(aps WN Al. The greatest hi-fi and home cinema hardware you can buy revealed inside! Sos = Eko 7 ae VN 32> OVER 1500 PRODUCTS TESTED AND RATED — >‘AWARDS 2012 Turntables The tactile art of needle-on-vinyl music ‘icking. And these reproduction is alive and three proponents are right in the groove PRODUCT OF THE YEAR Best turntable £500-£750 Rega RP3/Elys2 £550 Pee eee eee) Peretti eye ny eer aen rere fourawards in this price band, and thisis the RP3's second win, the frst also beliga Product ofthe Year ttle That'san impressive track record Like every Rega deck we've ever reviewed, the RP3 isa simple design. Pranic etic Deere erred the drvebelt from onestep ofthe motor pulley tothe next by hand. Greer ienyemt es tie eer aaa sea Peet eee ee ote eter eee cette as Peer m eres ae tne ene er tees) that have evolved over decades, There are no rough edges in the design, PoE Masa e aca eer noret see the plinth features bracing between the arm-base and main beating, Prrstorantinne eens mmeY coors Sena RVers SOR tee eer around £75 onthe price we've quoted - we would recommend going for eect mgt a ese) ee ett kee eet expect works seamlessly with arm and deck ere MISE ene Bra eter etn Semcon) and suppor but gett right and this record playershines, Pecos ea as Teeaeeenen Lt Peer entree est neta ‘hiss the kind of product that concentrates the listener'sattention on. the music and nothing ese. Yes, I{ you want 1o analyse the recording the Sone tet eR ec cas rors Rename snes ener LeastBest turntable £750+ Rega RP6/Exact £1000 fRega's RP6 has a problem t's the visual similarity to its ltl brother, the RP3, winner ‘ofthis year's Product ofthe Year (se ef) Ifthe cheaper deck sso good, and looks prety much the same, why spend the extra money? AAcasual glance wont reveal much, but take acloserlook and there are many engineering differences between the two, The RP6' glass platter has a greater concentration of mass towards its 1im, which increases inertia 0 helping speed stability) without adding too ‘muich tothe overall weight. Rega engineers have Tong felt excessive mass spoils ound quality. Other upgrades see the inclusion of an ‘outboard power suppl, which gives the RPG anelectronicspeed change something we're always happy to see on a turntable, Keep the Exact specification ‘The plinth and arm designs are much the same son the cheaper model, and none the worse forthat. Both are wel proven, You can buy the turntable without Rega's Exact cartridge for £800, but we woulda’, The ‘complete package works so well that there's litte to gain from a mix-and-match approach, CP We've heard rivals that deliver similar amounts of information but none that doesit in such an attractive manner Once the listening starts the RPG outpoints ts little brother as much a the price difference suggests. This ia fast and agile sounding package that delivers loads of detail without emphasising the fact. There ae clear gains in transparency and definition over the cheaper RP3, though the sonic character of the two decks remains consistent. Infull low the RPS isa magnificently engaging ‘turntable thats as happy charging along to [Nirvana's Nevermind as its delivering large- scale symphonic pieces such as Holts Mars, ‘This package's wide-ranging dynamics and sure sense of rhythm makelta eal treat to listen to, while the sound staging s suitably precise. ‘Most importantly, this Rega organises the ‘mass of information it digs up into a musically entertaining whole, We've heard rivals that deliver similar amounts of insight but none that {does itinsuch an attractive manner We think this is the finest rurntable package at ths pric. whic OtBest phono stage Rega Fono Mini A2D £85 ‘Vinylis stil going strong, even if things are ‘becoming increasingly digital. Many of us ‘teasure the sound that only turntables can provide, and if you want todo justice to your precious collection of LPs, your set-up needs a standalone phono stage. ‘Minimalist approach ‘he Rega Fono Mini A2D is dstinetlyno-fails Itisamoving magnet design, housed ina simple, unassuming black box. atthe front isan carthing point and a USB por, while the back features standard in/out sockets. It's well made: lightweight but solid enough to stay put. Putto the test, it gives an excellent performance no matter what musics played, ‘The soundis punchy, cohesive and tonally balanced, Timing ls precise, the dynamic range is great, and the presentation i enjoyable. ‘Time to put things in some perspective. ts ‘not as good at fine detail a last year’s champ in this section, Leema's Elements, but that units five times more expensive than the Fono, Bottom line: Rega has made great product that punches well above its weight and offers real ‘value for money. ‘At this price point, youl struggle to find anything this impressive, We haven't yet,LYS Best stereo amp £400-£600 Rega Brio-R £480 ‘The Brio-R had its first taste of one of our ‘Awards in 2011, And now Rega’ talented stereo amp isback for seconds, ‘Pew amplifiers will impress straight out ofthe box, but fom the second you dialin the Volume, the Brio-R grabs makes ahugely Impressive sonic statement. Its one that similarly pried rivals struggle to match. small, stocky powerhouse The amp takes the form of a compact half-width unit, which uses an impressively robust casework Rega takes simplicity first approach to hi design, ane this is reflected inthe relatively basic feature set. You! find just four a line-level inputs and aremote oC control handset -(which s where the "Rin the model name comes in) -and that’s Just about it Ifyou want a headphone socket, tone control, builtin DAC, or other rlceties, you'll have to look elsewhere. ‘The Brio-R does havea fantastic moving: ‘magnet phono stage, however. That shouldn't come as. surprise, given Rega reputation for creating high-quality turntables. t sounds sensational and we've found it tobe the perfect ‘medium through which to use Regas similarly brilliant RP3/Els 2 (see p100 ofthis issue. Saad rey reentry ‘Switch tothe line-evel inputs and the Rega continues to impress. This sa veritable musical ‘maestro, majoring on thythm and agility, but its also equally deft at communicating emotion and subtleties hidden within track. Witha relatively modest SOW per channel into Bohms, the Rega doesn't produce the weightiest of sounds but it's still good enough to drivea huge range of speakers, We'd suggest partnering the Brio-R with Tannoy’s DC6 standmounters (back ‘on p64) asastarting point. Fora suitable CD spinner, the Rega would ‘work well with machines from ‘Maranta’s budget CD6004 ll the RASA AIS HB OE | This isa veritable musical maestro. It majors on rhythm andagility, but is equally deft at communicating emotion way up tothe lofty Roksan Caspian M2, Alternatively, you could even go for Rega's ‘matching DAG (E500) Safe to say though, that whichever path you ‘uead, though, the Brio-Rs Award-winning talent will shine through,