A lot of it has to do with how the guitar is setup. My MIM strat has been professionally setup and plays better than a lot of MIM Strats in the stores. If the Squier has a little better setup than it can outplay and sometimes out tone the mim i.e action and pup height.

_________________
Fender Standard Strat w/ DiMarzio VVHB2 Bridge and Area 67's neck/middle
Gibson 2014 SGJ
Fender DRRI with Weber 12F150 50 watts light dope
Vox AC15C1PL stock
Vox V845, PaulC Timmy (surf green), Fulltone OCD, Dunlop Volume, Strymon TimeLine, T1M Mini A/B

MIM Vs Squier

I always say this to all people, play before you pay. I have played and owned really nice Squiers that do out do the MIM Standards. I have played MIM Strats that can out perform MIA Standards. There is more to a guitar than a name on a headstock. Play as many guitars in your price range and let your fingers and ears do the picking.

_________________
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

I take part in several guitar oriented forums and I'm surprised by the fact that in this day and age of finding info about any guitar within seconds,brand snobbery is still alive and thriving. People think that they are being wise and superior to other guitar players who use other or different brands when they dogmatically adhere to a single brand and dismiss everything else as being inferior or even junk. These people are just being incredibly obtuse and are in fact displaying profound ignorance about guitars.I'd love to be able to challenge any or all of these self proclaimed "experts" to a blindfold test-it wouldn't take long for them to be shown up as being full of it.I have been playing and working on guitars for over 45 years and can safely say that what's printed on the headstock ultimately means diddly and it's your hands and ears-and being totally honest with yourself-that is the most important thing.

My youngest daughter worked on the assembly line of the local Gibson plant installing necks,tuning gears and electronics..Anyway they used to get factory seconds from other manufacturers for some reason and could buy them way below wholesale cost.Anyway one Fathers Day both daughters presented me with a Strat-like guitar that had just a few tiny paint blemishes and since it hadn't made it to the end of the production line it had no logo but it looked much like some Samick models.Anyway this little noname gem sounds like a guitar that costs hundreds of dollars.I've handed it to several people and let them try it out and they are without exception all amazed by the sound and feel of this little tone demon.

Anyway these days when I hear someone who is obviously a tone snob talking about "their brand" all they are really saying is that are too stupid to realize how dim they are.

_________________
'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.

guitslinger, No doubt you have a point, but the OP asked about a Squier & MIM Strat. I must confess, I like seeing Fender & Gibson on the headstock, but if I came across a no name or other name that I thought looked like a good deal, I wouldn't shy away. I bought my MIM because I thought just that, it was a good deal & a really great guitar, & indeed it was. 5 years on I haven't seen a phenomenally better deal since. On the other hand, as much as I like my LP, I think I paid too much.

I must respond to this post. I've owned American series and standard series strats. There was a larger quality difference in the 90's between them than there is now a days.

I sold my MIM strat because the bridge springs squeeked like a busted bed and it had a poplar body. I currently own the American series standard. They offer a bit more than just a sticker and pick ups. They also come with a hardshell case, an extra fret, and the micro-tilt adjustment neck. It boils down to paying for excessories (and the name).

If you want something that plays well, let your fingers judge, if you want something that sounds good, let your ears judge, if you want something inexpensive, let your wallet judge, if all you want is a status symbol, pay for a name brand.

There is some sense of "you get what you pay for" which you'll see between the lower line Affinity squiers as compared to the classic vibe series. I believe the body wood of the classic vibe series is alder, and the affinity series is "real wood".

Yeah, all of that is true and very good points.

_________________