Dave there is nothing cheap looking about this bass i can assure of that or i would not have purchased it in the first place , great attention to detail on this bass for sure , the edges of the fret board have been rounded of with the binding, the binding goes 1/2 an inch past the nut, there was a great attention made to the neck on this bass i feel, the finish on the body is second to none with a slight sparkle going through the metallic paint. ceramic noisless jazz pickup and vintage precision pickups, Eq is very nice too massive amount of tone on this bass it really can do any sound that you want on a bass, i am just to used to Rickenbackers after over 30 years of playing nothing but rics. if you dont buy mine get one before they disappear only 150 for europe. cheers George