Rega P5 W/RB700 Cartridge Match / Mate ?

Johnny and Lears,

My Exact has been mounted on both a stock RB300 and a modified RB250 on tables from Acoustic Solid and Transrotor, respectively. In both cases I used the 3 point mount to set overhang. The phonostage is a Rhea which allows optimal loading which I made some effort to identify. I'm pretty confident that this set up was a very good fit for this cart, but that is not to say that it was, by any means, perfect. It was, however, the best I could do in my system, and that is probably more than most as the arms are a natural fit (both from Rega) and because the Rhea is unusually flexible in this regard.

IME the sound was on the "dry" side compared to 4 other carts I've used extensively over the past 3 years - The Graham Nightingale and Lyra Dorian which are both much more expensive than the Rega, and an unidentified OEM Ortofon HOMC that came with the TR table as well as a Clearaudio Wood. In my various set ups, the Rega was the most analytical sounding cart of the lot.

I want to note it is a good sounding unit. But I differ with both of your opinions on this one: For my taste, the Ortofon is a better value because the Rega was a bit too analytical. This is my taste and my experience - certainly not the last word on the subject because, as always, YMMV.

Marty

Bear in mind that by the time you approach your $1k limit on the cart, you'd probably be better off upgrading the table/arm.

Martykl, I don't dispute or doubt for a moment that you heard what you heard. I wrote what I wrote to indicate that although the Exact might be detailed and analytical to some, and in many situations, I heard it in a setup where it sounded detailed but lush. That doesn't mean it sounds predominantly lush, only that it *can* sound lush.

Johnny,

I hope I made it clear that my comments reflect only my own experience. I noted the details so that people would

A) have some context in which to evaluate my conclusions

and

B) make some determination as to whether they are likely to produce more desireable results in their application.

As to B, above,

My experience suggests that most folks will find that difficult, but - as your experience indicates - certainly not impossible.

Marty