Price Paid:  $2250.00 from Audio-T Brighton

Summary:
This turntable floats my boat. Vinyl sounds as I expect it too. It is a joy to use, great queing, electronic speed change, proper dust cover. It is superbly made. If you allow £1000 for the arm £600 for the platter £600 for the power supply Then the £2250 price is excellant. Motor, bearing, inner platter, outer platter and lid must be free! The Rega allows each record to convey it's sonic signature. The system copes well with my 25 year old vinyl.

Strengths:
Sound, build quality, ergonmics, elegance, simple set up, electronic speed change, proper lid, well established company with great track history.

Weaknesses:
Arm cables are very thin.

Similar Products Used:
Linn LP12/Vanhalla/Itok Linn LP12/Armageddon/Akito II Systemdek IIXE / OL RB250 Townsend Rock II / OL RB250 Nottingham Analogue Omega Point Black Walker CJ55 / Mission Arm Thorens TD166 Technic

Price Paid:  $1100.00 from V-Audio, Bristol UK

Summary:
(£ Sterling that is) We bought this one s/h incl. a Grado gold cart. after listening to Linn lp12 lingo etc etc, Rega P25, Project Perspective, Project RPM9(UK name) We had the Lp12 home for a week and the P9 home for a week. We listened to Lp12, P25 and the Projects in retailers' listening rooms. Lp12 Mmmmm :-) very nice, foot tapping sound....for a few days and then it felt a bit 'fake' RPM9 with Ortofon Kontrapunkt A the one that came closest by far. The others weren't in the race. The P9 is; solid, fuss free, easy peasy to use and just sounds so damn RIGHT. Detailed, stable, crisp, tight, snappy, etc etc. Hinges are simple, Yes. They are also so simple to change that I think even Mr Bush might be able to do it,,,maybe! I emailed Rega customer service to ask about general care and set up just after We bought it (second hand mind You, so no NEW money for them) Two days later (Monday) We got a call from a real flesh and blood person who were more than willing to help us with all our questions, and to top that we were sent new hinges, a small bottle of bearing oil, and a copy of the manual, FOR FREE !!!! Trouble free musical pleasure for the last 8 months, BLISS! And Simon at Services :-) Your a ***star*** Rega P9 Quad 33,303,fm3 Quad ESL57 (to be stacked) Oh! And a Ah-Tjoeb99 cdp for when I'm vacuuming. (Just kidding, It's GREAT,,,,for a cdp) Can also STRONGLY recommend V-audio In Bristol @ http://www.vaudio.co.uk/ SUPER SERVICE !!!

Strengths:
Se above

Weaknesses:
????? apart from my amplification.

Similar Products Used:
Se above

Summary:
If you're looking for an excellent sounding, easy to set up, turntable the Rega Planar 9/RB-900 combo, aka P9, is one of the best choices.

Very lively and dynamic, in the best Britsh style, it does also show an extended bandwith when compared with other Regas, with a very deep and tuneful bass. Midrange and treble reproduction is first rate, with a smoothness and quantity of details on par or better than with other high end TTs.

The LP-12 sounds quite colored in the mid-bass by comparison, the BL-91 too smooth (erring by omission) and the Planar 3 too simple and limited (even if it's an excellent turntable in it's price range).

On the minus side, the arm isn't height adjustable, except by adding washers. And, because of the new 3-point fixing method used, no aftermarket solutions exist AFAICT.

The counterweight is too small and not heavy enough for optimal placement with 9g+ cartridges (aftermarket products solve this problem).

The flimsy dust cover is the same el cheapo piece used on other Planars, with the same plastic hinges that mandates to hold it on the two sides while opening it.

The ceramic platter/felt mat combination is very static sensitive, and the felt mat sticks to the LP more than often.

Minor problems for sure, but enough to reduce my rating from 5 to 4 stars.

By the way, the Planar 25, briefly auditioned in the same system, brings maybe 80% of the P9 qualities for half the price or so. Also well worth a listen.

Strengths:
Easy to set up. Very detailed, lively and dynamic. On par with most high end TTs. Quite favorable quality/price ratio.

Weaknesses:
No adjustable arm height. Too small a counterweight. Flimsy dust cover and hinges. Sticky felt mat.

Similar Products Used:
Micro Seiki BL-91/Stax UA-9, Linn Sondek LP-12/Ekos, Rega Planar 3/RB-300

Summary:
Just a few words for now, The Rega is very nicely made, beautifully made and sounds better than any CD player I have owned.
I listened to records back in the 80's. They sounded great then too I had a killer table back then, Merril, Souther, Alpha One etc.

Just got the Rega on Sunday, broke out my old vinyl and bought some new, all I can say is that on some of the material, vinyl is much more dynamic, larger stage and more involving than CD counterpart. I am using a Sony ES 707 the past few years and find it as good mostly anything else out there under $3000.00, I have tried most of them.

Anyway, I will write again I listen some more. Very happy with this purchase.