Still undecided on cartridge. I’m leaning towards Rega carts as it just seems more simple to manage. Any suggestions welcome though.
Btw any REGA P9 owners using it without the outer plinth?
I think it looks very sexy without. More like a retro p10.
Ania, surely. And in this case, consider the Ania Pro, most people seem to be more satisfied with that one
Ania pro is a little pricey for me. Considering cartridges have a relatively short lifespan i can never justify spending too much on one. I’ve put a £500 max limit on my cart.
In this case, it’s certainly a good choice in this range and on a Rega
I totally agree with your philosophy. I love spinning vinyl but the fact is I can control my digital from end from anywhere and it’s so easy. So vinyl is like 5% of my listening and it does not make sense to me to spend well into 4 figures for the setup But that’s me
@khan84
A couple of years ago I was in the position of looking for a cartridge broadly in the price band you seem to be considering but, as you have found, it’s almost impossible to get demonstrations these days.
However, I did manage to get a demonstration (of sorts) of a few cartridges I wanted to consider; Hana EL, Ortofon Quintet Black and Rega Ania. The conditions of the demo were not ideal, but it did still provide some useful guidance towards my final choice.
Prior to the demo I had used a succession of Ortofon cartridges, and with the rave reviews it was getting at that time, I think I was already predisposed towards the Quintet Black. However I was massively disappointed with the Quintet’s performance, and it didn’t help when it fell apart in the dealer’s hand later (if fact another well respected dealer had previously warned me about this issue). The Ania, to me, sounded very ‘stop and start’; tremendously fast leading and trailing note edges, but with little ‘flesh’ between them. The Hana EL however sounded very natural and just ‘right’. It didn’t have the detail of the others but still sounded better to my ears.
So after due consideration I went for … a Hana SL. I took a bit of a gamble in hope/expectation of a more detailed version of its little brother. I’m glad I did. It’s regarded as a ‘warm’ sounding cartridge but if that’s so, it’s only a smidge on the warm side of neutral. Don’t expect a thick treacle-like sound. It’s detailed, fast, dynamic and musical. I suspect it would pleasantly surprise you and you might re-evaluate what vinyl can do.
Obviously this is all just one man’s opinion, but I hope this is useful.
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Hana here also. I’m just about to get a new phono stage. What are you running yours with?
Mine’s on a Keeled, Radikal LP12 with Ekos 1.5, straight into the phono boards in a 72/HiCap/250 combo feeding Arivas.
Fairly modest set-up compared to many on this forum, but for me it’s performance punches well above it’s weight and I don’t feel the need to upgrade very often.
Thanks. Mine runs temporarily on an existing P3 into a Rega fono. Its about to be moved onto a P8 and I’m undecided between the safety of an Aria or the Heed Quasar.
Thank you for sharing your impressions and verdict. Did you need to use the spacers with this cart?
Keeled LP12 with radikal is not modest my friend. I’m sure it sounds sublime
Didn’t need to use any spacers as far as I’m aware. The Ekos is height adjustable (not by me I hasten to add - I leave all the setting up to Peter Swain).
I believe other forum members that have used Hana cartridges on Rega decks/arms have reported that they didn’t need to use any spacers.
Thanks for the kind comment RE the Linn. I must confess to being very happy with the sound from this combination since the Hana was installed.
Of course the Linn doesn’t need spacers. My mistake.
I think the warmer character of the cartridge will likely suit my Rega/Anatek combo quite well.
Just out of curiosity has any p9 owner auditioned any of the newer Rega decks? I prefer the vintage look of the p9 for sure but I’m wondering how far the newer designs have come in absolute performance
I part-exchanged my P9 for a P10. The P9 was aesthetically fantastic ang sounded really good. The sound of the P10 is a big improvement. Quieter, more dynamic, cleaner, more involving, more rhythmic.
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