And the winner is…
The Lakland Skyline 44-64 GZ PJ
I’ve only played it for 5 minutes, but oh man what a bass so far. Tone is awesome, exactly what I was looking for. No noticeable noise on either of the pickups, and no finger noise on the poles. The J neck feels great, not glossy and sticky like the Duff was, and it feels easy to move around. Balance is great as well, no noticeable neck dive. I was initially a bit concerned about the weight, because a lot of reviews mentioned that it’s heavy AF, but it’s only 4.3 kg (with strap), so I’m not sure what everyone was talking about. I’m pretty sure the Fender was heavier, but I forgot to measure that one unfortunately. (For reference, my SR500E is 3.5 kg.)
And the looks… I was initially a bit hesitant about the colour, but it kind of grew on me, and in person it looks even better than on the photos. It definitely has character, that’s for sure.
And most importantly, everything is working so far. crosses fingers
Thanks everyone for all the suggestions in this thread. Hope it’s going to be useful for others as well in the future.