Spacearm vs. RB600 vs. AN arm2

Posted by: Edot on 11 March 2002

I'm thinking of upgrading my Rega P25 to a Spacedeck or Audio Note table. I was wondering whether I should keep the RB600 and put it on the new deck or just go whole hog and get a new arm too? Are the Spacearm and RB600 in the same league or is one clearly superior? The Audio Note arm 2 is basicly a rewired RB300, which is pretty much what a RB600 is. So I doubt it make much sense to go that route. The cartridge that I'll be using is a Helikon SL. Any opinions?
Posted on: 11 March 2002 by Mike Sae
Some feel that the new carbon fibre Spacearms don't play music as well as the old-style aluminum tubes; the carbon fibre gives a "bigger" sound at the expense of vitality.
I don't know how they compare with an RB600, but it's something you might want to consider.

Passing along unsubstantiated rumour,

mike

Posted on: 12 March 2002 by Frank Abela
Ed

If you go for one of the other decks, you're substantially changing philosophies in terms of music reproduction. Don't you think it would make sense to embrace the new philosophy completely? Certainly, have a listen to the deck in that form as the manufacturer's view of where he's taking the deck. You don't mention which AN turntable you're interested in. The 3 is very different to the other decks.

Admittedly, the AN-2 is simply a rewired Rega arm, which implies there's a certain synergy. However, the RB600 is not simply a rewired 300! It has higher tolerance bearings which make it much more capable. I'm not a fan of Rega Klotz - I think a rewired 600 with AN cable would make a huge difference for example. AN could do that for you. However, the AN decks are more akin to the LP12 sound (rhythm & swing) than the Rega (tight and focussed) so bear this in mind when buying.

I hope this helps, although I fear I may have muddied the waters somewhat, for which accept my apologies.

Regards,
Frank.
All opinions are my own and do not reflect the opinion of any organisations I work for, except where this is stated explicitly.

Posted on: 12 March 2002 by Martin Payne
quote:
Originally posted by Ed Tringali:
I was wondering whether I should keep the RB600 and put it on the new deck or just go whole hog and get a new arm too?


Ed,

if you keep the RB600, then surely you won't be able to sell the P25?

Are you sure that you wouldn't be better off selling the P25 & starting from scratch.

cheers, Martin

Posted on: 13 March 2002 by Edot
Thanks Frank. Your post is and as usual, helpful. You have a good point with the integrity bit. I know you’re not much of a Spacedeck fan but the deck does have its admirers. Interestingly, many of them use Rega arms. If you’ve not yet heard one fitted with a Rega arm, perhaps you might have a different opinion. Whether or not a Spacedeck fitted with a RB600 will out perform one with a Spacearm is a next to impossible for me to find out in a dem situation. The Audio Note deck I was considering was the TT-1.

Martin, you can flog anything on Ebay, provided the price is right. An armless P25 would be no problem.

Any other opinions on how a Spacedeck / Spacearm compares to a Spacedeck / RB600 are welcome, even if it’s mere speculation or unsubstantiated rumour.

Deep down I’d like a LP12 / Aro but just can’t be bothered fiddling with it once a year or whenever it decides to go off song. Other than a Phonosophie, what other decks get on with an Aro? Anyone using an Aro with a Spacedeck or Audio Note deck?

Posted on: 14 March 2002 by John C
I use a spacedeck/spacearm combo but didn't compare Rega arms. Rob Doorack (who posts here), I think uses a RB900 and felt it was on a par with a spacearm. My extrapolation is that the spacearm would be better than a RB600.

Moerch tonearms are a very goo d match with Nottingham decks and the UP4 or UP6 sound great (have only heard them at the dealers though). They are unipivots and broadly similar to an ARO. Perhaps they would be a good match with your cartridge?

The spacedeck is a great record player, i s upgradable with heavier platter and motor power supply and really worth a listen. I demoed it against a P25 and Audionote TT2. I'm a P25 fan and think it is underated but the spacedeck beats it in all departments. The TT2 sounded broken and was so bad I have conclud ed there was indeed something wrong with it.

John