what about MIM or MIJ fender
- Thread starter jamie_eyp
- Start date
F
Funkfingers
Guest
Re: what about MIM or MIJ fender
^
Damned by faint praise.
*
Try as many Fender MIM guitars as you can. Many will prove to be mediocre. A few will be gems.
MIJ manufacturing tends to be more precise than either MIM or MIA Fenders. Some regard this as sterility or soullessness. Again, try many in an attempt to find something special.
I have been very pleased with Lindy Fralin +5% overwound P90s in a PRS SE Soapbar. (Made in Korea.) In your position, I would probably opt for a Squier Vintage Modified series Stratocaster. You are already committed to American pickups. You might as well go for machineheads and control parts too.
^
Damned by faint praise.
*
Try as many Fender MIM guitars as you can. Many will prove to be mediocre. A few will be gems.
MIJ manufacturing tends to be more precise than either MIM or MIA Fenders. Some regard this as sterility or soullessness. Again, try many in an attempt to find something special.
I have been very pleased with Lindy Fralin +5% overwound P90s in a PRS SE Soapbar. (Made in Korea.) In your position, I would probably opt for a Squier Vintage Modified series Stratocaster. You are already committed to American pickups. You might as well go for machineheads and control parts too.
jimzucco
New member
Re: what about MIM or MIJ fender
I have an mim and I fell in love with it the second I picked it up. I highly recommend you try out as many as possible though because I had played about seven different ones before I found one that was decent.
As for mij, I recently sold a contemporary strat '86 and I never liked it. Sold for a lot, but didn't feel very good to me.
I have an mim and I fell in love with it the second I picked it up. I highly recommend you try out as many as possible though because I had played about seven different ones before I found one that was decent.
As for mij, I recently sold a contemporary strat '86 and I never liked it. Sold for a lot, but didn't feel very good to me.
uOpt
Something Cool
F
Funkfingers
Guest
Re: what about MIM or MIJ fender
Better is subjective.
My bias towards Squier VM instruments is down to their playability, value for money and the fact that they are not pretending to be as good as the "real" American designs.
Better is subjective.
My bias towards Squier VM instruments is down to their playability, value for money and the fact that they are not pretending to be as good as the "real" American designs.
Andrew Lamprecht
Minion of One
Re: what about MIM or MIJ fender
I have played a few Japanese Fenders and in a general sense I think they are "better."
I did play a MIM last week that I really really liked though.
If you are not far away from some shops I suggest you go and play what you can and make your decision from there. Lots of times these types of questions are too vague.
I have played a few Japanese Fenders and in a general sense I think they are "better."
I did play a MIM last week that I really really liked though.
If you are not far away from some shops I suggest you go and play what you can and make your decision from there. Lots of times these types of questions are too vague.
ErikH
Well-known member
Re: what about MIM or MIJ fender
Yup. I agree here. Although, I had an 80's Contemporary Tele with dual humbuckers that was Basswood and sounded great.
MIM's are a good value. Like with any brand, play a bunch and you'll find the one that speaks to you.
Yup. I agree here. Although, I had an 80's Contemporary Tele with dual humbuckers that was Basswood and sounded great.
MIM's are a good value. Like with any brand, play a bunch and you'll find the one that speaks to you.
ItsaBass
New member
Re: what about MIM or MIJ fender
In general, MIJ Fenders of any era will have been made with more skill and attention to detail than MIM Fenders of any era. Some of those Japanese factories (i.e Fuju-Gen) contracted by Fender, Gibson, and other companies are/were capable of making some of the best mass-produced guitars ever made.
In general, MIJ Fenders have better quality hardware. It's often Gotoh OEM. The MIM stuff is pure crap-ola, even today. I've never felt anything close to a desire to change out hardware on a MIJ Fender. But I have felt a strong need to change out nearly every piece of hardware on every MIM I've ever owned.
In general, MIJ Fenders have pretty cheap-ass electronics, though: mini pots, boxed switches, etc. Recent (past 10 years at least) MIM pots and switches are better, and the pickups are arguably better (since better is subjective). You might get a pickup every now in then that just works great in that particular guitar (like the neck pickup in my Sonic Blue MIJ Strat), but in general, both MIJ and MIM will benefit greatly from pickup swaps. Then again, so do American Standards/Deluxes, etc.
MIM Fenders in recent years have used more traditional woods (e.g. alder and American ash), while MIJ Fenders have used lots of different woods over the years (e.g. basswood, poplar, Asian ash, etc.). I'm not sure this holds true for '90's MIMs; I believe they used some non-standard woods back then, just like the MIJs. This really doesn't matter IMO/IME. All those woods are fine.
I will go for the raw craftsmanship of the MIJs any day when stacked up against that of the MIMs. The raw craftsmanship of an instrument is pretty much the only thing on it you can't change later. I don't think I've ever played a MIJ Fender that was anywhere even close to being a stinker, or even just so-so. They've all been well made guitars. MIMs...I've played way more misses than hits, and I won't even touch the ones from the '90's.
That said, the MIMs are really quite good now'days. You can't really go wrong with them. (They were nowhere near as good in the '90's, or even the early–mid '00's IME.) The Classic/Classic Player Series in particular are quite good, and are pretty comparable to the MIJs of the '80's and '90's. I have two MIMs (2005 and 2012) and three MIJs ('85, '94, and '04). The MIMs are not as good, though they are perfectly usable instruments, now that a healthy amount of TLC has been given to them.
In general, MIJ Fenders of any era will have been made with more skill and attention to detail than MIM Fenders of any era. Some of those Japanese factories (i.e Fuju-Gen) contracted by Fender, Gibson, and other companies are/were capable of making some of the best mass-produced guitars ever made.
In general, MIJ Fenders have better quality hardware. It's often Gotoh OEM. The MIM stuff is pure crap-ola, even today. I've never felt anything close to a desire to change out hardware on a MIJ Fender. But I have felt a strong need to change out nearly every piece of hardware on every MIM I've ever owned.
In general, MIJ Fenders have pretty cheap-ass electronics, though: mini pots, boxed switches, etc. Recent (past 10 years at least) MIM pots and switches are better, and the pickups are arguably better (since better is subjective). You might get a pickup every now in then that just works great in that particular guitar (like the neck pickup in my Sonic Blue MIJ Strat), but in general, both MIJ and MIM will benefit greatly from pickup swaps. Then again, so do American Standards/Deluxes, etc.
MIM Fenders in recent years have used more traditional woods (e.g. alder and American ash), while MIJ Fenders have used lots of different woods over the years (e.g. basswood, poplar, Asian ash, etc.). I'm not sure this holds true for '90's MIMs; I believe they used some non-standard woods back then, just like the MIJs. This really doesn't matter IMO/IME. All those woods are fine.
I will go for the raw craftsmanship of the MIJs any day when stacked up against that of the MIMs. The raw craftsmanship of an instrument is pretty much the only thing on it you can't change later. I don't think I've ever played a MIJ Fender that was anywhere even close to being a stinker, or even just so-so. They've all been well made guitars. MIMs...I've played way more misses than hits, and I won't even touch the ones from the '90's.
That said, the MIMs are really quite good now'days. You can't really go wrong with them. (They were nowhere near as good in the '90's, or even the early–mid '00's IME.) The Classic/Classic Player Series in particular are quite good, and are pretty comparable to the MIJs of the '80's and '90's. I have two MIMs (2005 and 2012) and three MIJs ('85, '94, and '04). The MIMs are not as good, though they are perfectly usable instruments, now that a healthy amount of TLC has been given to them.
Last edited:
ErikH
Well-known member
Brian Griffin
New member
Re: what about MIM or MIJ fender
I have an MIM arctic white Standard Strat made in 2011. I can't find anything worng with it except the frets that are not jumbo ones. The pots are CTS and the switch is the half-round vintage one, not the cheapo box one like those used in Indonesian Ibanezes. But I would go for a Fuji-gen made guitars (hence MIJ Fenders) at any given moment. I think the Japanese are more committed to consistency in production than the Mexicans.
I have an MIM arctic white Standard Strat made in 2011. I can't find anything worng with it except the frets that are not jumbo ones. The pots are CTS and the switch is the half-round vintage one, not the cheapo box one like those used in Indonesian Ibanezes. But I would go for a Fuji-gen made guitars (hence MIJ Fenders) at any given moment. I think the Japanese are more committed to consistency in production than the Mexicans.
DreX
New member
Re: what about MIM or MIJ fender
That's definitely my finding. On thing that can be off putting about the lower priced MIJ's in particular is that they are so precise, it almost feels like they came out of a mold than made with human hands. The MIM imperfections sort of serve to remind you that people actually made it. Even the underside of the MIM pickgaurds I've seen are quite a bit more sloppy, with solder blobs, shop dust and employee's initials written on the pick guard. The MIJ pick guard looks very minimal underneath, hardly any evidence that a person was involved, and not some assembly robot. TBH I shop Fender Japan for the models they offer, the added build precision isn't totally necessary.
I've heard that vintage Strats had thinner fret wire, and that jumbo fret wire is a newer thing to come along. I prefer thinner fret wire, it feels more precise, it feels like there's more breathing room in the upper frets especially. i think the proliferation of jumbo fret wire is just "bigger must be better", I've seen it as a selling point when it should be regarded more as a preference. When I was a beginner I would ground the frets down quick by fretting with too much pressure, but with practice and conservative technique, even thin frets will last a long time.
I don't mind the cheaper selector switch, or dime sized pots. There's just no actual evidence that the vintage round selector or quarter pots last longer or have a lower failure rate than what they user in MIJ or Indonesian guitars. As if anyone has hooked them up to testing machines and flicked or turned them thousands of times to see which would fail first... it's all bull crap.
That's definitely my finding. On thing that can be off putting about the lower priced MIJ's in particular is that they are so precise, it almost feels like they came out of a mold than made with human hands. The MIM imperfections sort of serve to remind you that people actually made it. Even the underside of the MIM pickgaurds I've seen are quite a bit more sloppy, with solder blobs, shop dust and employee's initials written on the pick guard. The MIJ pick guard looks very minimal underneath, hardly any evidence that a person was involved, and not some assembly robot. TBH I shop Fender Japan for the models they offer, the added build precision isn't totally necessary.
I've heard that vintage Strats had thinner fret wire, and that jumbo fret wire is a newer thing to come along. I prefer thinner fret wire, it feels more precise, it feels like there's more breathing room in the upper frets especially. i think the proliferation of jumbo fret wire is just "bigger must be better", I've seen it as a selling point when it should be regarded more as a preference. When I was a beginner I would ground the frets down quick by fretting with too much pressure, but with practice and conservative technique, even thin frets will last a long time.
I don't mind the cheaper selector switch, or dime sized pots. There's just no actual evidence that the vintage round selector or quarter pots last longer or have a lower failure rate than what they user in MIJ or Indonesian guitars. As if anyone has hooked them up to testing machines and flicked or turned them thousands of times to see which would fail first... it's all bull crap.
Brian Griffin
New member
Re: what about MIM or MIJ fender
'Precision' is what I actually look for in a guitar and rate a guitar based on that. They are made with machines not carved manually, aren't they?
Quality-wise I find cheap pots last for years. Maybe the difference with more expensive Fender pots is the cheapo change in volume/ tone abruptly not smoothly. To me this doesn't matter cause I always maintain my pots at full. But since Fender/ CTS pots carry higher price tag, I would be happier to have them in my guitars, better bang for the buck you know...
'Precision' is what I actually look for in a guitar and rate a guitar based on that. They are made with machines not carved manually, aren't they?
Quality-wise I find cheap pots last for years. Maybe the difference with more expensive Fender pots is the cheapo change in volume/ tone abruptly not smoothly. To me this doesn't matter cause I always maintain my pots at full. But since Fender/ CTS pots carry higher price tag, I would be happier to have them in my guitars, better bang for the buck you know...
DreX
New member
Re: what about MIM or MIJ fender
There's different contexts of precision. One selling point of MIA Fenders is the hand sanding and hand finishing, which is inherently imprecise, but also gives it a hand crafted look and feel. It's comfortable in your hands because aspects of it are hand formed. With respect to playability, the MIMs I have are fully playable, no issues with action, no dead frets, no hassle with the set up, the pieces fitting together. There's no real shortcomings that I can find with respect to playability.
There's different contexts of precision. One selling point of MIA Fenders is the hand sanding and hand finishing, which is inherently imprecise, but also gives it a hand crafted look and feel. It's comfortable in your hands because aspects of it are hand formed. With respect to playability, the MIMs I have are fully playable, no issues with action, no dead frets, no hassle with the set up, the pieces fitting together. There's no real shortcomings that I can find with respect to playability.
Last edited:
