First of all i need to mention this>

1) I am not from the USA and believe this question is valid as i have never been to the factories nor have any idea where they are. (plus in Australia we pay ridiculous prices for guitars especially the isolated city where i live, like American Specials are $1200AUD new! that is like $1250USD so you get the idea)


I am just about for fork out $1000 for a guitar and really want to know what the quality difference is?? I mean is their really that much difference in the people who work in these factories and how much they love their job between Mexico and the USA? Are the quality controls really that much different?

I am far far away from these 2 countries and would really like to know the truth as i have to pay ridiculous money for guitars here, if i was paying USA prices i would just buy a MIA and be done with it.......More specifically i want to find a Robert Cray MIM stratocaster to play but i know its MIM and not sure if it is safe to order one without playing it first. And on the other hand the American Special is a great guitar but cost s*** loads of money.

Does anyone know the real difference in quality or is it really a 'made is US' thing?

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Fender Highway One HSS Stratocaster '09
Modified Fender Champ600
Honer Special20 Harmonica

Search the forum this has been answered a billion times since the invention of the internet in the 80's.

DEAD HORSE Beating here - move along.

Hi Strat0Blues: in a weak attempt to steer away from the pages of rage this topic usually attracts...

Try thinking of them just as different models with different features. For example, the American Standard has a two-point trem, the MIM Standard a six-screw one. Most American models have 22 frets, most MIMs 21. Most Americans have urethane finished bodies, MIMs polyester.

Etc.

If you forget about which side of a border a factory is then you can weigh up your choice as being about which specs you want at what price. Helps keep desicions grounded.

Cheers - C

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First of all, it's ALWAYS a good idea to play a guitar before buying.
Depending on local availability, some people have no choice other than buying online.

Some people might disagree, but here's my take on your questions:

The basic difference is:

MiM guitars are cheaper for several reasons: the wages of the workers are way lower than in USA and my experience showed, that many (not all!) MiM are build from cheaper woods and lower quality parts.
This is just and only my personal experience but I noticed that for example the trussrod nuts on Mexicans are kinda softer, resulting in wearing out more quickly, leaving the trussrod useless and inadjustable.
I never liked the stock pickups.
Other than that, I can't complain about any Mexican I played.

To sum it up: there's a great chance to get a really good Mexican and with exchanging pickups you get a very good guitar for less money than a made in USA one.

MiA guitars are more expensive because wages are higher in the USA and they obviously use wood which was rested more properly and longer (= more expensive) and which was selected more thoroughly. After all, wood is a natural growing material and you get everything from bad to good quality out of just one tree!
I also feel like some of the hardware parts are of higher quality, as well as the pickups are.

To sum it up: USA are not necessarily always better than Mexican but chances are much higher to get a really good one. Or, in other terms, there's more Mexicans being of lesser quality than there are USA ones.

After all, the price must come from somewhere and to me, it's a combination of lower wages and cheaper material in the Mexican guitars but there's crap American made guitars as well.

I have a Mexican precision bass and I'm very happy with it but I also had several Mexican strats (and played even more) and always either "missed something" or I had to send it back because the trussrod nut was completely worn out (which might as well have been the previous owners fault, who knows). Out of 3 used MiMs I bought online, I had to send back 3 for that reason! Out of approx. 15 used MiAs I had to send back NONE for that reason but 7 because of not liking sound or playability, which is solely a matter of taste.
Those results just made me think!

Maybe I just had bad luck but I didn't have many good experiences with MiM, had very good experiences with MiJ (Made in Japan) and with MiA as well.
So I personally rather tend to buy those than another MiM which is not supposed to mean that they're bad, it's based on my personal experiences and taste regarding pickup tone and sound.

There's many satisfied MiM players out there.

After all, there's that popular online auction house as well, where you could buy a used MiA for aound 60 to 70% of new price if you would decide for that one but you risk getting a guitar which doesn't feel right to you and you might have to resell it and buy another one (that's how I did it a couple of times).
Since you bought it used, you won't loose much money when selling it again, unless you bid an astronomic price which you won't get back in the sale.

That being said: I recommend MiJ and MiA but you should test some MiMs as well and decide then.

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Kindest regards from Germany, Dee
My recordings --> http://www.soundclick.com/bands/page_mu ... dID=564337
STRATS ROCK!!! but Teles and Firebirds, too!

As someone who has owned a Mexican-made Classic '50s Strat for over fifteen years and played it onstage for virtually thousands of professional gigs, I'll state categorically and unequivocally that I don't think you'll be disappointed if you buy one. For the first nine of those years, the instrument was maintained in dead-stock condition (aside from routine string changes). At year ten, the pots and switch became a bit noisy. It was at that point that I decided to upgrade the guitar's hardware and electronics to all US-spec components, to include premium DiMarzio Virtual Vintage noiseless pickups (total cost, approximately $400). This Strat has been trouble-free since the refurbishment and remains one of my primary stage instruments. In the intervening years, I've owned other MIM Strats (including a Robert Cray hardtail) and built many parts-o-casters using Fender components of Mexican origin. I prefer these parts for their modest price and consistent quality.

JMOOC, YMMV

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

It doesn't matter.

Forget all of the meta-data (country of manufacture, brand dogma, and internet noise) and buy a guitar that you really like, that sounds good to you, and feels good to you, and is priced so you can afford to buy it.

Then, play it like it's a part of you.

Good advice.

I own 4 mexican-made Stratocasters. I bought them new.
They all have a different configuration of pick-ups and no two sound alike,
but they all play nicely and sound good to me, and that's what matters.

Please, if you have a chance to play American and Mexican side-by-side, do it.
I've played American strats that sound like heaven, others that sound like a car-crash.
I've had similar experience with Mexican made guitars, too.

Yes there is a difference in the specifications of parts and materials used in each.
I, for one, am satisfied with my mexican strats, and my budget likes them, too.
You get a very good guitar for the price.
The American-made guitar can run from $800 - $2,500 or more (new),
but you can bet that you will find a gem.

Buy Mexican !!

It'll help our Immigration problem... lol

Seriously... buy the one which feels and plays the best. Then take it home and look at the label.

Good Luck !!

cheers!

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'11 FSR Am. Vtg. Ltd. Ed. CAR '57 Stratocaster (SN# LE02639)
'14 American Deluxe Ash Stratocaster
'12 Telebration Empress Telecaster
'99 Deluxe Nashville Telecaster
'12 FSR Telecaster HH
'10 Heritage H-535
'99 Martin DC-1E
'13 Lanikai Tenor Ukulele

I have both MIM and MIA Strats and they are all,without exception exemplary guitars. Some people will tell you that MIM Strats need the pickups swapped out to sound either bit good and these people are talking through the wrong orifice.On my last Strat buying trip I tried out 9 or 10 different Strats and made it a point to try and not look at the tag with the price and model written on it.After trying all the guitars and some 2 or 3 times I picked the one that felt and sounded like it was custom made for me.I was willing to pay up to $3000 for a new Strat but when I looked at the tag,the one I picked was a $900 MIM Jimmie Vaughn model with Tex-Mex pickups-one of the lowest priced ones that I tried out but it was the one that spoke to me and sounded most like my old '65 Strat.

I have 5 Strats and no 2 sound alike but they all have the readily identifiable signature Strat "quack" and single coil chime.Like others have said try out as many as you can and pick the one that appeals the most to you.Whether the guitar is MIM or MIA you can be confident that if it's a Fender it's of the best quality no matter what the country of origin.

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'65 Strat,65 Mustang,65 Jaguar,4 more Strats,3 vintage Vox guitars,5 Vox amps,'69 Bassman with a '68 2-15 Bassman cab,36 guitars total-15asst'd amps total,2 vintage '60s Hammond organs & a myriad of effects-with a few rare vintage ones.

I don't have a gang of guitars sitting around, but my one mexican strat (60s classic) was the prize of all the strats on the wall... my situation was the salesman is a friend of mine, the store was downsizing and selling things way below retail , and he could knock off even more for people he knew... so he told me to come in and tell him what i like and he'd hook me up. i played americans, mexicans, standards, corgan models, strats, teles..
tried everything without letting my tastes get in the way. wanted the one that felt the best and sounded the best, as everyone is saying. it came down to two guitars, one was MIA and one MIM. the MIA was heavier and didn't have as much sustain. the mexican won.
but again, it's all about putting your hands on several guitars and picking which one really does it for you.
and all these idiots who are all "I only buy american!" well, i have one thing for them... who do you think is working in california? .... hmmmm.....

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~Dan

It's really about the wood. If I were you, I'd seek out a Fender Special Run guitar(made in Mexico). They seem to usually make these with really nice Ash bodies. You can always upgrade the pickups/electronics if needed.

+2
Excellent way to run every aspect of your life (guitars included).
Much respect, mw13068.

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Good Vibes To Y'all!



Screamin' Armadillos
Texas Roadhouse Music
Guitar/Slide Guitar/Harp/Vocals

The first guitar I grab when going to a jam, a recording session or a gig is not my MIA '62 reissue Stratocaster, nor is it my vintage (at least, vintage for the brand) 1980 G&L F-100 or 1983 G&L Nighthawk, nor is it my Dean Chrome G acoustic/electric resonator or even my two acoustics...it's my 1995 MIM Tele Special.

I love all those instruments (if I didn't, I would have already sold them), but that Telecaster just RAWKS!

I'll admit I modded it (I modded my Strat, too), but it's the best playing, best sounding, most solid of the instruments I own...plus, the thing's dang near bullet-proof!

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Good Vibes To Y'all!



Screamin' Armadillos
Texas Roadhouse Music
Guitar/Slide Guitar/Harp/Vocals

This post goes out not only to Dan but everybody else who thinks his way:

Dear Dan,
I simply don't understand, why people who don't like certain "non-luxury" -guitars for reason of either bad experiences or just being disappointed about certain things must always be called idiots, snobs, show offs,...... whatever.

I, too, do only buy MiA due to my experiences with MiMs.
Well, okay, my project strat with the sharpie pickguard has a mexican body, though.

Why can't musicians (especially guitarists) not just accept other's opinions as just that, what it is: a personal opinion or preference.
Sure, there are(!!) show offs who just want to make themselves "shine" by presenting their expensive guitars and by calling everything below that level "crap" but I'd say they're a minority and should simply be ignored.

Why am I (and the other ones with my opinion) idiots? I'm certainly NOT snobistic, otherwise I wouldn't play a cheap Ibanez RG 350 MYE or an even cheaper Burns Cobra.
It just happened so, that I ended up with MiAs whenever I played strats. And it just happened that I always found a better MiA than the MiMs I tested before or after in that particular store.
This just built up my opinion about MiMs. The pickups were the most reasons for putting it back in the shelve, they just didn't do the job for me, that's all.

I still check a MiM in the store every now and then and there were really good ones but I just couldn't find one which is head to head with ANY of my US strats. I owned one Mexican strat which sounded awesome (at least when played clean) but it unfortunately had other issues.

I also do own a MiM preci bass.

Sometimes I just wish, people in public forums and other communities would be more tolerant about each other's opinions. After all, in a forum like this, people are asking for opinions and/or advice.
Both can only be given by personal experience, sometimes just by personal taste.

No pun intended, Dan and the others, just felt the need to express my disappointment about this kind of "statement" which I see and hear more and more often, especially online.

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Kindest regards from Germany, Dee
My recordings --> http://www.soundclick.com/bands/page_mu ... dID=564337
STRATS ROCK!!! but Teles and Firebirds, too!