Is one better then the other.
I am looking to buy used and I only see about a $200 dollar difference in price. For instance I can get a MIM for around $400 or a Highway One with texas specials for a little over $600.

Idk play em both. I remember one time in the same store I played a MIM then a HW1, HW1 was better. After that I played a different MIM , same model as the first one, and I actually liked it better than the HW1. Then I found a used 57 AVRI strat, but I digress...

So much depends on how the instrument is setup, amp, playing style, etc. that no universal judgment can be made. HW1 will probably retain its resale value better than that of the MIM, but other than that it's all up to the player.

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I traded my car in for a microphone.

Have you seen this thread? If you hurry you can save some money on a new standard.
http://www.fender.com/community/forums/ ... highlight=

If money was a deciding factor, then I would do this deal above. I agree with the other person who suggested to play them both. Personally I am a huge fan of the Highway 1 Stratocaster. Hope all works out for you. Let us know what you do.

RK

My ways the highway

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No no and no

Highway one by a mile. No pun intended.

The Highway one is American made and it does offer the better build quality of the pair but also you'll find it has stronger pickups too which means you'll have less need to fork out hard earned cash.
It features the Nitro-cellulose paint finish too which gives it a relic'd aged look faster!


BE AWARE IF YOU LIKE HAVING A SHINY NEW GUITAR THE HIGHWAY ONE IS A BAD IDEA!

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A painter paints pictures on canvas. But musicians paint their pictures on silence. ~Leopold Stokowski~

A lot has to do with your budget, also. If you have the extra $$$, why not get the HWY1? Some of the appointments, like the 70's headstock and the Alnico III pups made the deal for me. I think for the MIM, you'd have to replace the pups to get in the same tone range as the HWY1. Also, the finishes on the HWY1 are nice - you can get all the worn in feel all by yourself.

highway1 all the way

Highway 1, if you don't like jumbo frets then get a MIM.

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2 Customized Strats w\DiMarzio's
07 SG
Modded DSL50 w\Mercury OT,PT & Choke
Carvin 2x12 V30's
Pitch Black Tuner-EH LPB-1,TS-808
Mxr 108 EQ-Modded Phase90
Carbon Copy
George L cables-Voodoo Power 2 Plus
Pedaltrain Board

I hate to disagree with everyone..But i just bought a 95 Floyd Rose Fat Strat with Micro tilt adjustment over a Highway 1 Fat Strat...Both of these guitars were used...The highway one just did not feel or sound as good as the Floyd Rose MIM..Plus the Floyd Rose MIM was roughly $125 cheaper and in better condition ..
I must have sat for 2 hours in front of a Blues JR hogging up Guitar centers special room to make up my mind..In the end it had nothing to do with price i just thought the Floyd Rose MIM was a better guitar..
They were both Fat Strats both were black bodies with white pick guards except the MIM was poly and the HWY 1 was dull Nitro..The HWY 1 was in good condition but did show some scratches dents and wear even though it was only a couple of years old..The MIM is in excellent condition with only 3 very very minor dings.
There wasn't anything wrong with the Hwy 1 and the price was fantastic at $535..If i was buying the guitar for an investment i would have bought the HWY 1 ..But since it was going to be a player i had to go with what i thought sounded and played better..Which in this case was the Floyd Rose MIM..
In my opinion this time the MIM won out but if it happened again with a different HWY 1 and a different MIM the results might be different..Thats why i have to play a guitar before buying..I have seen American Standards that sounded like junk and MIM's that sounded like gold and vice versa ..That is why i always suggest to play them to before deciding...If both guitars were a !00% equal playing and tone wise i would say the HWY 1 for the simple fact that it is an MIA Strat.

So here is the real question...Was the 95 MIM Floyd Rose Strat stock or had modifications been done to it? I have played the new MIM FR Stratocasters and still prefer the tone and playability of my Highway 1 over it. Perhaps the pickups in the 95 were just better back then or maybe it was modified.

If I was him and was looking for a FR equipped guitar then I would recommend the FR MIM and modify it, but he was wondering which one between the MIM and HWY 1. Tone-wise I would recommend the Highway 1. I suggest to the OP that they play both guitars and decide which one was better suited for them prior to purchacing.

RK

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RK

2007 Fender Highway 1
2012 American Deluxe
2015 MIM Dave Murray HHH
2010 Fender Blacktop
1987 Fender Avalon Acoustic
2012 Marshall DSL 15 watt head

RK ....The 95 mim Floyd Rose was bone stock...The point i was trying to get across is even guitars of the same model are not equals...If you play three different HWY 1 Strats you will notice each one sounds different...The same is true with MIM Standards..And in this case the mim may have been an exceptional sounding guitar and the HWY 1 a poor sounding guitar.
My decision was confirmed again last night as a borrowed a 2008 HWY 1 to sit in with some friends at there gig..Although i would never tell the owner of the guitar this ..I just thought something didn't sound that good to me..It may just be something simple as i don't like the pickups that there using on the late model HWY 1's strats which is a preference factor and not a quality issue..
With all that said i still feel the HWY 1 is a tremendous MIA value guitar..But just not the one for me..

Point taken...I was not trying to pee in anyone's Cheerios, I was just wondering if the 95 was still stock after all these years. I do like the sound of older guitars over the newer ones as well.

I also agree that you can play several models guitar of the same guitar and some will sound like crap while others are a dream. The Highway 1 Stratocaster is not for everyone; but that is why I like FMIC, it's ability to build a guitar for just about anyone.

I am sure that you have read my opinions on the new Fender Standard guitars. This is just where your opinion is just different than mine. I hope that we can agree to disagree about MIM vs HWY 1. I really do not want to spill another this-vs-that debate on this Forum.

Again I state to the OP to try several of each guitar model in his or her price range, and make their own decision.

RK

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RK

2007 Fender Highway 1
2012 American Deluxe
2015 MIM Dave Murray HHH
2010 Fender Blacktop
1987 Fender Avalon Acoustic
2012 Marshall DSL 15 watt head