Why MIM Fenders are bad?

[96tbird]

From the OP: "MIM Fenders are rip offs by using company's respected name,..."

Wha? WTH?

Absurd.

 

[JGbassman]

Lol every time I see this posting Michael Jackson's song "Bad" runs in my head.

Moonwalk anyone?

 

[P. Aaron]

So, I bought a Mexican Standard Tele for my son and what a great guitar. Great sounding and quality. I took it in to our guitar shop we trade with on the regular to have the strings changed and a new bone nut. Well, surprise to us, the nut from the factory was bone. I don't know what else on the guitar is different from a standard mexi, but that was a nice surprise. Good quality, good player.

Have any of you experienced this before? A bone nut on a mexi from the factory?

In '99 I purchased a '57 Stratocaster that was made in Mexico. It very closely duplicated the lines, logo, body shape and bouts, v-neck and overall dimensions. When compared to my friend's real '57, it was a spot-on match except for being a few pounds heavier, and not quite having that 62 year old sound some from that era have. Overall tho', I still have it. I gigged it for 3 years and never found fault with it. Its finish is solid and the only mods were having the PU's dipped and the routing shielded as they duplicated the '57 all the way to the nth degree. Tone-wise & playability is nice. The nut is bone as well.

I prefer USA Fender basses for gigging because IMO they are consistently better. Though even that is debated constantly here at TB.

 

[Harpo61]

I have two Jazz Basses one is a 03 70's Jazz USA and a MIM Road Worn Jazz .
The only difference in quality was the was the American made pickups had something special !
The Road Worn Pickups were OK and totally usable!
Replace them with a set that my buddy made and it has become my number 1 !!

 

[A-Step-Towards]

Never been A huge fan of the standard MIM line but beyond that liked many models, i am really A big Japanese bass fan. That said these are some great basses I've played 3 and all were nice and of course MIM

 

[PunkRockRichKid]

I disagree with most of this post. I think the recent offerings from Fender across the board, especially the most recent models are very good quality and a good value top to bottom. I also think they are relatively better than whatever Fender was offering at any time during the '90s, again across the board (MIM or MIA) IMHO, YMMV and all that gobbledeygook.

I am a big Lakland Skyline fan and do agree that they are great examples of the stuff coming out of Asia along with others mentioned. But I don't see them as superior to the Fender stuff, just different. I prefer my Lakland Indo 5 strings over anything Fender has in a 5er, but that has more to do with design than quality or value.

Like I said, I just don't see that same value/dollar ratio that they used to have. When I could pickup a brand new MIM for only a hundred or so more than the Squier counterpart and Asian instruments weren't nearly as well built I thought they were the bee's knees. It'd take a hell of a force of nature to separate me from my current MIM basses, but I'm probably never going to go out of my way to get one again. Like I said, it was just my few cents. I even find the current offset models to be a bit humdrum, all though they are kind of cool looking. A current basic model MIM sells for $500. For around that same price you get get into the G&L Tributes, Sterling Rays, Ibanez Soundgears and Talmans. All of which has better components to them than the MIM basic models. I love my MIMs and if I find one I love and can justify, I'd get another. But, I'm not going to actively search one out anymore. Next time I buy something with a "Fender" on its headstock, it'll either be vintage or a high end American model.

 

[PunkRockRichKid]

View attachment 3189457 Never been A huge fan of the standard MIM line but beyond that liked many models, i am really A big Japanese bass fan. That said these are some great basses I've played 3 and all were nice and of course MIM

I was within feet of buying that EXACT bass. She is a sweet, sweet beauty!

 

[PunkRockRichKid]

Don't know what to say to this. I have a Sterling SUB. It was used, but never played. $200. It's a test bed for me, nothing more. The fretends on mine were awful. It took 90 minutes of filing to make it playable. Once fixed and set up, it's a decent, cheap bass. It is no where near the quality of my three MIM Fenders. Anyone who thinks it is is delusional and I've got a bridge in Brooklyn I'll be happy to sell them.

Mine had perfect fret ends, took some truss tweaking and set up with great low action, no dead spots and a killer tone. I easily rank mine's playability and tone in line with all of my MIM fenders I've had the pleasure to know.

Sorry you had a different experience, but I am looking into some real estate. Tell me more about this bridge. Is it rent control?

 

[Andy Daventry]

90s MIM pickups were pretty bad. They weren't reverse wind/ polarity on the J, and buzz was endemic.

 

[MonetBass]

I own a Fender MIM Stratocaster, and it is a fantastic guitar.

 

[gtlover]

90s MIM pickups were pretty bad. They weren't reverse wind/ polarity on the J, and buzz was endemic.

Mine were RW/RP and would indeed buck the hum if they were both dimed - if you like that tone. But they were weak pickups going into weak pots with zero shielding anywhere. After a couple of years playing in various old churches with dodgy electrical grounds, I went to stacked HBs and a whole lotta copper tape.
Had to chuck the J in my Cowpoke as well, a Model J lives there now.

 

[DarkSword]

My question is, when is it worth it to opt for an American vs MIM?

When trying to decide between a brand new MIM Fender for $600 vs an American Fender that is nearly 20 years old for $800, is the extra $200 worth it for the older American-made model (assuming it's in good condition)? Or would that extra money be better spent on a compressor or preamp?

 

[Bijoux]

My question is, when is it worth it to opt for an American vs MIM?

When trying to decide between a brand new MIM Fender for $600 vs an American Fender that is nearly 20 years old for $800, is the extra $200 worth it for the older American-made model (assuming it's in good condition)? Or would that extra money be better spent on a compressor or preamp?

Maybe you should play both if you can. I think that the MIA is most likely a better money investment.

 

[fingerguy]

Yes for the quality is night and day from the MIA. I played both side by side and every single time I can hear the difference.

 

[DavidEdenAria]

Yes for the quality is night and day from the MIA. I played both side by side and every single time I can hear the difference.

To a point.....i setup and fine tune all of my guitars myself, often change pickups etc.

I prefer multiple guitars (because i can, i have the room) and i search high and low for used deals on MIM Fenders....since there are so MANY on the used market, often for a steal, its much easier to find what i want for a fraction....plus no guilt refinishing in another color on a used MIM or modding etc.

I rarely see exactly what i want in a USA Fender used and unless that guitar can be flipped easily for no loss, i will stick to used MIM for now...ymmv!

 

[DavidEdenAria]

Maybe you should play both if you can. I think that the MIA is most likely a better money investment.

Provided you buy a used USA....all guitars take a hit when purchased new...some more than others obviously.

If you want to play around with pickups, personally, i would steer clear of a new USA Fender as you will likely lose money and take forever trying to make it absolutely "top tier" ....i dont care for "off the shelf" stock guitars as much as some and i tend to stick to the better well known Duncan pickups overall for example.

On any P bass type, i drop in a Duncan SPB1 vintage P PU because i know that pickup fairly well....i dont go crazy with expensive boutique parts like some on my used guitars in general (not that i wouldn't!) and there is nothing wrong with that approach for many....just not me.

J bass? Thats another deal altogether imo...it took forever to find what i wanted locally in a used MIM Fender J bass for a really decent price and after extensive setup fret work etc it plays, holds tune very well and sounds decent....likely will get a set of used alnico pickups but something tells me i will be "chasing down the rabbit hole"!

 

[odysseios]

Hi to all (some years from last time i posted ).
As a nonprofessional user, i already bought a sonic red Player Jazz Bass, the recent MIM series that replaced the Standard basses. I know it has new alnico pickups and i tested it with a Standard one, and found a noticeable difference. Some other impressions?

 

[DarkSword]

Hi to all (some years from last time i posted ).
As a nonprofessional user, i already bought a sonic red Player Jazz Bass, the recent MIM series that replaced the Standard basses. I know it has new alnico pickups and i tested it with a Standard one, and found a noticeable difference. Some other impressions?

I've had my eye on a Player Jazz Bass as well. Would you say it sounds better than the Standard?

 

[odysseios]

Yes. Better than the one i tested, for sure (it was a last series Standard with pau ferro fingerboard, i was in a shop so both with factory strings). For all the others i can't say it...