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american fender VS. made in mexico

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panazza

Nov 23, 2003
267
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italy
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#1
hi,
did someone experience great differences between american fenders and mexican ones? (talking about american standard series)... Apart from things like fretwork, wood quality, finishes, that I believe to be better on american basses, what about the sound? Is it so different??
 
#2
Sometimes you can find a MIM that plays better than any MIA. But, now the MIAs have the S1 pickup system that can switch from Single Coil to Humbucker. Now that's yummier than any taco :-p.
 
#3
Originally posted by panazza
hi,
did someone experience great differences between american fenders and mexican ones? (talking about american standard series)... Apart from things like fretwork, wood quality, finishes, that I believe to be better on american basses, what about the sound? Is it so different??
Click to expand...

Yes there is a difference. The sound on the MIA bass is much thicker in the mids and bass side, clearer and more defined in the treble side. Also MIA's come with maple or rosewood graphite re-inforced necks, MIM's don't. MIA's come with adjustable bridge saddles w/stb MIM's don't. Don't listen to anyone, go and a/b both basses for yourself. there is a difference!
 
#4
MIMs do have adjustable bridge saddles, just not strings-through-body.

Beware, there are MIAs out there that are dogs. I picked up a MIA P at the music store the other day with bad fretwork- the frets were sticking out past the edge of the fretboard/neck. Then I picked up an MIA Jazz that was a pretty good bass overall, but not as good as my Lakland Skyline Glaub though :D
 
#7
Overall, I am pretty happy with my off the rack American P-Bass. I played some comparably priced "vintage" ones. I also played MIM's & MIJ's but the new MIA was the nicest one I found.

The finish is very good and it has great tone, and is very light weight.

But you gotta look around a bit to find a "nice" one for you. Your preferences may be very different from mine.
 
#8
Originally posted by monkfill
MIMs do have adjustable bridge saddles, just not strings-through-body.

I own 2 MIM standard p basses and 1 DLX MIM jazz bass and none have adjustable saddles. When I say adjustable I mean string spacing wise not intonation wise.
My MIA Special Edition 75R.I. does not have adjustable saddles while all my never MIA basses do.
Click to expand...
 
#9
Originally posted by panazza
Apart from things like fretwork, wood quality, finishes, that I believe to be better on american basses, what about the sound? Is it so different??
Click to expand...

What part of the bass DOESN'T effect how it sounds? You just made quite an effective list of reason that the MIA would be a better sounding bass than the MIM.



Originally posted by monkfill
Beware, there are MIAs out there that are dogs. I picked up a MIA P at the music store the other day with bad fretwork- the frets were sticking out past the edge of the fretboard/neck. Then I picked up an MIA Jazz that was a pretty good bass overall, but not as good as my Lakland Skyline Glaub though
Click to expand...


Monkfill points out two things here. First, the Fender MIA and MIM in the stores are NOT custom basses and should therefore not be compared to a custom made bass as far as a post like this is concerned. It simply doesn't make sense to do that. Keep the comparisons to MIA/MIM Fenders.

Second point, most music stores either don't have the time, knowledge, or care (after all, it is just a bass) if the bass on the rack is properly set-up. Most stores are populated by frustrated guitar players, who really don't know squat about the bass. That is something YOU must either do or consider when playing it at the store.

It took me 3 months of fussing to get my MIA 99 Jazz to feel the way I wanted it. If I was to make the decision from a 15 min playing session in a store, would that be fair to the bass? The same could be said of a MIM bass. Even so, the bass will take a few years until it has "aged" to the sweetness that my 72 P has. Then there is this question; would a MIM stand that test of time?

I'm not willing to find out.
 
#10
I find that my American jazz is easier to play than Mexicans I have tried because of its rolled fingerboard edges. I think if you look around for the *right* MIM, you'll get just as good of a bass as some MIA's. Just make sure you try a lot of em, since the quality control ain't all that great on the MIM's.
 
#12
I prefer defn'ly MIA. I got a P and a J, both MIA and never played a MIM that was sounding closer than far to mine...
I assume not everyone, specially beginners can afford to buy a MIA Fender, but unfortunately IMO there's a huge difference (also in price)
 
#13
Originally posted by lowblues

Monkfill points out two things here. First, the Fender MIA and MIM in the stores are NOT custom basses and should therefore not be compared to a custom made bass as far as a post like this is concerned. It simply doesn't make sense to do that. Keep the comparisons to MIA/MIM Fenders.
Click to expand...


The Skyline Glaub is not a custom bass :confused:

The only reason I mention the comparison to the Skyline Glaub is because it is in the same price range as an MIA Fender. I know Talkbass likes to be all organized into forums and subforums and keeping everything strictly on topic, but personally I find it useful to hear other thoughts that are relevant to the discussion.

I'm assuming the person posting this thread wants a Fender bass and is trying to decide if its worth it to spend more and get the MIA. I'm saying (a) just because it says MIA doesn't mean there aren't flaws and (b) if you're going to spend the money on an MIA, consider something like a Skyline, which is essentially the same bass built to a consistently higher standard of quality-- the discussion is about quality at a certain price point, so I feel my inclusion of the Skyline is relevant.
 
#14
hi monkfill... I started this thread but not to decide about buying a MiA or a MiM... I already bought a MiM jazz... I just wanted to know what do you all think about american and mexican basses! Anyway someone knows nice pickups I could put on my bass to make it sound better? For "better" I mean more punch and definition and if possible more power in the lows section...
 
#15
I don't have much experience in the pickup department . . .

You might start with the Seymour Duncan website. They have a pretty decent selection of pickups, along with a chart that lists the tonal characteristics of each.

Lakland uses Lindy Fralin pickups in their Jazz and Precision models.
 
#16
I'll have to second the Lindy Fralin pickups. For a vintage vibe, but with more booty, you can't go wrong with these pups. They are as smooth as butter, but also pack a great punch. Also, check out SMASH's pickup showdown in the pickup section...great info.
 
#18
Panazza,

I have to agree with most of the posts in this thread regarding the quality and sound/tone of the MIAs versus MIMs.

I also have first hand experience in buying an "expensive" Fender which fell victim to Corona's poor quality control. A search of the Basses forum will find my old posts about buying a FMT 5 string (that's the one with the highly figured body top, lists at $2,400)and finding out that the neck was totally crap - right out of the box. The neck was extremely bowed and stayed bowed, even after I maxed-out the truss rod. Fortunately, the dealer gave me a full refund. Needless to say, I have no confidence in Fender USA's quality control. On the flipside, yes, I've played a number of MIAs that were wonderful basses. I just got a lemon.

Finally, I'd also like to share how I walked into a local music store and tried the four MIM P basses that were hanging on the wall; and low and behold! I found one that played perfectly. In minutes, I got the action and neck relief tweaked just how I like it. IMHO, the workmanship and finish on this bass is equal to, or better, than most Fenders MIAs that I've seen. The pickups sound decent, but I'm still going to install a set of SD Hot pickups. I'm extremely happy with this bass.

In my estimation, you're doing the right thing by starting this thread as your personal research on this matter. My only suggestion is to try as many basses as you can. You might luck out just as I did, and find a really great MIM!
 

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