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Comparison Rega Planar 1 vs Rega RP78

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Rega Planar 1
Rega RP78
Rega Planar 1Rega RP78
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Pickup
ModelCarbon
TypeMM
Needle shapeelliptical
Output level2.5 mV
Downforce2 – 3 g
Tonearm
ModelRB110RB 251
Typepivotalpivotal
Shapestraightstraight
Material
metal /aluminium/
metal /aluminium/
Tonearm effective length237 mm
Design
Drive unitbeltbelt
Speed controlmechanical/manualmechanical/manual
Cover
External power supply
Phono stage+is absent
Features
Features
adjustable counterweight
anti-skating
 
adjustable counterweight
anti-skating
speed 78 rpm
General
Base materialMDF/FibreboardMDF/Fibreboard
Platter materialplasticMDF
Platter thickness23 mm
Dimensions (WxDxH)447х360х117 mm440x360x100 mm
Turntable weight4.2 kg
Color
Added to E-Catalogseptember 2016december 2015

Model

Model of the pickup (cartridge) supplied with the player. The pickup is one of the most important parts of any vinyl player, the quality of the received sound largely depends on its quality. Knowing the name of the model, you can find detailed data on it and determine how satisfied you are with this particular cartridge.

Type

The type of pickup (cartridge) supplied with the turntable.

- MM(with moving magnet). The most common type of cartridges nowadays. The electrical signal in such devices is created by the oscillation of a moving magnet connected to the pickup stylus between special coils. These cartridges give a good output level, making them compatible with the simplest phono stages, they are easy to set up, and the needles in many models can be replaced by the user himself.

- MC(moving coil). Pickups in which the magnets are made stationary, and the signal is created by a moving coil that vibrates from the vibrations of the needle. This design allows you to reduce the mass of moving parts (compared to MM), which has a positive effect on the accuracy and reliability of sound transmission: MC cartridges are capable of transmitting almost all the nuances of sound. On the other hand, their output signal level is low, which puts forward increased demands on the quality of phono stages and significantly affects the cost. So pickups of this type are typical mainly for high-end equipment.

- MI (with a movable iron element). Quite an exotic type of pickups: the coils and magnets in them are made stationary, and the vibration of the needle sets in motion a miniature piece of magnetic material (for example, iron), which moves between the coils and changes their inductance. Theoretically, such c...artridges can compete with MCs in terms of overall sound quality and detail, while MI technology allows you to achieve a high level of signal output, which does not require expensive phono stages. However, in fact, such pickups are rare for a number of reasons.

Anyway, for the normal operation of the player, a phono stage is required for the corresponding type of pickup; A phono stage may also be built-in (see “Characteristics”), however, if external equipment is used, it is necessary to know the type of pickup to select it.

Needle shape

The shape of the needle in the pickup (cartridge) that the player is equipped with.

Conical. It may also be called spherical. The simplest type of needles for vinyl players. Such needles are inexpensive, but the sound quality when using them is relatively low — due to the fact that the shape of the needle rather weakly matches the shape of the groove on the record.

Elliptical. Elliptical needles have a narrower shape than conical (spherical) needles, which improves contact and allows, in particular, more accurate reproduction of high frequencies, and also reduces record wear. Due to the good value for money, this option is very popular.

Linear. The most advanced variety: sharply sharpened needles of complex shape, following the contours of the grooves on the plate as accurately as possible and having the largest contact area among all types. The downside of this is the complexity in production and, accordingly, the high cost.

Output level

The signal level at the output of the pickup supplied with the player is, in fact, the power of the signal coming from the pickup to the phono stage. This parameter is necessary, first of all, in cases where the player is planned to be connected to an external phono stage: such equipment must be designed for the corresponding power of the signal coming from the pickup.

Downforce

The force of pressing the needle on the plate, which the complete pickup (cartridge) is designed for.

This force depends on the rigidity (compliance) of the needle: the greater the clamping force, the harder the cartridge, respectively, the less pliable it is. It is also believed that less pressing force wears out the record less, but it cannot be said that "light" cartridges are definitely better — there are many other nuances. So in fact, information about the pressing force of a complete pickup is needed mainly in case of its replacement. Usually, the pressing force provided by the arm of the turntable is regulated within these limits, so the new cartridge must also be rated for the same values of downforce — otherwise there is a chance that the turntable will not be able to correctly align.

Model

Model of the tonearm — the movable lever on which the pickup is attached — supplied with the turntable. The tone arm is responsible for the correct position of the needle and the accuracy of its movement along the grooves, which is critical for sound quality. Therefore, many music lovers try to clarify not only the general data on the tonearm, but also its specific features in each particular “turntable”; in order to be able to find this information, the name of the tonearm is given in the characteristics.

Tonearm effective length

The effective length of a tonearm in set is the distance from the attachment point (axis of rotation) to the stylus.

This indicator is important primarily for rotary tonearms: the longer the length, the lower the angular error, the smaller the discrepancy between the direction of movement of the track and the longitudinal axis of the pickup (for more details, see “Type”) and the lower the level of corresponding distortion. In addition, a longer length reduces the resonant frequency and reduces the likelihood of distortion. On the other hand, a longer tonearm turns out to be heavier, which requires certain technical tricks and can also negatively affect the purity of the sound. Therefore, a large length is not always a guarantee of high quality – you should also pay attention to weight (see below).

External power supply

An external power supply is called a power supply unit (PSU) placed outside the player's case; such a unit can be connected to the outlet with a wire or plugged directly into it using its own plug. The point of this arrangement is to minimize possible interference from the power supply electronics by removing it to the maximum distance from the circuits through which the signal passes. Therefore, an external power supply is considered the best option for audiophile class acoustics.

Phono stage

A phono stage is a specially designed preamp used with vinyl record pickups. Initially, the sound on such records was recorded with a distortion of the amplitude-frequency characteristic, namely, with an increase in volume from low frequencies to high ones; this is due to the technical features of the recording process. Accordingly, the phono stage not only amplifies the signal to a level sufficient to supply power to the amplifier, but also corrects the frequency response, “pulling out” the bass and reducing the volume of the high frequencies. And the built-in phono stage allows you to connect the player to the power amplifier directly, without the use of intermediate equipment. However according to the characteristics, the built-in preamplifiers-correctors are inferior to external ones. Therefore, in some models with this function , bypass mode may be provided, which allows you to send a signal bypassing the built-in phono stage to an external, more advanced one. And also there are even vinyl players without a phono stage.
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