P2 or P3


Hello

I am getting back into vynil and wondering what table would be a better way to go, the Rega P2 or P3? I know that stock the P3 is better, but would the P2 with a glass platter and heavyweight upgrade sound better than a P3 with heavywieght for less money?

I have read and much debate about about which arm is better teh 250 or 300.
Is the only other difference between these tables that platter?

Also what about cartridges? I am considering the Goldring 1042 and Shure V15. Any thoughts on these in regards to the Rega tables. I would look at the Grado's but they have the hum issue.

Any comments would be helpful.
My other equipment is:
Rega Planet 2000 CD player
Linn Pretek preamp with phono stage
Bryston 3B power amp
Paradigm Reference Studio 40's v.2

Thanks.
nickway

Showing 1 response by restock

I guess the main difference in that configuration would be the difference in the Rega tonearms. There was a fairly detailed review and comparison of the Rega line of tonearms in last months Hifi+ (February issue). This month there's a review of the different Heavyweights. In the Hifi+ review the RB300 came out better than the RB250 against all rumors. I personally have the RB300 with Heavyweight. My cartridge is a Denon DL103. At least using the Denon cartridge the heavyweight was really necessary.
If you are looking for a cartridge the Denon DL103 is an excellent choice (and available for only around $120 minus sales tax + shipping at www.phonophono.de in Germany). I haven't heard the Shure or the Goldring yet but Denon wa certainly a lot better than my old Rega Elys. In Germany the Denon used to be really popular for use on the Planar 3. The only problem with the DL 103 is that it's a low output MC. There is also the DL 160 High output but that one is not as much a classic as the DL103. You could also look for a modified DL103D importet from Japan (there's a few discussion posts in this forum).

Anyway, have fun getting back into vinyl...

Rene