Need help picking budget Turntable

Hallhill4, Colitas here there's a Planar 2 on E-bay RIGHT NOW!#3071989793 The difference b/w the P2 and the P3 is the tonearm. The 250 arm on the Planar 2 is a better arm
(with the available modifications) Replace the plastic endstub with the Express Machining 2-extreme endstub($40). Then replace the counterweight with the heavyweight $100 (from Express Machining(thru their own site not a dealer TRUST me)or the F2 titanium counterweight from Kerry Audio$130(through this site). The Kerry audio being my favorite, I have owned both. There is no reason to purchase the P3 in my opinion. Don't make the same mistake I did(by spending the extra money), the savings in cost will help you upgrade the 250 arm. The 250 without the VTF spring will be harder to set the VTF(balance with a scale) but will yield better results! The 250 has a better top end than the 300. When you get tired of the Planar sound you can upgrade the table and take the arm along while you upgrade.

I can't resist, I always question what seems to be developing into Dogma and which seems to be unfounded empirically and therefore based in marketing propaganda. I don't wish to question someone's personal experience, but I must wonder if comparisons were carried out on a level playing field with respect to the two Rega arms.

The RB300 is more expensive for a variety of reasons, including superior bearings - both vertical and horizontal - to the '250 (a more rigorous quality control as well as different design). In addition, the spring which is made much of only resonates at certain frequencies, not all, and even this, to my knowledge, has never been tested - so is it really resonating, or is this PR designed to get OL business? And while perhaps it is not a good idea to have a spring in the assembly (I'm willing to grant the point if someone comes up with actual emprirical results), we must not forget the whole point to this spring, which actually acts in reverse: it applies upforce, not downforce, so that adjusting it for correct cartridge weight actually allows the counterweight to be placed closer to the bearing assembly, thus reducing the effective mass by something like 3 grams, which is a Good Thing. Finally, even the wiring is superior in the '300. I have read elsewhere on this site that the '250 has two bearings while the '300 has only one, which is nonsense. They are constructed similarly, but where the '250 is constructed with plastic (armstub) and bronze (bearing housing) the '300 uses stainless steel (both), and comes with a stainless steel counterweight. When comparing a modded RB250 with a RB300, did both arms receive the modded armstub and wiring which made the 250 superior: meaning has anyone ever tried the full OL mod on a 300 and then compared the two? Finally, the Rega P3 is thicker, having a thicker platter as well, which means more mass, which seriously affects the sound of unsuspended 'tables for the better. So in stock version at least, the Rega P3 is definitely superior, and will accomodate moving coils without modification (though, of course, improvements will improve the sound). Either Rega will sound better on a big, heavy platform, preferably a wall-mount.

I have been re-wiring Regas for something like 15 years, and if someone out there ever fairly compares the two arms and comes up with empirical results, I will immediately switch to the '250, assuming the '250 is actually superior. I may carry out the experiment myself, someday, as I actually have access to two re-wired Regas. Actually, this month's Hi Fi + features two articles comparing the Rega '250, '300 and '600, where some of these matters are explained. After all of the above, I am still open-minded, and will believe it when I hear it. So Colitas, do you know of any such experiments, where the OL mod is given to both arms? I wonder how the '300's superior bearings and lower effective mass are overcome sonically. Let's not forget that Rega was/is the upstart which challenges the Establishment (Linn in Rega's earlier days), offering high-end arms at budget prices, and excellent 'tables imitated by a number of companies: these companies, however, cannot match the Rega arms. I'd appreciate it if you pointed me to the relevant websites. Thanks.

Just adding my enthusiastic vote for the Rega RB-300 arm with the truly amazing Kerry Audio F2 Titanium Heavyweight Counterweight. The Kerry "tweak" made my vinyl collection brand new, and at a very modest cost.
Also, don't forget either the "Non-Felt" mat, or the Herbie's Audio Lab turntable mat, later on.

This forum is a treasure. While I plan to get myself a Kerry Audio Counterweight, I haven't heard of Herbie's mat. What's it made of, what is the principle? How does it compare with the Audioquest Sorbothane mat, which is an excellent match for glass platters? And has anybody out there tried the Boston Audio Design graphite mat?

How much effort do you want to put into this?? If you are a "plug and play" sort of person, then stick to the Music Hall or Project models...