Rega Planar 1

Rega Planar 1

The entry point everyone else is measured against

The Planar 1 is Rega’s answer to the question of how little a serious turntable may cost. The answer consists of leaving things out: no power supply with electronics, no height adjustment, no adjustable feet. What remains is a stiff, lightweight build with a tonearm that is hand-assembled and whose bearings Rega makes no differently from those of the RB330 on the Planar 3.

The Carbon cartridge comes fitted and aligned from the factory. The 23 millimetre phenolic platter has more mass than its predecessor and runs on a brass bearing. Speed is changed by hand, by moving the belt on the pulley – the one place where Rega saves here, and the press notes it every time.

Sonically every reviewer describes the same thing: the Planar 1 sounds as if it cost more. hifi.de calls it “unobtrusive in the best sense”; What Hi-Fi makes the equally priced Pro-Ject sound “like a rehearsal” beside it. If you want more later, you do not add to it – you sell the Planar 1 on. It holds its value.

What the press says

What Hi-Fi?, 5 stars, Award 2025 and 2026

„This is not an entry-level amount of detail […] Yet, lift the disc over to the Planar 1, and suddenly Rega makes its competitor’s rendition sound like a rehearsal.“

HIFI.DE, Bernhard Rietschel, September 2023

„Einfacher geht ernst zu nehmender Vinylklang wohl kaum.“

Translation: Serious vinyl sound hardly gets simpler than this.

Who is this turntable for?

For a first turntable that need not be the last – and for anyone with no appetite for setup. A phono input on the amplifier is required; if you have none, take the Planar 1 Plus with built-in stage, which we supply to order. If you want more resolution from the start, go for the Planar 2.

Specifications