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Two MIM or One American Original P

DrFeelgood

DrFeelgood

Nov 18, 2011
23
69
#1
hello friends. I own these two MIM basses....a RW Jazz in Fiesta Red and a mid 2000s standard in LPB. Both are lightweight and are “good” players in their own right. The P is even outfitted with SD Antiquities.

I’m curious about member’s opinions of owning just one really nice bass...for me, an American Original Precision vs owning two pretty nice mid level Mexican basses. Again, the Mexicans are decent in their own right. But I’ve recently been contemplating selling these and just owning one prized bass that really is a step up in every aspect.

Any opinions on one experience vs. the other? Thank you all for your input. Much appreciated.




ACB373C3-CFDE-41CC-9D0A-96AE9940C1B4.jpeg
 
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#3
To me, they are just good middle of the road basses (playability, fit/finish, construction wise).

I recently when through this with some of my electric guitars. I tried to like some of the mid level quality import electrics....but there was a clear difference in feel, sound (acoustically and electrically), and quality in my American EJ Strat vs the lessers.

I’m wondering if I’ll have the same experience in the bass department. I already expect an American Original P bass to be significantly better than my standard P I currently own. I’m just trying to decide on going through with the change from the “two” to the nicer “one”. Hope they makes sense.
 
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#8
It’s funny : I had the same conversation with my wife this morning.

I asked her if she preferred that I buy three 500 dollar basses , or a single 1500 dollar bass. (The three basses would be the squier 50 tele, the bass vi, and the late 60s jazz. The single bass would be a ric , or that red starfire in the classifieds, or maybe a musicman).

her answer was that the money should go to the Porsche 911 fund, but if I insisted on buying basses , then to buy the 3 basses instead of one.

Her logic was that each bass had a 50% chance of being loved or not, so I had three chances (on the cheaper ones ) instead of a single one ( on the expensive ones).
 
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#9
In my experience, more expensive isn't always better.
I was gassing over american Fenders once as well and played through a lot of American and Mexican models at various shops. What I found is that the step up in price doesn't reflect the step up in quality at all. In fact, most of the time I wasn't even sure which models I liked better.

In your place I would value the variety of having both a Jazz and a P so much more than the MIA-tag on the headstock.
 
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#10
I had the RW Jazz. I ended up selling it because the neck was constantly moving. I could not keep a good setup no matter what I did. It sounded great and I really wanted it to be my main jazz bass but it just wasn't a great player and I was having to tweak the neck weekly. Idk. Maybe I got a bad one.
 
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#11
CletusMarley said:
I had the RW Jazz. I ended up selling it because the neck was constantly moving. I could not keep a good setup no matter what I did. It sounded great and I really wanted it to be my main jazz bass but it just wasn't a great player and I was having to tweak the neck weekly. Idk. Maybe I got a bad one.
Click to expand...

The necks on those can be problematic, you might get a good one but there are a lot of people who have reported neck issues. They are fantastic basses and when the neck is good they are tough to beat.

To the OP's question, in your place I would probably keep the two you already have as they cover a lot of territory. However, you seem to feel they are only mediocre. If that's the case, get rid of them and move on. There's nothing to be gained by settling for instruments that don't inspire you.
 
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#13
Personally I would keep the MIMs. I was a bit underwhelmed with the AO P-basses (loved the AO J-basses though!).

Have you actually played an AO P-bass? I will strongly recommend trying before buying. You might not like the nut width (much bulkier neck than your MIM P-bass) and the PV63 pickup (very dark sounding for a P-bass and somewhat bloated lows IMO).

Also, a "vintage" series MIA Fender bass won't have any of the "upgrades" you will find on other MIA Fenders like updated hardware, extra strengthening rods in the neck, etc. You're basically paying a lot of extra money for a bass that's constructed more or less like your MIMs. I wish I could say that QC would be better for MIA Fenders but my AO 60s P-bass came with the truss rod installed off-centre inside the neck and I've never seen THAT in a MIM... Truly shocking QC.
 
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#15
Thanks so much to all for the feedback. I agree that the basses I have are good/great players. Unfortunately no one around me has an AO to try. I only have experience with their electrics as far as playing/experience goes. I guess I’m in the age old “maybe the grass is greener over there” situation. I did recently play a used Ernie Ball Music Man Special (a $3k bass) in my local GC and instantly the feel, quality, sound, electronics etc were instantly recognizable that I had an incredible high quality instrument in my hands....it played and sounded absolutely incredible....it was inspiring to play. It’s unfair to think my MIMs would be expected to deliver the same quality given the price difference (still holding that they are great in their own right)....I guess my desire is to own a P or J bass that really is an experience like the Stingray above .....I may experiment with some different strings first as those can make all the difference in sound and feel of an instrument. Thank you all for your feedback.
 
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#17
The American Original will be an upgrade, but not a huge one, IMO. The US model will probably be a little bit nicer in quality and playing feel than your MIMs, but it won’t be a game changer.

My own personal rule about buying new gear is that the new gear has to do something I need which my current gear doesn’t. Based on that I’d say keep the two MIMs if you enjoy them. And they can do something something that an American Original P can’t, namely be a P and a J.

On the other hand, what the American Original P can do that your MIMs can’t is to be an American Original. If that’s what you want or need, then go for it.:)
 
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#18
DrFeelgood said:
hello friends. I own these two MIM basses....a RW Jazz in Fiesta Red and a mid 2000s standard in LPB. Both are lightweight and are “good” players in their own right. The P is even outfitted with SD Antiquities.

I’m curious about member’s opinions of owning just one really nice bass...for me, an American Original Precision vs owning two pretty nice mid level Mexican basses. Again, the Mexicans are decent in their own right. But I’ve recently been contemplating selling these and just owning one prized bass that really is a step up in every aspect.

Any opinions on one experience vs. the other? Thank you all for your input. Much appreciated.




View attachment 4783392
Click to expand...
Save your money instead. After you've found out if you love the new one or not, then you should make this decision.
 
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