ON TEST
36 Australian Hi-Fi ˹˹˹ƖŘˁʊǒǔǞƖƋɁȧ
I
f youthinkthatdesigning,engineer-
ingandbuildinga turntablemight
bea fairlystraight-forwardtask,I
totallyrecommendyouinvestina
uniqueandexceedinglyinteresting
booktitled‘AVibrationMeasuring
Machine’thatis self-published
byRega*.It’sactuallythreebooksinone.
Thefirstpartofthebookis a historyofthe
companyitself,whichis extremelyinterest-
ing.Thethirdpartis aboutthepeoplewho
workthere,whichis lessso.Thesecond
bookis a completeexplanationofthe‘black
art’ofturntableconstruction,withseparate
sectionsfortheplinth,themotor,thedrive
system,theplatter,thebearing,thetonearm,
thecartridge,andthispartofthebookis
absolutelyoutstanding:It reallyshouldbe
requiredreadingforanyonewhointendsto
acquirewhatRegafounderanddesignerRoy
Gandywhimsicallyreferstoasa ‘vibrationmeasuring machine’ because, as he explains
in the book, essentially what is required of
a turntable is that it measures the vibrations
in the groove of a long-playing record with
the greatest accuracy possible, because those
vibrations are typically 0.005mm and may
be as small as just one single micron
(0.001mm): ‘This means that any unwanted
movement between the stylus and the disc of
0.001mm can create a massive measurement
inaccuracy of 100%.’THE EQUIPMENT
The first time you see a Rega Planar 8 in the
flesh (so to speak) you’ll likely be shocked by
its skeletal appearance, even if you’ve been
pre-warned by seeing a photograph. It’s really
completely unlike any turntable you’ve likely
seen before, because essentially there is no
plinth. ‘And why should there be?’ I can hear
Roy asking, this because in essence, all anyplinth is required to do is provide a platform
to support the drive motor, the main platter
bearing and the tonearm.
The first time you lift a Rega Planar 8
(without its triple laminate glass platter,
about which more later) you’ll likely be
shocked by how little it weighs. Unlike most
other turntable designers, who make their
plinths as heavy as possible, Rega has always
made lightweight plinths, because it says
that a turntable plinth or subchassis should
minimise the effects of airborne vibrations,
external structure-borne vibrations and any
vibrations from the motor and bearing. Gan-
dy says: ‘to achieve this, both surface area and
mass need to be kept to a minimum (because) the
higher the mass the more vibration is transferred
throughout the structure and to the structures to
which it is joined’. He continues, in order to
make his point perfectly clear: ‘Mass doesn’t
damp vibration... it transfers it.’
The plinth on the Planar 8 is one of the
lightest Rega has ever made, because it’s made
using of a composite material comprised of
an ultra-lightweight Tancast 8 polyurethane
foam core that is sandwiched between two
layers of what Rega refers to as ‘high pressure
laminate’ or HPL. If you disregard the high-
tech nature of the materials Rega is using
(Tancast 8 was originally developed for the
aerospace industry), the construction is not
unlike that of an Australian surfboard.The construction
of the Rega 8
turntable’s plinth
is not unlike that
of an Australian
surfboard
REGA
PLANAR 8
TURNTABLE