The hardware was all great, perfect tuning pegs and saddles. No missing screws. Great woods used, beautiful Wenge, Maple, Purpleheart. Their was a problem with one of the tuners, but J. Worrell offers a 2 year warrantee, and it is not like dealing with a big company. Their is one person behind this thing and he was kind enough (J Worrell) to replace the pickups with new ones free of charge. They work great now. The pickups are passive (i think) and they sound clear and awesome.
Action, Fit, & Finish:
The action came great and the nut was fine, but I got the bass Epoxied and a brass nut installed just because I wanted to protect my board from all my slapping. The third party I used to Epoxy this bass was chicagobassdoctor.com and Carl Pedigo set everything up perfectly. Extra low action with no buzz and extra mwah. The spacing in between the strings of J Worrell's Fretless guitar is perfect. Most 5 strings, strings are too close together and it can be very hard to get in there and do what you want to do. NOT THIS ONE, the spacing is perfect for someone with big hands. One of the most comfortable basses I've ever played. There is a bit of neckdrive due to the heavy purpleheart neck but this could easily be prevented with a lead weight or something.
Sound Quality:
Sounds awesome. The extra thick epoxy job I had done to it was magical to the tone. The harmonics are easier to do and are much clearer and sustain is much longer than before. This is also the case with fingering and slapping techniques. The hard woods used in my bass provide a very bright tone and is by no means dull. I have never played a better sounding fretless before. Most fretlesses provide an odd slapping tone, but this one can almost mimic a fretted bass tone wise, yet you can still mwah and slide your way around. A fretless slappers dream if your into that kind of stuff.
Reliability/Durability:
Seems good, only problem with the first set of pickups in it. All is good now thought thanks to great customer service.
Ease of Use:
plug in play???? pretty easy to use.....but there is still so much to learn.
Customer Support:
Better than 90% of companies out their today. This is not some company based in Asia redirecting you to different people on the phone and charging you for shipping. It is a guy named J. Worrell based in Colorado, who will give you a 2 year warrantee that actually means something. He fixed the picku problem free of charge and now the bass is even better than before. America needs more J. Worrells.
Overall Rating:
Of all the fretless basses and 5 strings I've played......
-This bass slaps the best
-My favorite string spacing of any bass
-One of my favorite tones I've ever heard, Epoxy is amazing.
-The lowest action without buzzing I've ever played on a fretless
