Try to recall if you have a long forgotten Rega Planar TT hidden somewhere in your store? It may be over 30 years old! But don't worry, it's still a gem; it could be restored to much better sounding deck out-performing many expensive rigs !
Curt Yamamoto of Seattle, USA will tell you his story :
Hi Michael, I’ve been looking over my old vinyl collection and found some great old music I haven’t heard for a longtime. I brought back to service my old Rega Planar 3 and discovered it needed some attention. At the same time I found your upgrade products and decided to incorporate them in my turntable restoration. The plinth was where I started. The current Linn tonearm uses a slightly different mounting position than the former Grace arm. The result was a larger than necessary hole in my plinth, an open semi-circle shape. I filled this in with a half wood dowel and some epoxy putty. Now the structure is as solid as new. The Linn tonearm base completely covers this on the top surface. I made a sheet metal cover plate for the bottom, it may offer some shielding from electronics below and it looks nice with your stainless steel bottom brace. The brace installation was super easy, the feet mounting on early Rega Planar tables is slightly different from the brace attachment holes, but it was a quick fix with a file. The plinth is solid and stiff. Your adjustable aluminum feet were the perfect solution to my issue with the Linn tonearm cable. The cable extends past the height of the stock feet. The additional height of your feet solves the problem, look great, and perhaps aid in vibration dampening. Some teflon tape around the threaded feet posts snugged up the fit. Your acrylic isolation base inspired me make my own. A local plastic shop sells acrylic sheets cut to size. A 1 inch thickness was perfect. Mated with 3 Vibrapods and cones acoustic feedback is now gone.  The Rega 24 volt motor upgrade was installed with a new belt, metal pulley, new cork mat and your aluminum subplatter. The subplatter is very impressive and a distinct improvement over the stock piece. The new drive system is quiet and very precise. I then decided to go all the way and added the Rega PSU for total speed stability. My old Supex SD1000 cartridge sadly, sounded terrible, it was long overdue for replacement. An Ortofon 2M blue took its place. In adjusting the counterweight on the Linn Tonearm, I found the elastomer in the counterweight had turned to gooey mess.I adapted your underslung counterweight to the Linn Arm. The sleeve you provided, with a strip of plastic from a film canister and some shrink tube made for a perfect fit. The weight’s reduced profile now allows the dust cover to be closed. The cartridge was aligned, VTF and anti-skate set and magic happened.  I can’t remember my vinyl sounding better. Bass was deep and tight. Vocals focused and the highs are delicate and crisp. Background noise is unnoticeable. Your mods and website were the inspiration for the restoration. Thanks! Curt Yamamoto Seattle USA |
Thanks Curt!
0 comments:
Post a Comment