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Mustang Bass - MIJ Vs. JMJ - Do they sound different?


Tim Chapple
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So now the dust has settled a little on the release of the new JMJ... Who has played both the JMJ AND the MIJ Mustangs - I'm keen to know how they compare soundwise......

Love my MIJ Mustang, am I going to get anything different soundwise from the JMJ?

Edited by Tim Chapple
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I know that its not answering your question, but I've owned a MIJ Mustang - I felt this had issues, for less money than the JMJ Mustang I bought a Supro Huntingdon II - which in my opinion is a better instrument - better playability and has tone for days.

Edited by No lust in Jazz
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Apart from the roadworn cosmetics the only difference with the JMJ is a custom-spec pickup voiced to be similar to JMJs original '66 Mustang. So tonewise it may have a slightly more vintage vibe than the MIJ but it's still going to sound like a Mustang and unlikely to be much different to your MIJ. I haven't tried a JMJ, love the way it looks but a little pricey for me.

Edited by ikay
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39 minutes ago, ikay said:

Apart from the roadworn cosmetics the only difference with the JMJ is a custom-spec pickup voiced to be similar to JMJs original '66 Mustang. So tonewise it may have a slightly more vintage vibe than the MIJ but it's still going to sound like a Mustang and unlikely to be much different to your MIJ. I haven't tried a JMJ, love the way it looks but a little pricey for me.

Yeah - My thoughts too - I'd like a second Mustang to keep roundwounds on, but I'm unsure that the JMJ is a better option. It's undeniably pretty, but at a price. I'm thinking I'll wait until the second hand ones hit the market......

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I like the look of the JMJ and seriously considered one to supplement my Squier Mustang for gigs.  I felt the price is a touch pricey at the minute though and managed to get a used CIJ Mustang for about half the price.  I'll probably look again when they start coming up used.

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On 13/06/2018 at 16:03, No lust in Jazz said:

I know that its not answering your question, but I've owned a MIJ Mustang - I felt this had issues, for less money than the JMJ Mustang I bought a Supro Huntingdon II - which in my opinion is a better instrument - better playability and has tone for days.

I had to google the Supro - what a cool looking instrument! I'm intrigued.

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  • 10 months later...

Bit of a preamble

The JMJ or the ‘Justang’ (they’ve missed a trick naming this bass!) has a thicker headstock which may add something to the tone but that’s beyond my hearing, different nut width and I believe the neck feels chunkier,  more precision like than jazz like than the MIJ but I’ve literally only played a MIJ briefly. The JMJ does feel great to play and the sound is bang on for what I’d expect of this type of bass. I do generally favour a P bass.

The sound ... If you were really wanting to try before you buy fitting a Seymour Duncan mustang pick up would likely answer the question. The SD pick up is what’s fitted in the Justang and it can do punk right through to deep dub and the tone pot on mine is very effective across the whole of its taper which is a massive plus. Not a massive help but I’m sure but with any bass all these little things like the thicker headstock do have an impact but ultimately it’s the pick up which might just edge it in terms of tones.

I think Fender have just sent a new stock of JMJ’s into the wild so they should be popping up in shops about now. I nabbed mine locally via gumtree (it’s a first run model form 2017) and it’s a cracking wee bass and the pick up sounds good. A mate had an issue with his MIJ sounding too flubby in the lows but I’ve not had gigging experience with a MIJ, the JMJ hasn’t suffered these issues on my recent gigs. 

 

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I have an CIJ mustang & a JMJ - Both with fender flats as fitted to the JMJ as stock. Both are excellent basses & the JMJ is my main rehearsal/gigging bass. The biggest differences for me are the finish - I prefer the thin nitro on the neck of the JMJ compared to the gloss of the CIJ and the neck profile. The CIJ has a very skinny neck like a jazz whereas the JMJ’s is a little chunkier & more comfortable for me. I’ve wanted a daphne blue mustang with 'lollypop' tuners since i bought the (white) CIJ & I was initially put off by the ‘roadworn’ finish of the JMJ, but it looks a lot better in person than a lot of Fender’s stock images which I think were of an early prototype where they went a bit overboard with the aging & made it look really grubby.

Sound-wise there’s not a massive amount of difference between the two & I’m happy to gig with either using the same fx/amp settings but in a side by side comparison I'd say that the pickup in the JMJ has the edge with a slightly chunkier tone.

Edited by Jean-Luc Pickguard
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I think the jmj is a killer wee bass and although more expensive is a fine shorty. I think as mentioned above the supro is the only other short scale I’d be into. Glad I have the jmj at my disposal and it’s gonna be my main gigging bass for the foreseeable. 

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  • 2 months later...

Seriously what you are getting is a 60s spec bass with a slab board, rolled edges. Owned custom shop bass in the past, tbh in terms of build and quality mine ain’t far off. Only downside is the relic job isn’t the best, but tweak it yourself with fine wire wool. It’s an absolute peach, plays better, sounds better and feels better than the MiJs. Best bass I’ve owned.

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