I got the bass yesterday so this is a first impression review which i will propably update later on:
The bass arrived in good shape with the included gig bag and tools for setup (hex keys). The soft bag is usable with sufficient padding and comfortable straps. Zippers and material feel a bit cheap though.
Out of the box the bass was set up pretty good with string height under 2mm. Fit and finish were flawless and i couldn't find any gaps, dings, blemishes or unwanted inconsitencies...
The bass looks like on the pictures with matte finish that highlight the characteristics of the top. The back i s colored with solid matte black so the wood underneath is invisible. Because of that the body doesn't really have the natural wood feel but it feels more artificial.
The laminated neck and roasted maple fingerbord are unfinished and feel smooth. The neck is broad, medium thick and pretty flat in the middle. Frets are polished, no sharp fret ends allthough the frets are not rounded off. They seem to be medium sized in height and width. Fret leveling was good - not perfect; there were som high spots but not many and nothing that cause fret buzz. On the zero fret i needed to bend (press down) the strings a bit so they stay closer to the fingerboard.
Neck relieve was as i prefer slightly bend.
The tuners do a great job and feel solid, i think it is easier to tune with them compare to standard tuners.
The bridge saddles ar not my favourite type since they are clamped in place with a screw that pushes outwars. This screw is hard to reach when the strings are in tune. So it is a bit harder to adjust intonation and i don't know if the screw pressure deforms the individual bridge riders over time. However i was able to obtain the setup that i was striving for i.e. low string height that follow the fretboard radius and good intonation.
The bass came with a battery installed. The battery compartment sits in a spot where it might be prone to get damaged by belt buckles.
I didn't check the electronics department but the bass has active and passive mode. In passive mode there are no tone shape options. Only volyme and pickup balance. I like that there is no big volume drop when switching from active to passive. Passive sound is quite growly and active even with eq set flat sounds fuller and more hi-fi.
The active EQ is musically in a way that the frequecies are chosen well. It is not too powerfull ande even the most extreme settings are still usable. That also means that there is a limited flexibility to shape your tone, but all in all it is quite versatile.
I need to wait until i hear how it sounds with older strings. The strings it came with seemed to be nickle plated steel and they sound and feel good. The lower strings have a nice hollow quality to them and the B string sounds big and deep. The clang of the higher strings could not be dialed out with the electronics.
Overall the bass is lightweight and well balanced on the strap, howerver sitting down without a strap leads to the bass to tip outwards (neck goes up). So if that is a bother one might consider positioning the bass more like a classical guitar. Otherwise i find it to be very ergonomic.
All in all the instrment met my expectations. It was according to description and the build quality and fit and finsish was flawless.
If i could wish for something to improve it would be a smarter and more solid bridge. I would have liked to feel the wood a bit more.
I am not sure how to take care of this finish and i will reach out to the customer service to ask about that (oil fingerboard? wax body? what is the best way to treat the body).
I payed around 850€ and i think that is a very reasonable price.
