BR Fret Shop is simply a true blessing. read more

BR Fret Shop - Racing camel shin bone. - Musical Instrument Services Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Can't overemphasize how great BR fret shop is. I've brought in 3 of my instruments for pro setups, as well as new wiring and pickup installs, and each time they have done such amazing work. So much so that I always hand people my instruments to have them just feel the difference when you get the setups done by them. Now, they have the Plek machine, the setup was even better and pretty much blew my mind. I recommend everyone do this, and will do so with all of the musicians I know. read more

Chris, Wes & Staff came through again. They did excellent work on 2 KoAloha Tenor ukuleles. One a Low G was a string reset and to address a "thudding/muted" note on one string (they had previously done a Pro-Set Up; and replaced nut & saddle with bone). The second a High G was a Pro-Set Up & replace existing nut and saddle with bone. Extremely pleased with how the uke's sound. Their level of work is 5 Star as it is clean, precise and looks good as well. If you talk to them, you know they know their stuff, take pride in & are passionate about their work; and will put their "all" into your instrument. Douglas (their dog) is a pretty cool little dude as well. My "go to" luthiers. Aloha Howard S. read more

This place is a true find! The artists are polite, responsive and excellent at what they do. The shop is staffed by old school, hands on musicians. They are certified Martin guitar techs too. I took my boyfriend's Martin in for cleaning and re-stringing. The price was affordable and upfront. They did an amazing job too. When I picked it up today it looked and sounded even better than when we bought it! read more

Chris is the only luthier I trust to work on my guitar. He is a skilled craftsman and truly knows what he is doing. He treats every guitar like his own, and his attention to detail is what sets him apart. I initially brought my strat in to fill in a string tree hole. Then a full set up / pick up swap / completely new rewiring, rounded out my frets, and switched my pots. He really takes the time to explain so you fully understand. And if he feels something is not right-- he will fight to show you why "this might be a better option." Even if it means him not profiting. I'm very particular with how I set my Strat up and I never once left that shop without my guitar specked out exactly how I requested. Chris and Wes at Br Fret Shop are top notch! read more

BR Fret Shop - Musical Instrument Services Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

The customer service is superb! And the quality of work was fantastic. These guys really know what they are doing.

We had a lifetime's collection of ukuleles, guitars, banjos, and violins that needed to be repaired. After doing research and reading all the reviews, we decided to take our instruments to BR Fret Shop. That was the best decision that we could have made. Chris and Wesley are amazing, very honest, and very customer-oriented. They do excellent work, and they also explain what they're doing and why it needs to be done. We came away with a great education about stringed instruments. We took a few instruments to them every week for about 8 months and are extremely satisfied. I wish we had enough instruments to keep going back for another 8 months. They really are the best! read more

After reading great reviews here on Yelp, I brought my prized pocession, an LE USA Wolfgang Custom into Chris and Wes. Easy to contact. Easy to drop off. Easy to pick up after it was professionally set up. She's in a great condition and plays like a dream. Excellent service. Don't hesitate to use BR Fret Shop ! Mahalo Chris.... more will be coming your way in the future as well. read more

Stellar service! I can't recommend these guys enough. When I need expert care or insight on specialized guitar work, you da man! Mahalo,Chris and team,for all the years of great work. read more

Alright, its been three years since my last review. Here's what is going on now. I took a vacation and before I left I dropped off my 1966 Martin D35 for Chris to take a look at. Man, wish I had done it sooner, he was able to greatly improve the playability and the tone. Seriously, I already thought this was an awesome sounding guitar but Chris was able to make it sound better and play more comfortably with a deluxe setup. If you haven't had Chris work on your guitar you probably should no matter how nice you think it is I'm betting you will see a huge improvement after Chris works his magic. Here's the exciting part. While I was on vacation traveling through Texas, Florida and Mexico I was on the lookout for another guitar. I visited Austin Vintage Guitars and found a 1931 Martin 12 fret mahogany 1-17. It had a recent neck reset but the action was high and I knew that Chris could probably really make it a sweet guitar. I brought it to him when I picked up my D35. He has it now. Told me I'm going to have to wait a month to get it back and I suspect that he'll be playing on it and making many improvements during that time. I'm glad he has shown such a personal interest in this one. I don't care how long he takes, the more he plays it, the more he'll be able to tweak it to get the best out of it. Looking forward to this one! I would trust Chris with any new or collectible vintage guitar. read more

I brought my guitar to BR Fret. My wireing was damaged needed a new replacement. I talked to Chris he said to bring it in and would take about an hour. When I came in Wes helped me, I asked if they could also put on new strings. Came back in an hour and he put on the wrong gauge strings. He said no problem he'll change it to the correct gauge strings. Wes was so nice and kind and helpful! He let me plug my guitar in the amp to see if it works ok, everything was perfect. I can tell that Wes really loves his work, he really cares about the customers! I definitely will be coming back!! This was the best customer service I've received!! Thank you Wes! Aloha Denny read more

Fantastic shop. The cats are knowledgeable and skilled. Will not take my instruments any other place.

Can't believe how good my guitar played and how clean it was after picking it up from these guys. I had no idea what was possible. Can't recommend them enough. I felt like I didn't pay enough for what they did. read more

Good place to have your instrument repaired. The only thing I didn't like is that the quote didn't match the price I had to pay. I wish they would have called so I would have been prepared instead of shocked. read more

Highly communicative. Passionate about their craft. Fair prices.

Living on the North Shore of Kauai we are subject to a lot of wet weather. As a result the binding on my Martin guitar started seperating from the body in multiple places so I tried going to my local luthier whose repair only lasted a few weeks. So I checked on the Martin site for a factory authorized repair shop which led me to BR Fret Shop in Honolulu. I contacted the shop and shipped my guitar over to our neighboring island. When it arrived I got a call from Chris and we went over what he would be able to do. After a few weeks we spoke again and he went into detail on the repair and what he recommended going forward. He advised to allow a few more weeks in the shop to ensure that the repair would hold. After that time he called again informing me that he was sure that everything was good to go and that he recommended keeping an Eva-Dry unit in the case which he provided. It's been over a month and everything is perfect. I could not be more pleased with Chris. Not only is he a talented luthier he also took the time to explain everything in detail as well as answer any and all questions I had, including those not related to the repair work. I highly recommend Chris (especially for any binding issues) and hope to stop by to say aloha on my next visit to Oahu. read more

Bottom-line: Chris is the only guy that can touch my guitars. Does great work, very professional, good prices and puts the "Master" in luthier. Additionally, I am very impressed with everyone I have spoken to on the phone. I came in with a science fair project and he turned my guitar into a near level custom shop. Highly recommend this business. read more

Very thorough and amazing work. Chris is very knowledgeable and does excellent work. As others have said, the prices are extremely reasonable and he is a professional. Nice shop and easily reachable via phone. He knew I had a gig in a relatively short period and he was kind enough to rush the job and get the work done. Guitar looks and feels great! If you purchase any new guitar, it's worth taking it to his shop and having him look it over and give you options to make it play even better. Now I'm plotting on which other guitar to take to him! read more

What a great local guitar music repair shop! I came in here with my son and Chris really took the time to help us out. Would definitely recommend to anyone that's looking to get their guitar repaired! read more

Excellent company and service. You can tell that they love what they are doing. I took my Martin ukulele in to see if it should be refurbished. They spent the time to stretch the strings, clean it up, tune it and give me some friendly advice. Keep it original. I will always use them for any work that I have. This is the kind of service you expect in Hawaii. read more

I just got my Strat back from BR Fret Shop and holy cow, I never thought my guitar could sound this good! I had them do a standard set up and It's such a night and day difference. The action and feel is right on point and my guitar now sounds way better than before. I can't really explain it, but the tone has an extra shine to it and is very well balanced. Their service is excellent too. Chris explained everything he did in detail and was very knowledgeable. They do seem pretty busy though, but they were able to finish my guitar within a reasonable time. I Definitely will be bringing my other guitars to them when I need work done and I definitely recommend them to others. read more

My Ozama ukelele had been thru a lot over the years and had some pretty bad water damage and several big cracks to prove it. I had stopped playing it for a long time, and figured it would be too expensive to restore. I found BR Fret Shop on one of FB's military buy n sell pages and checked out the pictures and descriptions of guitars he worked on and was pretty impressed. After talking with Chris a couple of times, I felt confident that my uke would be in good hands. He explained to me exactly what he would be doing to repair and restore my uke, what the (more expensive) alternatives would be if I had wanted to go that route, and gave me an estimate of how long it would take him to complete everything. I told him no need to rush, take his time, and he estimated about a week or week and a half since he was working on other restorations. I was totally fine with that. He priced me a very reasonable rate, and sent me a few pictures as he was working on it to show the progress he was making (much appreciated). Chris surprised me by emailing me several days later to tell me it was ready to be picked up. And when I picked it up, I couldn't have been any happier. My uke was perfect: cracks repaired, finish was flawless, new strings, and he even graciously cleaned the years of gunk and dust that accumulated from non-use. I had no idea he would go above and beyond what I asked for, and he did that free of charge. Best of all, he made some adjustments here and there, I can't remember what he said he did, but my uke sounds sooooo much better and fuller and louder. Chris is awesome, professional, knowledgeable, with decent pricing and I highly recommend BR Fret Shop. I am definitely returning to have him take care of several more of our ukes and guitars. read more

BR Fret Shop - Sorry, didnt take a "before" pic. This is after- cracks repaired, restored area matches the rest of the uke perfectly. Thx Chris - Musical Instrument Services Near Me - Honolulu, Hawaii

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Been taking my guitars to Chris and Wes for several years now. Absolutely the best pro's in town. Timely and quality repairs, setup, restringing - all of it, and at fair prices. You can trust these guys completely!! read more

Best shop on the Island. Chris and Wes are honest and will take care of your Axe. Had several guitars go through them.

Don't Take Your Guitar Work Anywhere Else I recently had Chris take my old $400 Fender Kingman acoustic/electric and breathe new life into her. I had him replace the original nickel frets with stainless steel as well as craft a bone nut & bridge, and put new bone/ebony endpins. I also had him install locking tuners in place of the original hardware. Why would I have someone do $800 worth of work for a $400 guitar? There are several reason. One conversation with Chris and you'll know this guy lives, eats, and breathes guitars. He's not just some jamook working in the back of a big box music store. He will explain the ins & outs of why you need what you need, the alternatives, quick-fix solutions, and then he'll give his recommendations. He won't lie about the possible risks. He's very much like a doctor - but for guitars, ukes, tube amps, etc. My situation was this: I wanted an acoustic guitar with stainless steel frets. The only ones you can find are $$$$ and I actually love my little Fender. I've been through more high-end custom/boutique/signature electric guitars than I can count over the last 10 years but this has remained my one true, trusty little acoustic. As tempting as getting a new guitar was, I REALLY didn't wanna spend the cash since then I'd have this one just sitting around. It's fallen on the ground so many times and been played in the rain and left in my car that it's damaged to the point of un-sellability. But structurally and functionally it's still sound. So I realized that I could have it all! And I knew just the dude to do it. -The (camel) bone nut & bridge are perfect and the action is great! -The stainless steel fret ends are like little BBs (just ask for the semi-hemispherical fret ends!) -The new locking tuners are great and didn't require any additional drilling. He knew just where to find the right kind to maintain the guitar's classic aesthetic. -Turnaround time was good, especially considering he's never bored in his shop... -Price was fantastic. You get what you pay for usually, but you'll get WAY more at BR Fret shop. Guitar work, by it's very nature, is expensive (ask around...) but Chris is worth it. Chris is so genuinely interested in his craft that he asked if he could borrow my custom Nystrum "La Bella" telecaster JUST TO MAKE IT BETTER. He didn't charge me a dime, but he adjusted the neck, cleaned some botched 'relicking,' and made it play better than she ever has. And again; this was a labor of love - no doll hairs were exchanged for this service. But it did solidify that THIS was the guy I would trust with my beloved acoustic. I'm positive that he took no less care and interest in my cheap little guitar than he does in his celebrity clients' or their 80-year-old 1930's Martin. Anyway, one look through my reviews demonstrates that I either love a business or they do something to completely put me off. I'm so happy with his work that I want to share my experiences with anyone who will listen. This must be what Christians feel like... Oh, and he didn't charge me anywhere near $800 for his incredible work. read more

I recently purchased a guitar not knowing that it needed to be set up. I didn't know who did this kind of work so I went on line and BR Fret Shop along with other names came out. I call BR Fret Shop and spoke to the owner Chris and he explained in detail what needed to be done and the cost. Chris has so much knowledge that I decided to give him a try. After taking in my guitar he spent time telling me exactly what he would be doing. He told me it would be done on a specific day and sure enough his word was good. The quality of work was great and his price worked well with me. For those of you out there who are looking for someone to set up your new guitar, I would highly recommend BR Fret Shop.....Call Chris. read more

Hands down, the best guitar-tech/luthier in this state. The hole left by the departure of Mitch Yanagida has officially been filled. This level of service is "cheap at any price", but cost is extremely reasonable, and the turn around time is fast. Have no fear, BR Fret is here. read more

Took my Bourgeois OM and my Goodall 000 to Chris for some work. The Bourgeois needed a neck reset and the Goodall needed a setup. Both guitars came back playing perfectly and sounding amazing! As others have stated, Chris is so easy to work with and explains what he will be doing to your precious guitars. His work is AAA+++! read more