I’m a bit late to the party but I tried one of these yesterday in Singapore. It seems very much vintage-accurate for the first iteration of the Stingray. I have a Stingray Classic which I picked up around 5 years ago on Facebook Marketplace which does the job for me - but this is still a very cool bass.
It is far cheaper here in Singapore than the UK, in part because taxes are much lower, at 8% GST as opposed to 20% VAT. My friend actually put a deposit down on it (and the total here is equivalent to around £2850, not £4200).
For a cheaper alternative, if you get a Made in Japan Stingray EX, it will have the correct vintage-style bridge with the foam mutes. Chuck in a vintage-style 2-band EQ, like the John East for example, and then you’re basically there soundwise for a fraction of the cost.