Rega p10 vs SME 12A

It's cheaper in the long run to get the best right at the start than to buy lesser tables along the way. One issue with Rega tables is that you are locked into using their cartridges to get the correct VTA, unless you are willing to employ shims under the tonearm mount. Now that might be perfectly acceptable to you if you like Rega cartridges, and years ago I used a Planar 3 with all sorts of cartridges, and I was happy, but that was before I even really understood why precise adjustment of VTA/SRA is desirable.

Last summer I added a new Rega P10 to my collection. When I ordered it, I also ordered shims ( the easy to slide in ones). After a few hours of playing music through it with the accompanying Apheta cartridge, I swapped in my Transfiguration Proteus D cartridge and was very surprised that I did not need to adjust the VTA. At $9.5K, the Proteus cost more than the Rega table itself but the RB1000 tonearm matches up very well. I swap this back and forth with my much upgraded newer Linn LP12. I tend to lean more towards the Linn but mainly out of convenience with how the turntables turn on and off. When flipping an LP, the Linn can be stopped via a switch on top of the table and not touch the power supply. The Rega has the on/off switch on the power supply only, which I keep behind a cabinet door. One plus for the Rega is that it is not sensitive to footfalls like a Linn and such are. I have a steel shelf mounted to the wall for that purpose.

TT choice depends a lot of whether you are a gear fiddler or a music lover.

I had a VPI with VTA on the fly with SoundSmith Zephyr cart. I could not hear any difference in VTA setting by just playing the record. I had to play the same record on TT and digital file at same time, and switch between the two sources quickly. Then I could notice an oh-so-slight change in the difference of the sound. Accordingly, for me, optimization of VTA based on thickness of vinyl was impossible, and even when I could hear the difference by direct comparison, it was so slight there are so many other variables that make more of a difference (e.g. sitting back or leaning forward in chair) that it was not worth bothering with.

I now have a Rega Naia package, no adjustments possible, and I enjoy listening to my records.