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Post subject: Fender American Stratocaster vs Fender Mexican Stratocaster
Posted: Thu Nov 22, 2012 2:06 pm
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What is your opinion?

I have a Fender Standard Stratocaster (Mexican). It is AMAZING! Along with my Gibson Les Paul Jr, this is the best guitar I have ever played.

I don't think that there is much of a difference in quality between the 2.


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Post subject: Re: Fender American Stratocaster vs Fender Mexican Stratocas
Posted: Thu Nov 22, 2012 5:38 pm
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Dear John,

When your ready, buy an American Strat, and play it for exclusively for a week. Then play your MIM. Revisit this post and answer your own question.

The real answer is - There is no comparison.

I have had MIM's and still do. They are good and I like mine a lot. However, I love my American Strats much better.


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Post subject: Re: Fender American Stratocaster vs Fender Mexican Stratocas
Posted: Thu Nov 22, 2012 8:44 pm
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Welcome to the Forum johndavidson, good question one that has been asked many times and answered many times that, so, MIM Strats sound uniquely fuller and possibly easier to coax sweet tone from. MIA Strats have a tighter sound and feel which is unique to them. This of course is IMHO YMMV, to quote my favorite Martian.

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Post subject: Re: Fender American Stratocaster vs Fender Mexican Stratocas
Posted: Sun Nov 25, 2012 3:22 pm
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I love my Mexican Strat. I went through many guitars before finding 'the one' including PRS, and a deluxe Tele (which i did love, but they went crazy on the gloss). Every guitar I've played has presented me with at least one personal niggle. From the moment to plugging this in, to the point of me writing this post I can honestly say its the perfect guitar for me. There is no shame in it.


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Post subject: Re: Fender American Stratocaster vs Fender Mexican Stratocas
Posted: Sun Nov 25, 2012 5:31 pm
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I have both MIA and MIM Strats and even though each one has its own unique tone signature,they all have the unmistakeable Strat tone.MY MIM Jimmie Vaughn Strat sounds incredibly like the old "L" series Strats ('62-'65) with its Tex-Mex pickups.
The build quality,fit and finish and paint on the MIA Strats may have an edge but having said that ,the MIMs are of top notch quality also.As for feel and playability,that's a matter of personal taste and some may prefer the way an MIM feels in their hands compared to an MIA.The tonal response of each one is also a matter of personal taste.

So all in all even though the MIAs may have a slight lead with fit and finish etc.,it's impossible to say which is better when the answer depends on something so subjective as personal preferences.

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Post subject: Re: Fender American Stratocaster vs Fender Mexican Stratocas
Posted: Sun Nov 25, 2012 9:54 pm
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great guitars can be found in both, but through my personal experience the MIA's are a bit more consistent.

Also as far as the wood used goes, the pecking order is Custom Shop, US production floor, Mexico... so it's believed the best wood was used for the US built guitars and Mexico got what's left over.

Speaking of wood, this is one variable that cannot be controlled - some guitars will sound better than others simply because of the resonant qualities of the wood used to make them... what sounds best however, is one of those subjective things that make it difficult to say which is best. I read somewhere once that the ideal strat would not be that heavy (less dense wood) but I have a heavier strat which I gravitated towards because the tone on the lighter ones seemed thin and too twangy to my ears, but some might like the brighter, twangy tone of a lighter strat.


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Post subject: Re: Fender American Stratocaster vs Fender Mexican Stratocas
Posted: Mon Nov 26, 2012 2:07 pm
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This is a debate which is likely to rage on as long as this forum is in existence! I own both an American Standard Tele and a MIM Strat, and think they're both great guitars. I do believe the Tele is the better instrument (better tone and better hardware, mainly), but I'll also content that the MIM instruments are a better value. Both are very well put together and equally comfortable to play (the MIM may even hold a slight advantage in the comfort department). I truly believe, with the MIM, you get a guitar that's maybe about 85-90% as good as a MIA version at about half the price.


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Post subject: Re: Fender American Stratocaster vs Fender Mexican Stratocas
Posted: Mon Nov 26, 2012 2:28 pm
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As a bassist, and one that is particular about what he plays in terms of specs and not where an instrument is made I will offer you this comparison of 3 Standard Strats of similar vintage but of different pedigree.

The first is the Strat of my bands current rhythm guitarist and a guy I have worked with in the past. His is a 2004 American Standard SSS. Great guitar. Gets some of the prettiest smoothest clean tones I have ever heard. When he plays it with some effects through his Crate head (chorus and reverb I believe but don't quote me) He can NAIL Gilmour's tone on The Division Bell dead to rights. I've had the pleasure to play it a few times and as a bassist and mediocre guitarist at best I can say that while it gets great clean tone I have a hard time getting really good drive out of it with just using a gain channel. In terms of playability the neck is to die for. Very nicely finished and smooth. Light and well balanced. Though the string spacing is closer then I'd like. That's just personal preference.

The second Strat is my girlfriend's 05 MIM Standard FSR HSS (Duncan pups). This guitar has very nice neck. Gets both great clean and driven tone easily. String spacing is still tight. Again, personal preference. The only downside to this guitar is that it's very body HEAVY and not very well balanced. (though some of that can be attributed to the fact that it uses an anodized pickguard and P bass knobs) A very nice guitar, and other then the weight issue I would rate it higher then the above AmStd in tone versatility, but not in gigability as it's a bit of a boat anchor.

The last is our former drummer's 05 MIM Standard Strat SSS. This guitar was surprisingly well balanced, and the strings were spaced well for me. However, the fretwork was very inconsistent. Sharp edges here and there up and down the neck. Also, the tuners were cheap and needed an upgrade to locking tuners even after I blocked the trem for him. It didn't sing like the other two Strats when played clean. It had a very cold tone. However, when driven it easily had the best tone. It was a great punk rock guitar. Loud and easily to sling around. If you're just playing power chords the iffy frets don't mean much. However, as an all around guitar I'd rate it low.

Out of this review and my years of experience trying different Fenders I can only say this. I don't prefer the specs on the American Series Basses. (with the exception of the Vintage series) So I will likely never ever own one.

However, one rule that seems to translate from basses to guitars is this. Consistency. American Standard Guitars and Basses are VERY consistent. If you like one, you will likely like the one next to it. If you don't vibe on one, you likely won't dig any of them.

With MIM Standard Series instruments it's very possible to get a GREAT guitar or bass. HOWEVER, buying one unplayed isn't exactly advisable as the QC isn't as tight. So there's a chance you might get an instrument that isn't exactly up to snuff rolling off the line right behind it.

You shouldn't feel at all bad about playing your MIM if it plays great for you! Ensenada puts out some killer instruments. Instruments that with some care will easily be giggable for a lifetime!

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Post subject: Re: Fender American Stratocaster vs Fender Mexican Stratocas
Posted: Mon Nov 26, 2012 6:26 pm
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The LudNuts wrote:
Everything is from the same place anyways if you think about it.
Some people don't understand.
Even today's MIA isn't like it was.
Everything now is cheap


A lot of generalisations here! I'll have to include myself amongst those that don't understand then...

The same place - Planet Earth??
I don't doubt that the wood may be sourced from the same plantations for Northern American products, but the differences are noticeable. Chinese and Indonesian FMIC products use quite different components, and not from the same place.

Today's MIA isn't like it was? - Perhaps you are right, because I think they are better in general. My MIA Strat is as good as any out there in my opinion (outside of Fender Custom Shop, but I haven't been given much opportunity there for comparison), and I have compared. There may be better old strats out there, although I am yet to encounter them. The quality of the modern instrument is top-notch. Individual differences impart unique characteristics to each guitar, and personal preferences may make for ... differences, but I wouldn't exactly qualify those as improvements - outside of personal taste.

As for everything now being cheap, I'd say the quality of parts on my Am Dlx Tele far exceeds those of older guitars.

As I've admitted, I don't understand what you are trying to say here. The generalisations you have made don't make sense to me. Could you please expand on your post, and make your point clearer?


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Post subject: Re: Fender American Stratocaster vs Fender Mexican Stratocas
Posted: Tue Nov 27, 2012 4:37 am
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A have to side with Jonoteague's response to Ludnuts blanket statement.If one makes such a claim he should at least give reasons why and how he came to his conclusions. I have guitars of various vintages,brands and models and countries of origin.Having 9 Fenders from the mid 60s to present day,I can say that the build quality these days is consistantly very good to excellent for most brands no matter which country of origin as guitar companies realize the importance of quality control...finally.Where there are more competitors selling guitars it's in a companies best interest to turn out the best product that they possibly can.In this day and age where you can complain about the shortcomings of a product and have it seen by possibly thousands in one day,companies realize this and strive to ensure that it doesn't happen.

I have played many vintage guitars from the 50s and 60s and not so vintage from the 70s onward.Although there were some "Holy Grail"guitars from these years I have played some that were utterly terrible dogs.Build and finish,sound,materials and hardware was also widely varied in quality at these times so the chances of getting an exceptional guitar weren't near as good as they are at present.On the whole most guitars these days are far from being "cheap" or shoddy and the materials and work that go into them are usually of a pretty high standard.So if Ludnuts can come up with concrete reasons why he thinks otherwise,I'd love to see them.

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Post subject: Re: Fender American Stratocaster vs Fender Mexican Stratocas
Posted: Tue Nov 27, 2012 7:46 am
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i would go to my local dealer to lend a mia and check at home both to find it out for me personally.

cheers :D

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Post subject: Re: Fender American Stratocaster vs Fender Mexican Stratocas
Posted: Tue Nov 27, 2012 5:06 pm
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Hmmmmmmm ... O.P. has exactly 1 post on this forum, made 6 days ago, and it happens to be this rather controversial question.

You still with us O.P.? :|

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Post subject: Re: Fender American Stratocaster vs Fender Mexican Stratocas
Posted: Tue Nov 27, 2012 10:48 pm
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@ Strings: I doubt very much if Ludnuts is around here any more because his usual modus operandi is to stir up a pile of shite and then kick it over and take off and watch the commotion he caused from a safe distance.

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Post subject: Re: Fender American Stratocaster vs Fender Mexican Stratocas
Posted: Wed Nov 28, 2012 3:09 am
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while I agree partly with Ludnuts - the wood likely came from the same source for MIM's as MIA's, no 2 trees are alike. Before FMIC sends their wood to Mexico, as I mentioned earlier the Custom shop gets first dibs, then the US production floor, and then Mexico gets what's left.

At best, the wood in a good MIM is equal to a less expensive MIA (not necessarily a bad one, just that the wood may be equal to the lower quality pieces deemed acceptable for MIA's.)

Country of origin does not always determine quality, but with a company like Fender or Gibson, they are going to have stricter quality control on the US guitars... their flagship models. I would expect any company to do the same with any guitars made in their home country - take Ibanez for example, their low end instruments usually have origins outside Japan.

That said, I've owned a few Korean made guitars that play amazingly (my Gretsch G5120, a Dean Avalanche 7-string, and Cort MGM-1) and sounded great too.


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Post subject: Re: Fender American Stratocaster vs Fender Mexican Stratocas
Posted: Wed Nov 28, 2012 1:20 pm
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Silly $@!&# Gun wrote:
I made the mistake of playing a MIM strat once. The sharp edges of the neck cut my fingers and the G string would not stay in tune.


That bad? If I got that from any new guitar with 'Fender' on the headstock I'd be blaming the store owners not the factory.

Though as stated above, MIM are less consistent. You really have to shop around.


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