Its called "talking to you". They say you've passed an interview within 10 seconds of walking through the door. It's the same with me and bass gear. I don't know what the process is, but as soon as I pick up a bass I know if it's "talking" or not. After that it still has to pass a lot of tests, like the tone, the look and the price, but the feel of the thing always comes first.
As I've said before, I don't do GAS or collections, I only buy basses to be played and they have to be better than what I already have so my gear just evolves and improves.