Upgrades for Rega P3. Worth it?

I up grade my REGA RP6 with the "Achromat", and it is a good investement, but not for the REGA white belt, the Black one has a better timuing on my RP6.  On the RP8 there are (2) White belts, that are more expensive to replace, that is why, I keep my RP6 and up grade it.  My next step would be the Groovetracer counterweight. Is there any video for all the installation steps to the set up ?

Stringreen - agreed - many times I've questioned my approach.

Nickomoff, I think there are two parts to your questions...
1. Will the upgrades be beneficial
2. Is it worth upgrading a P3

With me, I tweak when I believe the benefit outweighs the cost - trouble with my tt is, the cost of the tweeks has reached the price of a VPI scout. But in my defence it has been spread over 20 years :-)

Then there's the sense of upgrade-achievement :-)

But back to the original question - of those upgrades listed - the sub-platter and platter are definitely worth while.

Another worthwhile upgrade is the Cardas one-piece rewire kit which will allow the improvements made by the sub platter/platter upgrades to be more noticeable.

Replacing the cartridge will change the sound, but opting for the other upgrades will allow your existing cartridge to really strut it's stuff :-)

You've heard from both camps and each has it's merits

Hope you find the solution that brings you much musical enjoyment

You can upgrade again and again only to find that the money you spent could have bought you a better table.

Wc65mustang - exactly what do you find so unbelievable?...

Do you believe....
1. Rega aren't worth upgrading, or
2. they're perfect as is.

If #1 - then you appear to misinformed, since there are many companies offering some great upgrade products that people appear to be buying - so they are worth upgrading according to a lot of people and the many vendors

If #2 - then there are many people buying those upgrades that are achieving better performance in an affordable, incremental manner - standard product are built to a budget and can always be improved upon.

Whatever choice the fact remains that Rega has some great products whose performance can be improved on - just like any other manufacturer

Also, other turntable manufacturers wished they had the success Rega has had over the years, not only with OEM product but in providing parts/arms for other turntable manufacturers use.

BTW - I'm not a Rega bigot - there are many TT's out there that I would gladly try if I had the cash (VPI springs to mind), but my limited budget took me down the upgrade road instead of the trade-in road

Happy Listening :-)

Nickomoff - If you are using a weight or clamp to secure the album then any slight deformity in the mat (like felt) would probably be eliminated, but the mat may still effect the overall sound.

With the upgrades I have purchased, I found that eliminating all mats provides the best sound - the old plastic Rega sub-platter was dull and listless compared to the ISOsub GT 2 upgraded sub-platter, especially when used with the SRM/TECH acrylic platter.

I found that using a mat reduced the ultra fine details in the recording venue acoustics and had a more confused image.

If you have the glass platter on the rega I would recommend an acrylic one - take your pick, there are many, or the GT Delrin platter that Doug has, reviews indicate they are extremely good

I found the glass platter, whilst great for consistent speed, seemed to present an image that was not very accurate when compared to my acrylic platter I now have and the bass was not as tight and detailed as it is now.

Strings also sounded quite shrill. Almost as though they were distorting.

I tried many things to fix this...
- gluing cork to the underside of the platter
>>> this helped a little with the bass and the shrillness
- a couple of different mats - felt and Mission(sorbothane)
>>> all matts seemed to take the pace out of the music and made it less dynamic.
- getting the acrylic platter was the one thing that worked

Hope this helps

Why would you want to tweak a Rega?
UFB
LOL

I tweaked the heck out of my old rega planar II, to the point it's not recognizable anymore.

Sure, it performs very well, but I could have spent less on a new turntable.

It was a learning experience and all the tweeks provided better sound, but I could have gotten there much quicker with one single purchase.

Benefit of tweaking - you can do it at your pace

tweaks include...
•SRM/TECH Deluxe Acrylic Platter
•RB250 arm
•Cardas monolithic rewire kit
•Michell Technoweight
•ISOsub GT 2 S UPGRADE SUB PLATTER
•Rega II Motor Upgrade kit
•Audiomods Arm (latest addition)

Hi-fi is a long haul :-)

The biggest bang I got for my P3 was the GT subplatter, GT Delrin platter, and the Michael Lim motor isolation base. And of course, the 24v motor upgrade.

Also kind of wondering what kind of impact the turntable mat has on overall performance. For example, if the mat itself is not perfectly flat, does that simply negate the benefits of a more precisely-machined subplatter?

Thanks for all the advice! Looks like many folks here are positive on the upgrades. Suppose I shouldn't be too surprised. :)

I also forgot to mention I've been using an old Tri-Pad turntable mat over the glass platter. Have read very good things about this and have been pretty happy with it vs. the stock felt. Anyone else use one of these?

Think over the next year or so I will go for the belt replacement (I think it's time anyway) as well as the Groovetracer subplatter and maybe a Dynavector 10x5 to replace the 2M Blue.

Rega P3 plus upgrades equal Sota Saphire minus the suspension.

P3- 24 motor upgrade + incognito tone arm wire + Deluxe Groove tracer subplatter + Heavy Weight for tonearm + Iron Audio Acrylic Platter = Sota Saphire, and this is according to someone who owns both tables.

Only you can decide whether or not it's worth it.

Enjoy the music.

Hi Nichomoff,

I think your proposed upgrades are all worthy. I have a P5 and have upgraded it with a Groovetracer subplatter, Delrin platter, counterweight and Rega white belt. It really has transformed the sound of the P5 for the better.

I would start with the subplatter, which would make the most dramatic difference, followed by the speed box.

Look into ditching the Ortofon Blue for a better cartridge. You could go Bronze or Black, or better yet, a Dynavector cart, which matches well with Rega arms.

Good luck!

I had a P5, since sold. But I had the Groovetracer reference
subplatter and can echo Jetrexpro..the noise floor dropped.I
didn't care much for the Groovetracer acrylic platter, but
the new delrin platter they make was superb. A marked
improvement over the acrylic and stock glass. If you're a tinkerer may I suggest the dual pulley made by Michael Lim. Of all the upgrades I made it was the most dramatic. Noise floor lowered further, wider sound stage , tighter bass. As for the white belt, I found one on sale and got it to have as a spare. I didn't notice any change whatsoever when I tried it.

No it isnt

Second the white belt, big deal on my lowly P2.

Have you considered the Rega White Belt? Maybe it was because the old belt was wearing out, but for me the white belt was a major improvement. A few weeks later I installed the Groovetracer reference subplatter and the noice floor dropped.

I have the P3-24 with the power supply and exact cart.