Sound Service

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.»

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 Unilocal 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!

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!

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.

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.

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!

I hired Mike, through Unilocal 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.

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.