Here are a few more observations with my SF II:
The LaBella strings were a disappointment. The E string sounded like I was palm muting it the whole time and the G sounded weird. I didn't leave them on long enough to really investigate, but I'm going to compare them to the LaBellas I have on my P bass. I know the new set is a slightly lighter gauge, but the silk windings are a different color and the surface of the strings seem different. I put the new set of Chromes back on and they're much better, though not as even sounding as the set on my SF I. Those strings have been on and off several basses though, so it's hopefully just a matter of waiting until the new are broken in.
Has anyone experimented with shielding the pickup cavities on these basses? I'd sure like to reduce the hum level. It's worse on the neck pickup than the bridge pickup for some reason, but my SF I has the same issue. Not much you can do about it with single coil pickups except shielding unless you get into dummy coils and noise cancellation circuitry. I don't have Ron Wickersham's talents for that stuff though.
I really wonder about the loading effects of the multiple volume and tone controls. I've got some ideas for active FET buffers for each pickup and some variable LPF's similar to the Alembic circuitry, but it may have to wait until (or if) I work up the nerve to cut into a new bass. It'd be a nightmare to do it all through the F hole, but who knows. If I get the circuitry worked out well enough I may try that approach first.
The bridge leaves a lot to be desired, but I knew that going into it. One my first projects with be experimenting with some different materials for bridge pieces. That's something I can do without altering the bass. I've got a small mill and lots of different materials to try. Ultimately it'd be cool to try a more solid bridge and separate tailpiece, but again, that's not likely to happen until/unless I get up the nerve to start trying non-reversible mods.
Still more work to do experimenting with neck relief, string height, pickup pole piece height, etc.
I'll report more as it comes to mind.
Later,
Ric