When the Pilot Pro V arrived I was very pleased. The body wood was really striking ash with nice grain and the finish was nicely applied and even. The neck wood was a maple/walnut laminate that showed some birdseye figuring in the maple that I had not expected. The rosewood board was flat and fat and well finished. Frets were very good overall, but there were some high spots that I had to dress to get even across the neck. The shape of the neck is very wide and flat, comfortable spacing but wide feeling for those making an initial journey into 5 string playing. The SatinKrome hardware is very well made and is easy on the eyes and touch. Control cavity and battery compartment plates fit nicely, and the neck joint was snug (though uneven on the lower bout side). Overall, a beautiful instrument.

The bass arrived surprisingly well set up. I did have to adjust the intonation on the low end, but that was minor and expected. String hieght was set in a good tradeoff point so that there were no rattles to be heard, yet play was easy on the hands. The B string is tight and responsive due in part to the 35\" scale length of the neck. The body shape is very comfortable and balances well on the strap. Seated position is good, but not as balanced, so leave the strap on for comfort\'s sake. The wiring was a bit funky for two reasons; 1) when you take off the cover, it looks like a bird\'s nest in there ... not the neatest wiring I\'ve ever seen. 2) the bass comes with a control overlay that listed the middle knob of the 3 band eq as the mid, when actually the mid and bass were reversed. Not really a problem once you figure that out, but goofy none-the -less.

The tonal range and feel of the bass are both superb. The combination of passive pickups and active e.q. is GREAT! I am able to get rumbling low-end boom in a rock format from the front pickup, Jaco-esque mid-growl for fingerstyle from the bridge pickup and a dizzying array of tones in between from sub-dub to clicky Chris Squire, Phat funk snap and more.

I have played over a hundred gigs with this bass and it has been great everytime. I replace the battery every 3 months, so I really can\'t speak to the drain one should expect, but I think it is reasonable to expect to change out a 9v twice a year anyway. Running Ernie Ball Slinky Bass strings 45-65-80-100-130 the bass is a pleasure to play.

I was thinking about writing this review months ago, but when I saw one dealer online sellinng these at $299, I had to let everyone know! If you score one at that price, you have landed quite possibly one of the all time best bass deals, period.

Enjoy!

Construction	90%
(Wiring was messy, but quiet. EQ pots were mislabled or placed.)
Appearance	98%
Playability	95%
Sound	95%
Value	100%
Overall	98%