Turntable upgrade: Rega Planar 3 or Pioneer PLX-1000

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by punkmusick, Jan 12, 2018.

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  1. Bob_in_OKC

    Bob_in_OKC Forum Resident

    Location:
    Dallas, Texas
    I once had a Rega P5 with the tonearm lifted 4 mm with three nylon washers from a hardware store. They worked fine and cost less than $1.
     
  2. Dr. J.

    Dr. J. Music is in my soul

    Location:
    Memphis, TN
    Well I just got a Planar 3 after going back and forth for over two months, much like the OP. My reason was simple: I have three DD tables (Technics SL-1200 MK5, SL-1900, and SL-D2) in the house and my only belt drive, an AR-XA, has too much motor noise to be truly satisfactory. I put an Ortofon 2M Blue with two new Rega 2mm aluminum spacers. I spent the better part of the morning setting it up and when I turned on my amp I got some buzzing at about 11:00 on my Marantz 2230. WTF? I double and triple checked the connections on the cartridge, and it was still there. I then reinstalled the cartridge but this time with nylon washers, and the buzzing remained. Moved it to a different system and the buzz was still there. Lastly, I attached a ground wire from the phono stage and touched it to various places on the tonearm and nothing changed but when I touched the metal brace the buzzing was dramatically reduced. Okay, what the hell is going on here? I got rid of a Musial Hall 2.2 because of this same problem--buzzing at medium volume. Do you think using the spacers caused this? Or does this sound like the ground connection in the tonearm is compromised? I would make a new post but thought I would check in here first.
     
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  3. swvahokie

    swvahokie Forum Resident

    If you had the same problem with the Music Hall, I would look at the Marantz reciever. You may have a bad solder connection in the phono section. My P3 is dead quiet, on both the internal preamp of my amp and on my Sutherland external phono.
     
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  4. Dr. J.

    Dr. J. Music is in my soul

    Location:
    Memphis, TN
    Thanks, but I have four amps/receivers with dedicated phono sections and three separate phono preamps, and the MH buzzed on all of them. Like I said, it buzzes on the Marantz and in another system with a Zphono preamp and just now I just used my Art DJ preamp which is about as quiet as it gets and the buzz is there. It's gotta be the table or the cart. I don't want to take off the cart just yet because the Rega clips are very delicate. They did not fit well to begin with, so I had to crimp them a bit.
     
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  5. swvahokie

    swvahokie Forum Resident

    A broken wire will definitely cause hum. When you say crimp, are you saying the clips were too big and you had to tighten them? Was the cartridge on the Music Hall? Did you buy the table local or mail order. If you bought local, have the dealer check it. If not, you pretty much have to try a different cartridge since you have pretty much eliminated the phono stage.
     
  6. punkmusick

    punkmusick Amateur drummer Thread Starter

    Location:
    Brazil
    Not sure if this helps but since you said you crimp it to fit, sometimes if the female connectors of the cartridge are too large, the male connectors of the arm will be a bit loose and that may cause hum.
     
  7. Dr. J.

    Dr. J. Music is in my soul

    Location:
    Memphis, TN
    Exactly, which is why I tightened them a bit, so they wouldn't be loose.


    No, this is a new 2M Blue that I just put on the Rega.

    Yes, bought it from a local dealer. I gave him a call and he didn't have any idea what could be going on. He's a great speaker guy but turntables are not his forte.
     
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  8. punkmusick

    punkmusick Amateur drummer Thread Starter

    Location:
    Brazil
    By the way let me say that I'm playing the Pioneer PLX-1000 on a daily basis for about one month now and still very happy with it. No issues and sound quality is the best I've ever experienced (this actually doesn't tell much about the table since I just had budget gear and can't properly compare anything, but it is enough for you to imagine how happy I am).

    I'm so happy I'm paradoxically considering buying a SL1200 (not G or GR) just for the fun of comparison. I heard a stock SL1200 wouldn't match sonically the PLX-1000 (durability is another story, if we're lucky we'll have to wait several years to see if the Pioneer can match the Tecnhics). I'd like to see this for myself if I only had the chance.

    I also added an Ortofon 2M Blue with an Ortofon SH-4 headshell to the system to solve the problem with the high frequencies and it worked. Still with less than 10 hours though.

    Nice that I can always come back to the Nagaoka MP-110 just by swapping headshells, balancing and putting the anti-skate to its "Nag position" in an 1 minute move without having to deal with wires or alignment.

    Thanks again everyone who took their time to help me in this thread. I still believe the Rega is a great table anyway.
     
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  9. Dr. J.

    Dr. J. Music is in my soul

    Location:
    Memphis, TN
    I see that Folloni liked my post because he bought the Pioneer :laughup:. But I have to say the Rega sounds pretty spectacular, even with the buzz. Like I said, with the ground wire connected to the brace, the buzz is cut in half and not audible at moderate volumes. My SL-1200 is connected to my Marantz with a totally different cart and speakers, so I can't do a head to head comparison at the moment, but the Rega is a tad bit more engaging and throws a bigger soundstage.
     
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  10. punkmusick

    punkmusick Amateur drummer Thread Starter

    Location:
    Brazil
    I don't doubt that. As I said earlier, the main reasons I rejected the Rega are because I wouldn't be able to set it up properly in my shelf (which I can't change now) and because here it would cost me about twice the price, never because I thought it would be of a lower quality.

    I liked your post because I found it nice that you used this thread. I swear I'm not thinking "ha I knew it!" :)
     
    Last edited: Feb 13, 2018
  11. Dr. J.

    Dr. J. Music is in my soul

    Location:
    Memphis, TN
    Oh, I know that. I was just having fun. But seriously, you can't underestimate plug and play. I was going to get the Rega with the Elys so I wouldn't have to mess with the spacers and the installation, which can always go south quick on arms like this. But that cart sounded terrible even through the new Project Tube Box S, a Hegel amp, and $5,000 guru speakers.
     
    punkmusick likes this.
  12. swvahokie

    swvahokie Forum Resident

    Don't give up, that Rega should be dead quiet. Ping Bill (KT88), he is my local dealer and has sold both Regas and Ortofons for years. He may have had similar issues in the past and have suggestions for you.
     
  13. Steve64

    Steve64 Forum Resident

    Location:
    seattle
    I own both a Rega RP-3 (with a TT-PSU ), and a Pioneer PLX-1000. Using an Ortofon MC3 Turbo, IMHO, the PLX wipes the floor with the Rega.
     
  14. punkmusick

    punkmusick Amateur drummer Thread Starter

    Location:
    Brazil
    Nice to know. It's also good that I had to go to the dictionary and learned a new expression, "wipes the floor with".
     
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  15. Dr. J.

    Dr. J. Music is in my soul

    Location:
    Memphis, TN
    Did you use the Ortofon with the Rega before switching it over to the Pioneer? If not, then your comment runs the risk of hyperbole.
     
  16. Steve64

    Steve64 Forum Resident

    Location:
    seattle
    Yes, of course! A little hyperboulle, ( french spelling ), is less risky than sushi.
     
  17. punkmusick

    punkmusick Amateur drummer Thread Starter

    Location:
    Brazil
    I don't know if you bought the Pioneer but I'm using it with the 2M Blue and it's great. I did some needledrops here:

    Needledrops: Ortofon 2M Blue & Nagaoka MP-110

    A lot of people use the Bronze and the Black with the PLX-1000 too, it seems like the 2M series is a good match for this turntable.
     
  18. Bob_in_OKC

    Bob_in_OKC Forum Resident

    Location:
    Dallas, Texas
    This thread has taught me that “wipes the floor with” apparently means “is my preference as compared to”.
     
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  19. punkmusick

    punkmusick Amateur drummer Thread Starter

    Location:
    Brazil
    Last week someone commented in those YouTube comparison videos mentioned earlier in this thread that the Planar 3 wipes the floor with the Pioneer. I had to laugh, the very same expression describing the inverted comparison between the same turntables.

    By the way, I think the Planar 3 sounded better in those videos. The guy who made them is a member of SH too, he was pretty active in that huge PLX-1000 thread.
     
    Last edited: Mar 17, 2018
    Bob_in_OKC likes this.
  20. H8SLKC

    H8SLKC Forum Resident

    Location:
    Boston, MA
    "Wipes the floor with" has nothing on "this new component absolutely blows the other one out of the water!", which can be read in multiple threads every day. It's normally not good enough to be better than, but the betterness must be bigsome.
     
  21. Mrtn77

    Mrtn77 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Paris
    Let's not forget "Punches way above its weight", that sure sign of blowing-over-the-water-ness.
     
  22. HiFi Guy

    HiFi Guy Forum Resident

    Location:
    Lakeland, FL
    I had mine initially with the Bronze and didn't like the Bronze. I replaced the Bronze with an A/T OC9 ML/II and loved it.

    Having had both the Rega and the Pioneer, I'll give the nod to the Pioneer. It was easily the better of the two, although it didn't mop the floor with the Rega. I've since gotten rid of both.

    The best of both worlds would be a Rega arm on the Pioneer with adjustable VTA, but no one makes an arm board that fits. The Rega arm is better than the Pioneer, but nothing else. A great arm does not make a great turntable.
     
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  23. Bob_in_OKC

    Bob_in_OKC Forum Resident

    Location:
    Dallas, Texas
    These things are subject to so many variables, that all the competitiveness about turntables is of limited real meaning. Getting the tracking force, stylus alignment, and vertical tracking angle right could alone swing preference in favor of one system or the other. And then there is the listener’s mood, expectations, preferences related to tone, and who knows what else. The Pioneer or the Rega could both lose out to a supposedly lesser turntable under the right circumstances.
     
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  24. Johnny Wong

    Johnny Wong Ya der hey.

    Location:
    Wauwatosa, WI USA
    I am using the blue along with Herbies mat and I’m very happy. I only ended up paying $560 for the TT with a coupon from Guitar Center. A great deal! I’m eventually going to pick up the MP-110 as I like that mellower tone...
     
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  25. punkmusick

    punkmusick Amateur drummer Thread Starter

    Location:
    Brazil
    Nice! I'm in the market for a new mat. In my house and depending on the day, the Pioneer's stock mat put a lot of static to the records if I'm not mistaken. I'm considering both the Herbies and the Funk Firm Achromat.
     
    Last edited: Mar 17, 2018
    H8SLKC likes this.
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