Rega P3 upgrades

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by skads_187, Apr 6, 2020.

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  1. skads_187

    skads_187 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Canada
    After owning the P3 for several months, I'm slowly starting to look at some upgrades and needed some advice and information. Setup is the P3 (2016 model I guess they call it) connected to a Moon 110LP v2 to receiver (direct mode).

    - Subplatter - Read some threads on this, any major different between GrooveTracer and the Tango Spinner? I have read many great reviews on GT so far.
    - If going the GT route, Standard vs Reference? again big difference? price gap isn't huges, so I guess Reference?
    - Belt - Is it also suggested to upgrade to the white Rega belt as well?

    Lastly, as a side note question (hopefully it is not a massive conversation of it's own). Looking at everything now, trying to do a comparison, and I don't think I have enough knowledge to really understand the difference 100%.
    How does a P3, with NEO PSU, Exact cartridge, Rega white belt and GT sub compare to a P6 w/ Exact and GT sub with the included Neo of course?
     
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  2. Randoms

    Randoms Aerie Faerie Nonsense

    Location:
    UK
    Before I'd read any further than the title my first thought was Rega Planar 6. You can throw a lot of money at a P3 and still not have some of the features that make the Planar 6 better

    Interested to hear @KT88's opinion.
     
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  3. skads_187

    skads_187 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Canada
    So this is part of what I was wondering, I wish I would have thought about this when I made the initial purchase. But, I have to say in my defense, this was my first TT purchase, so I was testing waters and a P6 seemed to be way too expensive at the time, it was more than double the price of the P3. Still would be interested to know what the differences are.

    Right now, I have to suspect, I would be losing quite fair amount of money trying to sell the P3 now at a loss and the P6 new with taxes, etc (I'm here in Quebec , Canada, it adds a lot to the price). Not to mention the current virus state we are in, will be harder to sell in person for sure.
    All said and done at least 600$ difference in CAD. Hence my curiosity compared to a P6.
     
  4. KT88

    KT88 Senior Member

    The Planar 6 comes with a machined metal subplatter, and the new Neo PSU. So, you are saving that amount up front by purchasing it vs buying and selling at losses even more stuff. Then there are two other elements that you cannot get any other way than with the Planar 6, the heavy dual layer glass platter, and the exceptionally light plinth. By trading in your old P3, you'll save a lot of time and hassle, maybe even money, and get all of the goods that you now know that you would have wanted to begin with.

    If all you do is buy a subplatter, then you might try the Tango Spinner as a way to keep the cost down, but in my experience there are trade-offs that don't add-up when going with such incremental after market parts. I would not continue to put money in something that you aim to replace anyway. That's just economy 101.
    -Bill
     
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  5. Randoms

    Randoms Aerie Faerie Nonsense

    Location:
    UK
    @skads_187, when I was first wasting my time and money making at best sideways purchases, a really top guy and dealer said these immortal words to me, "stop pissing in the wind and save up for what you really want."

    I didn't save up, but two weeks later purchased a massive turntable upgrade on credit. It was the best, most honest piece of advice that I've ever been given and saved me a lot of money over the following 35 years. I hoped that @KT88 would give you the same advice: Bill did.

    Compare a Planar 3 to a Planar 6.....
     
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  6. skads_187

    skads_187 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Canada
    Yup , was just watching a video now on youtube comparing the 2 models.

    Here is the thing, if I keep the P3 and do upgrades, I really don't think I will be selling it in the near future to be honest. If I invest it in, very good chances are I will keep it for quite some time.

    I will do another quick comparison, but looking at what you said and watching that video, in your opinion is the dual layer glass platter and light plinth worth lets say 6-800$ CAD? I did some math, comparing selling the p3 and buying a p6. Definitely will be money lost, not to mention it will be very hard to sell it at the moment too.
     
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  7. skads_187

    skads_187 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Canada
    That is true, unfortunately I cannot really test as all stores are closed. What I would have loved to test to be honest is the upgraded P3 to the stock P6. Same psu, belt, subplatter.
    In the end , even with all of the upgrades, the p3 will still be less expensive, only because selling 2nd hand now loses me money. Had I done this comparison in the first place, that is a whole other story. but at the at time i was comparing the p2 with the p3 and went with the p3.

    I am waiting for the sales rep to contact me so I can do the math, if I do keep the P3 and I mean keep if for a long time, should I still go with the Tango Spinner or GT? + white belt?

    thanks again for all the input. Definitely going to go one way or the other. Just need to decide which.
     
  8. KT88

    KT88 Senior Member

    I suggested trading it in, not selling it. That's easy and fast, netting the same results. I can't tell you what better sound is worth to you. You are on your own there. I can say that the Planar 6 sounds better than the P3, and noticeably so, without further worry about upgrades. You can use this time to have your dealer do the leg work for you, which they should be happy to do. You support them; they support you. That's the way that it should work.
    -Bill
     
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  9. skads_187

    skads_187 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Canada
    I will ask, that would be 100% more convenient. I dont know if they do that though. Or if they do, they offer half of what the street price would be. Unless like you said, they work with me to try and make a deal.
     
    Randoms likes this.
  10. Ontheone

    Ontheone Poorly Understood Member

    Location:
    Indianapolis
    Agree with all said above. Don't upgrade the P3...trade it for what you really are trying to achieve. Afterall, the P3 is the fully upgraded version of the P1.
     
    McLover likes this.
  11. vinylontubes

    vinylontubes Forum Resident

    Location:
    Katy, TX
    I would say that if there is going to be a dramatic improvement with any, it's going to be a metal subplatter. The White belt is better than the black Rega belt. But, didn't replace the white belt with another one. Instead, I bought an Isokinetik belt off eBay. I paid about $15 for a pair of them shipped from England to Texas. It seems as good as the the White belt and it costs less than a Black Rega belt. I can't say for certain as the white belt was worn out when I go the Red belts from Isokinetic. As far as the Neo, I would not recommend adding this to the Planar 3. It just doesn't make sense. It's a very subtle improvement. A lot of the reason to go with the Neo is for the push button speed change and maybe the ability to tune the speed, if your ears are particular to your deck being slightly fast. I just think you made a mistake buying the Planar 3 in the first place when you should have bought the Planar 6. Rather than throwing almost $1000 at Planar 3, with a GrooveTracer, Neo and a white belt. Just get buy the Isokinetik belt and a $100ish metal subplatter. The problem I have with throwing $400 on a GT subplatter is that you'll likely not get much of the money back for it. The resale price of a modded Planar 3 can't approach the price of Planar 6 because the plinth is still an improvement. Before the Planar 6 was released, it made sense to upgrade with a GT subplatter. If you upgraded to the RP6, you just swapped the GT subplatter to the new deck. With the inclusion of the metal subplatter on the new Planar 6, this makes less sense. Also, there are cheaper options than the GrooveTracer subplatter now. And buying a $400 Neo doesn't make a lot of sense, just bite the bullet and upgrade to the Planar 6.
     
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  12. skads_187

    skads_187 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Canada
    Ill see if I can for sure. To answer some of your points, if I do keep it, going the 100$ route for a subplatter is the way to go, that makes sense. Would it still make sense if you forget about resell and planning to keep this a long time?
    For the Neo, no my ears are not that particular , or else I would have picked up the P6. And yes the Neo would serve exactly that, easy switch of speed with the button , in addition, Ive read quite a few points and reviews on this forum and other sites how they noticed a decent amount of quality improvement as well. Lets be honest though, resale value of the Neo is pretty high. Very few or no Neo's for sale, I know because I cant find any (Canada).
    Definitely the problem is if I can go back in time, yes I would def go the P6 route, knowing what I know now, I had no clue the P6 included the Neo.

    Fingers crossed we could get a deal going at the store, we will see...
     
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  13. Echo's Answer

    Echo's Answer Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chicago, IL
    I HATE (with a passion) the color of the P6. That 90's NAD off black is a B.S. I had to have white. Got a P3, purchased the upgrades and I'm 100% happy.
     
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  14. skads_187

    skads_187 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Canada
    Which upgrades have you done?

    Small update, the store where I bought mine doesn't do trade-ins, I am checking with another store.
     
  15. Car

    Car Forum Resident

    Location:
    Uk
    I've recently bought a Moon 110lp to process my Exact cartridge on a Planar 6. I'm happy, and don't feel the need to fiddle or upgrade. It's an awesome set up...
     
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  16. skads_187

    skads_187 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Canada
    Nice, I always wondered about the Moon, they say break in is a 100 hours, is that 100 hours playing, or standby/ON counts? I like it was well, I was going to get the Rega, but the store clerk convinced me to go with the Moon instead.
     
  17. Echo's Answer

    Echo's Answer Forum Resident

    Location:
    Chicago, IL
    Groovetracer Sub-Platter, Neo TTPSU, AT150mlx cart

    Pic in my proflie
     
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  18. Car

    Car Forum Resident

    Location:
    Uk
    I leave mine on, full stop. The manual says 300 hours, and I reckon I'm at around 200. So according to Sim Audio it's still improving, but sounds divine...
     
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  19. nolazep

    nolazep Burrito Enthusiast

    I upgraded my P3 with the Groovetracer reference subplatter, white belt, and an MP-110. Instant awesome!
     
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  20. Car

    Car Forum Resident

    Location:
    Uk
    I don't see an interconnects connected to the dog! Looks like a lovely system....
     
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  21. skads_187

    skads_187 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Canada
    Ah yes, sorry, 300 hours, I had a feeling I was way off, sorry full stop means running music or not? I just leave mine on all the time, not sure if that counts or audio needs to be running on it.
     
  22. Randoms

    Randoms Aerie Faerie Nonsense

    Location:
    UK
    A while ago my friend who has the P6 with TT PSU swapped it out for the Neo. The Neo stayed for sonic reasons. I heard this and was very impressed.

    There is a very valid reason why the Planar 6 comes with the Neo and in my opinion convenience is not top of the list.

    How big an improvement does it make to a Planar 3?



    As these guys tell you, it is very easy to find out - when we are free to travel again...
     
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  23. Car

    Car Forum Resident

    Location:
    Uk
    I'm afraid I don't know the answer to that. I'm assuming that if there's power, then things warm up, but I could be wrong...
     
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  24. IRG

    IRG Forum Resident

    Location:
    Ithaca, NY
    My understanding is actual playing time, which is a lot. There is no power on/off with the Moon, unless you unplug it, but it should be on the whole time. I keep my amp and my DAC on all the time now too, and I do think it helps improve the sound overall. The break in time of the Moon seems excessive to me, not sure I can hear a difference between now and when I got it. I don't keep track, I just play music. It's pretty good too.
     
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  25. Graham 12" Remix

    Graham 12" Remix Graham Sylvian, Graham Gedge or Graham from Felt

    I have a P3 and had it for a couple of years then getting the Neo made an earth-shattering difference - one of the biggest changes I have ever experienced with an upgrade. It's all about timing.
     
    SCM, Dan Steele, Morbius and 3 others like this.
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