Members HanSolo Posted November 20, 2009 Members Share Posted November 20, 2009 I see these "just pulled out from under the bed" 90's Strats on ebay all the time. Are they any better or any worse than the current ones? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members docjeffrey Posted November 20, 2009 Members Share Posted November 20, 2009 They are fine. The changes that Fender makes every few years are nice, but they are subtle upgrades that rarely effect the tone. Some of them you can do yourself at no cost (detailing the fret ends and rounding the edges of the fretboard). Others, like the graduated height tuners, are not necessary. Players have been making great music on Strats for decades without the fancy tuners. The pickups haven't changed much over the years, and you can do a million mods to the switching system with some wire and solder. Fender claims that they used veneer finishes on some strats before 2000 to cover mulit piece bodies (>3), but who knows, or cares, which ones have veneers as long as they sound good. I paid $599 for my 2000 Am. Series Strat, so I won't pay more than that for a used one from the 90's, but that's just my personal phobia; so if you see a good one for a good price, I say hit it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Saint Frank Posted November 20, 2009 Members Share Posted November 20, 2009 I have a '92 that I like just fine. Not crazy about the smaller fret wire but I like the playability a lot and it sounds good. Some fit and finish issues (nothing major) and it's starting to get worn in quite nicely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Anonymous Guy Posted November 20, 2009 Members Share Posted November 20, 2009 The mid-90's MIMs Strats can be kind of dodgy hardware wise. Some of the earlier specimens have cheapo economy tuners that usually slipped and have the thin zinc tremolo blocks. The ceramic pickups are harsher and were usually wired with mini pots. I don't think that any of them were made with plywood, but many were made with Poplar, which is comparable to Alder. Also, the fretwork tends to be a bit ragged. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cross.bones Posted November 20, 2009 Members Share Posted November 20, 2009 I wouldn't hesitate to buy any Strat if the price is right. You can replace, mod and setup every conceivable part to make it play good and it will pretty much always keep the value you paid for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Yogi_Sizzle Posted November 20, 2009 Members Share Posted November 20, 2009 I think the newer versions are generally better instruments. As someone mentioned some of the earlier ones had pretty cheap tuners on them, often the kind you find on cheap squiers. They were also made of poplar and "swimming pool routes at one point, but so were the MIAs. They also had tiny vintage frets which some people don't like. Also MIMs still use veneers on Sunbursts, up to a certain price point, but the standards always have. The newer ones have the same pots and switch as the American Standards, arguably better ceramic pickups, medium jumbo frets, better fretwork, tinted satin maple neck, full size zinc trem block, better tuners. So unless the 90s MIM was a killer deal, I'd get a newer one if it was me. Just my 2 cents Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members brianeharmonjr Posted November 20, 2009 Members Share Posted November 20, 2009 I'd say the majority are not as nice as the current incarnation, but it's mostly cosmetics. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members MikeSpitzer Posted November 20, 2009 Members Share Posted November 20, 2009 Newer MIM are actually very good instruments for the $$$You can get good guitars for $500-$800 today that would have cost $1100 years ago Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Burningleaves Posted November 20, 2009 Members Share Posted November 20, 2009 A good guitar is a good guitar....That aside, I think the newest versions of the MIM's are on the whole a little bit better all the way around. I wouldn't pay more for a "vintage" 90's MIM that's for sure. Prol' would want to pay less. Used MIM's are generally all within the same price range at any rate so... The above is in regards to the standards. Not sure if they had anything else back in the mid 90's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Doctor Morbius Posted November 20, 2009 Members Share Posted November 20, 2009 Personally I'd much rather have a post-2006 MIM Standard than a 2000 - 2005 MIM Standard, but that's just me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members nanobug Posted November 20, 2009 Members Share Posted November 20, 2009 The mid-90's MIMs Strats can be kind of dodgy hardware wise.Some of the earlier specimens have cheapo economy tuners that usually slipped and have the thin zinc tremolo blocks. The ceramic pickups are harsher and were usually wired with mini pots. I don't think that any of them were made with plywood, but many were made with Poplar, which is comparable to Alder. Also, the fretwork tends to be a bit ragged. He has a good point. My 96 had full size pots but the trem block was crappy zinc and the pickups were ceramic. That and the tiny frets really aren't my thing. Ever since I got my 06 Squier Standard I haven't touched my MIM, take that for what its worth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Edward Posted November 20, 2009 Members Share Posted November 20, 2009 Don't buy into the myth that poplar = inferior; I've heard several luthiers say that they preferred it to alder as they felt it gave a sweeter tone. A lot of folks do rag on it, but then most of them are the kind of folks who'd swear blind anything else sounded like {censored} against an MDF bodied Strat, had that been what Leo had used in 54.... Me, I find it hilarious the way that the early Strat specs are seen as some sort of Holy Grail of tone when all Leo was doing was using whatever wood came cheapest... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members nanobug Posted November 20, 2009 Members Share Posted November 20, 2009 Don't buy into the myth that poplar = inferior; I've heard several luthiers say that they preferred it to alder as they felt it gave a sweeter tone. A lot of folks do rag on it, but then most of them are the kind of folks who'd swear blind anything else sounded like {censored} against an MDF bodied Strat, had that been what Leo had used in 54.... Me, I find it hilarious the way that the early Strat specs are seen as some sort of Holy Grail of tone when all Leo was doing was using whatever wood came cheapest... Poplar is a great tonewood and almost indistinguishable sonically from Alder to all but the most discerning ears. It has a green tint that makes it unsuitable for finishes with any transparency. I imagine Fender doesn't use it often (ever?) in their MIA models for no other reason than streamlining production. It probably makes more sense financially to keep the lines producing the MIA models stocked with only Alder regardless of if they're shooting a trans finish or not rather than complicating things by using Poplar for opaque finishes and Alder for transparent finishes. In other countries where labor is cheaper this probably isn't an issue, which is why you'll find poplar and alder used interchangeably. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members steve_man Posted November 20, 2009 Members Share Posted November 20, 2009 I personally wouldn't pay more than $200-300 for a '90s MIM Fender...but hey, that me... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members benzem Posted November 20, 2009 Members Share Posted November 20, 2009 Worse. And they had the tiny frets. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members diddybow Posted November 20, 2009 Members Share Posted November 20, 2009 It appears to me like the older ones had softer and smaller fret wire. My '95 had deep string wear grooves in the frets. I sold it, and got a '08, seems to be holding up a little better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members trashedlostfdup Posted November 20, 2009 Members Share Posted November 20, 2009 IMO the best stock strats are the '09 models (not sure about the '07 '08), as fender made some good changes. but i would take a mid-early 90's over a late 90's or an early 2000's any day. The tiny frets could be a downside to some, but i like the early-mid 90's alot, they just have a better vibe to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members fretmonster Posted November 20, 2009 Members Share Posted November 20, 2009 For what it's worth, I have a 93 Blackface Fender Tele that really has that sweet Tele twang sound heard on so many recordings. I have friends that covet it, but I ain't sellin even though I paid $100 used and could get more. It is a top loader with cheap looking tuners that hold just fine and a very comfy tinted neck with rolled edges. It also has a magnetic bridge plate not found on current models which some attribute to the twang factor. Not only do I favor the tone to most more recent MIMs which often sound shrill, I like it better than most Americans I've played as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Glenn F Posted November 20, 2009 Members Share Posted November 20, 2009 My 96 just needed a fret dressing and crowning, and now it plays like new. I've put Texas Specials in it, and they really brought the guitar alive. I remember testing it out against MIAs back then, and I found the difference so miniscule in terms of playability and sound, that I stayed with the MIM. I have a 2009 MIM Tele, which seems fine, but I think I have to wait a few years and see how things hold up before making any judgement about which era's MIMs are better. Cheers, Glenn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Burningleaves Posted November 20, 2009 Members Share Posted November 20, 2009 Poplar is a great tonewood and almost indistinguishable sonically from Alder to all but the most discerning ears. It has a green tint that makes it unsuitable for finishes with any transparency. I imagine Fender doesn't use it often (ever?) in their MIA models for no other reason than streamlining production. It probably makes more sense financially to keep the lines producing the MIA models stocked with only Alder regardless of if they're shooting a trans finish or not rather than complicating things by using Poplar for opaque finishes and Alder for transparent finishes. In other countries where labor is cheaper this probably isn't an issue, which is why you'll find poplar and alder used interchangeably. FWIW...Fender used poplar with alder veneers on about 90'-96 USA models. Strats,Tele's,etc. They claim that at the time alder had become expensive and poplar was a cheaper wood that was comparable tone wise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jimmy Chitown Posted November 20, 2009 Members Share Posted November 20, 2009 Bought '95 MIM from GC for $240, 1 year ago. Replaced the trem block w/a Callaham and the P/U's w/Tonerider Classic Blues. I copper shielded the cavities. Great neck. Big thick plastic poly finish on body, sounds great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Wyatt Posted November 21, 2009 Members Share Posted November 21, 2009 You know, I don't know. Until 1996 or so, Fender's main low cost line (above Squire) was the MIJ/CIJ models. I never even knew there were MIM models back then because if you wanted a '50's, '60's, '68, '72 etc. RI, as well as various other models, you bought the Japanese models. In most stores, it went Squire>Fender Japan>Fender until they ceased importing the Japanese models and started replacing those models directly with MIM equivalents. It was years and years later that I even found out they have been making models in Mexico long before the end of the Japanese models. So, where were the models priced at, where do they fall. Were they budget Fender's with crappy Ping hardware? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Saint Frank Posted November 21, 2009 Members Share Posted November 21, 2009 I personally wouldn't pay more than $200-300 for a '90s MIM Fender...but hey, that me... Hell, that's what they ran, new! I paid ~$150 + a broken Memory Man for mine, brand new, in 1992. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mymindsok Posted November 21, 2009 Members Share Posted November 21, 2009 I dunno.... I have both an EJ Sig and a 2004 MIM and they're both good guitars. OTOH, when you compare the MIM Strat to the EJ, even after allowing for the cost of new pickups and a good setup, the MIM is the biggest bargain in the world. (Next to a Squier 51 anyway!) Yes, poly finish, small zink trem block, skinny frets, etc, etc but I defy you to come up with an good explanation of why the EJ is worth $2000 more. Of course the EJ has a better neck, fat frets, better pickups, Nitro Finish, etc, etc but my MIM only cost me $200 in mint condition and I'll never have to worry about damage, scratches, theft and all of the other crap that can happen to our instruments. If your budget is limited, a used MIM of any year and costing $200 to $300, is about the best bargain in guitarland, when it comes to name brand instruments. Add in a little cash spent on upgrades and you'll have a world class "working players" guitar. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Guitar Heel Posted November 21, 2009 Members Share Posted November 21, 2009 worse Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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