Got the new model in April 2023 with poplar body. It only weighs 3,8 kg which is remarkably light for a 5 string. Previous models with different wood selection like alder were heavier. Sure, poplar is a bit softer, but it's a good tonewood and the reduction in weight beats the heavier tonewoods for me.
Mine came with a few flaws. The tone knob had a short circuit were the capacitator was misaligned so it touched ground, which made the tone knob work as a volume knob instead. It was an easy fix where I just had to bend the capacitator a little to clear ground.
Also, the skunk strip on the backside of the neck was not smoothly aligned/sanded with the rest of the neck, creating an irritating edge. I decided to sand it smooth, but that also removed the surface finish.
It also came with some sharp edges on the frets which i sanded down.
All in all there were some flaws which could have caused problems for a non technical person without knowledge how to fix it. However, I decided to keep mine and fix it mysef, since I got an example wich was great otherwise. My main reasons for keeping it was: very impressive low weight, great tone (from the split p-pickup, not the bridge pickup), great sustain, good fretwork (apart from sharp edges) and great fit on the neck joint. Plus it looks and feels great.
Pros:
Price and value for money
Weight
Sound (not bridge pickup)
Feel
Looks
Cons:
Weak bridge pickup
Unnecessary skunk strip on neck, which I had to sand to get to feel right.
My example had a short circuit on the tone knob, which was an easy fix for me, but would have caused problems for a non technical person.
All in all a fantastic instrument with outstanding value for money, and a great buy.
