The sound, very open and very detail RB300 tonearm Low vibration motor With the dust cover removed. It look beautiful (mine is in Silver color) Last for long time

Cheap plastic dust cover with sharpen edges and cheap hinges design. Hope these will not break in its life time. RCA connections is not gold plated and look cheap - the one I bought 10$ from Radio shack looks even better One page manual !!!! I know it is not complicate to setup but I expect a manual with more thing like specifications, technical supports, cover page .... Without these weakness I would give a perfect 5

I looking for turn table since long time and my selections narrow down to Music Hal mmf5 and Rega P3. Finally I choose Rega P3 because the advise of a sale man and I want to have a turntable that last for long time. Rega has this reputation In general I'm very happy with this turntable except for weakness listed below. Rega focus too much for sound and forget about many overall designs.

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Dual CDS 5000

simplicity, cool design (still), easy to upgrade and sounds great.

zero

purchased a planar 3 some years ago, new. Just after purchasing I changed the motor with the upgrade kit. After that, I decided to use a clamp (nagaoka) and changed the interlink to a rega couple. First I used the elys cartridge, now its a sumiko blue point special. I also made a sandbag system for damping, made of wood, inside is 22 kg of sand, on top of it a innertube from a small cycle. On top of the tube is a mdf 25mm plate, everything damped with stuff they use for cars, after spraying it becomes very quiet. First I used the pnono amp inside a rega mira, after that it was a rega fono and I just purchased a graham slee era gold. Oh and i shortend the rega interlink between turntable and graham, as short as possible. And another counterweight (pebbles 2). What does this all mean? well, one could say that every step was clearly audible, especcialy the sandbag and the graham phonoamp. It came from qiurte good to almost excellent. Just waiting for my cartridge, changed by van den hul, wonder what that will bring..very good imaging, extremely quiet, became so much more involving..Maybe i will put on other power cable with loose power supply (heed audio), people say it works. like so many said, always swing the platter before turning on the motor. This rb 300 can be taken to great great highs, start with the rea interlink (or cardas) then put other counterweight. It will rock! much more low and hgh information, space around instruments, very satisfied, will not change until i can buy P9.

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not

Good build quality, no frills. Great tonearm in the 300. Good quality platter and a very quiet table compared to the Project. I like the antiskate better too (never was too thrilled about the fishing line deal on the Project). As far as the sound is concerned, I think the Rega P3 was far more detailed, and also wider in dynamic range. Bass is much better and more controlled as well. Since that was my biggest complaint about the Project, I think this is a huge plus. To be as fair and as objective as possilbe to the Project, is was only a $319 table WITH cartridge and I am comparing it to a $850 setup, so the sound, build etc should be better on the P3.

For the money, I wish Rega would have allowed one to put differnt output cables than what came standard, and I would have liked to see a grounding cable. Rega claims that this isn't necessary, but I am on the fence about it. Finally the dust cover hinges S.U.C.K. On the project they were a lot nicer, and I am concerned about the long term life of these. Time will tell.

I purchased this table as an upgrade to my ProJect1.2 that my brother in law was kind enough to buy from me. I also picked up the Elys cartridge for $195 to complete the set. I figured that if the people who designed the table made a cartridge, it has to mate up pretty well and it does. There are numerous differences between the Project and the Rega and I sum them up below. My system is all Rotel/B&W Nautilus 804 with all Kimber wiring. Sunk about 9K into this, so I guess I am borderline audiophile (even though I think most of these people are too arogant to hold an open minded conversation, etc.) Sold high end stuff years ago too. Back then 9K was about average for the store I worked in........so..... Anyway, I am back into vinyl now and am happy as all get-out! The people at Audio Emporium, in Milwaukee are great to work with also.

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Last comment. I think that some of the reviewers from a few years back are talking about the PLANAR3 not the NEW P3 which isn't all that old.

price, tonearm, build quality, reliabilty, styling, oh yes it's SOUND.

runs a bit fast, VTA for some not me.

I think the P3 is still the table to beat in it's price range. Build quality is very good, easy set-up, and it reliable. Sound is on par with more other tables in its price range . The RB 300 is still the best tonearm you can get for the money. No VTA, well I for one don't care. You see I do not plan to change cartridges very often at all. And I for one am not a tweaker. For those who are, here is a tip,WASHERS!( The RB 300 is a arm that has a huge following. There are all kinds of tweaks for it including VTA,Seek a ye shall find.) Hey any product that is in production for @ 26 years can't be that bad. One can always do better (or worse) than the P3, but for me it was the one that I liked the best. The other big advantage is that you can tweak the table and arm (if thats your thing) over time and bring its sound quality to a higher level, say that of the P25. For me it does everything the only thing that matters, it lets me enjoy MUSIC.

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Music Hall, Project, Sota

Sound o.k.

Lack of tone arm adjustments. Is not that outsatnding in its price tag as it was 20 years ago = TIME.

The Rega Planar 3 is definitely a very good record record player. The sound has a lot of focus, good perspective and deep, controlled bass and an o.k. high range. Dynamically its fine, but does sound a bit harsh at times. The problem with the Rega Planar 3, or at least the one that I had /(Not the lanar 3, is the lack of individual tone arm adjustments to give almost all different kind of catridges perfect "working" conditions. I am currently using a Pro-ject rpm 9 where it is possible to adjust the vertical tracking angle and height of the tone arm. To be able to make those adjustments is important for me to fit my Bang & Olufsen MMC1 catridge (one of the best catridges ever made - a shame the company does not produce it anymore). Besides that the Pro-ject RPM9 does sound much better than the Planar 3. In its newest version, which is not that different from the early 1980s model, almost 20 years do show - especially in comparison with the newest of turn tables. The Project RPM 4 does sound better than the Rega, in spite of one of the reviews saying the opposite (The RPM 4 is even cheaper an comes with a Grado catridge standard fitted). Even the newest of Regas, although they are more expensive, easily outperform The Planar 3.

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Beautiful glossy finish, excellent sound stage and imaging when used with an SME arm, good isolation especially on a stable platform.

None None NONE!

Purchased my Planar 3 without arm (SME Cutout)on Ebay and upon recieving it, I was struck on how beautiful and simplistic it looked. Mine is finished and nice Black lacquer and a nice smiked dustcover. I had a local authorized dealer install an SME 3009 III which was removed from a Thorens 160 Super. The arm was fitted with an excellent Ortofon VMS 30e Mk2 and once the arm was installed, Magic - musical details I've never heard on my albums before are present the sound stage blows away my cd player (Denon DCM370). I can't say enough about this unit. I use it with a Denon 3802 A/V receiver along with a pair of Paradigm Monitor 9's connected with Ultralink Bi-Wire speaker cable. I have long been and continue to be an Analog fan and I have tried many combinations of Thorens, Duals, B & O, and even a recent Sumiko Pro-Ject RM4 which dos not even come close. In closing, My audio dealer stated that this was the best turntable he has heard in the store-this coming from a store that sells turnatbles in the $2,000+ range.

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Thorens TD160 Super, TD180, TD166 Mk2, Sumiko Pro-Ject RM4 with Pearl cartridge, Dual CS-521.

Not build for being best in specs, but for being musical, very musical and involving. Simple setup. Easy upgrading. You start to buy a lot of records again.

Tonearme-hight is not adjustable. Feet are not fitt for leveling turntable. Standard motor is running to fast (1%) You start to spend a lot of money on records again. (Complaint of my wife)

I bought the Planar 3 because I wanted a replacement for my beautiful looking, but dull sounding Onkyo CO1057 F. The most importent weakness of the Onkyo was it''s tonearm and it was not possible to swap it for a decent SME. I''ve read some rave revieuws about the Rega, so I just went to the shop and listened to it. What I heard was very convincing and I bought it right away with the well know Elys cartridge. When I was at home, I was a little disapointed. Next to the Onkyo the Rega did not look like a serious record player. But after a few hours running in, it sure sounded like one. The only flaws? I had the feeling it was running to fast, and the cartridge was picking up hum from the motor when it was moving inwards. I went back to Hifi Team and we listened once more on a Quad set. No trace of hum. Just music. My preamp in the Onkyo amp was the problem. The turntable was indeed send back because of the speed problem. Within two weeks I got my P3 back and I was correct, it was running 1% to fast. During that time I bought a second hand Daniel tube preamp and that did the trick. After two years of being happy I changed the cartridge for the Sumiko Blue Point special (v.d. Hull version) Much clearer and natural high-end and much more detail. By the time the Planar 25 came out, I realised that the P25 weas the turntable I wanted. Because I had to use my money for other things I bought only the new motor unit from the P25. I can recommend that to everyone! When you hold the motor in your hand and switch it on, you feel absolutely no vibrations! Later I bought the wooden rim and the black board (from the p25) and moved the arm, motor and platter to the, wat I call, P3.1 It looks like the P25 with a black arm now, and sounds somewhere between the P3 and P25. Now even my wife is charmed by it''s looks. Next thing to do is adding the Origin live modification to the arm. To make it work you need the wall bracket as an isolation platform. Partner it with a good preamp, it really sings. I''m sure I want the P25 somewhere in the future, but I''m not in a hurry.

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RB300 Arm. Overall Build Quality.

Lack of EMF shielding for motor. Flimsy dust cover hinges.

After nearly 10 years, I decided to get back into vinyl. As most of the electronic components made in the last 10 years do not support phono inputs, I purchased an excellent PS Audio IV pre-preamp. With this setup it bacame apparent that the B&O table I had wasn''t going to provide the quality I was looking for. Of all of the turntables that I have owned in the last 25 years, this is the one that provides the best sound. The RB300 arm may very well be the best you can buy at its price. It will bring the most out of any cartridge you use. I''ve tried Audio-Technica, Benz, Grado, Ortofon and Shure cartridges on this unit and they all seem to sound better than they did on my other tables. The table itself is typical Rega - spartan and featureless. This unit has the P3-2000 motor upgrade and speed control is rock solid. I have experianced the hum that other reviewers found when using Grado cartridges.

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Ariston, B&O, Dennon, Technics, Marantz, Pioneer, etc.

The arm and the whole TT is very quiet

None

I did a lot of research into buying a TT. I was able to use my old cartridge. This was actually better because I heard the difference immediately between my old TT and the P3. So far the P3 has played every record. I know my cartridge, an AT331LP, is not the best elliptical stylus but it sounds subperb in this TT.

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Value for money. Sound quality, build quality, looks.

Too good?

This is an absolutely fantastic sounding turntable that would grace any system. Currently it is being used with the Elys cartridge and this combination sounds expecially sweet. Overall it''s the audio bargin of the millenium !!

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Old Linn LP12 (not as good IMHO)