Topic: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

Here's one for you guys.

Option A: $500 used '97 American Strat, Few dents and dings, but sounds good?
Option B: $500 new MIM Strat?
Option C: $200-$300 used MIM Strats, and spend the extra few bucks on an upgraded amp?

I do not have an amp at this time so I have to buy one regardless.

Re: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

Hi que522, I have a mexican made strat, it plays just as well as my friends american strat. I only paid 170.00 for it.             dino48

my papy said son your going too drive me too drinking if you dont stop driving that   Hot  Rod  Lincoln!! Cmdr cody and his lost planet airman

Re: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

NICE, my wife will go nuts if I can get what I want at a bargain price.

Did you get it on-line? or from a guitar shop?

Re: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

standard S101 plays and sounds as good or better then usa or mim's $180.00 4 pickups 1 at the end of the fretboard 1 in the middle and a double coil at the bridge check out the sound on my electric tracks on my web site it is identical in appearence

"Growing old is not for sissies"

Re: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

In the MUSIC STORE they will tell you in 90% of the stores that an AMERICAN FENDER IS BETTER.
About the end of the production line: I've been in the GIBSON plant in MEMPHIS, a few skilled guitar players perform the ultimate test: playing every guitar of the production line. I suppose this happens to Fender too.
- Mexicans are cheaper workers AND THIS IS WHAT I NOTICE MOST IN THE ETERNAL RECURRING QUESTION ABOUT THE DIFFERENCE.
WOULD ANYBODY DISCUSS ABOUT THE DIFFERENCE IF A MEXICAN STRAT SHOULD BE MADE BY US CITIZENS WITH AN US SALARY, I don't think so. The price will go up with 200-300$.
- There is a difference between a stratocaster MIM and a Stratocaster MIM, just like in the USA.
A lot of people won't her much difference between a top Mexican Fender and a regular US Fender. Wherever you go to find a difference, you will find different opinions. ADVISE: go and look the reviews on www.musiciansfriend.com or www.zzounds.com
Some custom made fenders are made in Mexico.
ABOUT THE SINGLE COILS: I found Mexican fenders with the same coils as in an American Fender.
US Fender coils: magnetic poled alnico magnets (a mix of Aluminum, Nickel and Cobalt,)
TO SEE BOTH FENDERS NEXT TO EACH OTHER (US VERSUS MEXICO) here is a link
www.bothner.co.za/products/fender/mexvsus.shtml
There are too much Fenders, but on that site they compare very well the 2 Fenders

[color=blue]- GITAARDOCPHIL SAIS: TO CONQUER DEAD, YOU HAVE TO DIE[/color]   AND [color=blue] we are born to die[/color]
- MY GUITAR PLAYS EVERY STYLE = BLUES, ROCK, METAL, so I NEED TO LEARN HOW TO PLAY IT.
[color=blue]Civilization began the first time an angry person cast a word instead of a rock.[/color]

Re: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

gitaardocphil wrote:

In the MUSIC STORE they will tell you in 90% of the stores that an AMERICAN FENDER IS BETTER.
About the end of the production line: I've been in the GIBSON plant in MEMPHIS, a few skilled guitar players perform the ultimate test: playing every guitar of the production line. I suppose this happens to Fender too.
- Mexicans are cheaper workers AND THIS IS WHAT I NOTICE MOST IN THE ETERNAL RECURRING QUESTION ABOUT THE DIFFERENCE.
WOULD ANYBODY DISCUSS ABOUT THE DIFFERENCE IF A MEXICAN STRAT SHOULD BE MADE BY US CITIZENS WITH AN US SALARY, I don't think so. The price will go up with 200-300$.
- There is a difference between a stratocaster MIM and a Stratocaster MIM, just like in the USA.
A lot of people won't her much difference between a top Mexican Fender and a regular US Fender. Wherever you go to find a difference, you will find different opinions. ADVISE: go and look the reviews on www.musiciansfriend.com or www.zzounds.com
Some custom made fenders are made in Mexico.
ABOUT THE SINGLE COILS: I found Mexican fenders with the same coils as in an American Fender.
US Fender coils: magnetic poled alnico magnets (a mix of Aluminum, Nickel and Cobalt,)
TO SEE BOTH FENDERS NEXT TO EACH OTHER (US VERSUS MEXICO) here is a link
www.bothner.co.za/products/fender/mexvsus.shtml
There are too much Fenders, but on that site they compare very well the 2 Fenders

Hi, I noticed that the MIA has 22 frets and the MIM has 21, does this mean the necks vary in length, or are the frets spaced differently? Andy.

Re: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

andros67,
22 vs. 21 frets doesn't mean that the neck is longer, just the fingerboard. The length that really matters is the distance between the nut (top of the guitar) and the bridge. On all (well most) Fenders, that length is 25.5" . Exactly half-way in between is the 12th fret. The position of the frets is calculated from a formula and the precision of the fret placement "makes or breaks" a good guitar (Check www.stewmac.com for a fret calculator). The frets cannot be closer together on a 22-fret guitar -or it would not play in tune across the fretboard. But when building a guitar, it might be possible to add a fret on the lower end of the fingerboard. This is done mainly for aesthetic reasons, because the guitar would need quite a deep cutout for the player to reach that fret and play it reliably.

Mexican or American Strat? Tuff question! I've got both and honestly I can tell the difference when I play them.  Quality control at Fender Mexico seems excellent. A few weeks ago, I played an American Highway One Strat -no good for this player. On the other hand, I don't think that Fender would compete against itself with equally well-made Strats from south of the border. Guess which guitar I take to bar gigs? The Mexican one. It's good enough for Rock'n Roll.

Re: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

que522 wrote:

Here's one for you guys.

Option A: $500 used '97 American Strat, Few dents and dings, but sounds good?
Option B: $500 new MIM Strat?
Option C: $200-$300 used MIM Strats, and spend the extra few bucks on an upgraded amp?

I do not have an amp at this time so I have to buy one regardless.

Choose option C, buy a set of GFS overwound pickups and a volume kit from Speciality guitars total cost $110.00 (not including installation) and a setup around $45.00 and you have a good sounding MIM that will make you happy. I found one for $120.00 if the guy still has it I will pick it up saturday and hot rod it.

Bootlegger.

Re: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

I've have a Mexican Strat that I've changed out the pickups and hotrodded...just absolutely love playing it... It currently has a set of Seymour Duncan pickups and sounds great! I keep hearing good things about the GFS pickups...

Middleaged Redneck sorta guy who refuses to grow up...passion for music, especially Southern Rock but like bout everything cept Gangsta/Hip Hop. Collect guitars, mandolins, and love to ride Harleys.

Re: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

Ive got A mim, American Series and a squire strat. The squire aint that bad either. The only reason I prefer the AS is the colour - its black!

Just bought an Epiphone Sheraton 335. Thought about the Gibson version but she (the shoe buyer) would have killed me at 4 times the price!

An views on playing comparison?

Re: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

:::All the American stratocasters are good. Especially the Fender American Deluxe Strat Ash:::

Re: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

Hi there, what I would like to know is what is the difference in playability,and also is the type of wood different? Are you paying more money for better pickups?? where's the extra dollars going to when buying usa made?

Re: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

I have a MIM classic 60's Strat that I paid £360 for, my mate has a US Strat that he paid £900 for. Both guitars have been professionally set up by my luthier. Can I tell the difference? Yes. Is it £540 worth of difference? Definately No. There is a lot of snobbery surrounding US and Mexican Strats that in my opinion has no justification whatsoever in fact.
I've played very good Mexican Strats and US Strats and crap Mexican and US Strats. In fact when I bought mine I tried it up against a number of US Strats and preferred my Mexican guitar.
Save your money, buy the Mexican guitar, fit a set of bare knuckle pups and you'll still be quids in.

Jerry

Live the life you love, love the life you live

Re: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

slaya wrote:

:::All the American stratocasters are good. Especially the Fender American Deluxe Strat Ash:::

No, they're not. That's a myth perpetuated by dealers to get you to part with your money. Try a few and you'll be surprised, some are awful and the finish on many is poor.

Jerry

Live the life you love, love the life you live

Re: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

The difference in the USA, MIM and Squires are the "STANDARDS" to which they are built. Not the actual build quality of an individual guitar. With the custom USA's having the highest standards, and the Squires having the lowest. This is so Fender can offer a "strat" at multiple price points. With that said, it is possible for a Squire to be built as good as a MIM or a USA for that matter, its just not the norm. There are a lot of variables that come in to play. Wood for instance. Squire sources the cheapest basswood for the body. Thats right Squires are not made of alder. Fender Mexico uses alder for thier bodies but the grading is not as high as US. Fender Corona sets aside the best alder for thier custom guitars and uses the rest for thier American standard series. Although Mexico's "STANDARDS" are not as high as USA's they continually produce the best finishes. If you've ever held a Squire in one hand and a MIM or USA in the other you would know that they are two completely different guitars. By about three pounds. Taking all this into consideration, "Sound is Subjective". What sounds good to you may not sound good to others. This is why whenever someone asks on the forum "whats the best guitar?" everyone replies, "try as many as you can in your price range an let your ears decide". I've played a few Squires. The set-up is always unacceptable, but that can be adjusted. The neck always seems a little too fat for a strat. The tuners are always crap, they can be changed. The electrics are spotty, they can be changed also. BUT, they never sustain. You might as well be playing a Kramer. Good enough to learn on, but once you start thinking about tone, time to switch. MIM is probably the best value. Especially if you are a modder, or like to play out in smokey bars, spill your drink on your guitar, play places where your guitar might get stolen, or just generally don't take care of your equipment the best. There's really not much difference in tone. Thats not to say that you couldn't have a good looking, playing , sounding guitar from Mexico. USA is probably best for someone who wants a nice guitar that will hold or rise in value. Probably won't do any modifications to it. A collector. And the Squires.....Well I have a Squire that I got fo 50 bucks. I keep it under a welding table in the machine shop where sparks land on it and coolant from the machines sometimes gets on it. I don't care what it looks like. I play it at lunch through a Crate amp I found in the trash. The machines are running and I can't hear it so good anyway, so I don't care what it sounds like either.  I also have an American standard that sounds like butta. LIKE BUTTA I said!

Re: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

craig23 wrote:

The difference in the USA, MIM and Squires are the "STANDARDS" to which they are built. Not the actual build quality of an individual guitar. With the custom USA's having the highest standards, and the Squires having the lowest. This is so Fender can offer a "strat" at multiple price points. With that said, it is possible for a Squire to be built as good as a MIM or a USA for that matter, its just not the norm. There are a lot of variables that come in to play. Wood for instance. Squire sources the cheapest basswood for the body. Thats right Squires are not made of alder. Fender Mexico uses alder for thier bodies but the grading is not as high as US. Fender Corona sets aside the best alder for thier custom guitars and uses the rest for thier American standard series. Although Mexico's "STANDARDS" are not as high as USA's they continually produce the best finishes. If you've ever held a Squire in one hand and a MIM or USA in the other you would know that they are two completely different guitars. By about three pounds. Taking all this into consideration, "Sound is Subjective". What sounds good to you may not sound good to others. This is why whenever someone asks on the forum "whats the best guitar?" everyone replies, "try as many as you can in your price range an let your ears decide". I've played a few Squires. The set-up is always unacceptable, but that can be adjusted. The neck always seems a little too fat for a strat. The tuners are always crap, they can be changed. The electrics are spotty, they can be changed also. BUT, they never sustain. You might as well be playing a Kramer. Good enough to learn on, but once you start thinking about tone, time to switch. MIM is probably the best value. Especially if you are a modder, or like to play out in smokey bars, spill your drink on your guitar, play places where your guitar might get stolen, or just generally don't take care of your equipment the best. There's really not much difference in tone. Thats not to say that you couldn't have a good looking, playing , sounding guitar from Mexico. USA is probably best for someone who wants a nice guitar that will hold or rise in value. Probably won't do any modifications to it. A collector. And the Squires.....Well I have a Squire that I got fo 50 bucks. I keep it under a welding table in the machine shop where sparks land on it and coolant from the machines sometimes gets on it. I don't care what it looks like. I play it at lunch through a Crate amp I found in the trash. The machines are running and I can't hear it so good anyway, so I don't care what it sounds like either.  I also have an American standard that sounds like butta. LIKE BUTTA I said!

Good post Craig, thanks for that insight.

Jerry

Live the life you love, love the life you live

Re: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

I bought my grandson a white, new looking, Fender Squier Strat from a friend with a nice little practice amp with built-in effects - all for $150 U.S.
The guitar has a nice neck, low action, is super easy to fret and the pickups sound like Eric Clapton's Strat I heard on u-Tube. This is a nice guitar for a beginner. It is easy to play and sounds great. I haven't compared it with a $4,000 Strat but I think we got a good deal.
toots

We pronounce it "Guf Coast".
Ya'll wanna go down to the Guf?

Re: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

I have my dad's MIM strat.   It's beautiful, it plays wonderful and wouldn't trade it.   It belonged to him.  Priceless.  smile

[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8qI7y9ivs5Y[/url]  lol
[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kEyW2SEHfzM[/url]
[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S0WeJjPLqyQ[/url]
[url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkcYALHslEY[/url]

Re: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

tubatooter1940 wrote:

I bought my grandson a white, new looking, Fender Squier Strat from a friend with a nice little practice amp with built-in effects - all for $150 U.S.
The guitar has a nice neck, low action, is super easy to fret and the pickups sound like Eric Clapton's Strat I heard on u-Tube. This is a nice guitar for a beginner. It is easy to play and sounds great. I haven't compared it with a $4,000 Strat but I think we got a good deal.
toots

There goes your rhythm section! Looking forward to seeing the Cas-o shredding vids!

Rule No. 1 - If it sounds good - it is good!

Re: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

topdown wrote:
tubatooter1940 wrote:

I bought my grandson a white, new looking, Fender Squier Strat from a friend with a nice little practice amp with built-in effects - all for $150 U.S.
The guitar has a nice neck, low action, is super easy to fret and the pickups sound like Eric Clapton's Strat I heard on u-Tube. This is a nice guitar for a beginner. It is easy to play and sounds great. I haven't compared it with a $4,000 Strat but I think we got a good deal.
toots

There goes your rhythm section! Looking forward to seeing the Cas-o shredding vids!

Thanks for commenting, Topdown.
Case-o found a website where they offer duty-free music. He found a theme he liked and wrote his own rap to go with it.
This video features Casey's dad, Jamie, (my son) singing the Star Spangled Banner.
Casey is now a U-Tube partner and gets paid for his videos. smile

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rosT_8cTs3g

We pronounce it "Guf Coast".
Ya'll wanna go down to the Guf?

Re: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

i bought my mim in 1972. from the outset i wasnt completely happy with it....but i didnt know then that there were different standards!

the paint work is cracked (i put that down to constant gigging) and by the time i stopped using it, the fret board was worn behind the neck frets. and some of the frets themselves were worn. i never liked the sound i got, unless it was cranked right up through a marshall amp...which i hate cos they can only play dirty, i like to play clean occasionally!

i do like the shape of the neck though.

having said all that, i resisted buying a new fender for more than 10 years, using a crafter, that lost it's tune so easily, and just didnt feel right. eventually after searching for years, a telecaster was put in my hands, i decided i was in love before even strumming it. it was reassuringly heavy, the neck was a dream, it played like an angel and gave me that sound i've been looking for, for 30 years.

happiness is tele shaped.

i'm thinking now of getting a new neck put on my strat....any thoughts?

phill

Ask not what Chordie can do for you, but what you can do for Chordie.

Re: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

If you like the feel of the strats neck, you might just want a refret. Probably cheaper than a new neck. Now days people are paying extra to have that worn in look like your cracked paint and worn fret board. Check out the Fender Road Worn series.

Re: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

Are there PRS freaks???
1) I have a custom/bird inlay
2) I have 3 different PRS EG models, made from 1991-1992, s-s-s, s-s-d and d-s-d
3)They play way better than a Fender, smooth, easy fretboard.

[color=blue]- GITAARDOCPHIL SAIS: TO CONQUER DEAD, YOU HAVE TO DIE[/color]   AND [color=blue] we are born to die[/color]
- MY GUITAR PLAYS EVERY STYLE = BLUES, ROCK, METAL, so I NEED TO LEARN HOW TO PLAY IT.
[color=blue]Civilization began the first time an angry person cast a word instead of a rock.[/color]

Re: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

I have two mexicans.One is fantastic and the other is awful. I posted it in" my strat sucks."It is in the shop being set up now.Hopefully that fixes it.I have played american strats in the store and I cant tell a difference.Maybe each individual one is different.My two MIMs are testimony to that theory. On the other side my daughter likes her Squier strat(pink) better than my mexican strat.To each his own I guess.Instead of thinking mexican or american,why not try both and get whichever one feels and sounds best to you.The only one you have to answer to is you!

Enjoy Every Sandwich
Nothing In Moderation  -- Live Fast. Love Hard. Die Young And Leave A Beautiful Corpse. -- Buy It Today. Cry About It Tomorrow.

Re: American Strat or Mexican Strat?

As I posted before my stratomexis as good as my friends american made strat. and only $170.00 with case and tax.

my papy said son your going too drive me too drinking if you dont stop driving that   Hot  Rod  Lincoln!! Cmdr cody and his lost planet airman