Which Sub-platter for my original planar 3


Hello all,
looking for any opinions and/or recommendations on the groovetracer, tangospinner, or deep groove sub platter for my Planar 3
thanks in advance
skipper320

Showing 2 responses by williewonka

@millercarbon - WOW - that’s a nice lookig TT :-)

Tweaking has undoubtedly taught us both a lot about good TT design.

The problem I have with the whole tweaking process is all those intermediate tweaks that were tried and replaced.
e.g.
  • The Regar RB250 arm - which didn’t live up to it’s billing or expectations - so I replaced it
  • the Cardas one piece harness - was an improvement over the standard RB250 wiring - but was sold with with the RB250
  • the Michell Techno weight provided great dynamics and bass depth, but it too went with the RB250
Whereas, some of todays budget turntable builders have learned a thing or two from the past and are beating the "old masters" at their own game

e.g. When I look at the U-Turn TT’s it seems they have done a lot of homework and provided some great design features that really improve TT performance
  • low center of gravity on the counterbalance weight for improved bass and dynamic performance
  • drive belt around the platter for improved speed consistency and faster "spin-up"
  • Acrylic platter for better dynamics and clarity
By comparison - Rega still seems to resting their future on a 35+ year old design.
  • Arm design is still basically the same and still has poor wiring compared to other TT’s in that class. BUT credit where it’s due - the arm tube is still a good design
  • Counterweight still the same old design - armtube center of gravity
  • Sub platter belt drive system - still requires the old "Rega Nudge" to get it up to speed quickly
  • the glass platter - it was a good idea back in the day to control wow and flutter, but compared to acrylic, it just sounds awful
  • plastic sub platter/spindle - very budget oriented - it should have been upgraded to metal years ago
I guess past acolades still keep the "old guys" in business and each new generation of vinyl spinners will have to go through the same learning pains we have endured.

Thanks goodness for the WWW - because if you are curious, the knowledge is out there :-)

Regards - Steve