Rega Acrylic Platter - Which One to choose

And then I tried some Rock - OMG!!!

This platter really excels when the instrument has a more instant attack...
Stevie Windwood's Higher Love - drum intro sounds like rifle shots
Stevie Wonder's Superstition - keyboard intro is so crisp
Spyo-Gyra's brass section - very clear

Then there's the subtle details - like the guitar work on Dire Straits albums - you get to hear every detail of the hand sliding up and down the fretboard and the finger nails picking at the strings - superb

In the classical stuff I had listened to above (all strings) it seemed to smooth everything out to create a fuller sound, but not that different from the glass platter

In the female vocals I listened to(Diana Krall, Norah Jones) the voice was full and in parts had a very nice whispery texture, again not that different from the glass platter

Based on the latest listening experience I would recommend this upgrade without reservation.

So I decided to go with the SRM/Tech Delux platter since the machined recess on the underside to accommodate the drive pulley seemed a little larger than most other platters from what I could determine - i.e. 163mm dia by 10mm deep.

The platter fit my not-so-standard "Rega-based" turntable with about 1mm to spare, so no further "adjustment" was required.

Was it worth it? - On very good recordings there is a very definite improvement in details and soundstage - and everything sounds "fuller".

Violins sound much smoother without loosing details and the improved "room acoustics" made the concert hall appear a whole lot deeper and that alone made the purchase worthwhile.

I think that with a better phono-stage the improvements would be so much more noticeable.

One thing - the platter comes with little rubber discs that you can place on the sub-platter if you want to use it without a mat - to eliminate the VTA correction. These should be replaced with something a little harder for better results.

NOTE: I have the ISOKINETIK subplatter, which is so much better than the Rega sub-platter, so I do not know if the same results would be achieved on a Rega sub-platter, but I suspect the impact might be less apparent.

There's always something to work on :-)