Island Guitars

Peter provided us with acoustic/electric guitar for a great price with a bag and extra picks. The guitar came pretuned and has great sound. The total time in the store less than 20 minutes and very satisfied.

This is the kind of music store I like to purchase things from! My friend has been talking about this store for years. But despite me checking it out in ward warehouse I never felt like there was something I could buy there. Acoustic guitar was a black art and I was not interested.

Now to the present, I am interested in acoustic guitar and although I have a couple of them, none of them fit me. I have been on the search for a good acoustic guitar for a few weeks now and having hit every single store, I could not find "the" guitar.

I have to say that every guitar store I went to had great customer service. But finding the right guitar is very difficult. When you play it, you know.

So I had it in my mind to pick up a certain model Martin guitar. I was going to purchase it from a well known bigger guitar store but I figured why not go to island guitars since it's on the way? I had a hard time finding it. As you go up on the ramp, it's on your right and is at the far right end of the building as you face the back.

Once inside I was greeted right away and after I told him what I wanted, he handed me guitars. I loved that they had more than one of each and that they had the latest models. Prior to this, I knew what I wanted but the first guitar he handed me, I loved the feel right away. I thought he gave me what I asked for but no, it was another model but I felt a bond to this one. It basically ruined all the others.

He set me up through an amp and I was able to really hear each guitar exactly as I was going to play it. Different style guitars, different wood tops etc. But no other guitar felt and sounded as good as the first one!

As I tried them, he mentioned that sales tax was included in the price SCORE! There was a sale going on. After I while I asked how much to setup the guitar because every acoustic needs to be setup to an individuals playing style. He said it's included when you purchase a guitar from them.STOP!!!

What? Ok this is awesome. A setup included?
He - is Peter Bond. I've played his guitars that he setup and they played great!

So "the" guitar found, good price, setup included?

DONE DEAL!

I love my Martin!!!! Yes, 5 stars!!!!!!

I went to purchase a gift certificate for a coworker and the guy who helped me was so nice! They have guitars and other accoutrements for sale here, and offer lessons as well. Located on the 2nd floor of Nimitz Center just across Pier 38, so tons of free parking. They are the very first store in the right, so can be a little difficult to find, but worth the effort! Support local!

This place is great! The staff are super helpful and honest which I really appreciated (especially Jim and Neil). Their selection isn't as huge as bigger stores like Guitar Center but everything they do have is high quality. I got my guitar here for about $250 cheaper than most online stores were offering. Would definitely recommend checking this place.

Totally recommend this place! Store owner Neil is super helpful and full of knowledge on guitars as well as the other associates in the store as well! Highly recommended supporting local businesses, and they offer great deals on new guitars!

This has been my "home base" for guitars and supplies for awhile now. Glad to see they're open!

They typically have the full priceline of Martins and Taylors, and some nice high-end used guitars. Looks like they are no longer a Gibson dealer tho, which is kinda sad.

They will also give your purchase a proper setup, which I used to think was normal until I tried another store out haha.

Called Island Guitars after speaking to two businesses about string replacement. These folks told me there was a 2-3 day wait.

I picked up the phone and called Island Guitars (a former co-worker told me about the place) and spoke with Pete who said to drop by, and I did. Pete re-strung our uke while we waited and within 10 minutes we were up and running.

Nice to do business with a music store that reminds me of the old music stores on Oahu, now long gone. If you need any guitar accessories, guitars and related items, go check out Pete and the gang at Island Guitars for excellent and friendly service.

I've bought several guitars from Island both for myself and for friends. In fact, I bought my favorite (Takamine) acoustic guitar from them. It was used and I got a great deal on it.

There's a few guitar stores in Oahu. I mostly frequent Island Guitars because I like the guitars that they carry.

This is where I bought my Taylor 414ce, Gibson Les Paul Standard, where my wife bought her Martin guitar, and koa Taylor GS Mini. I've also only bought my amps from them - a Vox AC30 and Vox AC15. Oh, and also capos, guitar cables, and strings. I also have a cousin who's only bought Taylor's from them.

The staff at Island Guitar do a good job in serving my guitar needs. When we go there, Peter, Onipaa, and sometimes Neil are working and they're always friendly and accommodating. Neil, when my wife was shopping for her koa Taylor, even went above and beyond by texting her when the shipment arrived, and sending her photos so she can choose which koa pattern she wanted. When coming in for a string change, Peter and Onipaa always gets it done right away. Peter is a very good guitar technician. He's always fixed all my issues, or at least recommended what can be done to fix said issues. They're knowledgeable and outside of Google, pretty much answer most of my guitar questions.

I really like how not pretentious Island Guitars is. They are unlike other guitar stores who seem to be pretending to be something they are not just to seem cooler. Island guitars is very good because of their simplicity.

There's an area for acoustic guitars that's organized by brand and model. There's an area for electric guitars, that, although dwindling due to decreasing demand, is still OK. There's a small room full of amps that you can plug into and test out. They also have a lot of guitar accessories like guitar pedals, strings, cables, capos, straps, picks, and guitar cleaning materials.

I've only sent people here to purchase their guitars and I would definitely continue to recommend Island Guitars to people looking to purchase guitars.

WISHLIST:
1. They start carrying Suhr electric guitars.
2. They start carrying Orange amps.
3. Electric guitars become popular again, enough to drive electric guitar sales for Island Guitars.

Great Service and Aloha is sometimes hard to find these days. At Island Guitars, finding service with aloha is evident.

I visited the store yesterday with the intention of playing a certain acoustic guitar that had positive reviews online. I met Neil Shimabukuro.... sales, administrator and manager. Neil helped me by pulling out that particular guitar so I could play it. He also provided others that were similar to compare. He took the time to explain each model, woods, bracing, and scale length. He allowed me time to play, feel and listen to the special sound characteristics each made. I spent a good hour and a half at their Nimitz store. I left thanking him for helping and giving me his time and knowledge.

After leaving the store, I thought and reflected on the positive experiences I had at Island Guitars. I thought about that particular guitar and I went back the next day and purchased that guitar.

I want to thank Island Guitars and Neil for their service and help. I would encourage others to visit and experience what I experienced......"Service with Aloha." Thanks....

I popped in to Island Guitars on a Friday afternoon looking for a small travel size guitar with quality sound. I was pleasantly surprised with the selection. There were about half dozen options from Taylor and Martin among others. I'm a huge Martin fan and tried all of them deciding on a Martin that was gently used for $329. The sound on this guitar was great for a small guitar and included a soft backpack type guitar case which was perfect for traveling and could be used as a carry on bag for our flight home or flights on future trips. The staff was friendly, knowledgeable, and attentive. We were in and out in 20 minutes and ready for a beach side "gig" complete with capo, tuner, guitar strap, picks, and he guitar. He also gave me a military discount which was 10% off the accessories and effectively no tax on the guitar. I did not expect to find exactly what I was looking for here, but I did! If you're looking for a guitar on Oahu check out Island Guitars.

If you're not familiar with the area, Islam Guitars can be a little tricky to find. It's on the second floor in the back of the plaza building. Just pull in the the plaza parking lot, park, and find the staircase in the hallway between the front of the plaza building and the back. Head up stairs to the second floor and walk around to the back corner to find Island Guitars.