I'm trying to keep my expectations realistic about it - I expect to ( at some point) replace the pots and the pickups, something I've routinely done with several of my basses (BaCh's, Gibsons) and not been surprised. I like it in part because it's set neck and has a vintage look to it.
As for country of origin - my own analogy would be model trains. Both the very best, and very worst of them come from China, it's all about what gets specified, and I have no doubt this is a similar case.