Rega Planar 10 turntable

The long-awaited Planar 10 turntable, which replaces the legendary RP10, has finally been released by Rega.

REGA PLANAR 10: CHASSIS

For the new Rega Planar 10, the British manufacturer has completely abandoned the double chassis. That is not so bad, because I always thought this one was only for cover lovers, and that made it the most expensive one in the world!

As announced on the Rega Planar 8 turntable, it has been replaced by a simple and effective dust cover.

REGA PLANAR 10: STAND

The stand of the turntable has been stiffen and lightened following Rega’s philosophy. It is made of ultra-light polyurethane Tancast 8 foam (a material developed for the aerospace industry).

This material is located between to HPL (high pressure laminate) layers. The HPL is very slim and rigid.

This new construction makes the new "skeletal" base of the Planar 10 30% lighter than that of the original RP10. It offers an increased rigidity compared to the previous model.

This plinth is based on 3 elastomer-truncated cones.

REGA PLANAR 10: CHARACTERISTICS

Like the Rega Planar 8, the P10 is inspired by the British manufacturer's ultimate turntable, the Rega NAIAD. Rather than evolving the previous RP10, R&D decided to take a total inspiration from the NAIAD at a much more affordable price (£30,000!).

According to Roy Gandy, the Planar 10 reduces the gap between itself and NAIAD even further. From the materials through to the motor, power supply, bearings, sub-platter and drive belt, which allowed for extreme speed precision.

We find the superb ceramic platter machined with a precision close to the micron! The sub-platter receives better machining with tighter tolerances.

The drive is via two Rega "High Performance" belts. These reduce drive irregularity, and therefore wow, to a minimum.

REGA PLANAR 10: MOTOR AND POWER SUPPLY

The synchronous motor is supplied with 24V via a new "racing" NEO TTPSU!

It uses a new DSP (Digital Signal Processing) generator based on a particularly steady Crystal/Quartz which generates a sinusoidal signal with very low distortion and, above all, at the required frequency with remarkable regularity and precision.

Each power supply receives an individual factory setting to adjust the motor phases to remove the last vibrations and to precisely adjust the rotation speeds.

REGA PLANAR 10: TONEARM

The Rega P10 features a new RB3000 tonearm. This new tonearm uses new ceramic vertical pivots. These offer zero friction, therefore no noise and remarkable fluidity.

Each tonearm is hand polished, to minimize the weight and eliminating the need of painting.

REGA PLANAR 10: TEST AND LISTENING

We tested this turntable with a Rega MC cartridge and a competitor's MC cartridge.

The first thing that surprises is the low distortion and the cleanness of the signal. The legibility is superb and the noise extremely reduced.

We note a superb separation of instruments and voices. Each instrument is in its place and sounds good!

The sound stage is wide and superb. We feel completely immersed in the music. We are with the musicians.

For voice lovers, this Rega P10 is an absolute pleasure and easily gives goose bumps.

The energy in the bass is amazing. The impacts of the double bass drum or timpani are transcribed with disconcerting realism and ease.

We are going through vinyl records without question... We are totally in the music, with the performers and at the recording location!

With this Rega Planar 10 turntable, the English manufacturer once again demonstrates its experience and expertise in analogue technology.

This vinyl turntable is probably the best Rega has designed to date. It is one of the 2 or 3 best "affordable" turntables available on the market!

Recommended product!

AWARDS:

Diapason d'Or - 2020