Mike has single-handedly kept my guitars in shape for over a decade. I wouldn't consider letting anyone else touch them. We've all had our bad experiences with instrument repair, not many things can be so frustrating and demoralizing, which is why I've stuck with Mike and followed him through his many stops. He takes extra care to make sure I'm happy with the work, from explaining what I'll need upfront, to minor tweaks to suit my needs before the guitar leaves the shop. He even helped me figure out a few songs my cement fingers were having trouble with. I am fully confident in recommending Sound Service to you. read more

If you're wondering why most of Mike's reviews are from California, it's because that's where he was established for many years and built up quite the reputation and has now relocated to PDX. California's loss, our gain! I decided to give him a call after reading the stellar reviews. They do not exaggerate. My guitar needed a set up and had the dreaded fret buzz. He responds right away and communicates every step of the way. His turn around time is fast! I didn't have to be parted from my guitar for even a week. Most other places are backed up and take at least 2 weeks before they can get to your instrument. He really knows his stuff, all the ins and outs, not just on guitars but also on recording music. I will definitely use him again. Don't hesitate to contact Mike. I definitely feel like we've found THE guy for our gear. read more

I met Mike when he bought a piece of gear off of me and he informed me that he also does tech work. I was immediately interested, not only because Mike is a super nice guy, but after having lived in SF for some time, I had become disenchanted with most of the guitar techs in the city. In my experience most charge an arm and a leg for routine work, and don't have much time on their hands to interact with their customers. After doing some inquiry into Mike's reputation (which was stellar) I decided to give him a call about refretting what was probably my most prized guitar. We spoke for almost an hour in person going back and forth about my options and his recommendations. Ultimately, his recommendation is what I decided to go with. I could not be happier with both Mike's work and his advice. My guitar has never played better and his refret job was superb. In addition his prices were fair and reasonable. Mike is a stand-up guy, excellent tech, and I wouldn't hesitate to call him for any work in the future. read more

Mike is the first guitar luthier I've worked with and I couldn't have been happier with the service, the setup, and the man himself. He is a humble guy who genuinely wants you to be satisfied with your setup. He asks you about the type of music you play, how you want your guitar or bass to play, and immediately figures out what setup would be best for you. I really enjoyed my time talking to him since he's a real interesting guy. Definitely have Mike help you get the setup you want. Highly recommended! "Humility goes a long way." read more

Buying a great gear and learning how to play it is only half of the story... having a great guitar master who can make the gear sound its best is another :) Mike is an amazing person to work with. Always professional, courteous, and fast. Prices are very competitive too! He's helped me to improve the sound on my guitars, from re-string and neck setup to very complex upgrades. The job he did on changing the Floyd Rose on my neck-through Warlock is simply amazing. Mike also an expert in recording -- he also runs a recording studio and advises me on home studio setup... Mike is a great help with everything MUSIC. Thanks!! Kirill read more

In Disclosure, Mike and I are friends. But it is relevant to this review how we met. I was a guitar tech well over 15 years ago when I met Mike. He joined us at the shop and was a great asset from early on. His life has taken him from Taylor Guitars to Gryphon Music as he cataloged his experiences with thousands of instruments. Mike also spent many years in recording studios, giving him an understanding of how his changes can affect the tones on "tape". Despite my knowing how to work on my own guitars, I choose Mike to do my re-frets, setups, etc. His work is superlative, and he is delicate with my irreplaceable vintage instruments. He makes sure everything is on time and ready for the gig/session. I am very, very particular, to the point of being afraid to take my guitars anywhere for repair. Mike has never let me down, even once loaning me an instrument for a session when mine wasn't up to the task. I am grateful for his fine work. read more

Mike is the man for the job. I searched the web for a mandolin setup person in the Bay Area, looked at a few places and decided to go with Mike and I am so glad I did. Mike setup my mandolin perfectly and I am extremely happy with how it plays now, it's amazing what a good setup can do for you and your instrument. I was worried that by lowering the action at the nut might diminish the tone, but my mandolin sounds BETTER after he worked on it! He is thorough, thoughtful and takes very good care of your instrument and I am grateful for that. I highly recommend Mike's services. read more

I asked for a quote and within the HOUR, Mike got back to me. This was a time-sensitive job and really a great response for a critical choice I had to make. I can't wait to work with him! :) read more

It all started with a Les Paul that had a particularly annoying fret buzz. After repeated trips to the dealer and multiple "setups", the buzz remained, and my clean sound was unbearable to me. After reading some reviews, I called Mike Gold at Sound Service. He met with me to discuss my options and what to expect. He took the guitar and I crossed my fingers. A few days later when I picked up the guitar, I was blown away. The buzz was gone! On top of that, the action was perfect! My Les Paul now has the pristine, clear sound it deserves. Mike did what Gibson and the dealer could not. :) Thank you, Mike, for giving me great service and being so easy to deal with! read more

I hired Mike, through Yelp to help set up my home recording studio. He helped me select the equipment that I needed, the software the ran it. He set everything up for me in the garage and tought me how it all worked. His prices were very reasonable and he has made himself available to me on very short notice. I am very happy to have done business with him and would highly recommend him to anyone interested in setting up any kind of a sound system business or personal. read more

I want to tell you about a man with integrity, compassion and a total love for what he does. Mike Gold is the kindest person I've met in this line of work. He was referred by a friend to install a pair of TV Jones pick ups in my Gretsch. We got together at Sound Service and started chatting. We talked guitars and collections. I mentioned my twelve year old Taylor and he remarked he used to work for the company. My Taylor needed some life breathed back into it and without any pressure on his part, I decided a re-fretting was in order. He took incredible time and care with my instruments; he treated them as if they were a part of his collection. He evened dropped them at my home in Cupertino when the work was complete. The price was more than reasonable and the craftsmanship was impeccable. Mike also has extensive experience as a recording engineer. We are nearly done with a full length album. He has offered his service to mix the record for us. I've heard much of his work and I can't wait to hear our music through his ears. If you are looking for any level of guitar repair, set-up, etc. look nowhere else. Mike is everything you could hope to find in a man truly passionate about his craft! read more

I was looking to change the strings on my guitar and see if I could get a set-up done. My friends told me not to do it through a certain big box outlet - OK, so where to go? I did a quick search here on Yelp and found Mike of Bay Area Guitar Repair. I will also join the ranks of Mike G. fans in recommending his service. He knows his business and after a brief chat, he understood what I wanted and he delivered - big time! My guitar feels better than new, and sounds awesome. Quick turnaround time and he kept me in the loop all the way to pick-up. I will be a regular customer from here on out. Great job! read more

Got an good deal on a bass guitar that needed a relatively inexpensive part (a new nut). Being only a beginning player myself, I looked around for someone to fix up my bass. I found Mike, and gave him a call, and from the start he was great and wanted to know more about what kind of sound I liked and how I wanted to play. He went out of his way to meet with me and pick up the bass right in my neighborhood (local calls? awesome) all the while explaining what he was going to do and estimating what needed to go into it. Turns out, he was spot on; he was also able to find the manufacturer's own part from SoCal and then tuned it up; when he was done, not only did he bring it on down south for me (fortunately on his way) but I took it immediately to a jam and it sounded amazing with the rest of the band. A few days later, he checked in, just to make sure that everything was satisfactory, and of course it was. Mike really cares about the music and his rates are perfectly reasonable. My guitar is coming up on needing an adjustment (buzzing and so on) and now I know who to call! read more

I found Mike thru Yelp for my Gibson Les Paul setup. Although all the reviews were positive, I was a little skeptical because the number of reviews were limited. In addition, they were more for acoustic string instrument. However, when i spoke to Mike on the phone, i found him to be pleasant and with no-guitar-lord attitute and decided to go with him. He did the set up, got rid of the buzz spots, evened out the action, and made my Les Paul feel and sound like a completely different guitar. He also adjusted the pickups. He was fairly fast, his price was reasonable, and I had it back in 3 days. I was pleased with his work and had him setup my 2 other guitars, Fender-like strat and Alvarez electric-acoustic. Wow, my acoustic has never played better - the action was low and even, and same results was for my strat. Like other reviewers comments, he was amazing. It's a great feeling playing a guitar that is properly setup and tuned. All said, it's important that i can trust someone with my beloved guitars. i'm impressed with his knowledge in string instrument repair and would highly recommend him. Andrew P. read more

I don't even know where to begin explaining Mike's expertise. He seems to know how to do everything! I guess when you are as experienced as he is in the industry, you've seen it all. Guitar Repair: Long story short, Mike can set up your instrument exactly to your liking. Every aspect of your guitar can be assessed and customized to your specs. He also has a lot of knowledge and after every time I come in, I leave 100% more informed about how my instrument works. His turn around time is also generally faster than many other nearby places. I've gone to him several times and each time the result was excellent. I put a nice ugly ding in the beautiful gloss top on my Taylor and it's practically invisible now. You have to hold the guitar at just the right angle to the light to see it. That was a huge sigh of relief! The Recording Studio: Mike also has incredible recording skills, so if you need to lay down some tracks he is your man. He's fast and really skilled at it. It's very easy to go in and get an incredible sound right away. He knows what he is doing, he uses quality equipment, and it's a pleasure to work with him. Mike also happens to be a cool cat with great musical taste and he can definitely turn you on to some great artists. I also love talking to Mike about acoustic guitars. He knows so much about bracing patterns, different tone woods, and other build nuances and why they make acoustic guitars sound the way they do. I find this stuff very interesting and I could literally talk to him for hours! There is a scarcity of quality luthier's and guitar techs in the area, and I am sure as heck not going to anyone else as long as I live near Mike. read more

Mike Gold is very good at what he does! I took my ESP jazz bass to him for setup, to discuss pre-amps, pick ups and other aspects of making it sound as good as it can. From the outset Mike was most helpful in explaining things to me. Just the amount of time spent talking about bass, electronics and such should be something he should charge for! Mike patiently explained the different types of pick ups, their benefits as well as tradeoffs. He wanted to understand what I wanted (in terms of sound) and wanted to work with me in terms of sound, budget and time. As it turns out he advised (and I agree) against changing the pick ups as yet. Someone else may have taken me down that route just to make a quick buck. Our conversation moved to amplifiers and Mike was most helpful in explaining both his rig, what he considered good and providing me bountiful tips. Mike is very professional when it comes to his work. I had a slight hum (this is an active jazz bass with single coil pick ups so it is to be expected). But by cleaning the guitar thoroughly, resetting things, ensuring proper alignment, making sure everything else was tight/bolted down etc, he took care of that issue. Bottomline with a complete setup, a new set of strings, Mike made my guitar sound awesome! There were no detours of additional parts or services, or unneeded recommendations for additional things! In the bargain and through our interactions, i learnt a lot more about guitars, and rigs in general. He is generous with his time even though I am sure it costs him to do that. This guy is genuine, knows his stuff, very reasonable ($$), very knowledgeable and looking out for your best interest. One cannot ask for more. I trust Mike with my gear and am happy to recommend him to anyone who is looking for any work needed on their stringed instruments. read more

Mike is a consumate professional who does amazing set up work. I brought my strat in to have a few routine adjustments made and he absolutely transformed the instrument. I was under the impression my guitar played alright originally but upon getting it back i was floored by how smooth everything was. Getting your instrument set up by mike will not only make your guitar more comfortable but also make you a better player. Fast runs and bar chords are far cleaner now that he's worked his magic. I cant reccomend him enough. read more

So far, Mike is 5 (stars) for 2 (guitars). He worked on my 1999 Martin D42 and 1999 Gibson J45. Neither guitar had big problems, but the action on both had drifted up over the years so they were not as fun to play as they once were. The work was done quickly and I could say that they now play "as good as new", but that would be a disservice to Mike. In fact they play much better than the setup on the average new Martin or Gibson. I'm a happy guy! read more