...yessir, for metal (or similar hardcore-oriented music).
I like these old-fashioned single coil bass pickups because their (often) wider frequency range. And I don't care of the typical hum with these pickups - the usage of my distortion pedals make them disappearing.
In comparison to other 51-style basses the D5 has an slightly more emphasis on the higher mids, which is essential for modern metal.
The neck is really comfortable and fast. I notice a little neck dive, but this is not a real problem (for me). The most used tuning in my setup is DGCF, and this works very well in the D5, no sloppery sound at all.
So in my opinion, this bass is a bang for the buck.
I'm thinking of bying a second one for standard tuning...