Need advice Rega RP8

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by Tartifless, Dec 29, 2017.

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  1. Tartifless

    Tartifless Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    France
    Hello,

    Someone is selling a 1-year old RP8 near my home for 1480€, it comes equipped with a goldring legacy mc cart and 70h playtime.

    Would you rather grab this or a newer planar 6 without cart for 1280€ ?

    Is the RP8 better than a p6 ?
     
    Lymbo likes this.
  2. Agitater

    Agitater Forum Resident

    Location:
    Toronto
    Grab the RP8. I think it’s the next best thing to a reference-class turntable. Its RB808 tonearm is superb, main bearing and drive motor are superb and silent. The RP8 platter is superb. Despite the improvements in the P6 compared to the RP6, the RP8 is still the superior turntable. The RB330 tonearm in the P6 is a slight improvement on the RB303, but neither of them are a match for the RB808.
     
    art, SandAndGlass and Leonthepro like this.
  3. Tartifless

    Tartifless Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    France
    Just received my new toy today, apart from light scratches on the dustcover i am thrilled.
    The Goldring Legacy sounds good, i used the baerwald protractor available on vinylengine.
    So far so good, now i would like to try my previous atml440b on it to compare with my previous table !
     
    richbdd01, krlpuretone, Alan2 and 2 others like this.
  4. heyMo

    heyMo Forum Resident

    Location:
    LKN west, NC
    Good luck with your RP8. Love mine. :righton:
     
  5. Leonthepro

    Leonthepro Skeptically Optimistic

    Location:
    Sweden
    Very nice find you got. Congrats!
     
  6. Tartifless

    Tartifless Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    France
    Thanks, i am really enjoying this table !
    Tried the atml440b : what a PITA to install on a non-removable headshell !
    It works great but i switched back to the goldring legacy.
    Maybe in a near future i'll try the at33ev or the at ptg, i hope they are easier to install than the 440.

    When switching cartridges i noticed the arm wires ends are very thin, i am afraid playing too much with them might unsolder the small connectors to the cart pins : any best practice for handling those ? Maybe a small hair nipper ?

    I also noticed i have small warping when using the felt mat, that don't appear with my technics rubber mat ! Maybe the felt mat is not 100 % even... It's really slight and barely noticeable when not looking closely. I will stick with the rubber mat also because the felt mat leaves some dust on the record non-playing side.
    Anyone has experience with a mat such as the funk firm achromat ?
     
  7. Leonthepro

    Leonthepro Skeptically Optimistic

    Location:
    Sweden
    Thin plyers are your best friend with those cables. Only grab them by the metal end also, dont pull on the cable protection.
    Do go with the most level mat as well, with higher end styli profiles its important to strive for optimal installation.
     
    krlpuretone likes this.
  8. TVC15

    TVC15 Forum Resident

    Location:
    New Jersey
    A reference grade turntable would run at precise 33.3 rpm and the RP8 does not.
     
    HiFi Guy likes this.
  9. Leonthepro

    Leonthepro Skeptically Optimistic

    Location:
    Sweden
    The RP8 runs with speed tolerances of 0.20% + and - MAXIMUM and with a wow and flutter of MAXIMUM 0.30%

    If you can hear the differences you sure have a good ear.

    In general Rega doesnt have the best tables when it comes to speed control, but at the higher end models its really not an issue as far as I can tell.
     
  10. Tartifless

    Tartifless Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    France
    Wow, i just finished listening to Jagged Little Pill. I wanted to try it because i had issues with my previous tt : the last songs of each side were messy when the guitars and drums played, like a low quality mp3.

    I don't know if it's due to the cart (Goldring legacy vs previously at440mlb) or the table, but what i heard was clear as mountain water : everything was in the right place, Alanis was singing in my living room !

    The only issue i have now is that this makes me want to upgrade my speakers for massive floorstanders ! But i need to save money as i have to change all my windows early this year + a new sofa to purchase...
     
    Shiver and c-eling like this.
  11. Leonthepro

    Leonthepro Skeptically Optimistic

    Location:
    Sweden
    Congrats on the great new sound.

    It might be the Micro Line vs Fine Line stylus difference at play here.

    As Techradar writes "Better suited to the smoother sounding turntable, it can unearth a mountain of detail and present it in a remarkably coherent and entertaining fashion"
     
  12. octaneTom

    octaneTom Man of Leisure

    My old Rega P5 runs spot-on 33.3 with a TT-PSU. I'm assuming the RP8 which includes a custom tuned PSU would be equally stable?
     
    Leonthepro likes this.
  13. Leonthepro

    Leonthepro Skeptically Optimistic

    Location:
    Sweden
    No table runs at a perfect 33.3, its about finding what errors are acceptable or unnoticeable for you. In most cases its really not for these upper end models.
     
    octaneTom likes this.
  14. TVC15

    TVC15 Forum Resident

    Location:
    New Jersey
    Have you measured it? All reports on the RP8 show it running fast. Well documented, even in Fremers review.

    Regal solution is to loosen the motor and shift position away or towards spindle until correct speed is achieved. Not reference.
     
  15. Ken Clark

    Ken Clark Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chicago Suburbs
    Just curious how shifting the motor position changes the speed. If the motor spins at a constant speed, the diameter of one of the pulleys would have to be changed in order for the platter speed to change. Moving the motor would only loosen or tighten the belt, unless increasing pressure on the motor shaft adds drag and slows it down.
     
    Leonthepro likes this.
  16. Davey

    Davey NP: Rosali ~ Bite Down (2024)

    Location:
    SF Bay Area, USA
    The median belt thickness is part of the pulley size calculation, so thinner belt slows it down, thicker belt speeds it up (since the size change on the small motor pulley is a much higher percentage than on the platter or subplatter). Stretching the belt makes it thinner. That's how you fine tune the speed on a lot of belt-drive tables.
     
    Ken Clark and Leonthepro like this.
  17. Agitater

    Agitater Forum Resident

    Location:
    Toronto
    My friend’s RP8 runs at 33.335 RPM.
     
    Gavinyl, dbsea and Leonthepro like this.
  18. Tartifless

    Tartifless Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    France
    How do you even measure that ?
     
  19. Leonthepro

    Leonthepro Skeptically Optimistic

    Location:
    Sweden
    WELL! Time to buy a new Turntable I guess! ;^)
     
  20. Leonthepro

    Leonthepro Skeptically Optimistic

    Location:
    Sweden
    There are phone apps that are somewhat accurate. Otherwise you will probably have to build your own little machine that accurately reads the speeds, lets ask @Agitater though
     
  21. rebellovw

    rebellovw Forum Resident

    Location:
    hell
    Fremer can hear cogging on a Technics sl1200 - so he must know what he is saying.o_O

    Congrats on your RP8 - should be a fine turntable. Ignore the speed freaks.
     
    willboy, dbsea and Agitater like this.
  22. Leonthepro

    Leonthepro Skeptically Optimistic

    Location:
    Sweden
    I wonder if Fremer sometimes hears what he wants to hear you know.
     
    Dennis Metz, Wngnt90 and Tartifless like this.
  23. rebellovw

    rebellovw Forum Resident

    Location:
    hell
    I like him as a character - he had a very funny video about his house. But not so much for opinions.
     
  24. Agitater

    Agitater Forum Resident

    Location:
    Toronto
    Stretching the belt in this sort of adjustment also puts unusual stress on the motor shaft bearing and the spindle shaft, neither of which things are recommended for the medium-term health of the turntable. Over-tensioning a drive belt also almost always measurably increases the amount of vibration transferred from the motor to the platter.

    Loosening a belt can often cause rotational inconsistency, belt slippage, and belt disconnection.

    Over- or under-tensioning a belt will also wear it out prematurely.

    Anybody who is extremely pitch/speed sensitive (or who just thinks they are) should buy a turntable with a fine speed control built in. Messing with belt tension is ill-advised, IMO.
     
    Last edited: Jan 4, 2018
    Leonthepro and rebellovw like this.
  25. Leonthepro

    Leonthepro Skeptically Optimistic

    Location:
    Sweden
    Funny he can indeed be. But have you read his comment sections? Very snarky and un able to take sarcasm and fun jabs without taking it personal.
     
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