I managed a few more hours with this today. Very much enjoying the different experience.
The neck pickup is, well,
fucking horrible IMHO. Sounds like a blanket has been thrown over the amp. I rarely use a neck pickup anyway but for the rare times I do at home I prefer a bit of actual clarity...I'd have thought it would, considering its position is pushed back by the 24 fret neck, be a bit sharper than your average neck pickup anyway - it's just such a stark contrast to the fantastic jangle that comes out of the bridge position. Hell, it's even worse than a Telecaster neck pickup, and those are basically pointless/ornamental
So, providing it passes the band rehearsal test I will be proceeding with a few modifications.
1) new guard with stripped-down electronics/controls
2) replace knob(or knob
s depending how many pots I decide to use) with bakelite cooker style ones like they used in the late 50's
3) some kind of blanking thing to cap off the Rick-O-Sound jack
4) possibly just remove the neck pickup entirely and make something to blank off the rout neatly
5) try and find some replacement tuners that fit and have a slotted (Kluson style) post
6) the Jetglo finish with white binding reminds me of a pint of Guinness - my go-to beverage - so maybe a little Guinness harp sticker on the guard.