Ask to Rega users! - How effective? - Groovetracer sub platter and bearing solution

I'm sold. Order placed.

Thanks to all for the great feedback. Can't wait to "not" hear the improvements.

 

I'm considering this upgrade too. Any idea if it would significantly improve pitch stability?

 

Yes it will...

 

My Rega P5 + Groovetracer = Happiness

 

I don't get it. You need to add several hundred dollars of upgrades to a $1500 table to make it sound good?

 

It already sounds good. The upgrades improve upon the sound

 

In regards to speed, does the GT subplatter help this at all? My RP3 runs fast and I'd like it run at the correct speed but I don't want to shell out for a GT subplatter and Rega white belt if it's not going to help.

 

Regas are designed to run a hair fast. There is some sort of "trick" you can do to change the speed if it bothers you, but most people keep right on rockin' along.

I don't think I've heard a difference in this area with the GT subplatter.

 

Do you know how much faster you can go past 33.3rpm before it becomes audible?

 

I can only say that I'm pretty sensitive to things that are out of tune, and I never hear that when playing records on a Rega. It is technically running a hair fast, but...

If you really do feel like you're hearing a difference, there is something you can do about it - it's just been so long since I read about it that I can't remember what it was anymore!

 

The speed fix I've heard of is to wrap tape around the subplatter. I have not tried it, though. My Rega doesn't run fast. I know some do.

 

IMO, I need more silence to listen to Classical Music on my RP6 with Nagaoka MP500 Cart.
So I would like to try Groovetracer sub platter US$300 but I think it is a little expensive for US$1500 TT.
Because I want to know how much level about the Rega bearing and belt noise, I carry out my original modification on my RP6.

I am getting good improved sounds from it

To cutoff the bearing noise, I placed softer thin (1 mm) wool mat between glass platter and sub platter.
IMO, I feel the level of noise floor goes down.



Also, to adjust VTA correctly, I have changed the Rega stock wool mat to the same softer wool thin(1mm) mat.
(Rega stock wool mat: 2mm, My softer thin wool 2 mats : total 2mm)

 

I wouldn't touch a lower-end Rega table without the Groovetracer. Adding one is a revelation. Not only the lower noise floor but also stabilizes pitch considerably.

The "cap" on the RP6 is by no means similar.

Those who disagree have something more expensive to sell you.

 

Note that there is a GT subplatter specifically for the RP6, not the original subplatter that fits the P3 and P5

 

I also have the GT subplatter on a P5. I bought the last sealed/boxed P5 from Needledoctor's closeout sale a couple of years back. The stock subplatter had a slight eccentricity and you could see the platter float very slightly. It was somewhat of a gamble to buy the GT because the issue could easily have also been the glass platter or a combination of both but it was not. I also have some other upgrades but that's the best one IMO. Second to this for me would have to be the Rega wall mount, or at least a good means of isolating the TT and not introducing additional resonance.

 

I felt the 24V motor and a lower center of gravity counterweight/metal endstub (if you have an RB250) to provide the best bang for the buck on my Planar 2, which I'm listening to as I type. The latter especially since you can do that for somewhere less than $100. I also have the GT subplatter, and really didn't hear a significant difference, things maybe tightened up a bit but that's all. I added it after the other mods though so that may have made it less obvious since the performance was upped a bit by then. If I did it again I would definitely look toward a Tangospinner which seems a far better value. It wasn't available when I upgraded my table.

 

I wish there was a way getting the GT parts in Europe without spending a fortune on freight, customs and VAT...

 

Hi Kazu. I've never heard an RP6 but I have a Rega P3. I bought the Groovetracer "Reference" subplatter and the bearing, as well as the acrylic platter and I can tell you there was a world of difference. The noise floor disappeared entirely, allowing the signal to become 100% sensitive to the vinyl itself. I'm happy to say that along with the Ortofon Rondo Red cartridge and the Michell counterweight for Rega arms, my P3 is as neutral as it can be. Its upgraded performance blows away my Dad's factory P7 fitted with an Exact.