LeftyBassist.com

I seen these on ebay but was surprised when I found them on Amazon (Ships from Japan).

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00A2MA42A/ref=dra_a_rv_ff_fx_it_P2000_1000?tag=dradisplay-20&ascsubtag=4a251a2ef9bbf4ccc35f97aba2c9cbda

Interesting,good to know. Thanks!

Nice! The shipping is very reasonable too. Shipping from Japan is often so fast it beats out domestic shipments, in my experience.

But at that price, why would you buy an MIJ instead of a current MIA?

For just a little more money, MIAs have better woods, easy-to-adjust truss rods, graphite reinforcement, better hardware and electronics, a nice hard case . . . Unless having a maple fretboard is more important than all the other advantages. . .

Fender messed up a great way to get custom color basses in configurations unavailable to us, until now not MIA. I imported two Fender Japan Precisions, both '62 reissues, rosewood boards. both are really good basses. The first one I purchased in 2006, was a CAR, and it cost 600 dollars to my door, that included the $125.00 Japan postal fee! The second one, a Lake Placid Blue one, was about 800.00 total, only a couple of years later. I think a combination of our declining currency value, and pressure from Fender on the Ishibashi Web Shop was the reason for the increase. Now, at these prices- about 1200 bucks with the shipping, it makes little sense to buy these Japanese basses, unless you find them used already here- and then they are excellent basses for the money. New Fenders from the design- it- yourself page are really cool looking, and it's about damn time they realized we need cool basses, too!

I would agree MIA basses are better, so the decision is MIA for limited colors and Rosewood or MIJ for different colors and Maple necks or play a little more for Design Your Own. For me I have no cash but I really like the OCR color and the vintage tint of the maple neck. I have an older MIJ P and J bass that are very good.

Other food for thought on this southpaw spotted thread is you can go to Amazon and search for left handed basses and find some interesting basses.

whilst I truly admire the Japanese craftsmanship of the MIJ basses, I still have never met a basswood body that resonated with me. IMHO and IME.

Agreed

Since the inception of Fender Japan, I've bought one MIA Fender, and almost immediately sold it. I really liked the two MIJ Jazzes I owned, and the MIJ Precision I have is the best P-bass I've ever owned (though my old '76 was really great, too). I keep trying out MIA basses when I see them, but I just don't like them. So yeah, I'd buy a MIJ before a MIA.

I've had mixed experiences with MIJs. My first one I bought around 1998, an alder Jazz, and that one was perfect and it sounded amazing, but it was stolen. After that, I must've had at least 6 others, but all of them were basswood, and none of them were good enough to keep, even after installing new fancy pickups. I've also encountered several of them with neck problems. Those Jazz-bass necks are very thin, and without graphite bars, they are delicate and prone to warping if not maintained properly. In comparison, I must've had at least 5 current MIAs in the last couple of years (from 2008 and on) and all of them were either really good or great. I sold them because of G.A.S. and just rotating stuff, but Fender MIA really stepped it up after 2008, IMHO. But no doubt that good MIJ have their appeal: the small vintage frets and tinted necks give a nice vintage vibe that is not available in lefty MIAs

Isn't the bare bones starting price for a MIA P bass around $1500? That's $400 more, which might make/break someone's interest. Of course, you could try to find a used MIA cheaper, but then again you can most certainly find a MIJ cheaper too, and they're more prevalent on the used market with regard to finish options. As for the basswood body well I'm in agreement it's not my favorite, primarily due to it's softness, but it really depends on the bass in question, PUPs, etc. before I'm willing to draw any blanketed conclusion about basswood's sonic short comings, if any. Both my MIJ Fender Jaguar and my EB Bongo are basswood, and both sound great to my ears.

Most MIA P's I've seen retail new for $1299. Lefty w/case and shipped.http://www.ebay.com/itm/FENDER-AMERICAN ... 339347596a

I was specifically referring to the American Design Experience MIA Fenders and the additional finish options they offer. Can't get a Candy Apple Red MIA P otherwise, unless you find a used one from the 90's, though you can at least get a Mystic Red now for the $1299 price you mentioned.