The Rega Planar 6 RS Edition — The Planar 6 at Its Full Potential
Most people who buy a Planar 6 are satisfied with it. That is almost the problem.
The standard Planar 6 is a very good turntable. The Tancast 8 plinth, the dual-layer float glass platter, the Neo PSU regulating the 24V synchronous motor — it is a serious platform, and it performs like one. But it ships with the RB330 tonearm, and without a cartridge at the base price. Which means there is a ceiling, and most owners never test it.
The RS Edition removes that ceiling.
Planar 8 Components, Planar 6 Price
What Rega have done with the RS Edition is straightforward, and the simplicity of it is part of why it works. They have taken the RB880 tonearm and the Nd9 cartridge — both standard fitment on the Planar 8, a turntable at a considerably higher price point — and fitted them to the Planar 6 platform. The plinth, the motor, the PSU: all unchanged. The arm and cartridge: categorically different.
The RB880's bearing assembly is adjusted to zero tolerance — less than one-thousandth of a millimetre. The Nd9 uses a boron cantilever and a hand-wound generator with 38-micron wire. These are not headline specifications chosen for marketing purposes. They are the engineering reasons why the RS Edition sounds the way it does.
What You Actually Hear
Composure. That is the word that keeps coming back.
The RS Edition does not impress with exaggerated high frequencies or attention-seeking detail retrieval. It impresses by making records feel properly heard. Timing is assured without sounding mechanical. The stereo image holds steady. Low-level detail — the decay of a note into silence, the texture of a bowed string, the ambient space behind a voice — emerges from a quiet background without being pushed forward.
These are not incremental changes. They are the kind of changes that make you reach for records you thought you already knew.
Where It Sits
Below the RS Edition: the Rega Planar 3 RS Edition — a strong, complete package on a different platform with a different capability ceiling. Above it: the Rega Planar 10, and beyond that the Rega Naia at the top of the range. The Planar 6 RS Edition occupies a gap that does not normally exist at this price — Planar 8 performance on a Planar 6 budget.
Phono Stage
The Nd9 is a moving magnet cartridge, and no phono stage is included. At this level, that choice matters. The Nd9 is resolving enough to show you clearly what your phono stage is doing — or failing to do.
A sensible starting point is the Rega Fono MM MK5 at £230: coherent, capable, and a natural match. If you want to future-proof the system and leave room for a moving coil cartridge further down the line, the Rega Aura MC is worth considering — a significant step up in resolution and one that will not become a limiting factor as the rest of the system improves. We are happy to advise based on what you already have.
Availability
The Planar 6 RS Edition is hand-assembled at Rega's Southend-on-Sea factory in limited quantities. It is not a standard production item, and stock will not automatically be restocked once sold. Contact us before ordering to confirm availability.
Hear It in Norwich
Dave, Chris and Tim are at the showroom to help — whether you want to hear the RS Edition against the standard Planar 6, or put together a phono stage recommendation around your existing equipment. A turntable is not something to buy unheard if you can avoid it, and you can avoid it here.
The Planar 6 RS Edition is on demonstration at Martins Hi-Fi, 85–91 Ber Street, Norwich, NR1 3EY. Call 01603 627010, email info@martinshifi.co.uk, or WhatsApp on 07554 687137. Open six days a week.
Shop the Rega Planar 6 RS Edition — or browse the full Rega range at Martins Hi-Fi.
