Guitars that are built to last.
Custom Guitar Building & Repair in San Francisco
Our Story: From the Grateful Dead to the Workshop
As always, it begins with music
and for Matt Stevens, his path towards luthiery starts with the Grateful Dead. After a dear friend introduced him to the Dead’s universe while living in Denver, Matt ventured deeper to discover his love of guitar making, tone and excellence.
Before building, Matt listened. He heard warm tones — how Jerry’s differed from Bobby’s and where the two coalesce — while learning about sound and vibrations. His infatuation reached a new level after discovering the Chris Robinson Brotherhood.
He was mesmerized by Neal Casal, left forever and always inspired by the late guitarist. Matt traced the chord in Casal’s guitar back to renowned luthier Scott Walker whose shop in Santa Cruz is a hub for like-minded artisans.
Matt then followed his heart to San Francisco. After writing a letter to Walker, describing his determination to learn from the best, Matt was awarded an apprenticeship. He spent the following years deconstructing guitars and honing his skills in advanced electronics and pickup construction. The education culminated with Scott and Matt developing a unique pickup that can be found on Scott’s custom guitars.
Following in the footprints laid out before him, Matt attended the Roberto-Venn School of Luthiery in Phoenix, Arizona. Matt built three, custom instruments during the discipline — slide, acoustic and electric guitars — before graduating at the top of his cohort.
Matt returned to San Francisco to open his shop less than two blocks from where The Grateful Dead once lived. He repairs an array of electric and acoustic instruments, and his clients range from novice to lifetime musicians.
What people are saying about Lineage…
It’s hard to find someone I can trust to give me great repairs and even better opinions. Matt helped me with a repair that I needed but he also recommended I replace the frets. I didn’t really know but I’m so glad I let him do his thing. I never knew it could sound so good, it felt like a brand new instrument. Super happy, will definitely return for a custom build when I’ve saved up.
- Taylor Simon
You know that feeling when your finger gunk has been building up on your fretboard for decades? Yeah.. that was me. I almost felt bad handing it off to someone else to clean and tune up, but Matt couldn't have been more optimistic and stoked to handle and caress down my sweet sweet strat. He tuned 'er up, greased 'er up, and got 'er playing like she was brand new. It almost felt like my skill level 10x'd overnight, but it was simply because she was just too easy to play. Matt is the man and does great work that he really cares about. Take your gear to him - you won't regret it.
- Anthony Garbarino
Hadn’t had a tune up on my guitar in awhile so I brought it here and was pretty happy with the end result. Looked and sounded just like it did when I bought it brand new.
- Tyler Hinton
I've had a set up, new pickups, a new nut installation and a full partscaster build with Matt on my guitars. He's super meticulous, helpful, transparent and he even talked me out of a refret after the internet told me I needed one. I've been so happy with the work he's done on my most cherished guitar - it gets more play than ever before.
- Kai Bastos
The only shop I will bring my guitars to. Matt has done excellent repairs for me on numerous guitars over the years including numerous setups on both Fender and Gibson guitars, pickup installations, as well as immaculate work repairing a broken headstock on a Gibson SG. He is reliable, very communicative, and passionate about his work. Can't recommend enough.
- Mike Johnston
Frequently Asked Questions
Still have questions? Take a look at the FAQ or reach out anytime.
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Good question! I spent 2 years working closely with renowned Luthier Scott Walker in Santa Cruz. When I started with Scott, I had no shop experience and no idea what was in store for me. I'm extremely honored that he invited me into this world. While I was with him I did a deep dive into advanced guitar electronics, making pickups from scratch, helped make metal parts (bridges, knobs, pickup rings) from scratch using a CNC machine, did a lot of cleaning, generally immersed myself in this world, and had a first hand look at what it takes to do this work at a high level. I have deep respect for Scott, he gave me a chance and helped me change my life forever. After working with Scott for two years, I moved to Phoenix, AZ and attended Roberto-Venn School of Luthiery where I built 3 instruments and finished at the top of my class. Since graduating in December 2023, I have been doing repairs in San Francisco full time. It's been a wild ride and I'm grateful to be here.
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Yes, but I'm not offering them to the public quite yet. Building is where my passion truly lies and soon enough I would be honored to build you a guitar. I'm in the process of equipping my shop with the proper tools to build the guitars I dream of. I'm close but not quite there, hang tight!
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I operate by appointment only. Reach out and we can get you in the schedule!
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Best way to get in touch is via email. Reach out to mattcstevens1@gmail.com and we will get an appointment scheduled
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I have set prices for common repairs but that assumes your instrument is already in good shape and just needs some love. Once I get the instrument on the bench I can provide a better estimate of pricing. Keep in mind, an estimate is just an estimate and is subject to change.
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That depends on the repairs that are already checked in and what they require. We can discuss more in depth once you check your instrument in with me. I do my best to turn things around quickly but some repairs take longer than others. If you need quick turn around time we can discuss a Rush Fee.
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Short answer is yes. For acoustic guitars I don't do restoration work, neck resets, or heavy duty structural repairs. There are other shops around that are better equipped to do those jobs. Most everything else I can get you taken care of.
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I do some minor finish repair. I don't do color matching and I do not do any spraying. I have some clever ways to deal with dings and make your previously repaired cracks/breaks feel smooth to the point where you won't notice it unless you're looking for it. If you're after a finish repair that is invisible because you're trying to make your vintage guitar as valuable as possible, I'm not your guy.
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Not really. We can discuss though.
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Not my game but I can likely refer you to someone who will do a great job.
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I don't sell parts. The parts I have stocked are for instruments that are checked in for repair and if it's a part I don't have stocked, I can order the parts necessary to get the job done. If the part is extremely specific or hard to find and it takes some internet hunting that's longer than 15 mins, I'm happy to research but that's not free. Probably looking at about $50.
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If you have an appointment scheduled with me to do the work, I'm happy to help guide you to find a pickup set that will rock your world. If it's less than 15 minutes, happy to offer free of charge. More than that and a consultation fee will be applied. I also think it's important that you do some research and ultimately make your own decision. I may approach guitar tone in a very different way than you and I'm not interested in debating that. I AM interested in helping you get exactly what you want out of your instrument.
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More than happy to schedule and evaluation appointment for you. A lot of new guitars need work before they're fun to play and you should know what you're getting into before it's too late.
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Yes, absolutely! For small adjustments to your setup or if electronics start to misbehave after wiring work, you have 30 days to bring it back to me and I will get you dialed in. And usually I can get you taken care of while you wait. If you get your guitar back from me and decide you wanna try adjusting things yourself or change your strings to a different gauge, you have my support but your warranty will be voided. I will makes adjustments and honor warranties only on the work that I do, not the work you do.