What Made You Buy A Rega Tt?

[PMBroadhurst]

Like many people, I put my Thorens away in the early ninties and just listened to CDs. When the original Project Debut came out and had rave reviews, I thought, "the most I can lose is £100."

So I bought one, and was amazed at how things had progressed. It was not long after that I decided to buy a P2 2000 - mainly on the reputation of the pickup arm. I was not disappointed, compared to the £100 Project, but was never 100% happy. I upgraded the counterweight, stub, wiring, VTA adjuster, etc. but still something was not right. I then out that RB250 on a Linn LP12 that I had built from spares and all was well with my world.

The RB250 was the star of the show, held back by a plank of chipboard. But then, what do you expect for £200? I stripped the P2 and sold on ebay for spares.

That said, I recommend building an LP12 from spares. I think the one I mention above came in at about £250. A real bargain for the quality of sound. It is a shame it is sat in my attic gathering dust at the moment. I amay even end up selling it!!!

[mcubba]

My first "audiophile" TT ended up being a Pro-ject Xpression III purchased locally at the first of last year. That dealer spoke of Rega's "speed issues" and I wasn't much aware of Rega at that time. I also was not aware of our local Rega dealer.

FF to April of this year and the Pro-ject had been sold and I purchased a P3-24 w/ttpsu locally off Craigslist and was blown away by the improved sound. Unfortunately I had to sell it over the summer due to some personal issues and job loss. I cannot wait to get another one and may get the new RP-1 this fall and trade up to a P3-24 next year if finances allow.

[banerjba]

I ran Linns for 20 years. I got tired of my LP12 suspension going off all of the time. Heard the P5 at a local Linn/Rega dealer and was impressed. I preferred it to the LP12 Majik which is similar to my old one sound wise. My son wanted a table too so I got him a P1. Even this basic table is actually quite good once it breaks in.

I am a bit of a Rega fan. I run a Fono pre for my 1200 and also use a P5 and Rega Radio tuner (one of the best sounding tuners I have heard) on the main system. System 2 is based around a killer sounding Rega Elex amp.

[HBA]

I can say that I am also a Rega fan. My first "serious" TT was a Planar 3 and I was really surprised by its sound quality. Afterwards, I got a P7...much better..and now I am a proud owner of a Rega P9 which one I have already upgrade by adding the white belts and Herbie´s lab mat...very soon I will install the VTAF from Pete Riggle..the P9 is just amazing , playing on the same league as players costing at least twice..let´s wait for the P10...I can not even imagine how it goes to play..

Regards,

[banerjba]

I can say that I am also a Rega fan. My first "serious" TT was a Planar 3 and I was really surprised by its sound quality. Afterwards, I got a P7...much better..and now I am a proud owner of a Rega P9 which one I have already upgrade by adding the white belts and Herbie´s lab mat...very soon I will install the VTAF from Pete Riggle..the P9 is just amazing , playing on the same league as players costing at least twice..let´s wait for the P10...I can not even imagine how it goes to play..

Regards,

Cool. Can you describe the difference you found going from teh P3 to P7 and then to P9? When is theee P10 coming?

[pulsetsar]

It sounds weird but it's true.

I had been an audiophile for 10 years before taking the vinyl plunge. Before I had pursued digital heavily, being well invested in the SACD and DVD-audio discs and even dabbled in multichannel. While I really enjoyed the sound of SACDs I quickly grew tired of waiting for my favorite music to come out in that format. I had a great CD player and tons of CDs but the sound was never quite pleasing enough to my ears. I had heard vinyl and really appreciated the sound but this was only on very expensive rigs. It didn't occur to me to try out less expensive turntables because I just assumed the sound would be so inferior to the great digital sources I already had.

Then my wife inherits a bunch of old Bollywood LP's from her family and starts nagging me to get a turntable so we can listen to them. I put this off for about a year because I didn't want to spend the money on just any turntable and didn't have the time to do any fair auditions. Finally, before Christmas, I went to my local dealer and did some auditions.

The first table I listened to was the entry-line Project. Man was I shocked by the performance! When I saw the $300 price tag I immediately cursed myself for not looking into this sooner. Although I liked the sound right off, I wanted to compare so the dealer brought out a Rega P1. I wasn't struck by a huge difference initially, but one thing the dealer noticed when I was listening to the Rega was I was sitting back relaxed and tapping my foot to the music, whereas with the Project I was leaning forward with a strained look on my face. He actually swapped back to the Project and observed me again before telling me this - a very cool test! Well, I demoed the Rega at home and here I am, 2 cartridges and 40+ LP's (and counting) later!

Oh, and the wife barely listens to the thing now!

[marlxx]

I started out listening to vinyl as a little kid with my dad's records on a Technics table he had. I'm not even sure which one it was! It bit the dust around the time the digital revolution came out, so 500 or so records were stored away not to be seen until last year.

I've been wanting to digitize the collection for quite some time, since thankfully most of the records are in superb condition, and I refused to get one of those USB turntables that you find in big box stores. I couldn't bring myself to have a nice record collection and ruin them with an unknown needle.

I searched and was close to buying an entry level Pro-Ject, when I found on Ebay a Rega Planar 2 (wood trim earlier version) with the Rega/Acos arm. I paid about $350 for the TT, tested it on arrival and it worked great. I replaced the belt, changed the Grado cart that came with it (bit the dust) to an Ortofon 2M Red, and I've been very happy with it since. I've held off on upgrades, since I've been building up the rest of the audio system, but on the list are the Groovetracer subplatter, and an upgraded tonearm, probably the RB300.

The only thing I'm curious about is finding out the year of manufacture. The TT is S/N 140937.

[banerjba]

It sounds weird but it's true.

I had been an audiophile for 10 years before taking the vinyl plunge. Before I had pursued digital heavily, being well invested in the SACD and DVD-audio discs and even dabbled in multichannel. While I really enjoyed the sound of SACDs I quickly grew tired of waiting for my favorite music to come out in that format. I had a great CD player and tons of CDs but the sound was never quite pleasing enough to my ears. I had heard vinyl and really appreciated the sound but this was only on very expensive rigs. It didn't occur to me to try out less expensive turntables because I just assumed the sound would be so inferior to the great digital sources I already had.

Then my wife inherits a bunch of old Bollywood LP's from her family and starts nagging me to get a turntable so we can listen to them. I put this off for about a year because I didn't want to spend the money on just any turntable and didn't have the time to do any fair auditions. Finally, before Christmas, I went to my local dealer and did some auditions.

The first table I listened to was the entry-line Project. Man was I shocked by the performance! When I saw the $300 price tag I immediately cursed myself for not looking into this sooner. Although I liked the sound right off, I wanted to compare so the dealer brought out a Rega P1. I wasn't struck by a huge difference initially, but one thing the dealer noticed when I was listening to the Rega was I was sitting back relaxed and tapping my foot to the music, whereas with the Project I was leaning forward with a strained look on my face. He actually swapped back to the Project and observed me again before telling me this - a very cool test! Well, I demoed the Rega at home and here I am, 2 cartridges and 40+ LP's (and counting) later!

Oh, and the wife barely listens to the thing now!

Those old Bollywood LPs would likely sound dreadful. I have a handful (I am East Indian) but mostly it is Indian Classical. Only about 10 Indian records in my collection of over 2,000 though.

[pulsetsar]

Those old Bollywood LPs would likely sound dreadful. I have a handful (I am East Indian) but mostly it is Indian Classical. Only about 10 Indian records in my collection of over 2,000 though.

You know most of them are pretty terrible, but some of the classical Indian music ones are surprisingly awesome. Sure, the original recording is pretty low quality in most cases, but I've never been so engaged by sitar and tabala pieces except at live concerts. However, Lata Mangeshkar's voice only gets more annoyingly childish, I'm afraid (I know - not a very PC thing to say but so true!).
-Krishna

[RoDa]

I never quit vinyl, I just took a 30 year vacation...
(Played LPs on my fathers system as a small boy, that is)

When I started bying LPs again a Well Tempered Record Player was my first player. It sounded good, but something lacked in its presentation.
So, when a used Rega P5 appeared I went for it.
I was lucky to be able to test the P5 at home before closing the deal.

For me this is how vinyl is supposed to sound!
Lively sound, great dynamics and speed. Foot-stomping qualities!

I love the looks, the simplicity and of course the sound of my P5.
Not to mention the upgrade I got with the Grovetracer reference subplatter!


My current vinyl playback is:
Raga P5 / RB700 / Ortofon Rondo Blue
Rotel Michi RHQ-10 RIAA





Best Regards
Rolf

[banerjba]

Rolf. Thanks for that great photo. I just upgraded my 2M Red to Blue on my P5. Very nice. The cartridge you have is beautiful. I have been considering the Rondo Red but I believe this is a low output design so I would need a pre with more gain.

[RoDa]

Thank you, banerjba

The Rondo Blue was installed on my P5 when I got it.
So I cannot tell you much about how it sounds compared to other cartridges.

My RIAA, Rotel Michi RHQ-10, has a lot of adjustments, so I am able to use a variety of different cartridges.

Best Regards
Rolf

[Lemesee]

For the most part I like Rega as a company. I like that they try to keep their home country's workers building stuff. I like the way the gear sounds and looks. Many years ago I got a Planar 3 which replaced a Thornes that I used for a long time, then I went up the Rega line over the years. I just don't like turntables that look bulky, gaudy or like sci-fi. I wanted something utilitarian with a dust cover, good but not necessarily the best sound, decent price, reliable. Simply put there are other factors beyond sound quality alone when I consider hi-fi gear and sometimes Rega is about the only one that fits the bill, for example a few years ago I wanted a UK, US or Japanese made integrated amp with onboard phono and the list was not long.

[banerjba]

Lemesee: good point about Rega stuff still being UK made - that is a deal breaker for me. I want first world build.

Hard to concentrate on the post with that beautiful blue cartridge lookin bakc at me.

I will likely buy a Rega Fono MC in 2011 (I already own a Fono MM). Then I can add a Rondo Red and mabe a Vivo for the Technics 1200.