For me, it has to have everything that i want.
My 5 string Jazz has it all for me.The,in no particular order,sound/shape/colour/feel/ finish/hardware/a certain uniqueness to its looks,and it was built by a friend (bass doc) i might add that it has been MY bass for about 10 years,has done near on 1000 gigs,is starting to look a bit "lived in"but thats all down to me,and i love it as much as the day that i picked it up.
My Precision,also built by bass doc,has it all apart from the finish.
Having had literally hundreds of basses,these 2 plus a 1968 Precision,a 60's EB3 and a Hohner 2BA and a bass doc built Jazz are the only ones that ever did it for me.