ezbass

Unless you plan on also investing some time playing the guitar more and becoming more proficient, I’d just stick with what you have.

Hopefully, with a sizeable discount if you go for the repair.

Whichever will work best for you ergonomically, single cutaway vs double cut. The LP type might be heavier, if that's a potential issue.

Paging @Andyjr1515

Wise words and there’s no guarantee that another Zager will deliver the way you want it to. Such are the vagaries of acoustic instruments.

Fender really did well with developing guitars with definite personalities, different from their siblings, which doesn’t stop with the Tele (my preferred weapon of choice) and the Strat (of which I’ve had quite a few too). The Jazzmaster is different to the Jaguar and the Mustang was very different originally, with its short scale length. Gibson solid bodies, on the other hand, don’t seem so very different in tone IMO. The Les Paul, SG and Flying V (to name just 3) all cover very similar sonic ground; YMMV.

Could be the spring behind the saddle or a grub screw not fully in contact with baseplate, it could also be a faulty string.

The logo looks wrong for that particular model, more of a combination of the usual logos. Also, ‘inspected and set up in the US’ for for a lowly model seems very unlikely.

Welcome

I agree with this statement. Plus, there are a whole host of differently voiced humbucker replacements out there, maybe more than single coil options.

It over emphasises the shape IMO. It's perfectly reasonable shape, as seen in the OP, before the logo is added, afterwards... not so much.

Tyler, if I’m thinking of the same one as you. @Car1

There is precedent for removing the bridge pickup and associated electronics, both Pat Metheny and Tuck Andress did/do this. Try it and, if it's still not right, put it back as was and move it on for something that you get along with.

GAS is a cruel mistress, but she's a lot of fun

That looks like quite a slim body, should certainly help with the usual LP style guitar weight.

You really can’t go wrong for that money. Pics as soon as please.

You could lay down a groove using an octave pedal and looper, but this starts to veer into pre-programming territory.