  We report results of simulations of strong coupling, finite density QCD
obtained within a MFA inspired approach where the fermion determinant in the
integration measure is replaced by its absolute value. Contrary to the standard
wisdom, we show that within this approach a clear signal of a phase transition
appears with a critical chemical potential in extremely good agreement with the
results obtained with the Glasgow algorithm. The modulus of the fermion
determinant seems therefore to preserve some of the relevant physical
properties of the system. We also analyze the dependence of our results on the
quark mass, including both the chiral and large mass limit, and the theory in
the quenched approximation.
