Rega p1 manual

Sub-budget turntables i. The bundling makes sense in this case. Lucky customers sporting a larger budget should demand enhanced sound quality and should reject the built-in phono amplifier option. Simple as that. If Rega has done this successfully, then it could revolutionise this analogue design variant. I began by testing the Rega Plus using its built in phono amplifier against various low cost, Chinese-made sub-budget turntables using their own built-in phono amplifiers and the Plus won, hands down, sonically, in every frequency area.

Right from the beginning, the Rega struggled and the problem was a veiling noise and I knew where that was coming from, the built-in Rega phono amp. Nothing aggressive. Not a buzzing or anything obvious. It was almost the sound you get from too much compression within music. The sort of effect that really bugs you after a while. It gets under your skin.

The noise veil introduced enough of a covering to remove detail and to dampen dynamics. Rega might have utilised shielding to keep the noise out but, obviously, not enough was employed because this noise was everywhere. It offered a smooth, relaxing sound, in comparison. This from the smoothest vocal delivery in the business. Her voice sounded worried. It was as if something truly horrible was going to happen after the session and she was fretting about it during her performance.

She sounded positively tense. The brass was rather harsh in tone too. The muted trumpets, especially during crescendos, were thin, raspy and aggressive while the cymbals had a static infected quality. While concentrating, you could hear supreme quality from the cymbals. The cymbals sounded sublime. Large, expansive, dynamically stretched and reaching upwards, forever upwards.

You could really hear the larger nature of these big pieces of metal. The sheer scaling detail from the Rega was stupendous. The problem was the blanket of noise that covered all of this beauty, it turned the cymbals into something foreign. And this is the thing with the Plus, you could hear the quality behind the noise. The noise was like a fence, you wanted to peer over the top of it to get to the great sound quality behind. You could hear the Planar 1 trying, even at this point, to be the best.

And it was actually heartbreaking. Speaking as a dedicated audiophile, it was actually upsetting to hear what Rega has done to this beautiful turntable. He released a self-titled LP in mixing traditional cultural content with more contemporary arrangements.

How does the Plus compare to contemporary Rega models? I was going to bring in a standard Planar 1 but decided to go further. I used an older RP1 which is slightly inferior to the standard Planar 1 plus the Cambridge phono amplifier which is inferior to the Rega Fono. Combination second-hand price? Firstly, the mids sounded constricted, the sitar sounded rather squeezed and not particularly relaxed.

The bass was shiny. A transparent recording, on a properly prepared budget system, will offer elements of this treasure. Not here. Taken as a whole? From the Plus, as I say above, the song sounded like the record label had added a touch of compression to the recording.

The reason for these negatives? Again, easy. Point the finger directly at the built-in phono amplifier. Are there any positives to be had from the Plus? If you like a more edgy midrange, one that snuggles up to a digital level of midrange attack and one that provides more bass slam and force but gives you all of this with a wide, expansive soundstage then the Plus is for you. This is the downside of creating a truly great product i. Rega has seriously cocked up here.

It should have designed a different deck, in a different wrapper, basically inferior to the Planar 1 and cheaper to build with a lesser quality, built-in phono amp and given it a different name and done so at a much cheaper price. The Plus should have been a one-off, specialised deck, disassociated from the Planar 1. Why is that important? Because forcing the Plus into the Planar 1 family harms the Planar 1 by association. The Plus demeans and actually damages the Planar 1 brand. Users who do not trust plastic Chinese productions will buy the Plus.

Seems to be tonearm and platter differences mainly? Cartridge as well. Hi Mr Rigby, I read your review with interest. I was thinking about replacing my turntable by a decent one. My father gave me his Technics SLB2 who is a nice one and work fine but i would like to go further with my records playing. Do you think a REGA could lead me to a higher level compare to my Technics especially this perticular model? Thanks for you enlightments and pardon my english, Best regards from France, Thomas.

Also, everything will be new and tested and will work fine for a long time, if treated with care. Once you get the turntable, upgrade the amp next, then the speakers. Thanks again for your precious reviews also on vinyl engine ; and your advices, best regards, Thomas.

The turntable is the most important bit, though, so this upgrade is the most important. Hi Paul, Glad I picked up a Planar one last week as my first ever tt. Hooked it up to a Pioneer A-A6 amp with built in phono input. Right off the bat, I find the overall sould pleasant, but the highs are lacking definition, sounds like the cymbal strokes are spread too thin. I have also ordered a Schiit Mani preamp, which hasnt arrived yet.

Have you tested this model yourself? Would I need to align such a cartridge before use or is that going to be plug and play like the default Carbon cartridge on the Planar 1? Hi Jeevan — thanks for your questions. Nice system — never been a big fan of Pioneer amps, gotta admit. To your questions, yes the cart will burn in so give it a bit of time before you come to any decisions and then come and talk to me if you have an issue that is not addressed below… Yes, any external phono amp will improve sonics — this should offer a big difference.

Come back to me if you need more help. Thanks for writing back Paul. The Schiit Mani arrived today. It is a stellar performer. The sound has improved and is almost CD like now. The earlier problems were clearly because of the phono input on the pioneer. Maybe it was meant for a different type of cartridge? Thanks for the suggestion on the Goldring E3.

Rsearch more about that now. But the supplied rega Carbon is quite adequate and great sounding, I feel.. Tried a bunch of fresh records today, And they all sounded extremely satisfying with good bass mids and treble extensions. I shall follow you and check in with questions and advice for sure.

Many thanks! You are fantastic. Im gonna go see if you have a youtube channel. Hi, Paul. Firstly, many thanks for that insightful review. It is really helpful. Hi Emliano — the differences are quite significant including a new arm and platter, so definitely worth the extra cash. I can help with the other components if you want to let me know your budget.

I am planning of replacing the amp too. With the speakers in mind will the Planar 2 sound better than the Planar 1 the chain is as strong as the weakest link. Hi Joran — no matter what the rest of the chain is, the source should be the best bit in it. They just make the limited info you already have sound as good as they possibly can. Hi Paul, Thanks for the advice. I will connect to a HQ Phono preamp el cheapo.

What do you think? Perhaps that should be the next component to upgrade? Hi Joran — yes, the Mini A2D is a good idea. I would go for the amp next, then the speakers, yes. Hi Paul, Excellent article! Hi Phillip — yes I do but I think the improvements might not be enough to warrant the upgrade. You might be better to maximise any savings you have by leaping upwards to a Rega Planar 3.

Either that or look towards an external phono amp — do you have an external mode? Hi Paul, Thanks for your earlier advice. We went to try a Planer1 and came home with the 2. I have a new question sorry — the Carbon cartridge — is it comical or elliptical? Could you suggest an upgrade — Bias2 perhaps?

The Carbon does not seem to have the output that my Lenox deck had so volume needs upping a bit. Very pleased with it so far — thanks again. Hi Brian, not a problem. Always here to help. Yep you need an elliptical upgrade. A Bias2 is a good idea. Hi Paul, Thanks for your advice, I have a basic set up, but it works well for me, Onkyo A amp with built in phono stage and monitor studio bronze 2 speakers.

As your old turntable is faltering and you need to move fast then, if cash is tight, a Planar 1 would be an excellent purchase. Then grab an external phono amp when you have the cash. An external phono amp would be essential too, when funds allow. Thanks Paul. So — after some agonising — I finally settled for the Elys2. Wycombe Sound Gallery could not have been more helpful bought deck from them last week.

We had a discussion about various options, including the upgrade route. Thanks again for your most helpful reviews and the time you have taken with my enquiries.

Regards, Brian. Thanks for the great review! Do you think the quality of the sound of a turntable as the Rega Planar in combination with the Rega Fono Mini A2D will reduce a lot cause of this reciever? Is it still worth buying the turntable? Or should i buy another amplifier if i want to enjoy good quality sound of my venyl?

Grab the Rega plus the Fono and hook those up to the Pioneer and have a great time listening to vinyl. When you can, upgrade the amp to a specialist 2-channe model and then come to me for advice and with a budget figure.

I did and have now the Rega turntable and Fono. Very happy with it! Already doubting about the Rega Brio amplifier now :. The shop where i bought the turntable and Fono this weekend is willing to take the Rega Fono back if i change my mind and want to buy the amplifier. I strongly advise you — if your budget can handle it — to keep the Fono, even if you buy a Brio.

An external phono amp is always better than a built in model. The Brio, as an amp is superb, though. Both would be ideal. This all depends on your budget, of course. How much are you looking to spend on your streaming kit, by the way? He currently routes laptop etc. If I take the output from the phono stage directly into the back of the Alphas via two RCA cables, do you know whether that will work? Any advice will be greatly appreciated before I go out and buy the wrong set-up!!!

Also, would you recommend the Planar 1 over the Project Essential 3A with acrylic platter? Thanks, Tim. Can you tell me, is there an RCA socket on each speaker or just the one? This should be fine then Tim.

Apologies for a dumb final question but I have no experience of powered speakers personally, will the final output signal be strong enough? There are no dumb questions in hi-fi, Tim. Keep asking. As for power? That depends on the amp stuffed inside of the speaker s. Hi Paul, I really enjoyed reading this review and really happy i came across it! My next dilemma is i need an Amp, im looking for advice as i have also recently bought a new 4k TV and need a set up audio for that, i thought i could maybe use my MuSo via optical cable for this purpose, but im now thinking it might be an idea if i had an amplifier that i could also use the concept 20s for my TV audio also?

Thanks, Marc. I would use the Muso as your TV box and be done with that. I would then recommend looking at a separate chain for your Planar 1 as the Muso is not really geared for the Rega. The Rega is great, the Concepts are excellent better than the s , I would use a Fono as your phono amp because external models are always better than the examples you find inside an integrated. If so, get a Rega Brio. Hi Paul, Ok im happy with that, i have tested out the muso via blue tooth as awaiting a good optical cable but sounding good for the TV.

The other thing i seen was Concept Center speaker as further upgrade down the road to use with the TV setup and the concepts but if sticking with Muso for TV then not needed i guess. As the Rega Brio has the built in phono stage would that not be good enough? The Cambridge looks nice kit, is there anything on the Rega Brio you can sell it to me in my set up to convince me to go the bit extra and get it? I havent ordered speaker cable for the concepts i need 2M each way, anything you would recommend there?

Hi Marc — thanks for your questions. I reviewed the Brio-R — the older generation of the new Brio. The new Brio I published a news piece on that is better. If you have the cash, the Fono is superior as all external phono amps are. The Brio costs more than the Cambridge and is superior in terms of sonics. Again, if cash is short, the Cambridge is a cracking amp and works well. Best value for money for true budget cables currently are sold by QED. Buy the best speaker cables from QED that you can afford, basically.

Hi Ok great thanks for reply, im still reading up, but think ive made my mind up i want the Brio and also the Apollo CD in future.. Just one more thing, if i actually wanted to stream from iphone, itunes, sound cloud etc its not a show stopper as have muso but i think this going to be sounding amazing and shame i cant stream to it..

What are my options? I was close to buying QEDs so that all good and good you recommended them also Thanks. You can buy amplifiers with built in Bluetooth to save cash — the excellent Cyrus ONE is an example of that. Bluetooth is included, though, which might help you. You can plug in an external phono amp like the Rega Fono to support vinyl but the Atom is mainly a digital-oriented box. You can control it via an app too which you might like. Maybe this is more what you really need? The problem here is finding equipment that will give you a quality vinyl system and also one that provides quality digital support including streaming.

Split these tasks into individual requirements to be bought at separate times when funds are plentiful and your price drops per box but if demand that they all be served in one go and the price goes back up.

Hence, you could keep the Muso for the TV and that will give you your digital streaming for now: Tidal, etc. Then have a seperate hifi chain dedicated to vinyl only for now, to include your Brio. If you then want to add Tidal et al to that vinyl chain, later on, then add a dedicate streamer to that as funds allow. My Muso is going to take care of my TV soundbar adequately and potentially streaming needs if require to wait to upgrade. The Arcam is of use if you want to add streaming to your vinyl chain.

Maybe that vinyl system resides elsewhere and away from your Naim, for example and you want streaming in a different part of the house maybe? This can be plugged into the Brio. I also was having a look on the Cambridge site and the CXA does look really nice in their photos and matching streamer.

Learing curve! If beneficial is it possible on the Brio? Again i dont know about Bi-Wiring it seems some people prefer and improves on certain setups but what i have read still not quite sure, Cambridge say they dont offer Bi Wiring on any of their speakers but Q Acoustics must think its worthy to include i guess.. Keep it simple and stick with a regular connection. Ive now ordered everything it was an unplanned expenditure but excited to receive tomorrow.

As this is my first real system, what is the breaking in? How many hours would you say? Hi Marc — it does vary — yes — 50 hours perhaps? Some of the items may be less. I have a technical question that I hope you can help with. I have a Yamaha RX-V receiver serving all my current audio and video needs. Plus two separate or combined speaker zones all using various Monitor Audio passive speakers.

Now the question. My home office does not enjoy the benefits of the receiver or monitor audio speakers the speaker zones are the 5. I wish to setup a Rega P1 turntable in the home office and add a pair of stereo speakers to enjoy the product. But I also wish to use the turntable as a source to the receiver so I can output the audio to the lounge or kitchen or both.

Meaning I want to hookup the turntable so I can use it on the receiver speaker zones or just a pair of passive speakers. To complicate things more I also wish to use the same passive speakers as outputs from the iMac also in the office. Maybe I am asking too much? Thanks for your kind comments, Neil — one quick pedantic point which might prevent possibly purchase issues in the future. The RP1 is different from the Planar 1.

Both are superb but the newer latter deck sounds better than the older former turntable. As to your solution? The easiest way is for your turntable to talk to your Yamaha in such a way.

If you have any concerns — have a chat with your dealer. Try and ask for a home demo to see if the system works without any issues. If there are problems with some unforeseen elements relating to your house, the system, etc, then you should be able to return it and we can try something else. Congratulations for Your articles and comments.

All of them are awesome. As a new one on the stage I went back to vinyl finally after 30 years. Now I enjoy the music 4 hours every day.

Why I write this long letter because I would like to upgrade my player. The budget is over for a new Planar 3 so I thought to improve the cartridge. I read Your review about Goldring E3 but thinking maybe Goldring could be also fine. Which one do U suggest? Besides I do not want to destroy the arm of my Rega with putting some spacer. As the player is Rega I know the size of the original carbon is the same as Elys 2M, but that do not have enough deep bass or wide spectrum if I am right.

Thanks For Your answer: Julius. Hi Julius — I tried the E3 on the Rega and used spacers during my review because the E3 spans around 18mm in height to the stylus tip as does the Ortofon 2M Red which I also used whereas the Rega cart is about 13mm. A adjustment can be a controversial subject. Rega believes that the integrity of the arm fixing onto the arm mounting board is much more important than the questionable facility of arm adjustment.

The arm should be reasonably parallel to the record surface or slightly lower at the mounting. The only time a spacer is necessary to raise the arm height is if the rear of a cartridge is hitting the record whilst playing.

Or that spacers are not as important in their arms as many users think they are. Both are excellent on their own, I know that.

These are speakers with an amp built in. I can help you with recommended products if you want to go in this direction. Pro-Ject and Audio Technica do sell turntables with the phono amp built in which saves cash although the sound quality is reduced compared to an external model. Even with these turntables, though, you still need powered speakers or an external amplifier plus speakers.

Powered speakers for your budget or amp and separate speakers? I was able to hook everything up to a speaker system I had to here what it sounds like but when I played a record it was either to slow or to fast.

This was done with two different records. It frustrating me severely!! Is your advice to still go with the Rega Planar 1?

Offering better value for money for a first time turntable. Thank you for your honest and sensible review and answers here. I found it to be one of the only few really helpful sources in the net. Maybe you could help me as well.

Recently i started looking for a vinyl record player to add to my system. I really really favor Rega, but unfortunately there are no Rega dealers with an auditioning room here, so i would have to order it blindly. I only have one shot, if you will.

The result was surpisingly underwhelming. Also another player with an Ortofon 10M cart had so much sibilance in my headphones that i had to turn it off just after a minute of listening.

Now i am acutely aware of the fact that personal impression is a very subjective feeling and it can depend on all the circumstances around you and even your mood at that particular moment.

Contrary to what a lot of people say, the headphones are not too bright with a proper setup. Thanks for your kind words, Sergey. Answering your general question, yes, it is worth it.

Vinyl provides great value for money. You can obtain a quality sound for not too much. Re your earlier demo — the rest of that hi-fi system may have had a bearing on your conclusions here. The signature you heard may have been influenced by the amp and even the speakers depending on which Opticons they were. The Debut is actually a quality turntable.

A budget would be useful because, yes, I would recommend you maximise it to buy the best turntable that you can afford or are willing to pay for. That said, are you looking at purchasing only the turntable for now or would you really want to upgrade other components too? A budget would then be useful to try to advise you in terms of splitting the budget over other suitable purchases.

What is your digital source, by the way? Rega has a good value model, the Fono. Hi Paul, thanks for all the info in the review and comments below. Would you recommend sticking with a new Riga 1 with the aforementioned set up or upgrade the turntable to the Riga 2? The Denon sound can be quite hard in tone too, be aware of that.

I went for the Planar 2 and the Topaz. No problem. The interconnect examples you linked to are excellent. Thanks so much Paul! I got the interconnect cables. There are lots of xt25 cables on amazon at really varied prices, finding it hard to work out the difference apart from lengthwise, would these be suitable?

The length really depends on your circumstances and requirements. What length do you require in practical terms? Hi Ben — Spades and Bananas are a preference choice in attaching the cables to the speakers. Most speakers will handle both types. Bananas are the straight plugs, spades are the flat, fork-shaped things. My preference is bananas illustrated on your link , I find them quicker to plug in.

Possibly a stupid question but do I need to buy 2 of these since there are 4 sockets at the back of the phono amp? Also does it matter which way round they are inserted, since they seem the same at either end. The turntable has an earth cable, that attaches to the earth connector on the phono amp.

Hello Paul, Thank you for the excellent review. I am wondering if the Planar 1 would be a good match for my current stereo. I also plan to purchase a Music Hall pa1. Thank you for your advice, Neil. I want to get the rega planar 1 but i have no idea what would be the best pre-amp, amp, and speakers to go with it.

How much do you have to spend? For the budget, it might be best to combine the amp and speakers to powered speakers. Hi Paul, Thanks for your reviews, which helped me to get the Planar 1 together with my budget restrictions. If so, which preamp category would you suggest? I would prefer the 1 as is cheaper, but do you think it should be fine with my amp and speakers? What you think? Hi Nuno — thanks for your note. The amp and speakers should work with with them, yes. Sorry Nuno — what I mean is that, by buying the Planar 1, you will then hopefully have extra funds to enable you to purchase the Fono.

You can change playing speed by simply removing the platter. The external phono leads must be connected to your amplifier. If your. Plug and play - Quick set up f actory fitted cartridge only. Your turntable has been designed to be very simple to set-up. We have designed this turntable so that correct. Fig 2. This will. Fig 3. Advanced Set-up when using a different model of cartridge. If you choose to change the factory fitted cartridge a tracking. The interconnection wire is not worth mentioning since it is a very cheap thing.

And it can only be replaced if you open the mechanism and solder a new wire. A piece of a thin cloth is on the platter, the base of the turntable is a relatively thin panel covered with a plastic furnace. To change the 33 rpm to 45 rpm and vice versa you need to remove the platter and move the rubber belt from one pulley to the other. Considering the less disturbance of the signal, this is desirable minimalism, commonplace with other cheap turntables with audiophiles pretensions. The counterweight, though, can move, but there is no common thread for adjusting the weight at will, which could be a problem to those who decide to upgrade this turntable with a tonearm that requires tracking force beyond the default range.

As with the interconnect, Rega thinks it just does not matter. Rega did not give up, the recording was reproduced tightly and clearly in the middle, and in the highs, there were some grainy edges. The piano of Ramsey Lewis showed the correct contours of the volume in the lower registers and gave the impression of timbral correction in the higher, the double bass was fast and tense, and the drum — at least on the transitions — kept somewhat of not a very pleasant resonance, which is a matter of recordings rather than a turntable.

With these easy-to-see features, RP1 discovered a concealed, but precious one; Compared to the Pro-Ject, Rega RP1 drawn a smoother and darker background from the vinyl grooves.