Rega Planar 25 Tweeks

Amandela77 -- Wed, 05/23/2007 - 15:37

Greetings fellow wax-heads:

I am tweaking my Rega 25 incrementally and could use some advice.

1. I started off with the Iron Audio acrylic platter upgrade, and then replaced the standard felt mat with the basic Ringmat model. The sound "sharpened" noticably, and for the better to my ears.

2. I also understand that many Rega-philes consider the Expressimo counterweight a mandatory upgrade, but that unit is now only available on the second-hand market (usually at laughably inflated prices). Any suggestions on viable alternatives?

3. The Heed Audio outboard power supply also looks interesting. The unit looks rather prosaic as advertised on the Music Direct website, but pictures of the unit's interior on the Heed Audio website suggests a very sophisticated design. Anyone have experience with this model?

4. Finally, the Deepgrove Subplatter appears to be worth investigating at a mere $180. It replaces the 25's standard plastic subplatter, but at the expense of increased system mass. Two queries: (1) does the increased mass pose a potential problem for the 25's low torque motor, and (2) does the Deepgrove actually improve the 25's sound (versus simply changing the sound) over the stock subplatter?

Thanks for your thoughts....

fkrausz -- Thu, 05/24/2007 - 14:48

See what Origin Live (in the UK) has to offer these days. They're a bunch of enthusiasts (hence fun to do business with); I think they started out as Rega and Linn modifiers and built a reputation from that. BTW, I own one of their turntables (a model that's no longer made) and one of their modified RB-250s. www.originlive.com

valvesnvinylfan -- Thu, 12/27/2007 - 11:10

Just saw your post, not sure if you're still wanting some suggestions or not--but thought I'd add two cents. I spent considerable time and effort (and $$) upgrading my P25 and, IMHO, there were a few upgrades that stood out:

--Everything from Groovetracer. These products are all very well machined, and the quality (and sound) of their acrylic platter and finely machined subplatter were noticeably better than their Iron Audio and Deep Groove counterparts. Also, their counterweight seemed to offer even more of an improvement over the Expressimo (that I enjoyed for many years--still worth looking for, methinks), but not much more. All in all, I'd say the Groovetracer upgrades make music seem more natural and less hifi-ish, with the best pitch and tonal accuracy I had ever heard from the P25. Plus, the sound just seemed bigger in every way--better bass, bigger soudstage, and an overall better sense of scale.

--Origin Live DC upgrade. While I think the stock Rega motor is an excellent performer for what it is, I agree with fkrausz; OL products seem crazy good, and the OL DC motor is a stunner on the Rega. This upgrade kind of pulls the table away from the "house" sound of Rega, but I think it's a more natural and musical sound overall, with great gains in smoothness, continuity, and even that Rega trump card, PRaT.

--Incognito tonearm wiring. Even though the RB600 is supposed to have upgraded cabling over the RB300, the Incognito upgrade is a very nice improvement over the stock cabling. A lesson in just how important a continuous run of cable can be in making sure you get all the music you paid for out of your cartridge.

Hope this helps!

Oliver Amnuayphol
Home Theater/Audio Guru
Aperion Audio

Amandela77 -- Wed, 01/30/2008 - 18:28

Thanks Valvesnvinylfan:

I just learned about the Groovetracer products and I plan to check them out. I will let u know what I think after I've heard them.

Amandela77

Amandela77 -- Thu, 04/16/2009 - 15:02

I just learned that Gingko's Cloud 14A ($549), a cool looking isolation platform designed with lightweigt 'tables like the Regas in mind, is now available and has proven very effective at supressing vibrational distortions. Like Valvesvinylfan, I also just learned about the Groovetacer upgrades. They received a glowing review awhile back in the online pages of Tone magazine.

I plan to try each of these upgrades in the near future. I will keep you all posted.

Amandela

Jim Hannon -- Sat, 04/18/2009 - 12:47

I spent some time with the Rega P5 and used a Gingko isolation platform to great effect. If you're handy, you can build an air suspension platform using the innertube from a children's bicycle tire. Just remember to not inflate it all the way. You can search plans for building one, but the Gingko is a simple solution using squash or raquetballs that float the platform. Pretty ingenious.

An outboard power supply also helped immensely. With the P5, I used Rega's own TT PSU. Unfortunately, it is only compatible with the P5 and P7

Amandela77 -- Sat, 04/18/2009 - 14:53

Thanks for the quick response, JH. I agree that the Gingko, while undeniably effective, ain't cheap. As for power supplies, although Rega has not rewarded loyal P25 owners with an in-house power supply upgrade, a Hungarian firm called Heed Audio does make a well-designed outboard unit compatible with the P25, but I'm not sure it is availbale in the States any longer.

The Heed reportedly works quite well with the Rega P3, but I haven't seen any reviews of that unit paired with the P25. Curiously, my analog advisors at Music Direct all tell me to stick with the P25's stock power supply; they consider it extremely well designed. And they actually carried the Heed unit at the time I inquired a while back. By the same token, the Music Direct folks all recommend the Gingko Cloud upgrade or something similar despite the price.

I'd be curious to see a full-blown TAS feature dedicated to after-market upgrades for the Rega, Music Hall, Firm Funk and entry-level Pro-ject 'tables. WG reviewed some of these options a few years back when he still owned and used the P25 as his reference. And I believe PS just reviewed prototypes of the new Ginko Cloud 14.

What I'd realy like to see addressed is whether I should fully trick-out my beloved P25, or move up the ladder to something like a SOTA. The cost of the Gingko, together with the Groovetracer upgrades and Heed Power supply tops out at about 1200 bucks, the original cost of the 25.

Thanks for your comments.

Amandela77 -- Sat, 04/18/2009 - 15:03

Thanks for the quick response, JH. I agree that the Gingko, while undeniably effective, ain't cheap. As for power supplies, although Rega has not rewarded loyal P25 owners with an in-house power supply upgrade, a Hungarian firm called Heed Audio does make a well-designed outboard unit compatible with the P25, but I'm not sure it is availbale in the States in longer.

The Heed reportedly works quite well with the Rega P3, but I haven't seen any reviews of the unit with the P25. Curiously, my analog advisors at Music Direct all tell me to stick with the P25's stock power supply; they consider it extremely well designed. And they actually carried the Heed unit at the time I inquired a while back. By the same token, the Music Direct folks all recommend the Gingko Cloud upgrade or something similar despite the price.

I'd be curious to see a full-blown TAS feature dedicated to after-market upgrades for the Rega, Music Hall, Firm Funk and entry-level Pro-ject 'tables. WG reviewed some of these options a few years back when he still owned and used the P25 as his reference. And I believe PS just reviewed prototypes of the new Ginko Cloud 14.

What I'd realy like to see addresses is whether I should fully trick-out my beloved P25, or move up the ladder to something like a SOTA. The cost of the Gingko, together with the Groovetracer upgrades and Heed Power supply tops out at about 1200 bucks, the original cost of the 25.

Thanks

Amandela

Jim Hannon -- Sat, 04/18/2009 - 19:58

Arnandela,
Good suggestion about after-market upgrades. However, it probably would focus on products that are currently in production like the Rega P5, rather than the P25. While many of us like "hot-rodding" our gear, you typically can only get a small percentage of what you've put into those upgrades when you ultimately sell the product. I'd be careful about sinking too much into them. Also, since Roy Gandy has designed the P25 (and all Regas) as "systems," you run the risk of taking a step back. Roy is not too keen on the after-market counterweights for his arms.

An upgrade like a better turntable stand or vibration control platform makes a lot of sense because you can probably use it with other 'tables you purchase down the road if the size is similar. I'd keep my eyes out for a Townsend Seismic Sink on the used market (they're out of production), and the Mana stand is reported to work well with Regas. Of course, if you get a SOTA with its wonderful suspension, you might not need it (I never tried a vibration control platform with the Sota I owned for several years so I can't say---I never thought it needed one). My SOTA Star was easy to set-up, relatively impervious to floor-borne vibration (far better than most 'tables), and got out of the way of the music. Unfortunately, I got the audiophile "itch" and parted with it after more than a decade of fine service. I could see going back to one.

rossop -- Tue, 05/12/2009 - 04:53

I had a P5 for a couple of years and found it to be good especially with the TT PSU. The power supply upgrade was the most noticable difference. I must agree with Jim in as much as after the TT PSU an isolation device would be the next best thing. I was advised by alot of people that its pretty much a waste of money trying to tweak the Rega. I tried acrylic platters and fancy mats. You dont get much (if any) improvment in sound. For instance you might get a very slight increase in detail but loose some solidarity in the bass.
Roy Gandy has been making his 'tables for years and they're really 'set and forget' units. You should do as I did--save up and update your 'table to something better. If you cant afford to buy new look around in the second hand market as a good turntable will last a lifetime. Good luck!

Stephen Scharf (not verified) -- Sun, 08/02/2009 - 23:57

Sorry, but I don't agree that you can't effectively tweak a Rega. I have the GrooveTracer subplatter upgrade, the Reference with the jeweled end-bearing and ceramic ball bearing, and it made a *marked and significant* improvement in the performance of my Rega Planar 3. The noise floor went down considerably. I will agree that the stock glass platter and felt mat sound the best over an acrylic platter, but until you have heard a Rega with a GrooveTracer subplatteer, you have not heard how good they can sound.
The other marked improvement you can make is to put your Rega on a partially inflated inner tube, or better yet, on a board resting on an inner tube and the Rega resting homemade roller blocks in top of the board. These isolation techniques are inexpensive and result in a marked improvement in sound quality.

Dick Schuurman (not verified) -- Thu, 02/25/2010 - 19:48

Reading about all these upgrades for the P25 ($$$.....Amandela was counting....) Just forget about it! I think that THE upgrade is: Sell your Rega and have a look (listen) at the Origin Live Aurora Mk2 with the fully upgraded OL1 or Silver Mk3 tonearm. Also will cost you ($$$.....) but it's a completely different league!

mathew (not verified) -- Sat, 04/10/2010 - 16:55

I have tweeked my Rega planar 2 turntable by adding a 4mm acrylic platter sanwiched with one layer of serviette tissue paper .The record is placed directly on the acrylic disc. The tone is better to my ears.I am 60 years old and my hearing drops above 13,000 hz. I managed to fix the headshell to the tonearm with superglue making the whole arm rigid. My sumiko blue point special moving coil cartridge is tracking at 1.45gms for optimal sound.The sound is closer to SACD except that there is an ambience from the vinyl medium. Mathew