Hello! I know there are older topics on Rega vs Linn, but most were before the P10 replaced the RP10, and I have a different setup than others seemed to have. I currently have an old Nottingham Horizon SE, which I love, but I already replaced a motor in it a few years ago, and I want to upgrade. Right now I am very happy with the rest of my system. Relevant parts of it:
Harbeth Compact 7s on Skylan stands and resonant woods ball feet. Listening room is mostly wooden floor but a carpet is between the system and my listening position.
Naim Nait XS (the original!) recently recapped
Project Tube Box SE II with 2 Electro-Harmonix 12ax7s (this particular pair from my Uncle are extra-reinforced or something so they sound particularly good)
I have an Ortofon Black MM on my turntable and would be happy to keep that, but I don’t have to.
Those won’t change for now. I am only interested in adding a new turntable/cart. I think the following turntables are in a similar-ish price range and they are what I am considering…
Rega P10 (or P8 if I want to save $)
Linn Majik (fitted with Addikt MM cart by the dealer)
Well Tempered Versalex (or Amadeus Jr)
I am hearing the Rega and the Linn later this coming week in Dallas (at Audio Concepts), with Naim amplification, but with ProAc speakers instead of Harbeth’s. Closer to my home in Austin, a dealer (Whetstone Audio, who used to sell Harbeth and Naim) has Well-Tempered and I hope he has a Versalex on the floor I can hear.
What sonic differences am I likely to hear between those (particularly for classical and hard bop jazz)? Has anyone heard them with Naim amplification and Harbeths?
Main thing I’d say is that the Majik is not a particularly good value combo due to the rather poor (IMO) power supply it comes with. The Adikt is also too expensive for what you get, though as part of that package it’s kinda “free”.
Check if Mark at Audio Concepts can hook you up with an Hercules or (even better) older Lingo. While it’s typically hard to get used parts from dealers in the States, he is one of the few that might have some (a friend got a Lingo 1 from him two years ago).
I would also encourage you to try one of the AT VM MM cartridges instead.
As an owner of a P10 one thing I will say is that it punches well above its weight and scales very well.
Based on your set-up if you indeed have no desire to upgrade for the foreseeable future I would stick with the P8. Whereas on a higher-end system, especially when fed high-performing non-Rega MC cartridges the P10 is stunning.
I’ve had a modern Majik LP12 and P10 in the same system using vintage Naim amps but not at the same time. Also had a 1980s Valhalla/Ittok deck too. I think the Rega is excellent and to my ears offers better dynamics, stability, and clarity than the Majik deck. It probably beats a Selekt LP12 at this too, but just a hunch. What might be less obvious is that (in my experience), any LP12 will make better sense of the music, so just try to keep an ear out for that side as well.
However, we’re all uniquely wired up to some degree and perhaps you’ll hear things differently so looking forward to reading your own impressions.
The biggest question is do you have/play any vinyl at 45rpm? If so you will need to factor in the cost of a power supply for the LP12 as the Majik is 33.3 only.
I am ending this year owning an ex-demo Selekt LP12, I got it 2 years old for the price of a new Majik plus lingo, I did audition the P8 and P10 and whilst they are excellent I couldn’t get past their looks, so went with the ex-demo LP12.
Have fun auditioning the decks and I’m sure you’ll enjoy the music which ever direction you go.
Well. I A/Bd the Rega P10 and the Linn Majik LP12 and felt that the p10 was transparent and had more detail especially in the higher registers.
The LP12 had more bottom end and seemed to colour the music more. Lacking for me in the detail at the top end. A higher spec LP12 evened this out but was out of my price range when bought new.
Overall I preferred the P10. I’m still to try the Avid diva ii and I’ve seen an SME 10 with 309 Tonearm that I’d like to try.
And the comment above re 45rpm vinyl is a big deal and a lot of extra money to simply achieve with the Linn
Doesn’t the Linn come with a 45rpm adaptor? At least there’s an official one available for sale separately. It’s a hassle to use I guess, but not a deal breaker if you want a Majik LP12 and have 45s
It’s not a lot of money to achieve - a Hercules is what, 250 quid? It would also be a massive upgrade on the Majik PSU for 33rpm.
That’s why I just don’t think a Majik deck makes much sense, and in general why I’d encourage folks to work with a good LP12 dealer to build a deck at their price point rather go with one of Linn’s standard offerings (which are put together by parts anyway, with them just picking the equivalent tier for each of them).
It is true the P8 is probably a better match for my system. I may not be able to get the most out of my P10 with what I have. Down the road I might get a Supernait, in which case the P10 would be a good purchase.
Thank you for your thoughts! I will give my impressions after listening to the different turntables. Reviewers at the magazines/websites seem disappointed in the majik compared to the much higher priced options, and many mentioned the differences you pointed out, so I am eager to see what the turntables do with my test records.
Moving from my Neo driven Rega P3 with its push button speed change to a Majik LP12 and an adapter just didn’t appeal. So a Lingo’d LP12 was a must.
But and it is a big but, it does help if the numpty who owns the LP12 and Lingo remembers to get the green light shining when playing 45’s, otherwise they sound pretty naff.
At the last Rega vs. Linn side-by-side I attended, the Linn really blew the Rega out of the water. It was P10/Aphelion2/Aura vs. Klimax. I think the Klimax retails for 2x of the Rega but IMHO is sounded much better than twice better.
I have a bit of a bias; I’ve own the P8 and P10 and found both to be too analytical for my tastes. Others enjoy that style of replay however. But for me I was not listening to my records because I did not enjoy the sound.
Ok, everybody, I had the demo today. What they set up for me: Rega P8 vs Linn Majik LP12 (with the MM cart). They didn’t have a P10 on hand. They kept everything else the same so one could have an A-B comparison: Pro-ac speakers but don’t know the model (I prefer my Harbeth C7s for sure), Naim Supernait (now I want one of those, will definitely get one down the road to replace my XS), and a Rega phonostage.
Hearing my brother’s P5 over the years, and the P8 in the store today, Rega tables sound fast, and very forward, and the depth of the stage was a little more. In other words, on most recordings it was more obvious which instruments were in the back and which were toward the front.
I favor the Linn by a lot, though, overall. It is a blacker background, warmer, more laid back, much more musically involving and less fatiguing, timbres are more accurate (very important to me), note attack and decay and space around the notes was better. I was able to hear the orchestra hall or studio better. It was most obvious on harder to reproduce stuff, like classical music especially with full orchestra, and jazz with a lot going on. Audio Concepts has a deal through January right now where if you turn in any turntable whether it works or not (my Nottingham Horizon SE that still works in my case), you get $1000 off the table and cart package. Sometime in January I will go back and hear it with the MC, which is apparently a lot better for only $200 more, and then likely order it (assuming the wife can come along and approves ha ha). They have been a Linn dealer for 40 years and service the tables themselves, and they can hook me up with good used power supplies and what not to do upgrades over the years. I think I can be very happy with it for many years to come. I can now see why some people are way into the Naim/Linn combo. I think that will go great with my Harbeths.
