GC Ritter 5 - Page 2

**cfsporn** · #21 11-28-2012, 12:05 PM

Kinda makes me wonder how bad the neck really is.

frootbooty · #22 11-28-2012, 12:10 PM

Has anyone had them describe the warping of the neck? I have seen people say a neck was bad because it was "bowed" when it just had too much relief in it. Judging by the setups on all the basses at the 2 GCs here, my instinct would be to disregard anything told to me by a GC tech.

cybersnyder · #23 11-28-2012, 12:36 PM

I played it Saturday. They put a small shim in the neck pocket and it seemed to play just fine. I noticed no issues with the neck. I didn't care for the feel or the tone, but it did look pretty.

two fingers · #24 11-28-2012, 09:35 PM

What an interesting story. This bass is like a hobbit or something.

TheDialog · #25 11-28-2012, 09:54 PM

You get 30 days to return it. The bass plays "fine", but it's definitely messed up. I took it to Phil Jacoby to try to remedy the issue, but he didn't really have the time to fix it and thought I should get it back to Jens. I e-mailed Jens a couple of times, but never got a response.

rodneyat · #26 11-29-2012, 07:45 AM

I would be a little leery of it. It seems like Jens does not want to touch it. TheDialog tried to sell it here and on Ebay. Bad karma abounds on this one!

dave79 · #27 11-29-2012, 12:08 PM

I haven't checked in a bit but Royas were going for slightly more than $3000 on Ebay at auction. If this price drops to $1500 or less I'll put it on my wall. BTW, what'd you pay for it Dialog? They offered it to me for $2500.

TheDialog · #28 11-29-2012, 08:34 PM

I think I was in it closer to $2,750 with tax and all.

My dad was in love with it (not a bass player).
He loved the Ritter and loves the Alessandro rig I just snagged...

My '61 B15N prototype, '78 closet classic SVT, '71 P, '74 LP Sig aren't as cool to him as the "art" pieces haha.

Brad Johnson · #29 11-29-2012, 09:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cybersnyder

I played it Saturday. They put a small shim in the neck pocket and it seemed to play just fine. I noticed no issues with the neck. I didn't care for the feel or the tone, but it did look pretty.

I drove up today and played it. Seemed like the output was extremely low and some of the controls didn't work. Their tech said that a couple of controls were "subtle". The last time I heard that term used was when a tech screwed up a preamp install on my Yamaha TRB6.

They swapped out batteries but weren't sure about the state of the batteries they used.

I didn't remember Ritters having that severe of a neck profile... the sides of the fingerboard actually had a sharp feel to them (vs. a 90 degree edge) and it was deep in the middle... like an inverted flying saucer. Strange feel to say the least.

After those two issues I didn't really notice any playability issues and didn't realize this was the one on here with a twist. $2999.

frootbooty · #30 11-29-2012, 10:51 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brad Johnson

I drove up today and played it. Seemed like the output was extremely low and some of the controls didn't work. Their tech said that a couple of controls were "subtle". The last time I heard that term used was when a tech screwed up a preamp install on my Yamaha TRB6.

They swapped out batteries but weren't sure about the state of the batteries they used.

I didn't remember Ritters having that severe of a neck profile... the sides of the fingerboard actually had a sharp feel to them (vs. a 90 degree edge) and it was deep in the middle... like an inverted flying saucer. Strange feel to say the least.

After those two issues I didn't really notice any playability issues and didn't realize this was the one on here with a twist. $2999.

It was probably great before the GC "tech" touched it

Brad Johnson · #31 11-30-2012, 10:36 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by frootbooty

It was probably great before the GC "tech" touched it

They didn't touch the neck profile. That killed any interest I had in it.

billostech · #32 12-03-2012, 03:09 PM

Well. I had some equipment I had not used in a couple of years and decided to trade in on the Ritter. Only a couple of hundred out of pocket, so it was a win for all concerned. It appears GC normally gives you 50% of what they woud sell your trade in for. I got close to 70%.
They ended up selling it for $2400.00 out the door. Can,t wait to get aquainted with the bass. I plan on sending it Jens later for repairs. Going to see the Hobbit at the movie theater in a couple of weeks. LOL

billostech · #33 12-06-2012, 10:17 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brad Johnson

I drove up today and played it. Seemed like the output was extremely low and some of the controls didn't work. Their tech said that a couple of controls were "subtle". The last time I heard that term used was when a tech screwed up a preamp install on my Yamaha TRB6.

They swapped out batteries but weren't sure about the state of the batteries they used.

I didn't remember Ritters having that severe of a neck profile... the sides of the fingerboard actually had a sharp feel to them (vs. a 90 degree edge) and it was deep in the middle... like an inverted flying saucer. Strange feel to say the least.

After those two issues I didn't really notice any playability issues and didn't realize this was the one on here with a twist. $2999.

I had a little time to play it yesterday. The master volume does appear to be a push-pull potentiometer as described on the Riiter site: down for passive, up for active. The sound was about as loud as my other active basses in active mode. The pickup balance worked as did the tone blend in passive mode. The dual potentiometers for high cut /boost, mid cut/boost and bass cut/boost, mid frequency all only available in active mode, did not appear to make a difference in sound. I checked the batteries and they were both close to 100% capacity. I took a quick look at the electronics and nothing stood out (loose wires, etc...).

I am very satisfied with the tone and playability and plan on playing it out this weekend. Hopefully i will be able to send it to Jens after the holiday rush for repairs. Nice solid bass with a distinctive sound. Can.t wait to do some recordings.

Dluxe · #34 12-06-2012, 10:48 AM

Glad that you snagged it for a great price. Keep us updated with the progress after you send it in.

dave79 · #35 12-06-2012, 11:05 AM

Have you managed to contact Ritter?

billostech · #36 12-06-2012, 02:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dluxe

Glad that you snagged it for a great price. Keep us updated with the progress after you send it in.

Thanks. It is a nice find. hopefully things go smoothly with the repairs.

billostech · #37 12-06-2012, 02:08 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dave79

Have you managed to contact Ritter?

I was able to get an email through to list me as the owner of the bass on their site.

dave79 · #38 12-06-2012, 02:24 PM

Yes, I did the same at the beginning of this thread for a different bass I own, but never got a response regarding the bass you own and any option involving fixing it(it prob ain't gonna happen) or paying to replace the neck(realistically as much as you paid for the bass) and it has been quite some time. Best of luck, please post if you get any response, Dialog and I both failed at it. Sorry if this is negative but it's just the history so far, I am very intrigued by what his response will be, if he does respond.

billostech · #39 12-06-2012, 04:32 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dave79

Yes, I did the same at the beginning of this thread for a different bass I own, but never got a response regarding the bass you own and any option involving fixing it(it prob ain't gonna happen) or paying to replace the neck(realistically as much as you paid for the bass) and it has been quite some time. Best of luck, please post if you get any response, Dialog and I both failed at it. Sorry if this is negative but it's just the history so far, I am very intrigued by what his response will be, if he does respond.

I do appreciate your perspective and try to understand that mine is quite different from yours. I find this purchase to be a great deal as is. This is a wonderful instrument and any improvements would be icing on the cake for me.
To satisfy your curiosity, I did hear back from Christoph a moment ago, and he CC'd Jens on his response to my recent request.

From: "Christophe (Ritter-Instruments.com)"
Date: December 6, 2012, 4:30:06 PM EST
To: Bill
Cc: Jens Ritter
Subject: Re: Ritter Owner (0712)
Hi Bill,

please contact Jens for repairs. He will explain what to do.
I've put Jens in CC.

Best wishes,
Christophe
Ritter Instruments

On 6/12/2012 22:21, Bill wrote:
Thank you, Christophe.
What would be the procedure to send my bass in for repairs?

Having held and played the instrument, I am very pleased.
Thanks for ther positive responses. I am grateful and Blessed to own such a fine instrument.

dave79 · #40 12-06-2012, 04:42 PM

Hey, you're making progress, that's a good thing. I definitely would have bought the bass at $2500 except they said absolutely no returns and I had no way to play it first.