Fender

[Mikeg]

Ive always been a tad confused as to why the MIA fenders are so expensive, when they have basicly the same conponents as the MIJ models. And as oposed to other brands they are very expensive.

For example, why does this cost 2000 pounds more than a MIJ p bass?
[url="http://www.thomann.de/gb/fender_pino_palladino_signaturepbass.htm"]http://www.thomann.de/gb/fender_pino_palla...naturepbass.htm[/url]

One little saying i heard was, "Made in mexico fenders, made in mexico by mexicans, Made in america fenders, made my mexicans in america"

[Mikeg]

[quote name='Johnston' post='1167648' date='Mar 18 2011, 09:04 PM']The Pino comes out of the custom shop does it not??[/quote]
Yes, but even if it's handmade I fail to see how its price can be higher than other handmade bass's like shuker's

[stingrayPete1977]

I think Mexicans are very skilled and my favourite bit on the Boyd Coddington Hot Rod builds was the interior made by the Mexican guys, Really talented. But and it's a big but, I have never found a nice Mex Fender bass I had a Mex strat that was good but sold it after getting a USA model (been in it's case since November!) and played in two bands with guys playing good Mex telecasters but still never found a Bass that compares with an MIA version (never tried a mij or cij but hear good things) lots of Squiers inc mine have been good.

[AndyTravis]

don't buy one?

Edit - that was a bit terse.

Fender Custom shop basses are really a different thing.

I've played 1000's of Fenders, and there are more good than bad.

Recently i've owned 4 Jap Fenders, 2 Mexi Classic series and 1 USA Vintage Reissue. And they were all great, i've just settled on a Custom Shop Jazz, and got rid of pretty much everything else.

The other bass is a 28 year old Squier. And that's ace too.

edit 2 - still makes no sense.

Fender Japan and Fender Corona don't use the same lumber yard for theit woods, etc etc.
The vast majority of Fender Japan stuff comes without a gigbag, let alone a nice ABS Moulded case.

There are more reasons than are worth going into, but you know, find a bass you like within your budget, and if it's made on the moon, what does it matter?

Edited March 18, 2011 by AndyTravis

[Mikeg]

[quote name='Johnston' post='1167661' date='Mar 18 2011, 09:16 PM']Shuker doesn't suffer from Import duty.[/quote]
Ahh good point, oh and I dont mean to sound sarky im just a bit confused

[stingrayPete1977]

[quote name='Mikeg' post='1167656' date='Mar 18 2011, 09:12 PM']Yes, but even if it's handmade I fail to see how its price can be higher than other handmade bass's like shuker's[/quote]
Because he isn't world famous like Fender are even to non musicians.

[Chunks]

The only reason they get away with it is because they are Fender.

[Ou7shined]

I could kind of understand it if it were for patriotic reasons... sadly there are a lot of guys who aren't American who wouldn't own a MIM purely because the serial code doesn't translate as MIA.

Edited March 18, 2011 by Ou7shined

[ThomBassmonkey]

I don't know if they're still as bad now, but Warwick used to be terrible at CS charges.

It cost something like £4,000 more to have a SSII in a custom colour simply because it had been through the custom shop. There's some that I've seen on the site in the gallery that I honestly can't see why they cost 2-3 times more than a standard model.

I've never really compared Fender MIM/J/A basses though, there was a stunning MIM Jazz in a shop in Nottingham a while ago that started off my GAS for a jazz that lead me to my Sandberg. I would've had it if it had been a 5er. It really did sound and feel amazing.

[gjones]

It's definitely a marketing/brand thing. I have a Geddy Lee Jazz, a Jazz 62 reissue and a Squier Jazz. They're all made in Japan and they're are all top quality. BUT if I had the money and the quality was on a par with my MIJ/CIJ basses, I'd probably prefer an American bass. Whether I would pay the extra for a custom shop model .........probably not. But I feel a Fender should be made in the US of A.

I just can't afford one that is........ that's all

[Lozz196]

Out of all the Fenders I`ve had, the ones I`ve preferred have been my MIA Standard Precisions.

The MIMs were good, with the Classic Series being very good, and in my opinion equal to the one MIJ/CIJ that I had, but for me, the MIAs win.

However, do I think they are twice as good as the MIMs? Better, yes, but not twice as good (he says, luckily having bought all his MIAs 2nd hand, each for less than £600 )

The two most comfortable Fenders I`ve played are, equally, a Pino Palladino (Custom Shop) and a Road Worn (MIM).

[Cat Burrito]

The prices did get silly about 18 months ago. If I bought an MIA Fender now it'd be second hand and to be honest the MIM & the MIJ are great too. I guess basses are always worth whatever people are willing to pay. I personally found the price hike at a time of Global Recession a little offensive & I say that as a massive Fender fan

[bubinga5]

[quote name='AndyTravis' post='1167662' date='Mar 18 2011, 09:18 PM']don't buy one?

Edit - that was a bit terse.

Fender Custom shop basses are really a different thing.

I've played 1000's of Fenders, and there are more good than bad.

Recently i've owned 4 Jap Fenders, 2 Mexi Classic series and 1 USA Vintage Reissue. And they were all great, i've just settled on a Custom Shop Jazz, and got rid of pretty much everything else.

The other bass is a 28 year old Squier. And that's ace too.

edit 2 - still makes no sense.

Fender Japan and Fender Corona don't use the same lumber yard for theit woods, etc etc.
The vast majority of Fender Japan stuff comes without a gigbag, let alone a nice ABS Moulded case.

There are more reasons than are worth going into, but you know, find a bass you like within your budget, and if it's made on the moon, what does it matter?[/quote]
ive not played as many as you And, but ive had a few..one being poss custom shops best, and there wasnt that much difference between that bass and the MIJ 62 i had, or the US 75 RI..in fact the 62 was better IMO than the US, when you think of the price difference..... it really is a mixed bag and a nightmare for a buyer who doesnt have the experience, that maybe others have..

there is no doubt in my mind that my scratch, would be laid down on the best mass pro Fenders in the world, its an MIJ any day.. and for less than half the price.... im stickin my neck out and saying Japanese masters would build a better custom shop bass than an American custom shop build.. i just think there mass pro work ethic is way beyond most in the world...

i was bowled over when i played Julian Crampton's MIJ jazz..it was smokin... cost him £670......Custom Shop.. £2500 at least.

Edited March 19, 2011 by bubinga5

[el borracho]

[quote name='Mikeg' post='1167645' date='Mar 18 2011, 09:02 PM']Ive always been a tad confused as to why the MIA fenders are so expensive, when they have basicly the same conponents as the MIJ models. And as oposed to other brands they are very expensive.[/quote]

If you compare to other MIA brands (MM/Rick/G&L etc) surely the standard MIA Fenders prices aren't that bad??? Expensive compared to other countries instruments maybe but not to rival US manufactured brands.

[JTUK]

As a general observation, I have seen Lakland, Fender and Musicman recently and I haven't been knocked out with any of them with just a little detail here and there getting to me.

I think having a good service and luthier set one up would help in some circumstances but there is no real excuse for the pocket to be
sloppy or the strings over the nut not to be dead straight inline etc etc. That is without going into the paint job.
The best bass by far, I have seen, recently, would be a custom Overwater J4.

From a quality POV, it was very good and the only thing that I didn't rate was some bland styling... but not the build, for sure.

[munkonthehill]

Fender, Why are they so expensive?

Because they are worth it!!!!!

[hillbilly deluxe]

With todays technology there is no excuse for a sloppy neck joint,i could,and,have done it with a car boot sale router.

[hillbilly deluxe]

[quote name='munkonthehill' post='1167999' date='Mar 19 2011, 10:07 AM']Fender, Why are they so expensive?

Because they are worth it!!!!![/quote]
Not to me they aint.

[munkonthehill]

[quote name='hillbilly deluxe' post='1168003' date='Mar 19 2011, 10:09 AM']Not to me they aint.[/quote]

I didnt say to you that they would.

[hillbilly deluxe]

I didnt say that you said to me they would.

[munkonthehill]

[quote name='hillbilly deluxe' post='1168007' date='Mar 19 2011, 10:14 AM']I didnt say that you said to me they would.[/quote]

dont get arsey, these threads tend to get that way these days. A cant be bothered with them. As im sure BC'ers dont either. Hopefully end of that subject and swiftly moving on.

[ThomBassmonkey]

If I was thinking about a Fender, I'd probably go for a Sandberg....well...I did.

You can buy a bass that's handmade by about 5 people in Germany for not a lot more than one that could be anything from a stunning instrument to one that looks like it could've been glued together by 5 year olds. I know which I would (and did) go for.

[hillbilly deluxe]

Not getting "arsey" just stating my own opinion.

[Mikeg]

Calm down guys, its only a debate about fenders
I would much prefer a custom made Overwater/Shuker over a fender that has no features above a normal fender. In fact i'm sure you could get a Precision or jazz from either one that has better build quality.

[Shambo]

Putting aside the emotive issue of where the instrument was built and variations in QC, Fender is the worlds most famous marque in guitar and bass manifacturing so they can charge a premium for their instruments safe in the knowledge that demand for their product will always remain relatively stable. This same demand is also reflected in the resale value of second hand instruments as buyers know that their purchase isn't about to significantly drop in value should they wish to move the instrument on, regardless of the specific instruments quality.