Two MIM or One American Original P

[KevInDaBassment]

It all depends on what you're willing to do/buy to get a bass you love, and not just like.

I've gotten a LOT of mileage from buying the Squier CV series basses and outfitting them with the replacement Fender necks (the $249-299 ones). Pickup swaps on P-basses are dead simple. If you can't solder, you could probably get away with those twist wire connectors instead. I can't imagine a luthier charging you too much just to solder in some pickups, but idk what the market value on work is these days.

I'd also recommend experimenting with different strings too. Some people disagree, but I don't find replacement bridges to affect tone that much. They can definitely help with stability during restrings, doing saddle adjustments, and some have side-loading cavities for the string ends instead of the straight hole you have to feed them through. Definitely a help if you like to swap between different string types but wanna keep the old ones in good shape.

At the end of the day, it's whatever works best for you. I would STRONGLY recommend holding onto your old ones until you find "that" bass you're looking for. Buyer's remorse is bad, but seller's remorse is BRUTAL IME...

 

[shnapper]

Interesting question, a good question as well…

I was at GC the other night, the usual crowd. Sadly a kid was literally beating the poop out of a nice Rick during my visit. I was thinking about buying an American P or J, they had 3 covered in finger prints and palm gunk. I held and played them all, oddly enough I liked none. Blue J bass had a deformity to pocket edge, P neck had errr questionable fret work..

The bass I liked most after picking the gunk wall of audition was…..(wait for it)

The $250 dollar sterling sub with single HB, it was comfortable and sounded just as good as any bass. At that point I left and will stick with buying a bass that plays well that I don’t have to Pay much for.

Keep what you have, save your cash for a better amp, strings or tires for the car lol!

 

[Stranger Danger]

AO for sure

 

[-Asdfgh-]

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.

I'm not bothered about the acoustic sound from a solid body electric instrument as if an ABG is too quiet for a gig, an unamplified solid body definitely will be. I'm only interested in how it sounds plugged in.

 

[Crackle]

I currently own a Fender American Original 60s Precision Bass in lake placid blue. I rarely play it because a) I don't find the neck profile to be all that comfortable and b) the clay dots are too dark to see onstage. I considered modding it with luminlays or stick-on glow in the dark dots, but I'm not needing it.

I also own a Fender American Original 50s Precision Bass in Aztec gold. It is superior in every way. Although the original tuners caused major neck dive, I replaced them with Gotoh Res-O-Lites and solved the issue with no mods.

If your current basses suit you well, think twice.

 

[Stranger Danger]

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.

I have an EBMM SRS 5HH and an American P bass and a Flea Jazz (RW). I love my Fenders but the EBMM is a big step up in build quality, fit and finish from nearly any Fender. That’s just a fact. But they don’t sound like a Fender despite what anyone may say.

 

[-Asdfgh-]

I got an MIJ to replace my MIK Squiers, and nice as it is, I may keep the Squiers...

 

[lermgalieu]

I would be sure you find the right P before letting those go. I have (among other basses) an 1996 MIM P and a 2015 MIA P. The MIA is superior in certain areas of craftsmanship, but guess which one was my main player for longest? The MIM. It's all about how it feels to you and how it sounds in the mix. My MIM has a little nastiness that I love and the neck is great. If someone told me I had to sell one of them, it might very well be the MIA.

 

[nonohmic]

Quality over quantity. But if I were you I would just rock the RW Fiesta and keep the MIM as a back-up.

 

[PotsdamBass8]

Obviously no right answer, but here are some things that I would factor in:

-Do you have/need a backup? I always have one on a gig, so for me I would be getting one nice bass and then a cheap one just in case.

-Do you play both somewhat equally because you genuinely like the differences in sound or feel, or just for the sake of not letting one go to waste? Over the years, having multiple basses at a time, I’ve found that unless I’m in different style bands, I prefer one bass over everything else and never switch. I prefer to make differences in my playing or onboard knob turns rather than switching basses.

-I wouldn’t do anything until I have a good idea what the new bass is going to sound and feel like. You mentioned you played an EBMM and it felt higher quality. There are so many differences between the stingray and your two fenders that it’s really hard to say it’s from the instrument being more expensive.

-if I’m not reeeeeally certain that I’ll like and keep a bass, I will make sure I buy it used for a good price, so I can flip it for the same or close to what I paid. Not sure this would be a great tactic if you won’t have a bass in the mean time.

I think you’ll have a better idea of what you want to do after you’ve played a bunch of other basses. Even if you have to travel a bit, find a place with several more expensive instruments, preferably the MIA fenders you’re considering, so you can see if it really is a big difference or not.

One final thing, if you don’t regularly get your basses set up by a very good tech, consider doing that. I do my own adjustments, but every once in a while I need to take it to someone to get the frets leveled and give it a thorough look over. It can make a huge difference in the feel and sound of the bass.

 

[Scarysharkface]

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.




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There is an intangible satisfaction in owning a fine instrument. Sometimes that's reflected in the playing and sometimes not, but if it turns your crank, then by all means get the instrument of your dreams.

John

 

[shadven]

One MIA!

 

[Pings Bass]

Mid-level imports are good enough for me. I don't notice enough difference in playability or sound to justify the difference in price for a domestic of the same basic model from the same manufacturer.

If I were a vastly better player, I might appreciate the difference. But I'm lucky to not be that good or picky, I guess.

Full disclosure: I own a 76 P and a late model MiM "70s" jazz. The latter feels like a better put together instrument, FWIW.

 

[MisticoRitualista]

Id keep the two & just make whatever upgrades you want

 

[vindibona1]

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.

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Are the American basses really a big step up? I think it depends on the vintage of the MIM's. IMO in the last few years the Squier CV's have really overtaken the MIM's in quality (again, IMO). However, I've got one MIM jazz5 from 2010 and Squier 70's modded Jazz4 from 2011. The quality from their 2nd and 3rd tier basses from that period are pretty incredible. Granted those can be a little heavy compared to some MIA's. But you say that you're basses are light weight.

If it were me, I'd leave the J bass alone with the antiquities and contemplate upgrading the Jazz. If it were mine I think the first thing I'd try is a John East drop-in preamp. While I have Audere and love it, the John East provides both an active and passive side. Audere only offers active. Then if you want go further, swap in new pickups. If for whatever reason you feel you have any neck dive, some Hipshot Ultralights or Gotohs tuners (whatever will fit) will fix that right up and add possibly add some extra resonance. Those might prove to be "over-improvement of that bass. If that's the case I'd keep the P bass, sell the J and come up with the difference for a more expensive bass. IMO you won't be able to replace the P bass.

However, if you think you can find a bass you can bond with better, by all means. It's only money. And now's the time, because inflation won't get any better and we can expect to see 10% price increases (or more) for the foreseeable future until the dollar holds its value, supply chains are going full tilt and the cost of fuel to move goods around comes down SUBSTANTIALLY. A $2.50/gal increase with a 50¢ temporary reduction isn't significant in my opinion, though better than another 50¢ increase. And if you can find something used at a good price, I would say definitely go for it. It will maintain it's value over time. A new bass will do well over time, but as the "new" owner you'll defintely take a value hit on the initial depreciation. But if this is a long time purchase, then the depreciation won't matter much. But the timing of the purchase, using higher value dollars to buy lower priced goods can be a good move.

 

[mrjim123]

If you gig you should always take a backup bass, so I say stick with no less than two.

 

[bassliner50]

2 MIM P's. With a perfect setup and pickups and strings of your choice, it will play as well or better than the $$$USA model. Also might be easier to resell at that price point if that becomes necessary.

 

[tvbop]

For me the Q is null and void...Had both and vintage too, all gone, and now use a CV 70's P bass and for back up a VM P beater.

 

[tmvt]

Ive had everything from the Squires to the American Deluxe series and it didnt make me any better or effect my playing negatively. It also didnt change how I sounded all that much. I go with what feels best in my hand. I've played the squire over higher end basses based on the feel and the fit for the material.

I've also had US G&Ls and even a vintage Guild Pilot. If I had to pick one out of all of them Id pick the Guild over all of them every time. Great feel, lightweight, vintage EMGs and I only payed $400ish bucks. Kick the S*&T out of the American deluxe for a 1/4 the price.

Only bass I have left as of right now is 2001/2002 MIM P bass in Sage Green, sold all the rest.

I dont feel you really get anything from the USA you cant from the MIM so I would pick the two MIM. Right now you have two of the most recorded tones that will cover almost everything and you could also set them up for different tunings or one with rounds and one with flats. You have more options.

 

[BrianRoze]

I must say my AO-P is a really nice bass.
The clay markers are cool, but I had to replace the side markers with larger and brighter mother of pearls. Now I can see them better with the aging peripheral vision.