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The Rega Planar 3 was one of the longest-running turntables in the history of analogue hi-fi. Production began in 1977, a period in which the model initially featured an Acos Lustre R200 S-shaped tonearm. From 1983, the straight RB 300 tonearm was introduced, remaining part of the design until 2000, marking a phase of technical maturity that cemented the Planar 3’s success amongst analogue audio enthusiasts. Over the following years, various revisions and updates were introduced, but the turntable’s fundamental structure remained essentially unchanged, a sign of a design that was already very well-balanced from the very first versions. The model presented here bore a serial number of 286xxx, dating it to 1996 and placing it in one of the most mature phases of the model’s development.
Rega’s design philosophy diverged sharply from the trends of the time. At a time when many manufacturers tended to favour heavy, bulky constructions, the British firm preferred to develop lightweight, rigid turntables, considered more effective at controlling unwanted resonance. According to this approach, excess mass tended to absorb energy, transforming it into lost musical detail. From this perspective, the British manufacturer’s turntables took on a deliberately minimalist character and required nor justified any particular ‘tweaks’ by users, with the exception of adjusting the vertical tracking angle (VTA) of the cartridge. The design employed a belt drive incorporating a guide sub-platter mounted on a bearing lubricated with high-quality oil, an element fixed directly to a MDF plinth supported by three simple rubber feet. Above the sub-platter was a heavy glass platter, whilst the drive was provided by a 24 V synchronous motor mechanically isolated by a rubber belt. A 2 mm thick mat was placed on the glass platter. The turntable had no proper suspension, and the rubber feet provided limited mechanical isolation from floor vibrations, whilst a Perspex cover was supplied to offer some isolation from airborne vibrations. It operated at a single speed of 33 rpm, whilst for the playback of 45 rpm records it was necessary to physically remove the platter and reposition the drive belt on the motor pulley.
In 1983, Rega introduced the RB300 tonearm on the Planar 3, a component destined to become one of the benchmarks of British analogue production. The tonearm tube was made from die-cast aluminium alloy and formed the heart of Rega’s tonearm design. Compared to the RB250 model fitted to the Planar 2, this version featured bearings with higher tolerances, a decoupled counterweight, coil-spring-type tracking force adjustment and higher-quality interconnect cables. The assembly was therefore configured as a dynamically balanced tonearm with anti-skating adjustment, designed to ensure stability and precision of playback.
The cartridge supplied with this turntable was a Linn K9. It was so named in homage to the robot dog from the fourth incarnation of ‘The Doctor’ in the popular British science fiction television series Dr Who, played by actor Tom Baker, as the shape of the cartridge curiously resembled the head of the robot dog K9. The Linn K9 had a similar shape to its relative, the Audio Technica AT95, but the body of the K9 was made of metal.
Apart from the LP12 turntable, Linn often collaborated with other companies to manufacture its analogue products. The first Ittok tonearm was named in honour of a certain Mr Ito, the Japanese co-creator, and most of the early units were built in Japan. The cartridges were also outsourced: the latest Linn Kandid moving coil cartridge was the result of a collaboration with the Japanese firm Lyra, whilst earlier Linn models were produced by Goldring and Audio Technica.
Linn’s best-selling and most famous moving magnet cartridge was the K9, which apparently derived from a modified Audio Technica AT-95E. At the time of the K9’s introduction in the mid-1980s, the AT cost around £13 whilst the Linn was priced at around £59. However, the K9 was not simply the same cartridge with a different finish: Linn essentially replaced the plastic body of the ‘95 model with an aluminium alloy structure. The result was an increase in weight of 1.3 g, but also a stiffer and more precise assembly that held the stylus and headshell more securely. It was possible to tighten a K9 into the headshell to the point where the body of the AT-95E would break and fall apart, whereas with the K9 it would be the headshell that suffered the consequences. The stylus was further improved, with the standard elliptical diamond replaced by a Vital stylus shape.
Otherwise, the cartridges were similar, for example using the same copper wire in the coil. The improved stylus provided slightly better channel separation values, at 1 dB at 1 kHz compared to 1.5 dB, whilst the output remained identical at 4.5 mV with a recommended load of 47 kOhm and a capacitor between 100 and 300 pF. The tracking force was set at 1.7 g and the cantilever was made from the same durable aluminium.
The Linn K9 was often described as an Audio Technica moving magnet taken to the next level. The sound character was fast, energetic and detailed, though it sometimes lacked the delicacy or refinement of other designs. Its nature, however, complemented the Sondek’s slightly warm and relaxed tone perfectly, creating a synergistic pairing that was particularly appreciated, as was often the case with many Linn products of that era.
A collector’s item, refurbished and in excellent cosmetic condition.
