Dear all,
I'm considering trading my Ritter Roya 5 string "The Late Lounge" which is valued around 8.500euro (used but MINT) for this Alembic Edwin Van Huik signature (deluxe I think). Please see attached pics, do you think it the trade would be fair or the Ritter is more expensive? Thanks a lot
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I don't know much about Ritter basses, or what the marketable value of this trade might be in your area, but I would love to have that EVH 5-string. I believe it belonged to a fellow Club Member here a while back.
https://club.alembicguitars.com/signature-basses-690/2004-evh-5-straight-from-edwin/
I answered Alberto's email around 10:00 this morning, but thought I should post here too so anyone else could see the information.
This is a standard model with an upgraded neck. Deluxe models have back laminates.
I'm sorry I don't have any advice on the used value of any instruments, but surely someone in the club will have the experience to give you some guidance.
Very nice bass! I'm wondering about the 5-pin.
Quote from: David Houck on October 05, 2026, 03:42:10 PMVery nice bass! I'm wondering about the 5-pin.
Same.
I personally would make this trade every day of the week. I have never played a Ritter bass that made me want to own one.
My .02.
Don't come here asking if you should buy an Alembic.
The answer would always be "heck yes!". Especially with that grain pattern. 😍
Strap that bass on, play it and let that bass answer your question about, 'if it's better than a Ritter'.
EVH is rare, so hard to establish the value.
it's a standard model with upgraded neck, which is the CORRECT way to spec any standard model, IMHO.
Ritter is nice, Alembic is also nice. Play it, and if you like the playability and sound, go for it.
I am sure Ritter is just as great of a bass to certain people. If you ask anyone here, bias is much towards Alembic...
my 2 yens ;D
Takeo
Quote from: David Houck on October 05, 2026, 03:42:10 PMVery nice bass! I'm wondering about the 5-pin.
I'm so used to seeing 5-pins I
totally missed that. It is not our standard housing, but I can only assume it was modded to accommodate the 5-pin cable and power supply. I don't remember if we ever had to substitute that part but if you show a picture of what's in the electronics cavity I can probably tell you if it was done here or not.
And Paul is right about the top wood, that's really nice Walnut.
From facebook:
668759250_4066395946985901_2760554651154138986_n.jpg
My 2p. I've been taken by the aesthetic of some Ritter basses especially the Roya and Eye of Horus, and I ventured out to a dealer here and tried some of their models along with some other boutique brands. I left there empty handed with the conclusion than none of the basses I tried there had a sound that would make me prefer it to any of the alembics I had at the time. But then my ears do have a baked in bias towards the alembic sound.
The safest bet would be to seek a way to try that EVH, or at least an alembic with signature gubbings. Are you by any chance located anywhere near Station Music in Germany? they usually have good stock.
I hope your quest proves fruitful whichever decision you make.
I saw your bass on facebook and i have to say it's gorgeous!
Thanks for the feedback guys, you convinced me to make the trade.
Do you think the neck pickup with Q (boosted on 700hz) would be great for rock and metal?
So at the end what's the 5pin for?
thanks!
The 5 pin is to plug in the external mains power supply called DS-5 or a rack mount DS-5R.They power the bass at 36v DC and from that unit you can choose to have separate pickup outs or a mono signal from both pickups. This means the bass is always running on full power with loads of headroom for your sound.
Your internal batteries will then be a backup power supply if you choose this power option.
You will also need a 5 pin cable like this.
https://bayoucables.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=6
Though you should be able to order from Alembic or an alembic dealer, or reverb etc.
power supplies
Quote from: jazzyvee on Yesterday at 02:55:45 AMThe 5 pin is to plug in the external mains power supply called DS-5 or a rack mount DS-5R.They power the bass at 36v DC and from that unit you can choose to have separate pickup outs or a mono signal from both pickups. This means the bass is always running on full power with loads of headroom for your sound.
Your internal batteries will then be a backup power supply if you choose this power option.
You will also need a 5 pin cable like this.
https://bayoucables.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=6
Though you should be able to order from Alembic or an alembic dealer, or reverb etc.
power supplies
Got it, anyway I can use it without that right?
Quote from: albertorigoni on Yesterday at 05:24:51 AMQuote from: jazzyvee on Yesterday at 02:55:45 AMThe 5 pin is to plug in the external mains power supply called DS-5 or a rack mount DS-5R.They power the bass at 36v DC and from that unit you can choose to have separate pickup outs or a mono signal from both pickups. This means the bass is always running on full power with loads of headroom for your sound.
Your internal batteries will then be a backup power supply if you choose this power option.
You will also need a 5 pin cable like this.
https://bayoucables.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=6
Though you should be able to order from Alembic or an alembic dealer, or reverb etc.
power supplies
Got it, anyway I can use it without that right?
Sure, you just use the 1/4" jack as normally, and the bass will operate on battery power. Having the 5-pin jack and later adding the DS-5 power supply would be a nice bonus.
You might check out fellow Club Member FC Bass YouTube channel for some pointers on using Alembic basses in rock and metal. (also a link in his profile)
https://youtube.com/@damagedjusticenld?si=E4EyH01tMcjobizB
Thanks! But what would be the difference between battery and 5 pin supplier in terms of tone? thanks!
Quote from: albertorigoni on Yesterday at 06:42:48 AMThanks! But what would be the difference between battery and 5 pin supplier in terms of tone? thanks!
Don't think there is much (if any) difference in sound. If so, someone will correct me. Normally the ones with the 5 pins (series basses) are stereo but this one isn't.
I have an EvH 4 string myself (think it's a Deluxe because it has the same back wood as top wood and neck laminates). The one you posted is the second/later EvH model. I have the first (more classic looking) model. Really like it. Just posted this video below of it. I Have more videos of it on my YouTube. Good luck with the trade!
https://club.alembicguitars.com/alembic-basses-guitars/alembic-evh-signature-video-four-finger-slapping/
No difference in sound between battery and external PSU - except the battery won't die. ;)
My guess is that this bass was modified to include the 5-pin jack (maybe not done at the factory) so that the owner could easily switch between this bass and another Series I or II. It is wired to use only the + side of the external supply (and that would be +15-20VDC) and to send the mono output signal down what is normally the neck pickup wire.
You certainly don't need external PSU, 5-pin cable, etc. as these instruments were designed and built to run off the one 9V battery. It's an option for you, but it would cost you about a lifetime's supply of 9V batteries. :D
We hope you really enjoy this bass!!
Jimmy J
I'll just add - although you probably already know - that the bass is "on" whenever the 1/4" jack is plugged in. So unplug when you're done playing to save that battery.
Let us know how you like it!
Jimmy J
Took a closer look at this. Jesse looked up the electronics and the 5-pin was not original, so my hunch that it was added later checks out. Dad confirmed the wiring of the 5-pin should be functional (there is a decent sized cap to the right of the ferrite bead). However, there's no difference in voltage in this case; this just uses the bass output on the DS-5 and is dropped to 9V just like using a battery, but of course you don't have a battery to worry about. This is great if you have another Alembic with a 5-pin, then you can use the same cable, or if you are very worried about the battery going dead, this fires it.
A couple of other things that dad and I noticed as we were looking at the cavity is that the treble pickup Q-switch seems to have sprouted an additional capacitor. This may have been done for a personal preference for the Q settings. The threaded inserts do not look right (except maybe the one below the battery). Dad suspects the original screws were lost and metric were tried and may have torn out the original threaded inserts. The ones that aren't original look to be installed upside-down compared to the way our are installed (https://club.alembicguitars.com/information-related-to-all-instruments/installing-threaded-inserts/).
The other thing I can't explain are the little black lever-looking things on the wire side of the 3-pin connectors on the filter boards, and the tail on the solder side of the treble pickup filter board. I just can't tell what they are.
Anyway, these basses all live their own lives after they leave here, and they sometimes gain experience (and components). Overall this bass looks like it was well loved so far.
Can the 5-pin and the jack out be used at the same time on the non-series basses? Like two mono outputs sending the total output each to a different amp? Like I can do on my Wal bass? or does one shut off when the other is used?