Cartridge choice for Rega RP6

No offense, but that is one very unbalanced front-end for the rest of the system.  While the RP6 is very good for the money, the Delos & XX2 would be wasted on that platform.  I think your budget would be better spent by upgrading the deck and going for a lower priced cartridge. 

On my RP9 I switched from Exact to Lyra Delos and I'm more than happy with it. 

Don't know if it will be a match with the RP6, but why not give it a try and see what happens 

Bonkers as it might seem, i heard the above recommendation of a Transfiguration Axia S, played on an RP6, and the result was sublime. I'd likely still do things differently myself, but can't dispute what i heard.

if i were spending your money for you (or for me, mwahaha!), i would definitely get an RP8 (or used P9) and spend the balance on a cartridge in the 1000 USD range, such as a Dyna 20x2. although Gary's experience is interesting and suggests that you do a demo and report back!

I think most any $300 cart compatible with the RB303 arm will be an improvement over the Exact. The greatest strength of the Exact is that it's easy to mount & align, is rather forgiving of surface noise, and provides a consistent sound through varying mastering qualities. It's easy to like, until you hear another cart and discover the dynamics the Exact is masking. The DV 10x5 and 20x2H are by all reports great with the RP6 and Naim gear so a good starting point. I had the Clearaudio Maestro V2 Ebony on my RP6 and it worked very well, just a bit too polite for my rock music interests.

As far as upgrading the deck, I heard within the past week a RP10/Apheta via Superline into SN2 and did not think it offered a worthy VFM upgrade versus my RP6/Grace F9E via Stageline into SN2. Granted, this demo was at a Naim dealer and not in my room, but vinyl is my primary source. I'd say your money would be immediately best spent on a cart upgrade as you plan. From there see where your vinyl listening takes you and determine whether your vinyl source is limiting and a future deck upgrade makes sense.

Also use an RP6 and nearly 2 year the Benz ACE SL into Lehmann Decade to 172.
Vinyl was not my first source (70/30 - Stream/Vinyl) - until I moved to Colibri XGP from "van den Hul".

Since 3 month, Vinyl is my first choiche (5/95 - stream/Vinyl) - maybe the Decade and the rest of the kit Is not "good enough", but I enjoy my Vinyl-Collection verry much.
Bought Vinyl over 1000€ in the Last 3 month...

No offence to the RP6 Graham, but you seem a bit under-decked within the context of the rest of your system. Was the RP6 the result of a bit of a 'dip your toe in get back to black' moment? I'm sort of wondering how it all happened, it's not like you stinted on the phonostage either.

Can't help cartridge wise as I'm a DV20x2Low guy, on a Linn. I'm told it's good on an RP8.

Chris

Exactly, very unbalanced

better get  higher deck before changing cartridge

or wait

we have now got the new Planar 2 & 3

just around the corner might come new Planar 7 & 9 or 10 ? maybe 12 ?

Current P10 can be purchased with Apheta 1 or 2

plenty of better options

The deck may be unbalanced with the rest  but for him it's only a secondary source, i have a similar set up l with Rega P3. Using it very little i moved it on the  second system. The Italian Transfiguration distributor, previously also had Rega and Naim in his portofolio, i will ask him how they eventually match with Rega turntables.

Regards

Roberto

Thanks for the replies. I got the RP6 at a good price and then picked up the 18 month old Pulsus for £850. The RP6 has a metal sub platter and upgraded counterweight. As I said I am not planning to go on a massive vinyl upgrade spree and am aware that many would advocate spending a lot on the TT. 

I decided to add a vinyl source as I hear some great music at shows that can only be obtained on secondhand vinyl and also because there are now some very good remastered heavy vinyl issues. I previously had a Linn Ekos Troika but wasn't prepared to keep on the Linn upgrade path. I went to Naim CD and then to the Naim streamers.

The TT also allows my friends to bring vinyl over so it adds flexibility to my system and enables me to access more music.

interestingly the cartridge suggestions ( apart from the Art9) came from Analogue Seduction. I am hoping to visit them but they are a long way from me and there is a limit to how many options can be auditioned at the same time. Hence my request for comments.

I expressed my concern that maybe the RP6 would not be good enough to justify the higher priced cartridges but Simon at Analogue Seduction said that he would not recommend cartridges that would not be suitable and that he had no wish to sell me something expensive if it was unsuitable.

His recommendations in order were Axia S, Dynavector xx2, Lyra Delos, Dynavector 20x and a Hanna ES (I think). So has anyone used those cartridges( preferably on an RP6) and how do they suit the Naim presentation we like?

Hope that puts things into perspective and thanks again for your views.

GrahamFinch posted:

Thanks for the replies. I got the RP6 at a good price and then picked up the 18 month old Pulsus for £850. The RP6 has a metal sub platter and upgraded counterweight. As I said I am not planning to go on a massive vinyl upgrade spree and am aware that many would advocate spending a lot on the TT. 

 

I expressed my concern that maybe the RP6 would not be good enough to justify the higher priced cartridges but Simon at Analogue Seduction said that he would not recommend cartridges that would not be suitable and that he had no wish to sell me something expensive if it was unsuitable.

His recommendations in order were Axia S, Dynavector xx2, Lyra Delos, Dynavector 20x and a Hanna ES (I think). So has anyone used those cartridges( preferably on an RP6) and how do they suit the Naim presentation we like?

Hope that puts things into perspective and thanks again for your views.

 

You seem to have settled on RP6, still I think mentioned cartridges are widely wasted but the opposite way much better ie. get an RP8 keep your exact

but its your money trusting the dealer offcourse he recommend allmost anything in stock, has he mentioned you need a tonearm height adjuster?

I had the Exact on my RP9, the shortcomings of the Exact were really obvious, especially in a Naim context: the sound was very warm and pleasing, but dull and slow at the same time.

The Lyra Delos was a revelation for me, so I would at least give it a try before dismissing this option.

I've found the top Rega models (Planar 9, P9 and RP10) to be head and shoulders above the rest of the range with which they were current and an upgrade to something along those lines (or an RP8) would I reckon give much better VFM. In addition, then you've not got most of the value of the TT/arm/cart tied up in a consumable part.

However, if you're determined to stick with the RP6, why not try an Apheta? The 2 is exceptional and the original (excellent) version sometimes comes up as NOS for well within your budget. The synergy with an RP10 was obvious and given their similarities in terms of design philosophy, I'd have thought the same true of the RP6. 

b_lund posted:

GrahamFinch posted:

Thanks for the replies. I got the RP6 at a good price and then picked up the 18 month old Pulsus for £850. The RP6 has a metal sub platter and upgraded counterweight. As I said I am not planning to go on a massive vinyl upgrade spree and am aware that many would advocate spending a lot on the TT. 

 

I expressed my concern that maybe the RP6 would not be good enough to justify the higher priced cartridges but Simon at Analogue Seduction said that he would not recommend cartridges that would not be suitable and that he had no wish to sell me something expensive if it was unsuitable.

His recommendations in order were Axia S, Dynavector xx2, Lyra Delos, Dynavector 20x and a Hanna ES (I think). So has anyone used those cartridges( preferably on an RP6) and how do they suit the Naim presentation we like?

Hope that puts things into perspective and thanks again for your views.

 

You seem to have settled on RP6, still I think mentioned cartridges are widely wasted but the opposite way much better ie. get an RP8 keep your exact

but its your money trusting the dealer offcourse he recommend allmost anything in stock, has he mentioned you need a tonearm height adjuster?

A rather cynical view of how a Naim dealer operates. I would reiterate that at no time has Simon at Analogue Seduction tried to offload something on me. He has always made it clear he is offering me options at different price points that he feels are most likely to meet my needs. And yes he has mentioned the need for a vta adjuster.

My initial enquiry to him was "What do you think is the best moving coil that will work effectively in an RP6" followed up by the query about whether I would get the true benefits of the more expensive options in the Rega arm. 

I have had a couple of conversations with him and found him to be informative and helpful, even though he knows I live some distance away and there is no guarantee I will be buying anything from him.

I accept that  I will have to listen for myself but the point of my post was to find out peoples' experiences of using the cartridges mentioned and not suggestions about upgrading the deck and keeping the Exact. I would still be in the same position of wanting to upgrade the Exact but with less money to do so.

Graham

I'd suggest an alternative approach - like you I've started with RP6 / Exact II. A good upgrade was Rega's Aria phonostage.

As m systems evolved, I felt RP6 was starting to be left behind (especially as I could compare it to my LP12 in the other room). So I took a plunge and went for RP10/Apheta. It was good, but.... I wasn't completely blown away by it. In some ways RP6/Exact was a hard act to beat. Odd, but that is how I felt.

'Luckily' Apheta developed a fault within the first month so I took this as a good sign and took my dealer up on a very good offer to upgrade to Aphelion. This time round - WOW!!!!! A turntable to dream of.

Conclusions: RP6/ExactII is a very good combo, with Rega's Aria - very difficult to beat. It took a lot to better it - RP10/Aphelion managed that by a mile

Adam

One more thing - Rega is not really ment for tweaking - it works best with its own components.

Good dealer relationship is vital imo, and yours sounds like a good one.

C.

i propose a clash of the titans: RP6/DVxx2 vs. RP8/DV20x2. this has piqued my curiosity and i would do the comparison myself, but i'm wary of wasting my dealer's time...

Adam Zielinski posted:

One more thing - Rega is not really ment for tweaking - it works best with its own components.

Interesting thought. Rega make spacers which would suggest both tweaking and use of other manufacturer's carts since Rega carts do not require spacers. As well the adjustable loading for MCs on the Aria suggests use of carts other than Rega. I can't argue with your own findings that the RP6 or 10 works best with a Rega cart and phono stage, just that many of us have found other combinations better to our ears.

joerand posted:

Adam Zielinski posted:

One more thing - Rega is not really ment for tweaking - it works best with its own components.

Interesting thought. Rega make spacers which would suggest both tweaking and use of other manufacturer's carts since Rega carts do not require spacers. As well the adjustable loading for MCs on the Aria suggests use of carts other than Rega. I can't argue with your own findings that the RP6 or 10 works best with a Rega cart and phono stage, just that many of us have found other combinations better to our ears.

That's true as there is no VTL adjustment.

What I actually meant by my clumsy statement, is that Rega does make rather complete packages which sound very good, with very little effort. Very little user adjustments are needed to make them trully sing - that's what I like about them. 

I went from an exact to Hana EH and it is really good.

I changed the Roksan Corus Black for a Hana SL (low MC) and it's really good at my ears.

These carts deserve a try.

Dynavector 10x5 sounds ok to me on my lp12 for now anyway, but at about half what the Delos costs maybe more in keeping with the rp6 where only casual listening is involved.

Big thumbs up for the DV20x2 on the RP6 ran mine for a while in this setup until I changed the RP6 for a Gyrodec but still use the DV20x2 

I recently got a very enthusiastic email from my ex-colleagues about the Hana SL cartridge. They were saying it punches way above its weight for price, and the extra goody is that it's a straight swap in a Rega deck so no spacers required. Well worth a look!

Frank.