Mex vs USA fender... discuss.

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

The major feature which the OP can't get in a Mexican one, even after having extensively modded it, is graphite rods in the neck which work and are really useful ... moreover the general feeling and finish of a USA instrument will always be better ! After that the choice is a question of budget

 

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

The neck! Graphite, rolled edges of the MIA help cure those dead spots and make it feel like home.

Holy words!

 

[buldog5151bass]

The higher the line, the better the hardware and consistency. Usually, when a manufacturer buys wood for different grades of products, they sort the wood, and the better wood (grains, defects, weight) goes to the more expensive product. Take baseball bats - the best wood goes to the MLB players, then the minor Leaguers, and on down to the bats sold at Sports Authority. I am sure it is the same.

 

[mantaraya]

“Placebo effect” starts with “Made in USA.”

And would "placebo effect" also will work with the"MIM" in headstock instead of Squier?...

 

[glocke1]

So I had a bit of an argument with a guy the other day over this and was wondering people's opinions of the matter.

Say you had bought 2 basses, in this instance a bog standard, run of the mill p bass. One a Mexican, the other a USA standard. For the sake of equality, we would say completely similar. Alder bodies, maple necks and fretboards. You had bought them both for modifying extensively, with exactly the same components (fully upgraded hardware and electronics) and then gave them an equal set up (fret ends filed, action is up to personal preference).

Which one would be "better", or would they be equal?
As in, thoroughly. Not taking into consideration any resale value or sentimentality or prejudice over where they were made, simply which one would make more sense to YOU.

For what it's worth, I would take the mex. Not only would the total outlay on buying it and all the components be cheaper than the USA, but if they're perfectly similar, I see no point in paying over the odds for the exact same. I understand the USA may come better set up and assembled in the first instance, but given the fact that they would be set up very similarly, I would definitely take preference to the mex simply for the factor of cost effectiveness.
Discuss! And please, no wars.

I played a MIM at GC recently that sounded fine and felt fine. Fit and finish I won't comment on because I wasn't paying close enough attention to that.

My personal preference though is to ONLY buy Made In America whenever I can even though it comes at a premium. I'd much rather my hard earned income goes towards products made here in the states.

 

[Mantis Tobaggan]

I doubt I would by an American Standard to “mod extensively.”

If I had a standard I would mod it so in the end, might as well get the American Standard. I would rather get a bass that I don’t have to mod.

Also, you dont have to file the fret ends on an American and the American will have better selections of wood.

 

[Admiral Akbar]

In summary of what's already been said here is that it all comes down to what you want.

The USA basses are made of better grade components and have slightly better manufacturing - therefore may require less "modding" - and perhaps no modding at all - to be "perfect".

The Mexis, by contrast, will likely require more money and time spent modding to become "perfect".. So the extra money spent on the mods make the price savings null between the USA and Mexi.


As for me, I happen to love both. But for some reason, as a guy who plays out with Sadowsky NyC or vintage Fenders... The Mexican made Fenders seem to hit closer to that "vintage mojo" than the American Standards. I regularly use a 1998 MIM jazz Standard 5 string as my backup--albeit modded with badass bridge, Bartolinis, and hipshot tuners--and that bass has all the growl, playability, and vibe that I need.


Finally-- For a Fender that is made in SoCal, chances are real good that it is made and setup by craftsmen of Mexican descent.

There are no hard fast rules---buy what inspires you the most!

 

[ThinCrappyTone]

The reason I’d buy a usa over a mim is so I don’t have to mod it. If I was going to upgrade everything no matter what i got, i would just get a mim.

In that case the difference i can see would be in the woods and finish. the mims i own seem to have a lower grade of raw wood. Meaning a lil uglier, which i don’t much care about.

 

[Smooth_bass88]

lots and lots and lots and lots of threads on this topic. Lots!

 

[Kmonk]

So I had a bit of an argument with a guy the other day over this and was wondering people's opinions of the matter.

Say you had bought 2 basses, in this instance a bog standard, run of the mill p bass. One a Mexican, the other a USA standard. For the sake of equality, we would say completely similar. Alder bodies, maple necks and fretboards. You had bought them both for modifying extensively, with exactly the same components (fully upgraded hardware and electronics) and then gave them an equal set up (fret ends filed, action is up to personal preference).

Which one would be "better", or would they be equal?
As in, thoroughly. Not taking into consideration any resale value or sentimentality or prejudice over where they were made, simply which one would make more sense to YOU.

For what it's worth, I would take the mex. Not only would the total outlay on buying it and all the components be cheaper than the USA, but if they're perfectly similar, I see no point in paying over the odds for the exact same. I understand the USA may come better set up and assembled in the first instance, but given the fact that they would be set up very similarly, I would definitely take preference to the mex simply for the factor of cost effectiveness.
Discuss! And please, no wars.

This topic has been beat to death. They are not exactly the same. Not even close. Fender has acknowledged that the components in the MIM Fender products are of lower quality than MIA. I have played some MIM Fender basses which sounded decent but none which compared to MIA. The MIA models are made better and as a result, sound and play better.

 

[GrapeBass]

So... for future reference, where do we get MIA graphite replacement necks? 'Cause if our MIM baes need some extended life?

 

[Gilmourisgod]

Given the huge price difference between MIM and MIA, it IS cheaper to upgrade an MIM up to MIA specs, but you’ll never get your money back in resale, so it’s kind of a waste unless you never intend to sell it. I like working on basses, and my labor is free, so I’d get an MIM as a fun project bass.

 

[easyj]

I think the American Fenders use better wood and components. Those things matter to me, because over time, lower quality wood and components will bite you with warping, swelling, shrinking, tuning problems, intonation problems, and electronic failures. Tuners, nuts, bridges, pots, pickups, jacks, frets...all matter. I have bought cheap guitars that played surprisingly well, but over time, they had real issues. The Mexican Fenders are lower cost because they cut corners in manufacturing them. The Mexican Fenders are surprisingly good for what they cost, but I wouldn’t buy them with the intent of keeping them forever. You can actually do that with American Fenders.

 

[Maxdusty]

If price were no object, let's say you were given enough money to buy a MIA Fender and you had to give whatever you didn't spend back - how many people would still take a MIM, MIJ over a MIA?
It's not about the country of manufacture - it's about the quality of wood, parts, design additions (ie. graphite reinforced necks, rolled necks) that Fender allows for each of their basses within a price tier. Sure there will be lemons with their top notch line, glitches, and such but chances are very good you'll notice and appreciate the differences.
Well....we live in the world where price does matter, we're still talking about top of the line basses that are still reasonably priced compared to some of the boutique, hand made basses out there so the difference between the MIM and MIA is not as drastic as let's say an LTD over a MIJ ESP.
I'm happy with what you get with an MIM - I think they're at the price point that's just right for me, I wouldn't buy them if I felt sound and quality is overly-compromised. I also appreciate the quality of the MIA I owned, yes I do notice the differences, but ended up selling it and putting the funds towards getting a used MIM Fender P, a used MIM Jazz and still had some change in my pocket to put towards yet another bass and a nice dinner. I was fine with that too.

 

[Vinnie Boombatz]

It has nothing to do with where it was made. You could have a MIM Standard that's a gem and a MIA that's a dog, and vice versa.

And FWIW, the electronics in a MIM Standard and American Standard are the same pots and jack. Tuners are different, pickups are different, but seriously people need to evaluate each bass individually. If you have a moral or psychological reason(s) why you think MIM's are inferior and you absolutely think that MIA is the only way to go, there's nothing wrong with that. If you can't imagine spending more than double for something that says MIA on it, you're absolutely entitled to that as well. Just be lucky we have both choices, and neither is right or wrong as long as it get's you playing and practicing more.

Now with all that said, and I've said this many times, I've had two Classic 50's P's that rival any American made Fender and some MIA's that were incredibly inspiring. My Classic 50's P set up with smooth, low action and was a stupid light bass at 8.6lbs, while my American Standard weighs 9 lbs, needed a PLEK and a shim to bring the best out of it. Both are incredible now, with the MIA needing more work to get it there and costing more initially.

 

[Vinnie Boombatz]

I think the American Fenders use better wood and components. Those things matter to me, because over time, lower quality wood and components will bite you with warping, swelling, shrinking, tuning problems, intonation problems, and electronic failures. Tuners, nuts, bridges, pots, pickups, jacks, frets...all matter. I have bought cheap guitars that played surprisingly well, but over time, they had real issues. The Mexican Fenders are lower cost because they cut corners in manufacturing them. The Mexican Fenders are surprisingly good for what they cost, but I wouldn’t buy them with the intent of keeping them forever. You can actually do that with American Fenders.

They "cut corners" with things like being able to pay the people who make them quite a bit less, and use bodies made up of more pieces than an American Standard/American Pro, etc., sometimes using laminates to cover up those multiple pieces, grain matching may not be as nice as an MIA (but you see it more and more these days on MIA Fenders as well). Pots and jacks are the same they use on MIA. Yes, tuners and pickups are different.

So in my opinion the above things are where they save money that allow them to pass on the lower price to the consumer, but I disagree that they are "cutting corners" in the manufacturing process. In same cases, like the higher end MIM stuff the bodies and necks are cut in the USA then sent down to the Ensanada plant for assembly and finishing. Sure these may be the necks and bodies that didn't make the cut for the MIA stuff for whatever reason, but usually these things are because of cosmetic reasons, which as we all know doesn't automatically translate into a better sounding instrument.

 

[superdick2112]

Overall I think the quality of MIA is better than MIM. I like my CIJ Geddy Lee Jazz Bass though.
If I were going to purchase another Fender, I'd find a good CIJ Fender before a MIA or MIM.

+1 to this.
My AVRI '75 Jazz Bass is sweet, but my CIJ Geddy Lee and FSR '75 Jazz Basses are the best.
I've yet to play a US Jazz as nice as either of my CIJ Jazz Basses.

 

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

I doubt I would by an American Standard to “mod extensively.”

If I had a standard I would mod it so in the end, might as well get the American Standard. I would rather get a bass that I don’t have to mod.

Also, you dont have to file the fret ends on an American and the American will have better selections of wood.

Quite correct IMO ... I did not find anything I’d like to change in my 2012 Am. Std. jazz bass ... it’s good enough as is

 

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

OP, one thing I’d like to do however ... I’d gladly like to buy a loaded 50s Road Worn P bass body in 3TS with that nice hot-rod aluminium pickguard to mate it with an Am. Std. or Pro. jazz bass neck...
I’d also like to rout the body for the installation of a double J humbucker in the bridge position (something a la Seymour Duncan NYC or Haeussel double J) ... I believe it would be a nice custom creation which if asked to Fender CS would cost a fortune without a lot of background reasons ...

 

[Vinnie Boombatz]

The higher the line, the better the hardware and consistency. Usually, when a manufacturer buys wood for different grades of products, they sort the wood, and the better wood (grains, defects, weight) goes to the more expensive product. Take baseball bats - the best wood goes to the MLB players, then the minor Leaguers, and on down to the bats sold at Sports Authority. I am sure it is the same.

Comparing wood used for guitars and baseball bats is a nice try, but not a fair comparison. As a lot of us will agree on, just because a certain piece of wood is light or aesthetically pleasing to look at, or both, doesn't automatically mean that once it's assembled that it will sound amazing. It's sum of the organic parts and there are killer basses out there with multi-piece bodies that may not have the best grain matching that sound amazing, there are heavy basses out there that sound amazing, there are light basses out there that sound amazing, there are basses with veneers to cover a body made up of what is essentially scraps that sound amazing!