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Revisiting the Original Rega Planet

76.19.38.223
Posted on October 29, 2009 at 11:44:43
AnalogJ
Audiophile

Posts: 2716
Location: North Shore of Boston
Joined: March 7, 2003
 Having had to downsize due to finances, I had to sell my CEC transport/Audiomat DAC combo, clearly a superior playback combination. In any event, I happened upon a hardly used original Rega Planet. It has its drawbacks, but one of the early failings of digital was in the timing. This Planet does timing really, really well. Music moves along really well. And with more intimate music, requiring a sense of humanity and micro-dynamics, this does that very well. It's when music requires great dynamic swings and ability to resolve denser passages is where this player tends to fall apart. Weaknesses also include lack of bass depth and lack of great variance of instrumental timbre.

But there are things that this player does right, as noted above. I can understand why this was considered a breakthrough at its price point at the time. Art Dudley enthused in Listener Magazine about this player at the time of its release I can see why. It gets a certain communication right.

I still don't know what one has to spend nowadays in order to get at least this player's ability in those areas it does well plus in areas it does not. I use to have a Marantz DR-6000 CD recorder and Listener touted it for its ability to get a close replica of an LP recorded onto a disc (and I concur about that). As a straight out player, it didn't get the rhythmic snap of the music the way this Planet does. As Art would say, the Planet is nimble on its feet.

RE: Revisiting the Original Rega Planet, posted on November 6, 2009 at 22:17:22
littlebobby
Audiophile

Posts: 252
Location: Dallas
Joined: November 28, 2008
 The Planet seems to go very fast on Audiogon. That gives an idea of popular opinion of them. The Music Hall CD player is nice, in the budget world.

RE: Revisiting the Original Rega Planet, posted on November 6, 2009 at 20:46:05
Lawrence of Suburbia
Audiophile

Posts: 269
Location: Wareham
Joined: August 22, 2004
 For the money, the best low-cost CD player ever made. The first, also, to not sound "digital".

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