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Fender Mexican, good, bad or ugly?

karlfer

By karlfer,
in General Discussion

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karlfer Veteran

karlfer

Posted
Posted (edited)

OK, it's been done before but how about an update?

Some think Mexican Fender's are atrocious.
My experience,
FSR Deluxe, Sea foam Green, suberbly made, excellent bass.
FSR Antigua Precision, as above.
Latest model Geddy Lee, as above.
Those are from recent personal experience. Only sold because I'm a fickle magpie entranced by shiny new (to me) objects.
The Road Worn series are immensely well thought of.

Why do people who have not tried every Mex Fender made, insist they are all awful???

Right, your thoughts and experiences please folks.

Edited by karlfer
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joeystrange Mentor

joeystrange

Posted
Posted

They probably assume that because they're not made in America they're clearly not going to be as well built.

The truth is that some MIM Fenders are great and some are terrible. The same can also be said, though, for MIA Fenders.

I have a MIM P that I've had for a few years. It's a solid build but it wasn't perfect. There was a dodgy solder joint on the volume pot that caused it to have almost zero output and the saddle on the E string kept slipping down. Sorted those problems and it's been fine ever since.

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andydye Mentor

andydye

Posted
Posted (edited)

Every standard mexican bass I've tried has been pure sh*te, the 50's p I had was awesome, I'm aiming to try a roadworn next week if it's still in the shop I'm going to visit, I can conculde (from the very small sample of mex fenders I've tried) that the std ones are at best very hit & miss but the higher eschelons of mex fender are loads better, possibly even superb (especially for th emoney involved!)!?


in my limited experience of course... :thank_you:

try before you buy and you may find a gem?

Edited by andydye
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Fat Rich Community Regular

Fat Rich

Posted
Posted (edited)

Tried a couple of terrible ones, no tone, horrific gaps around the neck joint and some really obvious blemishes in the paint.

Also played a couple that were stunningly good, as good as anything Fender US and Japan have produced, maybe better.

I'd always recommend trying before buying a Fender but particularly so with MIM.

Edited by Fat Rich
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Lozz196 Grand Master

Lozz196

Posted
Posted (edited)

I`ve had 5 Mex Standards (still have one of these), a Classic 50s, and currently have a Classic 70s.

The Classic Series are noticeably better, not so much by looks, but by "feel". They just feel more substantial when playing them, not really much between the Classics and US in my opinion.

That said, I`m yet to either try or have a Mex Standard that I can`t get on with. The thing is, I don`t compare them against a US, they`re not a US so it`s unfair to do so.

I ask the following, does the bass play nicely, does it hold tune, does it sound good, does it balance well. If I can answer yes to these, then I`m satisfied with the instrument in its own right. So what if the parts aren`t as good quality as the US version - there`s a reason why they`re cheaper.

Edited by Lozz196
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Conan Mentor

Conan

Posted
Posted

Hmmmm. I can't help feeling that there might be a smidgeon of racial superiority in some of the comparisons made between Mex, US and Jap Fenders. Maybe some people have a rather stereotypical image of Mexicans in mind when judging an MIM bass? Not only is this view insulting and racist in some cases, but it is ignorant as how many of us actually know the make-up of the staff in Fenders US factories? How many of the staff might be Hispanic or Mexican?

Controversial maybe - but possibly a small part of the truth?

Speaking from (my limited) experience, I have played a couple of good Mex basses and one terrible one (which ironically I currently have on loan and am having to sort out!).

I have never played a US made Fender bass (although I have played a few US strats and teles - all were pretty good but nothing exceptional).

The CIJ Geddy Lee jazz I used to own ( :( ) was outstanding in terms of its playability, tone and finish quality. Wish I still had it!

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Looper Apprentice

Looper

Posted
Posted

I think maybe it helps to have a frame of reference for awful and for superb. I have a MIM jazz, it's not as bad as some basses I've played by a mile, but I've played far better basses (that were out of my price range). If basses were cars, it's not as bad as a fifteen year old Micra, nor is it a top of the line Merc, it's more of a five year old Mondeo. Just like a Mondeo, it'll do what you need it to, but it's not going to set your world on fire.

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Guest MoJo

Guest MoJo

Posted
Posted

I only ever had one. Beautiful looking P-bass in metallic red. The body was unbelievably light, so much so that it's the only P-bass I've ever owned that suffered with neck-dive. Also, the neck was a poor fit in the pocket and, if I rested my left arm on top of the neck between numbers, the neck would move in the pocket almost pushing the G string off the fretboard

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Urban Bassman Proficient

Urban Bassman

Posted
Posted

My only experience with MIM Fender is my 1995 P. Great neck, well put togther, body finish is top notch. The only thing I changed is the bridge. The BBOT it had for a bridge was a bit flimsy but now I've put a Gotoh 201 on it the bass really sings.

I did briefly have an 83 MIA Jazz. Now that really was a piece of SH1T

Go figure... :scratch_one-s_head:

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Coilte Proficient

Coilte

Posted
Posted

[quote name='Conan' timestamp='1378459093' post='2200498']
Possibly.... horrible headstocks though! :yarr:
[/quote]

DEFINITELY !!!! :P Yes. Lots of people dont like the head stocks. It does not bother me. Plus when you consider the other things a Trib. has to offer, it seems a small issue. For instance, the Tribute PUPS and electronics are the same as their USA cousins. The basic difference between a USA G&L and a Tribute is the finish and the tuners. Also, with the L2000's, the Tribute neck comes in only one size, whereas you have a choice with the USA ones.

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bonzodog Collaborator

bonzodog

Posted
Posted

It just goes to show from the mixture of responses already that there is no clear answer. Like with any product you get good products and poor products from the same factory and also people have different preferences to what they class as a good quality bass.
I recently bought a MP Jazz and absolutely love it. I am know expert to how it compares with other Fenders, but it plays, looks and sounds fantastic and was within my price bracket....so I am happy

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stu_g Proficient

stu_g

Posted
Posted

ive owned a few precisions in my time i had a wine coloured 90s mexican p bass was ok i changed the pickups fit and finish were fine and it played nicely, personally i like the japanese precisions which is probably due to the fact i played an 80s E serial one for many years and its what i got used to, also neck pockets always seem spot on
ive had 3 usa precisions my hot rod p bass had a gap in the neck pocket but otherwise played brilliantly
ive now got a squier silver series which i changed the pickup on and its as good as any p bass ive owned
i love the neck on it and i like vintage style frets so its personal preference for me
but all the newer mexican p basses like the 50s and roadworn look top notch basses to me ive yet to try one though

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neepheid Grand Master

neepheid

Posted
Posted

It's the same old "opinion expressed as fact" routine that makes me mad. I'm willing to bet that not one single person on this forum has the statistical overview of the entire output of Fender Mexico necessary to be able to make cast iron statements about their overall quality relative to anything.

I'm happy with my one and only Mexican Fender, so according to how some people operate around here I'll extrapolate that out to mean that all Mexican Fenders are great.

An individual instrument is either good or bad when inspected in isolation. The usual blanket statements insult my intelligence and are little more than borderline racist hogwash.

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FinnDave Grand Master

FinnDave

Posted
Posted

[quote name='neepheid' timestamp='1378463242' post='2200608']
It's the same old "opinion expressed as fact" routine that makes me mad. I'm willing to bet that not one single person on this forum has the statistical overview of the entire output of Fender Mexico necessary to be able to make cast iron statements about their overall quality relative to anything.


[/quote]

But isn't that the whole point of asking this in a forum, no one person has a definitive answer, but here you can canvass the opinions of many people and form an idea based on a larger sample.

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