The Best Turntable Value Around: Entry-Level High-End Rega Planar 1 Eco Deck Has All the Features and Performance of Acclaimed "Normal" Model, Costs $200 Less
The Rega Planar 1 Eco Deck has the same features and exact performance of its award-winning sibling P1 model, yet it sells for $200 less. The catch? This Eco Deck version is made with a cosmetically altered plinth that is either marked, scratched, or obsolete as well as a few other "green grade" components. That's it. Everything else about Planar 1 Eco Deck — save that the plinth is not silk-screened with a P1 logo and fact that the lid sports an Eco badge — mirrors that of the "normal" Planar 1. Including a brand-new, A-grade Carbon cartridge. And the full lifetime Rega warranty. The best value turntable in audio? You're reading about it, friends.
Combining the ultimate in user friendliness with high-performance sound, the award-winning Rega Planar 1 Eco Deck is ready to play seconds after you unpack it. Just hook it up to your phono preamplifier, slide the balance weight onto the rear of the tonearm until it no longer budges, remove the stylus guard, place an LP on the platter, and bingo – you're spinning vinyl.
Such simplicity wouldn't mean as much if the U.K.-made Planar 1 Eco Deck overlooks what happens after you drop the needle. But Rega designed this stellar plug-n-play 'table to ensure you enjoy engaging fidelity from your 33RPM and 45RPM LPs. Whether you're new to analog or getting back in the habit, Planar 1 Eco Deck reveals the kinds of information, warmth, detail, and involving presentation for which vinyl is adored – the very same emotion-triggering qualities cheap, and cheaply made, entry-level 'tables cannot deliver. Maximized with audiophile-minded parts and features, Planar 1 Eco Deck is not that kind of rig.
The enhancements start with the brand-new RB110 tonearm, built with patent-pending, ultra-low-friction, bespoke zero-play bearings. A stiffer headshell provides incredible usability and stylish appearance, while the bias assembly and integrated arm clip complement the 'table's automatic bias adjustment ability – eliminating any need for the user to set bias. The cartridge? A Rega Carbon MM, supplied and fitted at the factory. The motor? A 24-volt synchronous model – the first ever on an entry-level Rega turntable – with a new motor PCB and an aluminum pulley providing low noise and excellent speed stability. That eye-catching plinth? Available in gloss black and white, the glass-laminated Thermoset design comes complete with an ergonomic on/off switch intelligently located on its underside. Loaded with generous mass, a 23mm flywheel-effect phenolic resin platter rounds out what you see on top.
Planar 1 Eco Deck also comes with a dust cover, improved feet (increased stability and reduced vibration), motor cover tray with integrated cooling, a plug-and-play balance weight, and a central bearing housing highlighted by an elevated brass main bearing that offers improved fit, reduced stress, and minimized energy transfer.
Have questions? Contact a Music Direct audio consultant and we'll help you with anything you need to know.
"Even as an entry-level turntable, this is the kind of player that could feasibly be the last of your system's components you'd feel necessary to upgrade."
—What Hi-Fi? Awards 2022 winner, five-star review
“The Rega Planar 1 retains much of the lean, tight, lithe, and lively sound of Rega equipment in general.”
—Hi-Fi+, 2022 Highly Commended Product Award, Low Cost Turntable
"[The] overall unity of the presentation, the impression of interaction between musicians, and the sensation of a piece of music being a single entity is as strong here as it is with Rega turntables costing plenty more."
—Simon Lucas, Trusted Reviews, Highly Recommended, five-star review
"Some turntable manufacturers could be said to have a tendency for playing up to what you might describe as analogue warmth, but not Rega, so you needn't worry about being left wanting for body in this sound."
—What Hi-Fi?, 2020 Best Turntable €200-500 Award
"The Planar 1 made its way into my system with the understanding that one day it will be replaced by something with a little more sophistication. However, this upgrade desire has not struck me in three years of ownership."
—Michael Zisserson, Future Audiophile
"A no-brainer."
—Stephen Mejias, Stereophile, Recommended Component
