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Rega dealers

R

RoA

pfm Member
Why are RS not Rega dealers?

Are margins too low, does Rega have enough representation in their view, does any Rega dealer have to commit themselves to stock much of the range or is RS simply not the business model they like?

There is no one round here now stocking Rega. Richer has stores in many towns and I am wondering why the brand is not represented in their stores.

I am aware that in my local RS turntables don't feature too largely. They got a couple of cheaper ones but they do have amplifiers in the price range of Rega's top models if you include Cambridge's own Edge. Even without that, RS stock some of the better UK/China brands including a limited range of Cyrus, Roksan, Arcam and Audiolab.

Why no Rega?
 
RS huge Project & Technics dealer + AT , Denon , Cambridge . Elipson, & Mofi
Project have 206 UK stockists Rega have 80
 
daytona600 said:
RS Mass market high street Modern customers want Streaming . Bluetooth , Hdmi . USB , DSP
Click to expand...

That may be the case but as I said, they stock non-streaming, non Bluetooth, non Hdmi, non USB and non DSP products from decent brands too so not really a valid argument.

I perhaps get the service delivery point made by gavreid if one of Rega's stipulation is that any of their dealerships must povide an on-site service centre but do Sevenoaks offer this? - I have however noticed that they (Sevenoaks) offer a large part of Rega's catalogue. - Perhaps a Rega Dealership contract requires to stock their whole range (which RS can't do simply because of space restrictions in some of their outlets)?

Perhaps Rega also require dealers to send staff for training? RS have, I believe, low staff turnover because of fairly decent conditions. I can't see any training provided being wasted unless it's for TT set-up. As mentioned previously, RS do not engage too much in that sector afaik. Could that be the sticking point?

Well, perhaps in the future.
 
gavreid said:
Rega dealers are expected to deliver a service, that is why you can't mail order most products or buy from outside your locality...
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When I bought my Planar 3, forty-five years ago, Rega had less than fifty dealers in the UK and most of those were also Linn/Naim dealers. The three companies shared similar values and commitment to good demonstration facilities, good backup and high standards of general customer care. Also, Rega could sell every single product they could make! The last point is important. I had to wait for my new Rega as demand was greater than Rega's ability to supply.

If you commit to supplying a large chain of shops you need to be able to make enough product. Rega have always refused to ramp up production if it meant compromising quality, prefering to grow at a more controlled rate. ProJect are huge and can supply higher volumes no problem, but their quality is not as good as Rega's in my opinion.

Also, if you agree to sell to Ritcher Sounds you need to supply all of their shops and they vary a lot. Some of the RS shops are tiny and have no proper demonstration facilities at all. Rega don't sell in Ritcher Sounds because the quality and volume of their products doesn't fit with the sales model.

It's always been this way. My first turntable was a Dual 505 which I bought because you could get them anywhere. It wasn't until Stereo Stereo opened in Glasgow that I could buy a Rega turntable remotely locally.
 
I must get my bum to Southampton soon. The nearest Rega Dealership.

Difficult to believe that in all my years in the hobby I have not heard one of their products other than in compromised show surroundings.
 
I think it is a difference between a mass market approach and a focus on a healthy niche market. RS are definitely a mass market-focused company, whilst the independent and smaller hi-fi chains are very much focused on a niche market. Rega has made a success of being one of the longer-lasting British Hi-Fi companies by working out what they do well and doing more of it and Richer Sound have taken a different but equally valid route to sustained success. Both companies are successful and as the old adage says "if it ain't broke don't fix it". I am sure the smart people behind both companies realise this and any changes they make will be on any areas of the business that isn't working so well. But the core values and ethos of both will remain whilst it is fit for purpose I believe.
 
For the record. The Sevenoaks in Yeovil is a fantastic dealership with the highest standards of customer care. I recently bought a new Saturn that developed an issue. It was replaced with a brand new unit, sounds fantastic and I am very happy.

They lent me a new Elicit for home dem recently which I will be buying as soon as funds allow.

Mark is a great guy as is his colleague.

Thoroughly recommended.
 
I too had trouble finding a local Rega dealer, but that was some 40 years ago. Now, fortunately, you don't have to travel too far in Yorkshire to find a Rega dealer eg. in Sheffield, Leeds, York or Hull etc., but I wouldn't expect to find a full Rega range at Richer sounds, for similar reasons as to why you would't find them stocking Linn or Naim gear, as discussed above.
Richer, however, do what they do, very well, and can be recommended to people who wish to start out in audio, without making expensive mistakes, before they have gained some knowledge, and moved on to make some expensive mistakes!
There was one or more dealers in nearby Sheffield back in the day, but I couldn't then, be bothered to make the short journey to investigate.
Instead I had a Thorens/Dual dealer in the town centre, and read that a Dual CS604 was a 'valid competitor' for the Rega Planer 3, and so I rushed out to buy one of these, even though it was a direct drive, and dd's were derided as being inferior to belt drives, at the time, though now seem to have gained a favourable re-evaluation. Then there was the 'informed' opinion that dd's were never at the right speed, as always 'searching' for the right speed!
I continued to use the Dual for around twenty five years without any maintenance, and it never needed a belt replacement!!
I then got an LP12, never ever having owned a Rega turntable. Maybe I should have auditioned that P10!
 
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As I recall, DD turntables back in the day were praised for average speed accuracy, but not speed constancy. If my fading memory is correct, flutter was measured at 3kHz and the Japanese DD turntables turned in excellent test numbers by having their servo-driven motors make constant speed corrections around 7hHz (inexpensive lightweight platters and high-torque DC motors made this a doddle). Thus the platter speed was constantly ratcheting up and down but at a high enough frequency that it didn’t show up in the conventional wow & flutter tests.

By contrast, belt-driven turntables like the LP12 and Planar 3 used heavier platters and synchronous AC motors, locked onto the 50 Hz (or 60 Hz in the US) mains frequency. The result was average platter speed that deviated slightly more from the 33 1/3 ideal than DD turntables, but the belt-driven turntables’ slightly inaccurate speed remained constant, in contrast to the DD models’ incessant speed corrections.

I believe this phenomenon was cited as at least part of the reason music in the midrange and treble frequencies sounded smoother and more natural on belt-driven tables, compared to the sound of DD turntables which was criticized for coming across as a bit harsh and flat.
 
Very simply because Richer (no t btw) Sound's and Rega's business objectives do not marry up and that is a criticism of neither. RS exist to sell good quality product to a mass market without the trappings of higher end, shall we say more attentive, dealers and they do a very good job at it IMO. Rega seek out dealers who go that bit further with demonstration facilities and after sales care as this cements their products as the best supported in the land... which, again IMO, they are. At the end of the day if you have to travel a little bit to a Rega dealer so what? It's a product you are going to presumably use every day for at least the next few years so why not make the effort (all things being equal of course).
 
decent hifi should be purchased on the basis of a demonstration to see if the product is suited to your taste.
Rgds
stuart
 
Subito said:
As I recall, DD turntables back in the day were praised for average speed accuracy, but not speed constancy. If my fading memory is correct, flutter was measured at 3kHz and the Japanese DD turntables turned in excellent test numbers by having their servo-driven motors make constant speed corrections around 7hHz (inexpensive lightweight platters and high-torque DC motors made this a doddle). Thus the platter speed was constantly ratcheting up and down but at a high enough frequency that it didn’t show up in the conventional wow & flutter tests.

By contrast, belt-driven turntables like the LP12 and Planar 3 used heavier platters and synchronous AC motors, locked onto the 50 Hz (or 60 Hz in the US) mains frequency. The result was average platter speed that deviated slightly more from the 33 1/3 ideal than DD turntables, but the belt-driven turntables’ slightly inaccurate speed remained constant, in contrast to the DD models’ incessant speed corrections.

I believe this phenomenon was cited as at least part of the reason music in the midrange and treble frequencies sounded smoother and more natural on belt-driven tables, compared to the sound of DD turntables which was criticized for coming across as a bit harsh and flat.
Click to expand...

Motor Cogging. I first heard of it when everyone was modding the SL1200 MK 2. I thought it was proven to be a non issue?
 
Purely different business models as @Mr Pig says above. Both have their merits in their respective markets. I have a lot of respect for Rega and their products
 
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