Well, I'm not entirely sure what happened down at the pawn shop. I popped in to look for a passive footswitch but I now have a new (to me) Squier Active Jazz bass.
I shouldn't have picked it up "just to see if it's any good". When I realised it was essentially unplayed and felt super comfortable I knew I was in trouble.
After minor tweaks to intonation and action, and swapping the gleaming white pickguard for an old off-white one from the cupboard it is just the ticket. Looking forward to taking this along to a jam soon.