Shar Music

I have been purchasing from Shar Music since 2024, originally recommended by my child’s violin teacher. Unfortunately, my experience has been consistently disappointing. Multiple shipments arrived with missing items, including a bow and accessory kits. I had to contact customer service several times to request refunds. In one case, I contacted them five separate times through live chat and email before the issue was addressed. AS FOR DODAY, STILL WAITING FOR MY REFUND. The responses were inconsistent — they would promise one thing but fail to follow through. ORDER 2, I wanted to return it and they( K) said keep it and on the house and they will refund me. A month later, they said I have to paid for the return shipping and request to return it. WELL, I WILL KEEP IT BECASUSE YOU R A JOKE. I ended up being charged for an item I did not want it 🙃. I also noticed that low-rating reviews seem to be removed from their website, which is concerning. Additionally, the quality of one violin I purchased (1/8 size $470) was not satisfactory. The E string had a persistent noise issue. We replaced the string, but the problem remained. After bringing it to a local violin shop, we discovered the issue was due to a poorly designed bridge. We ultimately had to replace the bridge at our own expense. Overall, the instrument quality did not meet expectations. Based on my experience, I would recommend buyers carefully consider other options.

On Oct 8, 2025 I bought a new $8,900 German made cello from Shar Music. It is an excellent quality instrument that sounds great and I like the instrument. However, I just do not like how Shar sent me a new cello so poorly packaged, and with dings, nicks, and scratches already on it. I would have returned it using Shar's 30 day no hassle return guarantee, but I like the instrument. I was there to see the box being pulled off the UPS truck. When I opened and inspected the cello, I noticed a lot of dings, nicks, and scratches on the instrument that were obviously there before it was shipped. That is a problem on Shar's end. The box was a recycled box from China that was on its last leg. Inside the box the cello was sent without proper packing to protect it. It was a miracle that the cello did not appear to be damaged from shipping. Although it came bridge down on the truck with only crumpled butcher paper as buffer between the instrument and outer box. Cardboard rolls were used with thin white foam cushion packing material stuffed her and there. It was very poorly packed! The dings, nicks, and scratches are not from shipping. They were already there. My cello was a purchase, I was NOT doing a trial. Shar lets people try out instruments. If my instrument had been a previous trial instrument I should have been told. The two stars rating is because no one at Shar let me know up front about the dings, nicks, and scratches. I was very disappointed when my new cello came looking like this. 1) Luthiers should have looked at it first before it was shipped. Shipping should not happen until luthiers inspect the instrument for such blemishes or possible other problems. 2) Shipping this kind of instrument should be done with extreme TLC not haphazardly (reason given -"our regular packing guy was out?"). Only one place on the box had "FRAGILE" on it, and that one place had a hole through it! 3) Customer service personnel were contacted several times before the cello shipped from Shar. They should have also invested in checking on the condition of the instrument. On the phone and in emails they were personable and communicative, so why miss this important information? Before this posting, I also did communicate with Shar my disappointment. I was offered a new set of cello strings of my choosing as a "courtesy" for this experience. AFTER this posting posted, I was additionally offered the option of sending the instrument back to Ann Arbor, Michigan to get the repairs done. Not to mention, they wanted me to upgrade my posting rating. That's not what ratings are for, and it is washing your ratings, rather than transparency. Note the pictures. The box that shows the inside is evidence of the banging around that the cello got to the shoulders, bridge, scroll, and endpin.