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Rega Planar 6 vs Planar 8

I’m so fed up with lids going dull and getting scratched that I just leave them off and instead, dust the deck periodically. I’d have no issue with the current skeletal Rega models at all... in fact the lift off dust cover would probably live in the box too.

I agree with both, the problem with Rega is the felt mat, unless you put a second mat on the first one that is removed during listening (or you can remove the dusty mat and place the record directly on the glass plate ...).
 
I agree with both, the problem with Rega is the felt mat, unless you put a second mat on the first one that is removed during listening (or you can remove the dusty mat and place the record directly on the glass plate ...).
Ah, I use an Origin Live mat!
 
I haven't heard the P6, but I haven't seen or heard anyone out there claiming it to be better (sonically) than the P8. The two dealers I demo'd the P8 at remarked that they thought it it pretty much equal to the RP10, which they were still selling at the time!

I never used to use the dustcover on the P1, P3 or Technics that I had prior to my P8, but do use the P8 cover! It takes up little space, has no ill acoustic effects to worry about, and is easily removed and replaced.

As has been mentioned elsewhere, I also use an achromat as I got fed up with the stock felt mat lifting and didn't want to tape it in place.
 
'From a functional, aesthetic and sound quality perspective, Rega considers pure wool is ideal empirically speaking, but it does suffer from numerous problems in static generation and physical stability which have cost penalties. (If cost is irrelevant, a felt mat will consist of at least three kinds of wool fibres, plus a few strands of synthetic fibre, multi layered at different angles, and pre shrunk two or three times before die cutting to the required shape.'

'A reviewer once questioned the validity of Rega using an ultra-stiff platter beneath a soft felt mat - superficially a not unreasonable question. However, he had failed to realise that the platter and mat have entirely different functions: the platter behaves as a flywheel, gyroscope, and becomes the source of stable energy needed by the disc; the mat requirement is that of an ideal interface in transferring this rotational energy into the vinyl disc. Because the surface area of contact is very large (up to 700 square centimetres), and relatively thin, a low level of friction still couples the disc to the platter with zero slippage. Although one square centimetre of contact would allow some horizontal or vertical flexibility, 700 effectively becomes rigid - much more so than the vinyl itself.

Taken from the Rega book 'A Vibration Measuring Machine' (pages 221/2).
 
It's a bit like cars, cleaning them too often and the wrong way does more damage than good. Virtually all of the damage you see on turntable lids is due to cleaning.
Yep, and I clean often, I’ve dulled/scratched every turntable lid I’ve had in fairly short order... they seem to attract dust like nothing else, I certainly don’t get the same accumulation of dust on a lidless deck that I do on a turntable lid... I actually think my P5 looks prettier within the lid fitted... and the P9 definitely does!
 
I’m so fed up with lids going dull and getting scratched that I just leave them off and instead, dust the deck periodically. I’d have no issue with the current skeletal Rega models at all... in fact the lift off dust cover would probably live in the box too.

You are doing it all wrong!!!

A few years back I sold my 20 year old LP 12 and the lid was immaculate. Now I have an Orbe with a SeCure cover. Both get cleaned the same way.

-Take them into the shower and wash off all dust under lukewarm water.
-Next.. carefully and lightly wash with a kitchen towel or tissue and a bit of washing up liquid. This is to remove the fine aerosol of fats and oils which drifts through any normal home which has a kitchen... and settles on all surfaces.
-Rinse off again. Dont forget to do the inside.. that gets surprisingly grubby too...
-Put somewhere suitable and safe to drain.. then finish drying by carefully 'swabbing' with tissue.

Works for me.
 
You are doing it all wrong!!!

A few years back I sold my 20 year old LP 12 and the lid was immaculate. Now I have an Orbe with a SeCure cover. Both get cleaned the same way.

-Take them into the shower and wash off all dust under lukewarm water.
-Next.. carefully and lightly wash with a kitchen towel or tissue and a bit of washing up liquid. This is to remove the fine aerosol of fats and oils which drifts through any normal home which has a kitchen... and settles on all surfaces.
-Rinse off again. Dont forget to do the inside.. that gets surprisingly grubby too...
-Put somewhere suitable and safe to drain.. then finish drying by carefully 'swabbing' with tissue.

Works for me.

After it's been cleaned, would it help to rub it up with a silicone-based automotive wax?
 
You are doing it all wrong!!!

A few years back I sold my 20 year old LP 12 and the lid was immaculate. Now I have an Orbe with a SeCure cover. Both get cleaned the same way.

-Take them into the shower and wash off all dust under lukewarm water.
-Next.. carefully and lightly wash with a kitchen towel or tissue and a bit of washing up liquid. This is to remove the fine aerosol of fats and oils which drifts through any normal home which has a kitchen... and settles on all surfaces.
-Rinse off again. Dont forget to do the inside.. that gets surprisingly grubby too...
-Put somewhere suitable and safe to drain.. then finish drying by carefully 'swabbing' with tissue.

Works for me.
Yes, I’ve tried all that, my LP12 lid fared pretty well and stayed looking good... but was still off the deck more than it was on, I’d put it on if I wasn’t using the deck for a while, but that was rare. The Rega ones seem to tarnish quite quickly though.
 
I wouldn't apply any polish. Just keep things clean by gently removing dust etc.
In my experience a lot of kit reacts badly to cleaning products other than a damp cloth.

I once decided to use a bit of isopropyl to remove fingernarks from the front panel of my Lingo 1.... it started taking the white painted graphics off... Mercifully I stopped before lasting damage was done.
 
Dusting causes scratches. If you don't mind the appearance, a soft headscarf on the cover will protect it by collecting the dust instead. Just give it a shake and a wash once in a while. Scratches are inevitable over the long haul though, unfortunately.
 
I agree with both, the problem with Rega is the felt mat, unless you put a second mat on the first one that is removed during listening (or you can remove the dusty mat and place the record directly on the glass plate ...).
30 years ago, I decided I preferred the sound when a record was put directly on the glass platter of my Planar 3, and that's how it still is today.
 
I can’t imagine the rega RP8 sub platter system to be better than the groovetracer.
Then you have no imagination.

Ever wonder why Groovetracer don't produce a bearing well?

Funny story; a couple of years ago I purchased a stock Rega 3 hub/spindle from a fellow who had replaced his with a Groovetracer. He decided to fit the blue plastic spindle end protector to the Rega part and couldn't get it off in the parking lot of the Tim Horton's where we met. I was worried that he might break the spindle free of the hub so I assured him that I trusted his description of the spindle end as mint and gave him the $15 asking price (which included the original ball bearing in a wee zip baggie, as, naturally, he had gone for a ceramic drill, er, ball too). Before we parted, I asked if he had any trouble getting the cap off the Groovetracer and he replied 'No, it just slid right off'. End of story.

ES_rega-turntable-with-apheta-2-cartridge-rp8-black-d96.jpg
 
I wouldn't apply any polish. Just keep things clean by gently removing dust etc.
In my experience a lot of kit reacts badly to cleaning products other than a damp cloth.

I once decided to use a bit of isopropyl to remove fingernarks from the front panel of my Lingo 1.... it started taking the white painted graphics off... Mercifully I stopped before lasting damage was done.

So last night.. Home late from friends.. I remembered I needed to pack my EAR834p ready for collection next morning as it's off back to EAR for an m.o.t.. I wanted to get finger marks off the gloss black front so.. unthinking used a bit of Isopropyl alcohol....
Obviously not so smart as I claimed above..:(
Gloss front was fine..but half of one side looked awful....the soft sheen of what I assume is powder coating was gone..leaving a dull patchy mess.
Tried Mr Sheen. ..no good..A couple of brands of car polish... Still no good.
Finally...Cherry Blossom boot polish...did the trick. Looks like New!
Reader.....Learn from my folly...
 
Adding very little to the discussion, I admit, but having decided on a Planar 8 over an RP10 and a couple of conventional options (inc. P9), the first thing I did when I got it was to order a bespoke acrylic cover that fits over the whole assembly. In hindsight, it’s a little too tall (but leaves the option to have the TT on its own inner plinth, which I also have now use under the CXC) but works very well. The supplied vestigial dust cover might have worked well enough, but leaves the cartridge dangerously prone to damage from a dog’s tail.... so it remains in the box. Sonically, I can’t really ask for more from a turntable. Or at least I think I can’t, except that until I upgrade the phono stage I won’t know quite what the deck is *really* capable of. It’s a cracking bit of design and I would argue noticeably better than previous decks I’ve owned (including a couple of decently-specced LP12s, a Clearaudio and a Spacedeck HD).
 
Related question for me would be, how does the P6 compare with the old RP8?

These are such interesting questions as the full range of Rega decks, if you include the older ones, is vast. Ok, there has always been a Planar 3 but there are loads of variants of each deck. Even the forty year old Planars sound really good so it would be so interesting if you could get all of the decks, new and old, and see how they stack up against each other.
 


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