I’ve had my eye on the Rega Turntable Power Supply Unit (or, TT PSU) for some time. Yesterday, I took the plunge and bought one from my favourite Rega dealer, Robert at Audio Eden.
You might be thinking, what is it and what does it do?
The TT PSU is a dedicated power supply for the P3-24, P5 and P7 turntables. (It comes stock with the P3-24 gloss/coloured tables and the P7.)
In the main, and put simply, it separates the wall plug-in from the turntable. (The standard P3-24 and P5 have a power supply that plugs directly into the wall.)
This is beneficial because it ensures that any noticeable residual background noise or hum that might be picked up by the power supply from phono plugs or the cartridge is largely, if not entirely, eliminated. The wall plug-in, which is the same as the standard power supply on the P3-24 plugs in to the TT PSU. The TT PSU has an interconnect that plugs into the turntable motor.
But the TT PSU is particularly useful – and, I think, a worthy upgrade to any Rega P3-24 or P5 table – for two reasons.
First, it ensures speed and pitch stability. In other words, it stabilises the turntable so that it rotates at precisely 331/3 RPMs or 45 RPMs. Some audiophiles take much pleasure in finding fault with and complaining about Rega turntables for their imprecise pitch speed and stability. If nothing else, the TT PSU effectively nullifies this criticism. (To be sure, I don’t find the criticism particularly compelling to begin with myself, but the TT PSU negates it entirely.)
Second, it allows the user to easily switch between 331/3 RPMs and 45 RPMs at the touch of the button. The stock Rega tables (up to the P7) require the user to manually switch speeds by lifting off the platter and adjusting the drive belt setting if a change in speed is necessary. This makes listening to 45s a bit of a pain in the ass. Furthermore, over time, it can exacerbate belt wear (and dreaded belt slippage) as the belt must be stretched to run at 45 RPMs. To the extent that the belt loses taughtness, speed and pitch stability are adversely affected.
The TT PSU eliminates this requirement because it controls the speed of the turntable’s power remotely.The belt always remains set at the standard 331/3 RPM setting with the user needing only to switch the button on the TT PSU to increase the speed of the platter.
For me, it’s this automatic speed change that makes the TT PSU a practical and worthwhile addition to any system. You can listen to 7-inches and 12-inch 45 RPM records without having to go through the rigmarole of taking off the platter and adjusting the belt.
As an added bonus, the locked in speed and pitch stability seem to help tighten up the sound and imaging – a surprising sonic improvement in case you aren’t already convinced.
As far as I’m concerned, I’m delighted with the TT PSU and at C$365 retail, I think it’s one of the cheapest upgrades you can make to a Rega P3-24.
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