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MIM J's

#3
I have a late 90s MIM fretless jazz. It’s the best sounding bass I own, and I own more basses than I need. Everybody I play with/for tells me to bring that fretless jazz along. Not sure about the later ones, but I have no desire to change now. I think it like any Fender. You need to play several and find the one that sounds best.
 
#4
I've got a '95 MIM Jazz that sounds great unplugged with a big low end. I'm going to change all the electronics in it but haven't decided yet on the pickups. Unfortunately they are both the same length as the neck pickup and some routing will have to be done to fit the bridge pup of a standard size set of jazz pups. Also, it has a pickguard like a Precision instead of the metal control plate and it has knobs like a guitar.
 
#5
I bought the 2009 MIM J-Deluxe that was the 'coffee break' bass at the GC where it was on display.

That meant that it was the bass that the bass players behind the counter always grabbed it to play during his lunch and coffee breaks.

When I took it out of the store, they all kinda stared at me. 'Glared' is more like it.

I love it - there are NO physical issues at all, everything's very high quality and it sings great too.

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As far as comparing mine to earlier models - I've only played a few and found them if not excellent, at least very nice.
 
#7
I don't think there are any set in stone rules regarding this - with Fenders, I think you have to judge each instrument on it's own merits, as I've seen killer basses and real dogs from each and every era... This goes for the entire Fender line, including the MIAs, as well - granted, overall quality will usually be consistantly better with the MIAs, but at an increased cost... I had an early 90s MIM P Bass for years that was great - but played a few lemons from that time period, too... I had a late '90s MIM Active Jazz Deluxe that was great - and currently have an '06 MIM active Deluxe P Bass Special that is as good as any Fender you'll ever pick up...

I went on a buying spree around a year and a half ago - and bought a total of 13 basses... or, more accurately, I ended up with 7 of them... I returned 6 basses, 5 of which were Fenders - some things were Fender's fault, some were GC's fault... This was while buying from GC's used gear page, and ordering mostly out of state, and going by the idiot on the other end of the line...

Anyways, the point is, Fender's *can* be hit or miss - but when you get a good one, they are real work horses...


- georgestrings
 
#8
Just looking at it objectively, the MIM basses were upgraded around 2002 (2001? someone can correct me): they started using alder for the bodies (I think they were poplar, previously), and the pickups were supposedly improved. For these reasons, I never bought one until they announced these changes, and then pounced on a new one in 2003. (It's a great instrument.)
But yes, I would play ones from all eras and countries, because you might find a poplar one with a more resonant body than a handful of alder ones, even ones made in America.
This is the fun (to people like me) of Fender!
 
#9
Mine is a '91/'92 (serial # MN1104111) and it's quite nice. Can't tell you about pups(the previous owners put some Quarter Pounders and an EMG pre on it), but the neck is ok and the body (poplar?) is very light. I fell in love with it as soon as I saw it, and now is my main giggin' bass. I played some late 90's/early 2000's ones (both J and P) and they were quite dull. But some newer ones look quite interesting,
Antway, with Fender you always have to test before buying.
 
#10
... just to toss out, I am sure that most of you are talking about MIM Standard basses, but I dont see anywhere that is expressed in this thread so far ... there are MANY Fender models MIM, so to keep from confusing the uninformed, or to keep comparisons as apples to apples, etc., it may be helpful to add that ... I see people asking about basses out of the Classic Series and seemed turned off by the fact that they are MIM for some reason ... the way this is written so far, I could be comparing a '94 Fender Squire series Jazz to a 2009 Road Worn Series Jazz ... :)
 
#11
Yes, standard.

I had an '09 MIM Standard. With the exception of louder electrical noise than I was used to it was very nice. Good range, good tone. Through life's great ups and downs I had to sell it back in November. I had been looking at getting a new one recently and eventually did. Got a great price on a 95/96 MIM. Plays fine, sounds good... I'm going to replace some of the cosmetic parts and clean it up a bit. I started this thread only after seeing things regard to the 90's MIM Fenders as "more desirable" than other runs.

Seeing the response to this thread I think it's been confirmed that there was nothing in particular that them any better or worse than other MIMs to follow. It is, as it always has been, a one-off situation relying solely on the preference of the player.

I'll post before and after pics of the J after all my upgrades are finished.
 
#12
dougjwray said:
Just looking at it objectively, the MIM basses were upgraded around 2002 (2001? someone can correct me): they started using alder for the bodies (I think they were poplar, previously), and the pickups were supposedly improved. For these reasons, I never bought one until they announced these changes, and then pounced on a new one in 2003. (It's a great instrument.)
Click to expand...

I have personally yet to come across any Fender from the 90's that is anything other than Alder. I've probably seen 200 or so at least. Unless I'm mistaken on woods. Never seen a poplar one. On any MIM model.


For me personally, I've noticed that the 90's MIMs have pots that are very very cheap. They die and scratch out much easier than CTS pots. I would figure that the 90's, IME, were a nominally to somewhat lesser quality time for MIM. Noticeably with regards to necks and electronics. I think the street price of a 90's compared to a more recent generally reflects this.
 
#15
michael_atw said:
I have personally yet to come across any Fender from the 90's that is anything other than Alder. I've probably seen 200 or so at least. Unless I'm mistaken on woods. Never seen a poplar one. On any MIM model.


For me personally, I've noticed that the 90's MIMs have pots that are very very cheap. They die and scratch out much easier than CTS pots. I would figure that the 90's, IME, were a nominally to somewhat lesser quality time for MIM. Noticeably with regards to necks and electronics. I think the street price of a 90's compared to a more recent generally reflects this.
Click to expand...
it was in the published specs back then. they were poplar.
 
#16
I have 3 mim basses 2 j basses and a p... the js are a 97 fretless with strat style knobs and the neck and bridge pickups are the same size, I think the body is poplar im unsure though. its lighter then my 03. An 03 jazz thats great i modded it with pj pickups. and my 01 mim p but we arent talking about that now are we? my favorite is the fretless.
 
#18
If I'm not mistaken, in the 90's the necks on mim instuments were made in the usa and shipped to mexico. This was before the mexican plant had the machines necissary to produce their own. I believe the us and mexican plants are not that far away from each other.
 
#19
All of your MIM Standard Jazz's used the same size pups (3 5/8") all through the 90's ... not an issue as far as sound that I have seen, only an issue for those that want to mod the pups and install the conventional longer bridge pup, as it requires routing ...

.. also, the only other issues I have seen with 90's MIM Standards, and it may simply be a matter of their age, and subject to more time for adjusting, is that a few of the ones I have had, the truss rod adjustment was maxxed, and the neck was still in need of removing relief ... and finally, I am not sure if it is a matter of neck installation or the bridge, but I have seen more than a few with the E string well onto the fretboard, and the G string right on the edge ... I installed a threaded saddle bridge and loosened and re-tightened the neck with better alignment to correct the issue in a couple cases ... I should also say, the alignment issue did show up on some of the post 2000 MIM Standards I have seen as well ...

with all that said, with the right strings, and my set-up, I dont think I ever saw any era MIM Standard that if needed would not suffice as the one and only bass I ever used/needed ... unfortunately, I spend too much time here, and would need to sell off a lot of basses to get down to just one :)
 

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