Rega Planar 3 with ND5 Pickup

Rega Planar 3 - The most acclaimed turntable just got better

The new Rega Planar 3 is a turntable , packed with all the technological innovations that Rega has developed over the past 40 years. This makes the Planar 3 a state-of-the-art turntable that is poised to be the reference for the next many years when it comes to which turntable can reproduce the LP medium most accurately at a price that many can afford.

One of the first things you notice about the Planar 3 is the beautiful plinth in high-gloss white, high-gloss black or light oak. However, if you move closer, you will see that there are several innovations in the form of the new RB-330 tonearm, new center bearing with new underplate, new platter and new decoupling feet. The only thing that remains from its critically acclaimed predecessor is actually the motor and the lid itself - everything else has been replaced with new and improved elements. When you replace everything on one of the most acclaimed turntables of all time, you can of course be nervous about the result. But you don't have to be, because the result speaks for itself. The Planar 3 is back, and it's better than ever!

HIGHLIGHTS:

• What Hi-Fi's Product of the year 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021
• 12" glass platter for rigidity and precise consistency in Opto-white finish
• New bottom plate with improved rigidity
• Short round polished belt with precise speed
• Double-mounted Phenolic rails with center bearing and arm base for optimal rigidity
• New rega RB-330 tonearm with Rega Exaxt pickup
• Beautiful cover that protects vinyl records from dust when you play
• 24V low-vibration monitor, which can be expanded with the separate motor control Rega Neo-PSU
• Light and rigid plinth for minimal distortion. Available in high-gloss white, black and red.

Better than its predecessor in every way

Rega has just launched their brand new Advanced EBLT drive belt, which provides a significant sonic improvement. This drive belt reduces the small irregularities in speed, wow and flutter by up to 70%, and this can not only be measured - it can be heard. Here, the improved clarity means that the music is presented in such a way that you get closer to the artist than ever before. The sound image becomes much clearer, and the bass becomes more lively and "tight", and the top gets more air under it, so that the instruments do not sound compressed.

The new RB330 tonearm is also a significant improvement over its predecessor, featuring a completely new vertical bearing housing, a new fourth housing for the stylus pressure adjustment and a new counterweight with a smaller diameter. Rega has fine-tuned the horizontal and vertical bearings, so to speak, so that the pickup has the optimal working conditions down in the groove.

The plinth has also been improved, and it consists of an acrylic laminated LDF with low weight, high rigidity and beautiful finishes. The Phenolic rails themselves have been made stronger than the RP-3, and this has meant that the coupling between the arm and the center bearing is held in a tighter grip. In addition, improvements have also been made to the lower platter, which has been redesigned for higher precision and rigidity, and at the same time it rests on a newly designed center bearing, which is designed to minimize stress in the bearing. The turntable has also been improved, and its 12mm float glass is both dynamically balanced and hard, so that the loss from the motor's revolutions to the vinyl record is minimized. As the icing on the cake, the feet have been optimized to provide better vibration decoupling and a more stable setup.

Reviews:

What Hi-Fi - click here .

The Ear - click here .

Hi-Fi Choice - click here .

AVforums - click here

Tone Audio - click here .