Hi all, and welcome to this month’s Brighton store blog. This month we’re going to be taking a close look at a special edition of an old stalwart, one that has been a homie for the best part of five decades. The Rega Planar 3 turntable 50th Anniversary Edition (Exact MM Cartridge).

*Planar 3 Walnut effect plinth with aluminium custom 50th badge*

Form is temporary, class is permanent...

I’m finding myself in somewhat of a comfort zone as I start to write this month’s blog. Why? You ask…

*my vintage 1980’s rega planar 3 in use at home.*

Well, just take a glance at this photo to witness my set-up, including ownership of an early 1980s Rega Planar 3. As a long time owner of the Rega Planar 3, I can vouch for its qualities.

Barring some minor aesthetic and engineering changes (small, but significant) the Rega Planar 3 hasn’t changed all that much over five decades. Unless of course you are an aficionado of the brand’s decks, you may not even notice.

The many faces of the Planar 3…

The Rega Planar 3 turntable has appeared in several award winning iterations over the years, with minor cosmetic changes, such as the power button being moved from the top, to the underside of the deck. There have of course been engineering changes to the turntable throughout the decades, with changes in materials and components.

Currently the standard Rega Planar 3 is available as: Rega Planar 3 (no cartridge), Rega Planar 3 (Elys 2 MM cartridge) or Rega Planar 3 (Exact MM cartridge) all in 3 different colours; Gloss Black, Gloss White or Gloss Red finishes.

However, to celebrate the 50 years since its founder, Roy Gandy, set up Rega, a special version has been created to mark the event.

50th anniversary Rega Planar 3 Edition...

The 50th anniversary Rega Planar 3 edition is only available with a Rega Exact MM cartridge factory fitted, sporting a rather fine walnut vinyl wrap finish, so if your colour choice isn’t walnut you’ll have to go via one of the three colour options mentioned above, I’m afraid! The 50th anniversary Rega Planar 3 edition does take things a step further though, with the inclusion of an upgrade via the external Rega Neo Mk 2 power supply.

Rega Neo Mk 2 external power supply/speed change

Normally the Rega Neo MK 2 power supply is an additional purchase which improves sound quality further, by externalising power with a beefier power supply, whilst keeping the noise further afield by housing it in a separate box. As a bonus, one can also change speeds between 33/45 by selecting a button, rather than having to remove the glass platter and manually change speeds via a rubber belt being repositioned. For some people, this feature alone will sway them towards this version.

The fact that the Rega Neo MK 2 power supply is included as a “freebie” when purchasing the 50th anniversary Rega Planar 3, makes it almost a “no-brainer”. But to add to that, the included Neo MK2 PSU is hand tuned to the motor to accurately set speed and minimise vibration (same method as used on the PL6 & PL8).

Rega Exact MM cartridge

The 50th anniversary Rega Planar 3 edition comes fitted with a Rega Exact MM cartridge. This is currently Rega’s finest moving magnet cartridge, offering a smooth and refined performance, matching well with Rega’s Fono MM phono stage or the phono inputs on their Rega IO, Rega Brio, Rega Elex Mk 4 or Rega Elicit Mk 5 integrated amplifiers.

Rega turntable EBLT reference drive belt

Last but by no means least, this turntable comes included with the Rega turntable EBLT reference drive belt. The research that Rega put into developing this drive belt are astonishing and the improvements in speed stability and noise reduction are tangible. The best analogy I can come up with is that you wouldn’t put cheap tyres on a racing car, it’s as simple as that. The fact that the EBLT belt is fitted as standard on the 50th anniversary Rega Planar 3 edition just seals the deal, in my opinion!

Summing up the 50th anniversary Rega Planar 3 edition...

testing three 50th anniversary rega planar 3 decks at our audio T store in brighton

The 50th anniversary Rega Planar 3 Edition is a remarkable sonic package for the money. Here’s a recap of the main features of this incredible product -

Walnut effect plinth with aluminium custom 50th badge.
Neo Mk2 PSU included - Hand tuned to the motor to accurately set speed and minimise vibration (same method as used on the PL6 & PL8).
Exact MM factory fitted.
Reference drive belt fitted.
RB330 precision tonearm.
24 V low noise motor fitted with CNC’d Planar 6 drive pulley.
Double brace technology.
12mm float glass Opti-white platter.
Smoked dust cover fitted with custom aluminium 50th lid badge.

Given the additional upgrades included in this package I would urge you to consider one before Rega cease manufacturing this limited edition product at the end of 2023.

Thanks for reading.

Ade, John and Paul - Audio T Brighton

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