Members Corduroy Posted March 27, 2008 Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 I've been told there isn't really much difference. But I'm not sure myself. So, ? Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RaVenCAD Posted March 27, 2008 Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 $1000 - $400 = $600.. $600 = better pickups and electronics, better shielding, 1 fret, different serial number and headstock text, more attention to the fine details, better body wood, and the pride of owning a clasisc American made Stratocaster.. Any more questions? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members senor-penguin Posted March 27, 2008 Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 I would buy a MIM and upgrade it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Corduroy Posted March 27, 2008 Author Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 $1000 - $400 = $600..$600 = better pickups and electronics, better shielding, 1 fret, different serial number and headstock text, more attention to the fine details, better body wood, and the pride of owning a clasisc American made Stratocaster..Any more questions? Nope, that's pretty much all I wanted to know! I suppose they sound better too, with the better pickups and electronics. Are mexican hand made, just like american? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rock-lobster Posted March 27, 2008 Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 just keep in mind, that some of us, like me, believe that the higher end mexican fenders are on par with the american stuff Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cardude6987 Posted March 27, 2008 Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 I have heard that the wood on mexican and american fenders is the same quality. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members streetknight Posted March 27, 2008 Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 Best thing to do is try them both. For instance, when I was strat shopping, I liked the MIA strat the best, simply because it "felt" better. It was a more comfortable guitar to me. I had went to buy a MIM, so I had to do a 90 days same as cash deal on the MIA. Glad I did though. Now I've been Tele shopping and to me the best "feeling" Tele is the MIM Baja Tele. The way I look at it is I can change electronics and pups if I need to, but if the neck sucks right off the bat, than that may not be able to be fixed and would be expensive if it could. HTH Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RaVenCAD Posted March 27, 2008 Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 Nope, that's pretty much all I wanted to know! I suppose they sound better too, with the better pickups and electronics. Are mexican hand made, just like american? LOL! This is a joke, right? Fender hasn't "hand made" anything in 20 years man.. It's all CNC'd. Maybe hand assembled, but no one is sitting there carving strat bodies by hand.. Same machines do the job in the Mexican plant as the American plant. The major difference is the cheap(er) labor. Personally, I've owned 2 MIMs and I love both. I've been planning to "upgrade" myself to a MIA in the near future, but to be completely honest, I think I might just let the MIM ride.. It's a great guitar, looks amazing and has more than enough mojo for little old me.. Find me a MIA that looks like that for under $2k Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members streetknight Posted March 27, 2008 Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 Find me a MIA that looks like that for under $2k That is freaking HOT dude and back to the topic, and I'm not being racial at all. A friend of mine put it to me like this. Would you rather pay 400 bucks for a Fender made in Mexico by a Mexican or 1000 dollars for a Fender made in America by a Mexican. Now I know they're differences and I have the MIA, but I see nothing wrong with either and as Raven said, they use the same equipment at both facilities. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Help!I'maRock! Posted March 27, 2008 Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 the best of both worlds is the MIM Deluxe or Classic series. better woods, pups, finish, and not nearly the same cost as the American series. the trick with fenders is to play every last one you can find and buy the one that plays best. it might be MIA, it might be MIJ, it might be MIM. its a total crapshoot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Corduroy Posted March 27, 2008 Author Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 LOL! This is a joke, right? Fender hasn't "hand made" anything in 20 years man.. It's all CNC'd. Maybe hand assembled, but no one is sitting there carving strat bodies by hand.. Same machines do the job in the Mexican plant as the American plant. The major difference is the cheap(er) labor. Personally, I've owned 2 MIMs and I love both. I've been planning to "upgrade" myself to a MIA in the near future, but to be completely honest, I think I might just let the MIM ride.. It's a great guitar, looks amazing and has more than enough mojo for little old me.. Find me a MIA that looks like that for under $2k Ahh, okay! I honestly didn't know. But you're always learning something new, no? I actually own a MIM Tele, and I'm in love with it. Three tone sunburt. I'll put some pics up tommorow or something. That guitar is beautiful, btw. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members beginner01 Posted March 27, 2008 Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 only difference is where the Mexican was standing during assembly Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members whatever Posted March 27, 2008 Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 only difference is where the Mexican was standing during assemblyI doubt it. It's more like the hardware isn't as good. For example I think Fender makes about three different versions of their tremolo. Also the electronics probably aren't as top notch. And all of this isn't the worker's fault. This is the company's doing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members 's mel gibson Posted March 27, 2008 Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 I have heard that the wood on mexican and american fenders is the same quality. They both probably come from the same Canadian forest. I don't think the proper species of trees grow in Mexico. Any decent forests remaining in the US are probably park lands or should be. You just can't keep chopping it down. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members chisa Posted March 27, 2008 Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 only difference is where the Mexican was standing during assembly nah, different trem holes, different trem, tuners, pickups. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Johnny Z Posted March 27, 2008 Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 The bigest thing is the price. The finish, pups and hardware also come into play, I happen to like MIM's had a few but still my MIA '62 RI is hard to beat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RaVenCAD Posted March 27, 2008 Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 I have heard that the wood on mexican and american fenders is the same quality. The wood listed for MIA body is "solid alder", which means a 1 piece is possible, a 2 piece is probable, a 3 piece is more likely.. The wood for a MIM body is listed as "select alder", which mean "whatever the MIA wood pickers didn't keep, we get to select from".. My MIM is a 5 piece and it sounds fantastic.. Personally, I'm not one of these people that MUST have a 1 piece body. Hell, if anything, I'd rather have a 3 piece (neck thru with 2 wings, ftw!)... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Johnny Z Posted March 27, 2008 Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 They both probably come from the same Canadian forest.I don't think the proper species of trees grow in Mexico.Any decent forests remaining in the US are probably park lands or should be. You just can't keep chopping it down. I don't think the proper trees grow in Canada, it's more a Southern Maple, Swamp Ash or Alder. When they start making them out of Douglas Fir, Sitka Spruce or Helmock, that will be interesting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members adorduan Posted March 27, 2008 Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 As a lefty I don't have near the choices available to righties. My experience has been that the MIM i've tried have been pretty crappy. There seems to be a pretty wide gap in quality IMO. Maybe i'll find a decent MIM someday. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members littlemilo Posted March 27, 2008 Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 MIM sunburst standard strat bodies have a thin laminate on the front and back making them appear one-piece bodies. I guess that's why they upcharge for the bursts...good plywood is spendy;). You can see the two or three (or four) pieces that make up the body on the American sunbursts. Not sure what tonal difference that makes, if any. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members metalhead666666 Posted March 27, 2008 Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 $1000 - $400 = $600..$600 = better pickups and electronics, better shielding, 1 fret, different serial number and headstock text, more attention to the fine details, better body wood, and the pride of owning a clasisc American made Stratocaster..Any more questions? the usa ones are awesome and the 1 fret does it for me i wont buy a 21 fret guitar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Help!I'maRock! Posted March 27, 2008 Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 MIM sunburst standard strat bodies have a thin laminate on the front and back making them appear one-piece bodies. I guess that's why they upcharge for the bursts...good plywood is spendy;). You can see the two or three (or four) pieces that make up the body on the American sunbursts.Not sure what tonal difference that makes, if any. Fender doesn't do the veneer thing anymore. they used to do it on 90s American Standard bodies. when they switched to the American series, those old American Standard bodies became the MIM bodies. they changed again in '06. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Mr Songwriter Posted March 27, 2008 Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 There are loads of things that nobody has mentioned, including the handrolled fingerboard edges and the hardcase you get with the MIA Strats, just compare the sunburst on a MIA strat to an American one: American Standard strat spec: http://www.fender.com/products//view_specs.php?full_partno=0110400&name=American+Standard+Stratocaster%26reg%3B Unique features: New Bent Steel Saddles with Elongated String Slots,Copper Infused High Mass 100% Metal Bridge Block,Thinner Undercoat Finish for Improved Body Resonance,Tinted Neck,Maple Fingerboard Neck: Satin Finish on Back, Gloss Finish on Front; Rosewood Fingerboard Neck: Satin Finish on Back, Gloss Finish on Headstock Front with Buffed Fingerboard,4-Bolt Neck Attachment with Micro-Tilt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RaVenCAD Posted March 27, 2008 Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 MIM sunburst standard strat bodies have a thin laminate on the front and back making them appear one-piece bodies. I guess that's why they upcharge for the bursts...good plywood is spendy;). You can see the two or three (or four) pieces that make up the body on the American sunbursts.Not sure what tonal difference that makes, if any. Mine doesn't.. It's clearly 5 pieces on the back. The front is a veneer, of course, but they made no effort to hide the multiple body pieces. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rock-lobster Posted March 27, 2008 Members Share Posted March 27, 2008 the best of both worlds is the MIM Deluxe or Classic series. better woods, pups, finish, and not nearly the same cost as the American series. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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