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Real difference between MIM and MIA

#21
pedroims said:
IMO, bridge, tunners and pickups are the main difference IMO. Everything else is basically the same ,they are done using similar machines and same skilled people, with the MIA they spend a little more time during the assembly I think, same on the RW, this add to the quality of the product, the best Fender I have owned was a RW.
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I would have to agree. I love my MIA standard P Bass, but my road worn just has a little something special. I would never sell it and it is better than 99% of the P Basses I have played.
 
#22
The differences are fairly obvious. Rolled fretboards, graphite rods, better tuners, custom shop pickups, a nice case, and a MIA decal. Is it worth it? It is to me.

IMO the American Standard is a superior product when compared to a standard MIM bass. I am not saying there are not amazing MIM basses out there. I am just giving my expieriences with owning and playing both for 25 years. YMMV.
 
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#23
I have always liked the American Standard line because of the reinforced neck and the hi mass bridge mainly, and that they come with hard case. Also the price point of a used one just seems like where I should be for a professional regular gigging instrument. Of course that is just me and very subjective. However, I have to say that over the years living in New England with cold winters and hot, humid summers, the neck on my P is super stable and although I give it a good setup every 9 months or so, it almost doesn't need it - so maybe there is something to the reinforced business.
 
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#25
The differences are more than skin deep. Just because someone does not notice the differences should that mean that they buy the cheaper bass. It means they should find out from someone who does know. As far as I know MIM does not use graphite stiffening rods in bass necks. Especially on a 5 string bass it becomes more crucial. I would advise to stay away from Fender MIM fivers altogether. Besides better hardware and parts, the better fret work is also critical. Fender MIM simply fills a gap that Fender knows will always have buyers that buy on price first, and quality second.
 
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#26
Youre paying for security/warm fuzziness. My MIM is beautiful, plays great, and sounds even better. My MIJ is the same. Now other specimens of the same model and point of origin I've played and examined have been terrible. The MIA versions are supposed to have a much lower ratio of good/bad and people have their opinions about that but its how it plays out
 
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#28
From what I've seen the differences are minimal, but the price difference isn't. The rolled fingerboard edge on the MIA basses is nice, maybe slightly better fretwork too. Sometimes the MIM have more pieces making up the body, but that's cosmetics, and irrelevant on a painted body. The MIA are definitely a little nicer overall, only you can decide if the incremental difference in quality is worth the substantial increase in price. Personally I'd buy a Squire to get 90% of the value for 25% of the cost of an MIA. IMHO, YMMV, etc. etc.

Edit: The resale value of an MIA is always going to be better than and MIA or Squire, justified or not, so if you plan on selling it eventually, factor that into your decision.
 
#29
MIA should hold it's value better ... all price points have a reason and an audience ... newer CNC machines have made ' off shore ' models better lately , ... to me ... if i buy something built off shore , i prefer MIJ or MIK ... they've been at it a long time .. !
 
#30
JazzBassZee said:
Greetings. First time poster long time reader. I've been a Fender fan for years. Playing everything from Squier Affinity to American Deluxe models. My question is: I recently purchased a couple of basses. 1 is a Deluxe Dimension MIM and the other is an American Special Jazz Bass. I had a MIM Jazz bass, but ended up selling that one...It played well, but I just could not justify having 2 Jazz basses knowing that the AMS would get the most attention...Anyway, the MIM Deluxe Dimension sells for around 800 new with gig bag. As does the American Special. Both are well built and serve a purpose, my Dimension is a 5 string and my Jazz is a 4 string. Models aside. I can't really notice much of a fit and finish issue with either of them. Which brings me to my question: How many players buy American, strictly because they are made in California instead of Mexico? Is place of origin a factor in determining your purchase, and why? Again we are talking about higher end MIM models vs Entry level/Standard American models.
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MIMs have everything you need in a bass.

MIAs have a bunch of nice features many people want in a bass. You pay a premium for about 20-30% more features and 10-20% more attention to detail.

If you've paid attention to the various Fender lines they almost seem to enhance the MIA line first, then roll some of those features back onto the MIM line over time (made cheaper of course). For example, they are using Custom Shop pickups on the newer MIAs now, but the older MIA pickup designs from 15 years ago seem to be on the MIM Standard line now.

Both of them have pretty tight quality control anymore. It didn't used to be that way, but if you buy a 2010+ MIM bass you are pretty safe assuming it will be a well made bass these days.

I think a lot of the MIM hate comes from people who gave up on them in the 90s when quality control was still spotty. My first bass in the 90s was a MIM, which I later upgraded to a MIA. I could immediately tell the difference. The MIA could take lower action without buzz and was just more comfortable to play. The tuning was more stable as well.

However comparing a MIA to a new MIM I bought recently, it's much harder if you aren't paying attention to the truss rod location or the string-through body. Quality control improves over time if a company keeps doing well.
 
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#32
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#33
slobake said:
I have been playing a MIM 50's Precision for a while. I love that bass the it has a sweet tone that I haven't heard in any other bass. The pickups are not as powerful as an American Standard but I love the tone. I have had some trouble with the pots. No matter how much I clean them with Deoxit they still are scratchy. People here have told me that I am not being aggressive enough when I clean them. I have proven to my satisfaction that is not the case. I will replace them.
I recently played a 2008 American Standard Precision. I could tell immeadiatly that the neck was made a lot better than my MIM 50's. It was one of those moments where I realized that something that I had never considered was true. The neck on my MIM is pretty good but this was great. Unfortunately the pickups were meh.
Now I am going to look at new A.S. Precisions. I am told the custom shop pickups on those are good. I am tempted to order one from Sweetwater but I really like to play any bass I get first. Probably head down to some local stores when I get a chance. I like B Street Music and Gelb. I will know if I have found my new bass when I play it.
I also had a RW Jazz that really sucked. I didn't like the neck from the start but I thought a good setup wild fix it. No matter how I tweaked it the darn thing was still awful. It was so bad I couldn't bring myself to sell it here on TB. I wanted the person who bought it know what they were getting. I sold it on consignment at Real Guitars. I bought it new at Guitar Showcase. When I pulled off the neck I realized it was a two year old bass. When asked the store about it they said that it had been in the store a long time. They will not be getting any more business from me.
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Not uncommon, it seems. I bought a MIM P at GC earlier this year and didn't look at the serial number until the purchase was complete and I was ready to leave. It was a 2012. I asked about it and was told they sit around for a while before they get to the end user.
 
#37
I always like to add, for those that don't know- the Fender plant in Corona California is a 2 hour drive from the Mexico plant in Ensenada Mexico. They stamp parts for Mexico in the American plant too- for instance, the jack plates for certain guitars are done by one machine, and that machine is in Corona. The tour at the Corona plant is a very interesting and enlightening one- if you are in So Cal and have the time- DO IT!
 
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#40
my MIA P and J (2012) are keeper instruments-
I have owned enough basses at all price points to know a few things-
a lot of basses of reoccurring issues:
-many have the dead spots
-many have ski slope neck
-some have bridges that don't allow for enough adjustment without shims etc.

I bought mine used in like new condition for barely more than you would pay for a new MIM.
the necks feel great on them and they have no dead spots; they are punchy, reliable-they do everything I need a bass to do.
it is rare when all the factors come together, especially at this price point.

I believe the graphite rods are worth the upgrade alone-
all the basses I have owned with G rods in necks seemed to adjust better and had little to no dead spots.
 
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