Never heard P6 but owned RP6 & RP8.
Not done direct compare
Not used in same room
Not used with same cartridge
FWIW
I feel #8 are more organic and dynamic with lovely flow.
Rega Planar 6 vs Planar 8
- Thread starter gerlando
- Start date
Never heard P6 but owned RP6 & RP8.
Not done direct compare
Not used in same room
Not used with same cartridge
FWIW
I feel #8 are more organic and dynamic with lovely flow.
Joel Burt
pfm Member
I don’t really understand what you are getting at, are you saying the GT spindle is too small for the spindle hole? i use a Limm bronze bearing hub and GT reference sub-platter and the fit and finish is perfect. I also used it on the stock rega and there is no gap. Fit and finish on the GT is perfect. The RP6 uses a plastic and aluminum subplatter that seems pretty low budget design for a deck at that price.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.
Craig B
Re:trophile
If their blue plastic end protector was anything to go by then, yes, it must have been measurably smaller in diameter than the standard Rega item at that time. I notice that Groovetracer don't supply that cap any longer, preferring instead a stretchy black rubber one.
FYI, I was replying to your previous comment regarding RP8. Perhaps you meant RP6.
Regardless, the aluminium top of RP6 hub was intended as spacer that fit over the standard item, in order to allow for the expensive* higher flywheel effect platter to clear the plinth. IOWs, RP6 was more Rega's own take on a modded RP3** complete with dedicated external TTPSU. Rega obviously felt at the time that a greater flywheel effect platter did more for speed stability performance than would a full metal hub with standard 12mm float glass. That all could be had from Rega for £898. (£1000 with factory fitted Exact cartridge!) makes paying $300. plus $30. shipping, plus 20% VAT, plus 2.5% duty for a knock-off P6 hub/spindle seem ill advised, especially so, as Analog Seduction recently had the full metal Rega replacement P6 hub/spindle assemblies listed for less than 60 quid.
* The second most expensive part after the tonearm, retailing for £264.99 from Analog Seduction.
** Whereas, P6 is an entirely more advanced offering in its own right.
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Yank
Bulbous Also Tapered
Rega have the advantage of scale, hobby replacement parts tend to come from very small companies, perhaps one-man.
Joel Burt
pfm Member
the GT RP6 subplatter is hardly a Rega knockoff, it has a jeweled bearing system with a sapphire thrust plate and CZ bearing. Also here is the tolerance for axle to bearing hub: 0.0005 ”or better concentricity between the axle and hub offers vast improvement in pitch control.
I would be interesting to see how the cost of modded decks stacks up against buying a better stock Rega. I would expect modded decks to come out well but I don't know.
Also noteworthy that Rega don't used jewel bearings, even on their top turntables. In fact very few manufacturers do. Pink Triangle spring to mind but their one was prone to cracking. Rega use ceramic on the Niad. I wonder if it's a cost vs benefit decision or if they feel jewel bearings aren't robust enough. Just be nice to know the thought processes there.
sonddek
Trade: SUPATRAC
Have you tried sprinkling corn flakes onto the platter first. I was amazed how well this worked. It sounded so much crisper. I only play the first side of my records though, so YMMV ;-)
Craig B
Re:trophile
12.7 microns is pretty standard stuff.
This topic has come up before.
Jewel bearings are notoriously fragile and somewhat ridiculous in situations where the consumer has the ability/need to separate and rejoin the contact points; for example, when transporting/shipping and/or disassembling/reassembling the item.
Another consideration is the relative hardness differences between contact materials, aka the Mohs scale of mineral hardness (after German geologist Friedrich Mohs). Simply dropping a sapphire (9 on the Mohs scale), or cubic zirconia ball (Mohs = 8-8.5), onto a hardened steel thrust plate with a Mohs rating of 7-8 already, and then expecting a miracle is a bit suspect.
That Rega have chosen both an über expensive single-point ceramic spindle and bearing well for Naiad is a different story altogether. When this achievement was announced, Roy Gandy made mention that the cost of producing the two ceramic parts exceeded the cost of an RP10 turntable; as such, I don't believe that we'll be seeing full ceramic bearings in single digit Planar decks any time soon.
sonddek
Trade: SUPATRAC
Most bearing designs seem to be variations of a traditional design that has well-known problems concerning wear, tolerances, procession, noise/rumble. It's a design suitable for high speed rotation, i.e. not a turntable. Is Well Tempered's inventive and affordable approach still under patent?
I would guess that a zero-gap small-contact-surface bearing would produce a more accurate and less noisy result.
I would guess that a zero-gap small-contact-surface bearing would produce a more accurate and less noisy result.
Yes, much better than Rice Krispies. I find all that snap, crackle and popping so distracting.
Craig B
Re:trophile
The great engineer, Mother Nature, abhors zero-gap bearings; this is the main reason why one testicle hangs lower than the other... No stiction I!
I.D.C.
pfm Member
As I added a second tonearm to the turntable it means the dust cover no longer fits. So I bought a small paint brush and dust with that very effective.
moomaloo
pfm Member
A few weeks ago (and before reading this) I decided that it was time to buy a new Rega lid for my RP6 as I simply couldn't get the lid clear and clean again without resorting to some sort of chemical cleaner. Out of desperation and with little to lose I gave the lid a warm bath with a bit of liquid soap and a gently rub down with a soft cloth. Worked wonders!
Craig B
Re:trophile
When the eventual swirl marks and light scratches do set in, the best solution I've found to date are Novus brand plastic polishes. There are 3 types, labeled Novus No. 1 through No. 3. No. 1 is a cleaner/protectant; No. 2, a fine scratch remover; and, No 3 is a medium scratch remover. I typically use No. 2 followed by No. 1. For covers that are in really bad condition, it is No. 3, No. 2 then No. 1.
Not all covers respond equally as well, however, I've been asked many times if my various turntable lids were new, when in fact only one is less than 30 years old, some as old as 50 plus.
Not all covers respond equally as well, however, I've been asked many times if my various turntable lids were new, when in fact only one is less than 30 years old, some as old as 50 plus.
A little bit of my previous Rega experience. I first owned an RP-40, for those that don't know it was a factory "hot rodded" RP-3 that came with most of the more important items from the RP-6. I had an aftermarket subplatter on it, a white RP-6 came up & I made the swap. I assumed performance would be very similar or even a downgrade being the RP-40 had most of the "important" RP-6 upgrades & I had a better aftermarket subplatter on my RP-40 (main reason for the swap was for the looks/colour combo & was planning on adding an aftermarket subplatter to the RP-6 in the future). To my surprise the RP6 with the stock subplatter was an easily audible improvement vs the RP-40 with the upgraded subplatter.
I see guys online going all out on Rega upgrades but their likely much better off just jumping up the Rega chain.
I'm inclined to think you are right but there is such a huge range of potential mods and combinations of them I reckon it's very possible that some people have really great sounding modded decks.
Craig B
Re:trophile
It won't be long before Rega will have reached their 50th anniversary.
Here is the RP40 flyer from 2013, for those who missed it.
No doubt there is & I'm not again upgrades (after all even with the RP6 I did add a GT subplatter, a dual pulley with white belts & a linear supply for the TTPSU), just feel some people go crazy with the upgrades while they could be better off with just moving up the Rega line instead.
Agree.