MIJ/CIJ vs. USA Fender

Richardj

So,  on a basic level, if offered a used M/CIJ Strat and a used American Standard Strat for the same money which would you choose?

thermionic

ICBM said:

It's in the wood - and possibly the truss rod, which has a surprising bearing on the tone in my opinion... and I'm really not joking. @melvynhiscock wrote something to the same effect in his book years ago, and I think he's right. The neck and the way it resonates is a key part of the tone of the guitar - more than the body, I think - and the truss rod is definitely a part of that. It's probably one of the reasons Rickenbackers sound so distinctive - because of their unique double rods.

The word "bow" is used a lot when trussrods are discussed and it's easy to see the analogy of an archery bow and a guitar - the neck is the bow and the strings are, well, the string. When you pull back and release a bow string, some of that energy is transferred to vibrations in the bow itself. So, give 6 strings a strum and the guitar will vibrate - not so much the big slab at the end, but the much thinner neck part. I can see how there might be something in this!

blueskunk

Richardj said:

So,  on a basic level, if offered a used M/CIJ Strat and a used American Standard Strat for the same money which would you choose?

American all day from recent experience     

ICBM

Richardj said:

So,  on a basic level, if offered a used M/CIJ Strat and a used American Standard Strat for the same money which would you choose?

Whichever one I could most easily sell and buy a Mexican Classic Series with the money from.

stickyfiddle

ICBM said:

Richardj said:

So,  on a basic level, if offered a used M/CIJ Strat and a used American Standard Strat for the same money which would you choose?

Whichever one I could most easily sell and buy a Mexican Classic Series with the money from.

Personally, the MIJ, but that's cos I don't like the US Standards very much spec-wise. 

I've had 2 MIJ Fenders (paisley Tele and a Jazzmaster). Both are/were good guitars from stock, but also required hefty upgrades to wiring. For some reason the MIJs always have pickups which are absolutely pony.

In terms of outright value I agree it's getting a bit silly.  MIJs were better value 10-15 years ago when the Mexicans weren't so good but they've made massive strides in the last decade and are now the best value stuff Fender make by far.

Octafish

Richardj said:

So,  on a basic level, if offered a used M/CIJ Strat and a used American Standard Strat for the same money which would you choose?

What MIJ/CIJ are you talking about, there's a very wide range of models and spec. I'd rather have a MIJ JV or VSP than a US standard, as I don't like modern spec strats and the JV and VSP should be comparable guitars. If you're talknng about the bottom of the range basswood/ceramic pickup MIJ/CIJ, I'd rather have the US and then sell it