The Twelfth Fret

Traveled up from Houston to try out a new Ramirez guitar. Grant opened up early so that I could try out guitars without too much noise. It is a great facility with so many guitars. The staff are very knowledgeable and helpful and made adjustments on the selected guitar as I waited. Great service and I now a have a great new 1A set up just for me.
Thanks

Wow! Took our guitar in for repair as I was here on business for the week. A very thorough inspection of the guitar led to a really great assessment of what needed to be done. Nothing more, nothing less. Very courteous and understanding. I asked if it were possible to have it ready for when we leave this weekend. It was tight scheduling wise, but he said he would try. That’s awesome customer service!

Prepare your visit well in advance — the only day that they open before noon is Saturday. That includes the week of Christmas. Once inside, they have everything that you need and great service. Check out the White Falcons! Individual rooms for trying out the instruments. Great acoustics. Prices are what they are. You need to know whether the price on your desired item is appropriate. If they don’t have it, then you don’t need it. You might get a better deal if you pay using debit as opposed to credit.

Nice little pro shop for guitar players. Pretty distinctive selection of medium to high-​end acoustic OM and Dreadnaughts and the like, new and previously loved. Online inventory describes incoming items pretty well, including condition.
These guys have a good eye for vintage and honestly assess the state and potential of pieces they turn over here (this is a thing with vintage, if you want to consider say a re-​fret or a neck reset on an original piece selling at a decent cost, or if it’s a non-​original piece describing any modification is important.)
It’s good if you already know a little about what you’re looking for, and this seems to be the literate market TF largely serves. But you can usually coax some support out of the right staff member.
I’ve bought mostly accessories here, and had some guitar repairs done that were top notch. I feel compelled to stop in while going by there and just check what’s come in.

This place has a decent selection but for classical guitars, which were what I was looking for, they only carried Alhambra and a few Ramirez. The services were less than impressive. They seemed reluctant to serve us — could it be because they weren’t judging like we couldn’t afford their guitars or something? At any rate, they couldn’t talk to us knowledgeably about their guitars nor of the warranty.

Always my first stop when I go out to music stores. Great atmosphere and pleasant staff. These guys know guitars and will help find the perfect fit. It’s fun to even just try out of the beautiful instruments they have in store. If you are a veteran guitar player or a beginner, this is THE place to go for anything guitar. Highly recommended.

located in east bumblefuck
i mean seriously who goes to scarborough anymore?
they don’t have any guitars to begin with or anything interesting
but that’s besides the point. i am writing this with respect to the luthier shop and repairs right?
EXTREMELY EXPENSIVE in terms of minor fret repairs
outrageous.
these guys are either very selective about what they do or they can’t do it
it says on their website they do touch ups.
but the reality is that they don’t. they wasted my time on one occasion.
or if they can do a repair they give you a bullshit price so that you just go away.
FUCK YOU 12^th fret!

Bought an acoustic guitar for my wife’s birthday as a surprise. The staff helped out a lot when showing me a selection of models that fit her hand and body size.
When she opened it she wanted to exchange it for another model with a better looking top. The staff was excellent in the exchange process. Great shop run by guitar enthusiasts.

I grew up dreaming I would one day live near a killer guitar shop. Now I do. If the Gibson’s here don’t make your mouth water, you are no guitarist :) Great local spot that many local celebs get their gear at.

Tons of electric eye candy. Maybe 30% of the inventory is acoustic, but then again it’s a pretty good sized inventory. A couple mandolins and banjos, and that’s about it if you don’t play guitar or bass.
I walked the entire store, slowly, twice and wasn’t once asked if I needed any help. On one hand I’m good with that as I just wanted to fiddle with the guitars without being interrupted, but on the other a little customer service would have been appreciated.
Of the two, I preferred Capsule Music on Queen Street.

I’m a fan because the instruments are top-​notch and a few employees delivered the service I needed, but only after I proactively asked for help.
If you need a great instrument and already know what you want, this is a great spot.
The blank and disinterested stares from a few employees was laughable — dare I say «dead weigh»! The service, in general, sucks unless you’re a known musician.

I buy stuff here (strings, picks, mags) ’cause it’s convenient, but I never feel comfortable. The sales guys (don’t think I’ve ever seen a female employee) always seem aloof and disinterested (even when I was looking for a new guitar, which I ended up getting at Long & McQuade).

I recently brought in a crappy solid top yamaha dreadnaught that I’ve been abusing for many years. It had what I thought was string buzz. They diagnosed the problem and fixed it on the spot. No charge. That’s sweet.
I’ve also bought strings, pedals and the odd guitar here over the years. I’ve always been very happy with the service and the people. Also, I like how they maintain the storefront. In addition to being a great guitar store, they are a great neighbour as well.

STUNNING selection of acoustics and high-​end electrics, and a small but usually primo selection of guitar amps.
I have bought 2 used instruments in there and helped a friend buy a new guitar; I was quite pleased with the service.
Also I had them refret my beloved Gretsch 6120 with stainless frets, and they did an awesome job in the service department.

I am torn about this place.
They are one of two Collings dealers in Canada, and I have never walked into a place and seen a wall of Collings acoustics before. This store has the nicest selection of acoustic guitars in Toronto, if you are looking for a top notch, high end instrument… Actually aside from Dream guitars and a few other twelth-​fret-​like shops throughout the states, this is aone of the best shops in North America. They carry hand made guitars from Grit Laskin (they get one every year), Tony Karol, Linda Manzer (when they come in used)… Basically, I can say they have the best stock in town and they know their stuff and never buy or sell junk. Whatever you buy here will be a top tier instrument. Also good to note that they have a ton of electric guitars but I don’t know anything about them so I will leave them out of this review. They have vintage Les Pauls lining the back wall behind the counter and they look beautiful.
I reason I am torn about it is that the service is usually bad. I don’t know if they just don’t want to help or talk with me, if it’s a guys-​guy kind of shop, or if they think that I can’t afford to shop there, but they are not helpful when I ask for assistance or want to buy something there.
About a year ago, I was looking to buy a new or used 000 or OM guitar with a pickup, and my budget was $ 1000-​$ 1500. They showed my a Larrivee L-​03 with a pickup and when I didn’t like it, the guy said ‘that’s all we have in your price range’ and walked away. No offering to show me something for a couple hundred dollars more, no suggestions of where I should look or what other options are available, no offer to put a pickup in my existing OM guitar… It was just a cold experience that left a bad taste in my mouth. I ended up buying a Martin 000 – 16 at Ring music instead, and was extremely happy with John’s service and time spent with me chatting about what the right instrument would be.
Second example, I went there to get some humidifiers, and I specifically wanted the Oasis in-​guitar humidifiers. There were a few guys behind the counter not busy with other customers but no one offered to help me. I had to say ‘excuse me’ and then they were bothered that they had to go downstairs and get them, then he told me I didn’t even need them at this time of year (I am aware, thanks, go get them.)
Then I had a good experience a few weeks ago — I went to get wall hangers and the guy (a different guy than I have seen before) was really nice, took the time to pick out the lighter-​coloured woods for me, and was generally really great.
All in all, I would still rather go to Ring music, which is much less pretentious, but definitely carries a lower end product (they have the full line of Normans which start at around 300 $). Twelth Fret is the only place to shop in Toronto if you’re looking to drop serious cash on a guitar. And if they see 5 grand in you I’m sure they will be more than willing to come out from around the counter. I will shop here again in the future when I am shopping for a guitar that is worth more than my car, but it will not be in the near future :)