two years ago (well almost) i bought an EPI EBO. what i got was a dismal made in Malaysia thingy that the mechanics were terrible on, the finish was equaly terrible, the routing was all screwed up on and just generally looked cheap. i parted it out, sent some parts to make a bass for Matt (discussed elsewere), sold other parts and went about getting parts to make a bass and generally washed my hands of the whole deal.
well.................
i come to a situation that i needed a working bass before the others will get back from the builders so i bit my lip and got another EPI off the bay.
this one was made in China. it has a nice finish even thought i know it is poly, the fit of the parts is much better, it sounds better, the pup is not falling into the body as the last one was, the neck plate is a nice cast one with a pad and the case is really decent. not a flight case but not bad for what it is. i even got it with a Ken Mahlke bridge cover on it (courtesy of the original owner), not a mark on it and an extra set of strings for 200$.
are the newer China EPI repops that much better than the Malaysian repops and the quality of cheap EPI basses coming up or did i happen to just get one that has had a bit of owner revamps with the cover and possibly a rebuild to get rid of the horrors of being an import?