I just got back from the first gig with my new Rittenberry. (got home at 2:30 am Sat morning from TN-19 hrs....) During our first break I had to call Gary and tell him how incredible the tone of these guitars are. I've been hearing about the tone from these guitars from other folks that have them here on the forum but until I could hear it out in a live situation for myself,it is a tone machine. Very, very pleased! I've played Emmons D-10s for the past 25 years and although the tone of these guitars are great, the Rittenberry has a sweeter,cleaner tone, very pleasing to my ear. I know there are lots of variable, but we didn't have much time for set up and I just plugged in to my amps and effects as normal, no tweaking my 112's really from what I usually use and the tone is just great. You don't have to work hard to get a great sound out of this guitar is my intial impression.Pedal action and knee levers are VERY precise, almost surgical in their response. Clean, clean craftsmanship! Having discovered the "idea" of split cases just recently, lugging the weight of a D-10 is MUCH easier, nice workmanship from Justice Cases. Very easy set up on this guitar, Gary adds nice touches with rod tags and easy installation of the hook ends to the cross rods. Having piked up the guitar directly from Gary in Cookeville TN, Gary spent the day with me explaining various things like split tuning,how to adjust the knee positions and such that the builder obviously has intimate knowledge about. Thanks Gary and hope you like the Maple Syrup, straight from the hills up here in ole Vermont! Enough for now and look forward to working with this guitar in the future.
George
George great looking steel you got my friend now you can find out for your self about it. And that I was telling you the truth about Gary and his great steels. enjoy
Hey George! Very nice-looking guitar. Are those the Wallace 17.5 ohm True-Tone pickups? How do you like them? I played one of Gary's SD-10s in Dallas that had one and it sounded fantastic - as all Ritts do - but that one was extra-special tonewise, IMHO.
Jody, not to jump in front of George, but I put a Wallace TT 17.8k on my SD10. If you are a single coil guy, you'll love it. They have a lot of punch without being too brash. Good sparkle on the highs without piercing, and good smooth lows without being muddy. Here's a link to a thread with some pictures. http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopic.php?t=207552
Thanks, Roger. I am thinking about making the switch to the TTs. The first Ritt I ever played was one of the early hammer finished SD-10s that belonged to Dennis Lee. The tone captivated me, and it also had the TT. Since then, my Ritts have all had the 705s, and they are great, too. Jody
I've not had much experince with the various pick ups on the steel guitar market, I've played the two SKH Emmons D-10's for the last 25 years(pick ups look like the True Tones, don't really know what they are). I've always enjoyed the tone these two guitars have produced and have always performed well live on stage. I must say that the True Tones that are in my new Rittenberry along with the other features that contribute to tone in this guitar are cleaner,smoother and very defined low end, sounds great to me, and like I said earlier that you don't have to monkey with amp settings relentlessly to get a good sound out of it. I'd say these are great pickups coupled to a great guitar. Very impressed with this guitar. In all fairness I believe we are in a very desirable time for high quality steel guitars from some very dedicated builders. I'd love to try'em all!
George
George - Thanks for the reply. There must be something about the Ritts that attract us old Emmons guys. I, too, had a SKH Emmons that I played on and off for 17 yrs., along with several different push pull guitars. All my Emmons guitars had the stock single-coil pups.
A classic looking guitar George, congratulations. Hope you have many years of enjoyment. Dittos on the quality and Gary's personal attention to each guitar and customer.
Maybe someone can post a sound clip w/ the TT pickup.
Emmons P/P, Session 400, sundry 6 stringed and 4 legged critters, amps old & new
I have not weighed the two cases with the respective parts. I do know that the Rittenberry "feels" a bit heavier when removing it from the case to playing position, such is the perils of D-10's. The split case is MUCH more managable when lugging to gigs. Guitar body in the larger, rods, pedal bar and legs in the other. Packs easier in my car as well. I'll try and weigh it, before our next gig which is next Wednesday at the Champlain Valley Fair.
George
During our first break I had to call Gary and tell him how incredible the tone of these guitars are. I've been hearing about the tone from these guitars from other folks that have them here on the forum but until I could hear it out in a live situation for myself,it is a tone machine. Very, very pleased! I've played Emmons D-10s for the past 25 years and although the tone of these guitars are great, the Rittenberry has a sweeter,cleaner tone, very pleasing to my ear. I know there are lots of variable, but we didn't have much time for set up and I just plugged in to my amps and effects as normal, no tweaking my 112's really from what I usually use and the tone is just great. You don't have to work hard to get a great sound out of this guitar is my intial impression.Pedal action and knee levers are VERY precise, almost surgical in their response. Clean, clean craftsmanship! Having discovered the "idea" of split cases just recently, lugging the weight of a D-10 is MUCH easier, nice workmanship from Justice Cases. Very easy set up on this guitar, Gary adds nice touches with rod tags and easy installation of the hook ends to the cross rods. Having piked up the guitar directly from Gary in Cookeville TN, Gary spent the day with me explaining various things like split tuning,how to adjust the knee positions and such that the builder obviously has intimate knowledge about. Thanks Gary and hope you like the Maple Syrup, straight from the hills up here in ole Vermont! Enough for now and look forward to working with this guitar in the future.
