Help: How to reset Rega RB300 arm on P3?


Greetings,

I do not have much experience at all with setting up arms on turntables. I have only done the required turntable setup after the arm is factory attached to the plinth. Just the other day, the arm on my P3 turntable loosened up so that it rotates with just a little force. I know that I have to tighten up the nut that is under the table (keeping the arm attached to the plinth) in order to fix this, but what should I keep in mind when I do this?

Specifically, how tight should it be? I assume that the arm should be fairly straight (parallel to the side of the turntable) after it has been tightened in place, but is just eyeballing it enough? Anything else I need to know?

Just want to make sure I do this right so that I can forget about it and get back to listening to my LPs! Thanks for any help.
episteme
Episteme,

While unfamiliar with your table I'm sure this is correct. Tighten the nut by hand and maybe 1/8 turn more. The nut tightness can affect the sound. Play around with the torque applied to the nut. Too tight will become very obvious when listening. Eye balling it is good enough. Nothing else has changed.
I had a P3 and P25 and in my experience the best sound was achieved when I finger tightened the nut about the amount one would use when opening a standard in-home door that has a door knob, about moderate finger tight. Lugnut is about right on with this too. The key to it is that the sound does change depending on how tight it is and I found that just enough to provide some friction on it was best. Good luck and let us know what you found to work best for you. as far as the position goes, yes, line up the arm so that it is parallel to the side of the plinth (base) when at rest.