Cartridge needed for Rega Planar 3

[admin_exported]

I've inherited the above turntable (UK), but it seems to be missing the cartidge and am at a loss as to where to begin identifying what would be a suitable replacement.I can't see any identifying marks on the arm. The head seems to be branded A&R Cambridge and looks like this:

Any pointers appeciated! Cheers,

Rich

 

[nopiano]

It looks like an A&R C77 or E77, but I'm sure someone will know for sure.

I believe they have been discontinued.

Depends on your budget, but Ortofon 2M or Golring 2000 series seem popular. Grados sound nice but some say they hum in Regas.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks for that info - it put me on the right track, so to speak.

I remember now the stylus (E77) somehow got bent (cleaners?) and I'd removed it to take it into a dealer for them to match it:

The question now is whether to try and hunt down a replacement stylus or upgrade to a Ortofon 2M 🙂

 

[Anonymous]

it looks like youre in the same boat i was with my plannar 3, bought it off ebay and it came with the same cart (i think they were regularly sold new with them) but the connical stylus. sounded quite good but i think you might as well upgrade the cart because you cant get replacement styli as far as i know and it would cost more to retip it than i would bother spending. i had a very quick look on Jico but i couldnt find one there unless its under a differnt name.

i looked at the AT-440mla at first but ended up getting the Goldring 2400 (i ordered the 2300 but got sent the 2400, which was very nice of them) cant tell you how good or bad a choice it was as its my first TT but it does the job good so far.

 

[chebby]

Hundreds of cartridges at many different price levels, MM and MC, are suitable for a Rega Planar 3. (ie they'll work.)

Hardly anywhere - or any way - to demo/audition before you buy.

Most have to be bought online because very few 'high street' dealers carry any. Many don't even stock turntables at all.

Most people here (including me) or on any hifi forum - with any experience of Rega turntables - can only make a limited numbers of recommendations based on the cartridges we use/have used. All of those recommendations are loaded with a degree of prejudice and are dependent on our systems, tastes, rooms etc. and not yours. (In other words next to useless advice.)

Throw in a few nasty technical considerations like cartridge depth (VTA), compliance, mass etc ...

You'll gather by now that I sincerely believe researching 'the best cartridge' is going to be fraught with obstacles not encountered when choosing any other hifi component.

The Ortofon 2M is a good, safe choice for the money, and probably better than selecting one at random.

 

[altruistic.lemon]

Listen, in the day the a&r were good cartridges, a bit better than Ortofon at the price point because they were a touch less clinical. You'd be lucky to find an A&R now, although it's possible to get them re-tipped - I'd suggest, at the money, that option isn't worth it.

You wouldn't go wrong either with the Ortofon Red or Blue, or, if you like a richer sound, the Nagaoka MP110.

Just a point about VTA, which is vertical tracking angle, which you adjust by raising or lowering the arm. Roy Gandy, whose arms I briefly used to flog, basically was sceptical about the difference this made. Me, I think if the arm is parallel or slightly tail down, that's fine.

 

[Anonymous]

Thanks all for the replies. I'm a bit of a noob in all this, but it's becoming clearer!

I was planning on buying online anyway but didn't want to buy something that technically wouldn't be compatible with the arm, but it sounds like things are fairly standardised. Since I 'just' want to get the Rega back in operation (it's been gathering dust for about 18 months) I think I'll probably pop for a Ortofon 2M Red and a new drive belt.

Cheers

Rich

 

[shropshire lad]

Good decision . That is what I did with my Planar 3 after it had gathered dust for 15 years . I also changed the original S-shaped arm ( that'll tell you how old it is) for a RB250 and I haven't stopped playing LPs ever since .

Nick

 

[Anonymous]

It’s hard to search out educated folks on this matter, but you sound like you know what you’re talking about! Thanks
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