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A vinyl evolution: from Rega 25 to TW Acustic Raven One to Rega RP6.

Posted by ecl876 (A) on June 28, 2013 at 17:12:34

Many of you will, no doubt, think me crazy for this admission but I'll go ahead anyway. Though I grew up in the 50s, it wasn't until 1999 that I really got the vinyl bug. After collecting several thousand CDs, I decided to give vinyl a try again, and never turned back. I loved everything about it (except, of course, the lousy pressings). Initially, I bought a Rega 25 and loved the sound.

Several years ago, having read the superlative reviews of the TW Acustic Raven, I decided, there must be something to this.As long as I was so passionate about vinyl, I thought I might as well invest in a better table. I went to Jeff Catalano's apartment in New York to sample the table. I had brought my Rega with me at the time to play against the Raven One. It was really tough for me to compare the sound of the two tables. Certainly, I thought I should hear a huge difference, since the Raven was unquestionably a better table. Combined with Jeff's electronics, I imagined there should be no contest. But I confess, at the time I really heard very little difference in the sound. However, I bought the Raven on faith and owned it for about three years. I recently sold it.

There were several reasons why I decided to sell the Raven. One was that I was moving across the country, and didn't feel confident about taking it apart and reassembling it after I arrived (although it really isn't difficult). Jeff had set it up for me at my house.

The other reason was that after three years, I still could not say unequivocally that I liked the Raven more than the Rega 25. I was searching for that elusive sound that so many said they heard, that feeling that the notes were sustained longer with the Raven. I frankly didn't know what they were talking about.

I decided to order a Rega RP6 to see how it compared with the Raven. Though I did not do any scientific tests, one against the other, I found that I liked the sound of the Rega every bit as much as the Raven. No doubt, the Raven and the Graham Phantom B44 tonearm were much better machines, both beautifully designed and constructed. I doubt whether anyone would contest that fact. In fact, for the money ($6500 without tonearm),the Raven was a terrific bargain. But after all was said and done, I had to admit, I could not hear much of a difference.

I don't doubt that many here would say that the rest of my system was not up to par.I had a Rogue 90 amp and 99 preamp and Definitive tech Mythos St speakers. Also I used an MM cartridge the Clearaudio Maestro. I know many of you will say I should have used an MC or had better speakers or amps, that the rest of my system could not show what the Raven could really do. This could be true. I don't dispute it. Except that I do remember not really hearing much of a difference when comparing my other Rega at Jeff's.


So maybe it's me. Maybe my hearing's going- though I don't think so. Maybe I'm unable to appreciate the nuances in sound that the Raven should offer. Maybe I'm not very discriminating in a musical sense, though I have played the piano for most of my life.I'm not sure what it is. I only know that for me, the differences, if I heard any at all, were very trivial.

And so, with this in mind, I sold my Raven with no regret. At this point in my life, I just want to appreciate the music. Yes, I like a good sound but for now the Rega RP6 is enough for me.

Feel free to pummel me mercilessly! BTW, I absolutely deny anyone in my family works for Rega!

This post is made possible by the generous support of people like you and our sponsors:

Schiit Audio

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