For the majority of the story, the fallen-empire setting of the ring is dystopian. Earth itself is a utopia, which bores the main character and is their motivation to explore the ring to begin with. So both?

Even if they don't follow the main plot, the ring presents a great backdrop for exploration and the freedom for some pretty interesting stories.

Sort of a problem with a lot of Niven's novels more generally, but they became travelogues to a large degree. I agree not especially dystopian (or interesting).

I liked his short stories a lot more.