Is Fender American worth it?

[MovingPitchers]

Still, my vote goes to a MIJ/CIJ. More bang for your buck and you can get a decent used one (if you can find one) for a good $400-600...half the price of a new America Standard.

Not saying I hate American Fenders, but I do. XD. The "American" Fenders in the 60s and 70s were, in my opinion, one of the best eras for basses. Some may disagree, but almost everyone wants a vintage 60s or 70s Fender...haha. I feel like Fender modernized the P and the J (their main moneymakers) too much to the point that it deviates away from the original concept.

Just my two cents.

 

[keyofnight]

I only own a MIJ Strat (of all things). But… after playing a bunch of MIA/MIM stuff in stores, lurking forums, listening to reviews, talking to friends, and reading lots about implicit bias, I'm starting to believe there is no fact of the matter here. I think some people feel a nagging feeling when they buy an MIM bass—like they made a bad purchase. There are several tricks of psychology working against us here.

Some people will always second guess the sound of a MIM Fender. No, I don't mean they can't tell the difference and they're hearing a difference where there isn't one. No. I think there are people who will always think each MIM sounds bad no matter how it sounds. There are variations in standard parts that produce clear sonic differences—pots and pickups have relatively wide tolerances from the factory—but some people will take any difference as a bad difference. Because…of course a Mexican instrument has to be the worse sounding instrument. I can imagine a person playing an MIM Jazz with higher-than-average resistance pots: "Oh… this sounds tinny. MIA's better." I can imagine a person playing another MIM Jazz with lower-than-average resistance pots: "Oh… this sounds muddy. MIA's better."

Notice, also, that there is a nationalist politics lurking in the background. USA, Germany, England, Japan—these countries are better than Indonesia, South Korea, and god forbid China. Why? Because people in the west have a turbulent relationship with anyone not from the west. My South Korean 5-string bass will probably never be worth as much as a Japanese bass, but… well… the US didn't do the same things to South Korea that it did to Japan. I'm sure we "hear" all of these things in our instruments too. I love my MIJ strat... but then again, I love Japan and other Japanese products. That certainly plays into it. How many people love Mexico? I do, but I think so many of my fellow Americans don't. So… It's complicated.

 

[keyofnight]

TL;DR answer: we shouldn't pick our basses by asking forums these kinds of questions. All you're gonna do is get a bunch of well-informed but stubborn bickering. We should pick our basses like wizards pick their wands in Harry Potter, or how Jedi choose their lightsabers. Use a few, make mistakes, find one that calls out to you, make it your own, rule the wizarding world/galaxy.

 

[twinjet]

Awesome! Here we go!

Coffee? Check! Cigarettes? Check! Marker? Check!

I'm ready to play!

I think I scored bingo 60 times.

 

[Malak the Mad]

How do I acquire a Japanese Fender here in America, though?

Outside of stumbling upon one for sale domestically (Craigslist, eBay, Guitar Center used catalog, etc…), Ishibashi's "U-Box", their used database, would be the most painless way to go about it. I've chronicled my personal experience with them on this thread, along with a number of important, nit-picky details one should know first;

Unveiling III: Fender Japan JB62 "All-Black"

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

I'll also say, if you can play... I mean really play, then it doesn't matter. Marcus Miller & many of the people here would make an Indonesian Affinity sound better than I could make a Fedora sound.

This is a very valid point. One real-life example is Esperanza Spaulding. When she's kickin' it with her MIM Fretless, it does sorta take the mickey out of the "country of origin" debate.

 

[vin*tone]

I've played some great MIJ, MIM and MIA basses. Some great, some not as good. I currently own a MIA P but only because this particular instrument was good and really spoke to me when I picked it up. The MIJ it replaced was also really good. On the other hand I've replaced a 1971 MIA Jazz with a Japanese 62RI because it felt and played better than the far more expensive instrument.

 

[Showdown]

I've owned MIM, MIJ and currently own a 2014 MIA Precision. IMO the American basses are worth the extra money. MIM and MIJ are good basses, but theMIA are better. My P is my favorite of the 30+ basses I've owned.

 

[Malak the Mad]

I've played some great MIJ, MIM and MIA basses. Some great, some not as good. I currently own a MIA P but only because this particular instrument was good and really spoke to me when I picked it up. The MIJ it replaced was also really good. On the other hand I've replaced a 1971 MIA Jazz with a Japanese 62RI because it felt and played better than the far more expensive instrument.

Sorry for the brief derail, but I have a question for those in the Land of Oz. Given your proximity to Japan, is shipping notably less when ordering directly from the Land of the Rising Humidity? I, for example, paid about ¥14,000 to get a bass shipped via EMS to the U.S. East Coast.

 

[kodiakblair]

OP you're in England. GAK is charging £578 for MIM Standard Jazz but £1256 for MIA Standard Jazz. Nearly £700 difference.
Oh the Tony Franklin goes for £1775. For TB'ers in the US multiply the £s by $1.5 to get a handle on the price jumps.

 

[Metalbasspro]

I have not played any recent American made Fenders so can't say but I can say there is a vast difference between a Squire Affinity and the Squire made by Cort I recently bought. And then there is a vast difference between that Cort Made Squire and my MIM bass. So I am guessing that the American made basses are another step up and I've become curious about them to the point I really want to own one someday.

 

[Funk³]

That is subjective. Many, many people on here adore Fenders, and I'm sure will have some sort of placebo effect when they play gear that is deemer 'better' by their peers. Personally, after playing both MIJ, MIM and MIA, the difference it will make to your playing, improvement, and sound is quite minimal. Just pop in some better pups into an MIM or MIJ and you should sound great.

 

[Funk³]

The reason why there is such a HUGE price difference is, whilst the quality will be higher, they have to pay American workers a decent wage. They're working in the same standards as the higher end Japanese factories, just for better pay.

 

[tim68]

My take.. here goes.. In a nutshell, I do not personally think that the MIA Standard Fenders are worth the price. Recently, on a complete whim, I had traded in several instruments, and got a brand new, 2015 Am std. Jazz bass.
Mistake.
Worst sounding Jazz bass I've ever owned, and didn't play any better, or not even as well as some lesser expensive instruments.
I ended up selling the damn thing to Guitar Center (yeah, I know..) I just wanted rid of it. It hung around there for a while.

Shoulda known better. Not my first time being underwhelmed with an American Fender product..

I'll take my "inferior" VM 70s Jazz, thank you.
Any day of the week.

 

[mdogs]

I only own a MIJ Strat (of all things). But… after playing a bunch of MIA/MIM stuff in stores, lurking forums, listening to reviews, talking to friends, and reading lots about implicit bias, I'm starting to believe there is no fact of the matter here. I think some people feel a nagging feeling when they buy an MIM bass—like they made a bad purchase. There are several tricks of psychology working against us here.

Some people will always second guess the sound of a MIM Fender. No, I don't mean they can't tell the difference and they're hearing a difference where there isn't one. No. I think there are people who will always think each MIM sounds bad no matter how it sounds. There are variations in standard parts that produce clear sonic differences—pots and pickups have relatively wide tolerances from the factory—but some people will take any difference as a bad difference. Because…of course a Mexican instrument has to be the worse sounding instrument. I can imagine a person playing an MIM Jazz with higher-than-average resistance pots: "Oh… this sounds tinny. MIA's better." I can imagine a person playing another MIM Jazz with lower-than-average resistance pots: "Oh… this sounds muddy. MIA's better."

Notice, also, that there is a nationalist politics lurking in the background. USA, Germany, England, Japan—these countries are better than Indonesia, South Korea, and god forbid China. Why? Because people in the west have a turbulent relationship with anyone not from the west. My South Korean 5-string bass will probably never be worth as much as a Japanese bass, but… well… the US didn't do the same things to South Korea that it did to Japan. I'm sure we "hear" all of these things in our instruments too. I love my MIJ strat... but then again, I love Japan and other Japanese products. That certainly plays into it. How many people love Mexico? I do, but I think so many of my fellow Americans don't. So… It's complicated.

Wow, so now we are racists if we can tell the difference where you say none exixts...

 

[47VevetS]

Is this really being discussed again? Isnt someone gonna put up the MIA vs MIJ vs MIM video? Who cares? Buy what you can afford....if you cant afford it and really want it, wait, save the money, done. I would love to have a MIA Precision, but the only life its gonna change is mine, anyone who hears me play it wont care.

 

[Binary1]

You able right about the can of worms. The Fender MIJs and MIAs are absolutely worth the additional cost. Buy used, you narrow the difference greatly. You will get every opinion here including the one which many here claim has never actually been said by anyone, but absolutely has, "Squires and MIMs are just as good or better than the MIAs," don't kid yourself.

This. ^^^^

You will get every opinion here including the one which many here claim has never actually been said by anyone, but absolutely has, "Squires and MIMs are just as good or better than the MIAs," don't kid yourself.

mdogs: Here ya go! From this very thread:

My 2001 American jazz sucked, but it was still better than the mim basses available at the time.
It's a different story these days. I now have two mim jazz basses that are clearly so much better.
The mia was used for parts, the rest of it sat on the curb as garbage.

American standard are good basses, in my experience , MIM Road Worn and Classic series are as good or better than the MIA standard...

...get a cheap used MIM and a set of good used pickups from the classifieds here. With some fresh strings you could wind up with a bass that sounds BETTER than an american, at less than half the price of a new one.

 

[vin*tone]

Sorry for the brief derail, but I have a question for those in the Land of Oz. Given your proximity to Japan, is shipping notably less when ordering directly from the Land of the Rising Humidity? I, for example, paid about ¥14,000 to get a bass shipped via EMS to the U.S. East Coast.

No that sounds about the same. But that's actually quite cheap for international shipping IME. From USA to Aus generally costs much more.

 

[Binary1]

I know I will be vilified for this but In my humble opinion, I don't find American Fenders worth it. I find the fit loose or sloppy. I think the basic design of the neck pocket is lacking. It should be designed with a slight angle or shallower to eliminate the tendency of many to shim their necks.

American Fender fit is loose or sloppy? News to me. My MIA Standard Precision bought new last month is flawless in both fit and finish. The neck pocket fit s superb.

Neck pocket design is lacking? News to me. Better tell Fender that their design (which has held up since 1951) is flawed.

Many shim their necks? I've shimmed one bass neck in my time, and guess what? It was a MIM. I have never shimmed a MIA neck, nor do I know anyone that has (although with the law of averages I'm sure someone has).

 

[MegaSwing]

I, personally, judge a bass' sound on its sound. That's usually how you end up with the best-sounding bass.

 

[Binary1]

Wow, so now we are racists if we can tell the difference where you say none exixts...

It keeps getting better and better doesn't it? The desire to defend all things not MIA knows no shame.