When I finally got a good chunk of time for listening, a few common themes emerged. This time, the increased clarity from the Rega P10 made it sound like a whole new record, and more fun to listen to. In the past, I’ve always heard this indistinct drum concoction as simply part of ELO’s dramatic, but washy over-the-top vibe. One of those casual first spins was Electric Light Orchestra’s “Telephone Line.” I could clearly make out the drum picture as being an intentional stew of close mics, ambient mics, artificial reverb (EMT plate?) and digital delay (Eventide Clockworks?). Different kinds of depth and image-related effects in mixes were very apparent. I could hear faders being turned up in mixes. Dynamic contrasts of every variety were more apparent than ever before, even small scale events within a loud section of music. Bass was deeper and waaay more controlled. I noticed right away that while things didn’t sound thin or lean, the area around 250-400 Hz, which I had always assumed was a room acoustical mode, was cleaned up considerably. My immediate reaction was one of shock and disbelief. It took a few days before I could make the time for serious listening with the Rega P10, but I couldn’t resist a few short spins one evening after work. The Clearaudio got the prize for a slightly more fleshed out and smoother midrange, but just slightly. We listened to a system comprised of an Octave V 80 SE integrated amplifier with the Super Black Box external power supply into KEF Blade loudspeakers, and the Rega P10 seemed more alive and revealing but not dry or antiseptic, just less coloration and more information. Even with the relatively modest 10X5, the Rega P10 kicked ass playing the excellent George Marino remastered Acoustic Sounds release of Cat Stevens’ Tea for the Tillerman. After arriving at my local dealer, EMBER Audio + Design in Winston Salem, NC, owner Chris Livengood used his experience and a fancy German SMARTractor to set up my new baby.īefore leaving the store, we decided to do a quick test and compare the P10/Dyna to a Clearaudio Performance DC with Tracer Arm and Maestro V2 cartridge. I liked the sound I was getting from the Dyna and even if I decided to upgrade to another cart later, it would make for a good comparison to a sound I considered familiar. Setting up the Rega P10įirst, I decided to initially move the Dynavector DV-10X5 that was on the P3 to the Rega P10. I thought I had a pretty good idea of what to expect from the new Rega P10, but none of my previous experiences had prepared me for hearing what the Rega P10 sounded like in my system. So I decided to buy a Rega P10. In the past I’ve owned a Linn, shared a house with a SOTA Star Sapphire and worked in shops selling lots of high-end turntables. Why not use digital sources to evaluate gear? Well, that’s pretty straightforward: since I listen to digital all day long at work, at home, I prefer the particular sonic colorations and all the rituals associated with records. While wow and flutter is generally low enough so that it won’t interfere with my listening enjoyment, it isn’t good enough for me to critically hear how well my lathe is performing when auditioning a freshly cut lacquer or vinyl test pressing. So, while I didn’t have any serious issues with the general sonic performance of the P3, I did want an analog front end that would allow me to review speakers and electronics, using an input signal that provided higher resolution. While using the turntable to check test cuts (done by myself and others), I realized that the speed-accuracy on my P3 is not great (it runs fast). For some time, I’ve wanted to upgrade my current turntable, a Rega P3, to address a few issues. Rega P10, courtesy of Eric Franklin Shookīy means of introduction to the Rega P10 turntable, let me start by saying that I work as a mastering engineer.
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