MIM vs MIA Strats

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BeniRose

BeniRose

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I'm planning on getting a new guitar and I was wondering if it would be a waste of money to get a MIM strat and put new pickups in it. I can't really afford an American strat, but I thought if I bought a Mexican strat and put new pickups in it, I could get pretty close. Is this true? I heard the necks come from the American factory, so how much worse can the electric and body work be? I'm playing a Squire now, so anything would really be a good upgrade, but I was just wondering if it was worth my money to invest in a MIM with new pickups or if it's not even gonna be close to an American strat.

P.S. I'd probably replace the pickups in an American as well, I just didn't know if the quality of work on the rest of the guitar made that much of a difference in the sound.
 
BeniRose, from what I gather from some of the Fender experts that have posted in the past, the MIM and MIA instruments differ mainly in the electronics but have the same wood, finish, etc. I think the consensus is that the MIM guitars are well worth a little upgrading.
 
I have a MIM strat - and I agree that the "weakest" part would be the electronics. But I would go further and say that the electronics might be just fine for the sound you want - they aren't neccessarily bad, just less expensive.

I've played some MIA strats and they play the same as mine. I also have an Squire Affinity tele (China) and it plays the same as the various other Tele's at GC that day. I compared about 8-10 guitars before deciding that the $140 was probably an outstanding price for the such a nice playing guitar. Again the electronics are different - but not neccessarily bad.

In fact, the $1,300 MIA Fender tele had the exact same issue with fret ends sticking out and scraping up your fingers. Which I think totaly sucks and is unexcusable on any modern guitar.
 
I have three MIM Fender basses, and there's not a clunker in the bunch (fretless Jazz, Classic '50s P, Standard FSR P with a fretless Warmoth neck).

Fit and finish are very good. If you don't like the electronics, that's easy enough to upgrade (and you can do it a piece at a time, so it doesn't get expensive). As it happens, all of my basses have Seymour Duncan pickups, so I can't really judge a Strat...but I once owned a Strat that I stuck Fender Vintage pickups in, and it was a great-sounding axe. The pickups cost me (used) $75 for all three.
 
In fact, the $1,300 MIA Fender tele had the exact same issue with fret ends sticking out and scraping up your fingers. Which I think totaly sucks and is unexcusable on any modern guitar.[/QUOTE]


This is more than likely a humidity issue. low humidity and the wood of the fretboard shrinks in turn the frets stick out past the wood a little.
 
MIM's are essentially identical, minus the electronics and some of the hardware. The necks/bodies are made in the same place, the only difference as it was explained to me (by Fender repair service people) is that some of lesser quality stock (less desirable grain, wierd patterns or marks in grain) end up as the solid colored MIM Fenders. Does that affect tone or playability? IMHO, not at all. Does it mean you can get a wierd looking pattern on your rosewood fretboard? Possibly, but again it makes no appreciable difference on tone or playability. And I've seen plenty of MIM fretboards that look as good as the MIA boards.

The standard American electronics are nothing to write home about either. I worked as a guitar tech a couple years ago, and set up MIM strats with Custom Shop p/ups all the time. That guitar, when properly setup and loved, would play as well as any of the Americans hanging on the wall, and definately had a better tone. My personal favorite p/ups for the MIM's are the "Custom Shop '69" and the "Custom Shop Fat 50's". Excellent Fender mojo and vibe, a lot less money.

For a few extra $$$, the Fender locking tuners are of much better quality the the MIM hardware, and are quite nice.

All said and done, for the super deluxe MIM strat, you're still coming in well under the price of a MIA strat. You can save a few more dollars by going used on the MIM Strat...
 
You can save a few more dollars by going used on the MIM Strat...
Click to expand...

There are a lot of used MIM's that can had real cheap. $200 or less. I see them on CL frequently.

Like the others said, the electronics aren't great. I gutted mine. The only other thing I could recommend would be to replace the tremolo block. The zinc originals don't give the best tone.
 
I got a MIM strat about four years ago.

A few months after I bought it, I replaced the pickups with Lace Sensors. To save some time and simplify things a bit, I bought a new pick guard and pots and just did a full pick guard replacement. I used a modified wiring schematic to turn the second tone cap into a blend pot for more pickup configurations and added a filter cap to keep the highs from rolling off as I turned the volume down. I also shielded the entire interior of the body cavity with copper tape and soldered a ground wire to the shield.

A couple of months after that, I upgraded to Sperzel locking tuners. I don't use a tremelo, but I LOVE being able to change strings in just a couple of minutes.

In the end, I have a very playable guitar and get many comments (that I never got before) on how great my rig sounds. Plus, I had a total blast doing all the customization.

Over all, I have about $700 tied up in this guitar. I could have bought a cheaper MIA strat, but not over time, and I still think my electronics upgrades, shielding, and tuners are better than what comes in the cheapie MIA models.

I now have a Jeff Beck Signature Custom shop, which is AWESOME!!! (It better be for how much I paid, dammit!) But, I still alternate and play both guitars equally.

A MIM strat will most likely not hold it's value, or increase as it becomes a "vintage" piece in the same way a MIA will. But, if you're looking for an investment I'd recommend talking to your financial advisor. ;) :D:D
 
mwthompson said:
.... I used a modified wiring schematic to turn the second tone cap into a blend pot for more pickup configurations and added a filter cap to keep the highs from rolling off as I turned the volume down.
Click to expand...

I've been thinking of wiring my strat like that. What value cap did you did you use for the high-pass. I was going to use a .001
 
JCH said:
I've been thinking of wiring my strat like that. What value cap did you did you use for the high-pass. I was going to use a .001
Click to expand...

To be honest, it was so long ago I can't remember. I'll see if I can find the schematic I used and post it when I get home.
 
Ditto the Hwy 1 suggestion if you want a new one. Also, keep an eye on CL and ebay for local sales of MIA's as they will be pretty close to the price of a new MIM w/ upgrade PuPs if you drive a hard bargain.
 
I love my MIM Tele.....It plays great & sounds great.

It's probably more a matter of what model Strat you buy than the country of origin. If you buy a $200 one, you might end up wanting different pickups. Maybe not, though.

(I bought my Tele used, but it would've been about $750 new)
 
Thanks so much guys, I feel much better about it now. I think I'm just going to have to go to the music store and try about a bunch of different strat pickups, I was leaning towards some vintage rails, but I might want to go a little nicer. The main point is I don't have lots to spend at once, so the upgrade little by little plan seemed nice to me. I don't really need a Tremolo either so I'd be quick to replace that if it's cheap for a better block.

Again, thanks for all the comments, I really want a guitar that I feel like is mine, and I think this is a good way to do it without having to drop so much money all at once.
 
If you want a really pure Strat sound you cant go wrong with a pickguard setup with Lindy Fralins.
 
The pickups on the american series are really nice. I have an american standard that I put a seymour duncan hotrail into along with fender lace sensors. The new american series strat had the same amount of output as those pickups. I wouldnt change the pickups out of my american series, simply because I love the sound I get from them. Good on ya for going out and trying some different guitars, because when you find the one you love, you'll know it!
 
Good on ya for going out and trying some different guitars, because when you find the one you love, you'll know it!
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amen. i have 3 american standard strats from the 90s. i love them. and they all sound different. the delta tone system in the american standards is great. i personally want to get an american standard strat just for modding. put some nasty pickups in there, etc.
 
BeniRose said:
I'm planning on getting a new guitar and I was wondering if it would be a waste of money to get a MIM strat and put new pickups in it. I can't really afford an American strat, but I thought if I bought a Mexican strat and put new pickups in it, I could get pretty close. Is this true?
Click to expand...


No, it is not true. People will tell you otherwise, but frankly they are talking out of their asses. I am speaking as someone who has seen literally thousands of these things, and the fact of the matter is the American stuff is better made. The fit and finish is vastly superior, and whatever anyone tells you it DOES matter.

But even if the quality improvement doesn't convince you (and I will admit, it's pretty subtle unless you know what your looking for), think about it this way. A USA made Strat will hold it's value MUCH better than a Mexican made guitar. MUCH better. That in and of itself is worth the price difference, if you ask me.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
 
JCH said:
I've been thinking of wiring my strat like that. What value cap did you did you use for the high-pass. I was going to use a .001
Click to expand...

I finally figured out where I found the schematic to wire my MIM strat:

http://www.acmeguitarworks.com/pdf/WiringDiagram_Strat_Blender.pdf

..and this is where I got my volume kit:

http://www.acmeguitarworks.com/Volume_Kit_P87C13.cfm

(you don't have to buy theirs, they tell the value of the cap and resistor.)

And here's a page with some nice wiring diagrams:

http://www.acmeguitarworks.com/Wiring_W8.cfm
 
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