Rega Planar 8/Apheta 2
Rather than being a gentle evolution of the previous (and still rather good) RP8, this new turntable takes its inspiration from Rega’s Naiad – the company's spare-no-expense uber-deck.
Just look at it. This skeletal player can't but turn your head with its angular shape and aggressive cutouts. The idea is to minimise plinth mass while increasing rigidity; the plinth is 30 per cent lighter than that used on the last model – and more rigid with it. Rega believes that mass absorbs energy and that ends up taking the life out of the music.
Engineering as art
The platter is something of a work of art. It’s made of three pieces, with two different types of laminated glass. This is one area where more mass leads to better results by creating more of a flywheel effect to smooth out speed fluctuations.
There’s a new tonearm. The RB880 may look like the designs used on Rega’s cheaper turntables, but it has an improved vertical-bearing assembly.
You can buy the deck without a cartridge for £1699, or add the Exact moving-magnet (+£210), Ania movingcoil (£420) or Apheta 2 MC (+£740), as we do for this test. Set-up is easy. The cartridge is pre-mounted and its alignment is guaranteed thanks to the brand’s three-point mounting system.
Once up and running, the Planar 8 puts clear air between itself and the cheaper decks in Rega’s catalogue. It delivers a level of clarity and insight more reminiscent of far pricier high-end turntables than anything its talented siblings can manage.
We start with Orff’s Carmina Burana and love the way this package copes with the music’s wild dynamics and changing momentum. The presentation is as insightful as we’ve heard at this level, and all that detail is organised with class-leading levels of composure. The 8 always sounds in control, no matter how complex the music gets. Yet, all that control doesn’t dilute the drive and excitement of the recording.
Smooth yet insightful
This package is tonally well balanced. It’s smooth when required but still has enough bite when the music demands. It’s possible to get more sonic authority and weight – the Planar 8 has a strikingly taut and agile presentation – but you’d have to spend thousands extra to get it while matching the Rega’s strengths.
We’re pleased with the stable and focused stereo imaging. The record player renders an expansive soundstage and locks instruments in place even when the production becomes dense.
We switch to Bruce Springsteen’s Born To Run and the Planar responds with a combination of attack, drive and rhythmic precision that we haven’t heard bettered at this price. While delivering each musical strand with clarity, it also ties everything together to produce a cohesive and massively enjoyable whole.
We listen to a range of records while testing this player, from the gritty reggae of Bob Marley’s Concrete Jungle to the heartfelt gospel-tinged blues of Eric Bibb and Needed Time’s Good Stuff, and the Planar 8 always sounds at home. It has a wonderfully articulate way with bass that combines power and texture beautifully.
The performance gap between this and the Award-winning Planar 6 is huge. In being so ambitious, Rega has pushed the boundaries of performance at this level and has given premium rivals positioned above it plenty to worry about.