Two turntables and a... thought experiment

Ed Selley

Ed Selley

Active Member
I present to you something I've been idly picking over all day. I'm currently testing the Rega System One. By the by, it's excellent. It also means that the top of my rack looks like this;

IMG20220102191719.jpg

Having these two sat side by side has been itching at my brain and it ties in with starting the year so I propose the following hypothetical scenario which I'd love to see responses to.

It is January 2022 and a confused and possibly drunk genie gives you the choice of being in possession of;

- A Vertere MG-1 MkII with SG PTA HB arm. Give or take a benjamin or two currently in the region of $17,000.
- A Rega Planar 1 and $16,500 to spend on records.

Rules of the game

- Choosing either turntable replaces your existing turntable(s) as if an audiophile Thanos has snapped them out of existence.
- Choose the Rega and you may not buy another turntable for one calendar year.
- If you choose the Vertere, no new records for a year. The Rega locks you out of hardware, the Vertere software.
- Choose the Rega and the $16,500 can only be spent on records (no downpayment/life saving surgery/hookers and blow for you). The records may be new or used however.
- If you can't currently support a moving coil cart, the MG-1 will have a Vertere Sabre put on it instead; this 'only' costs $1,000 or so.
- You can't cash out and sell either arrangement in Jan 2023 but normal purchase rules will resume.

I'm guessing that most people will go Rega and records (and... to be clear, had I not been dealing in trade purchases, I'd have found it hard to look past that option too) but I'm still interested if some of you have collections and supporting systems where option 1 looks more fun.

Go!
 
Ed Selley said:
I present to you something I've been idly picking over all day. I'm currently testing the Rega System One. By the by, it's excellent. It also means that the top of my rack looks like this;

View attachment 123465

Having these two sat side by side has been itching at my brain and it ties in with starting the year so I propose the following hypothetical scenario which I'd love to see responses to.

It is January 2022 and a confused and possibly drunk genie gives you the choice of being in possession of;

- A Vertere MG-1 MkII with SG PTA HB arm. Give or take a benjamin or two currently in the region of $17,000.
- A Rega Planar 1 and $16,500 to spend on records.

Rules of the game

- Choosing either turntable replaces your existing turntable(s) as if an audiophile Thanos has snapped them out of existence.
- Choose the Rega and you may not buy another turntable for one calendar year.
- If you choose the Vertere, no new records for a year. The Rega locks you out of hardware, the Vertere software.
- Choose the Rega and the $16,500 can only be spent on records (no downpayment/life saving surgery/hookers and blow for you). The records may be new or used however.
- If you can't currently support a moving coil cart, the MG-1 will have a Vertere Sabre put on it instead; this 'only' costs $1,000 or so.
- You can't cash out and sell either arrangement in Jan 2023 but normal purchase rules will resume.

I'm guessing that most people will go Rega and records (and... to be clear, had I not been dealing in trade purchases, I'd have found it hard to look past that option too) but I'm still interested if some of you have collections and supporting systems where option 1 looks more fun.

Go!
Click to expand...

My entire worldview would generally be records and if you’d chosen a slightly less expensive option as the high end turntable I’d have gone that way. However, as I physically do not have the space for $17k more records in my apartment I would just have the crazy turntable for a year and see just what my Prima Luna and Wharfedale’s are capable of!
 
Ed Selley said:
Ah, but what about mega spendy used treasures? The Planar 1 won't mangle them and you would still own them come Jan '23 when you can choose another TT?
Click to expand...

This is a very valid point that I hadn’t thought of. I was thinking do I really need approximately 350 more mid 00s landfill indie albums. I mean of course I do, but also where do they go…

This adds a whole new dimension of 80s MoFi pressings of classics to the equation!
 
I can't imagine I'd ever have the ears (or the budget for complementary equipment) for a $17k turntable. I would love to listen to and would definitely enjoy 17k worth of records (only because I can't spend it on hookers and blow).

I think I came across a phrase once that was something along the lines of "audiophiles dont use their equipment to listen to your music but use your music to listen to their equipment"...I think that's pretty much what this scenario comes down to isn't it :)
 
Ed Selley said:
I present to you something I've been idly picking over all day. I'm currently testing the Rega System One. By the by, it's excellent. It also means that the top of my rack looks like this;

View attachment 123465

Having these two sat side by side has been itching at my brain and it ties in with starting the year so I propose the following hypothetical scenario which I'd love to see responses to.

It is January 2022 and a confused and possibly drunk genie gives you the choice of being in possession of;

- A Vertere MG-1 MkII with SG PTA HB arm. Give or take a benjamin or two currently in the region of $17,000.
- A Rega Planar 1 and $16,500 to spend on records.

Rules of the game

- Choosing either turntable replaces your existing turntable(s) as if an audiophile Thanos has snapped them out of existence.
- Choose the Rega and you may not buy another turntable for one calendar year.
- If you choose the Vertere, no new records for a year. The Rega locks you out of hardware, the Vertere software.
- Choose the Rega and the $16,500 can only be spent on records (no downpayment/life saving surgery/hookers and blow for you). The records may be new or used however.
- If you can't currently support a moving coil cart, the MG-1 will have a Vertere Sabre put on it instead; this 'only' costs $1,000 or so.
- You can't cash out and sell either arrangement in Jan 2023 but normal purchase rules will resume.

I'm guessing that most people will go Rega and records (and... to be clear, had I not been dealing in trade purchases, I'd have found it hard to look past that option too) but I'm still interested if some of you have collections and supporting systems where option 1 looks more fun.

Go!
Click to expand...
I’d take the TT.

I think my speakers would be up to the task, amp less so but that’s on the list for upgrades in the next couple of years so there’s more longevity in this route than falling back to a P1. My LP12 is familiar enough and decent enough to provide a good benchmark to work out if this is a keeper or not.

My phono stage is MM only though, so I’ll need that cart swap out. Or the Thanos kit genie can just swap my Slipsik 7 for an Entity; which would be the cheapest option.
 
Another point - most people (I imagine) will end up spending $16.5k on records over the course of a few (lots of) years, but not many would go out and drop that much capital in one hit, so it makes more sense to take the shiny TT as it’ll never need replacing and you’ll get those records eventually…
 
marshall said:
I gotta go Vertere... quality over quantity. It will give me a chance to spine most of the records I already own that don't get enough love.
Click to expand...
Same answer. Vertere all the way. I think having that amount of cash to burn on records will make me less thrifty/savvy with my purchases. As well, I've already got tons of records on the shelf.

Cool thought experiment!
 
I'd pick the Vertare. Would make my wife so much happier as there would be no records coming through the door. Would be tough to go a year without adding, but I do have enough to easily listen for a few years without needing to add. Would be a huge upgrade for me that I'd never need to touch again.
 
Ed Selley said:
I present to you something I've been idly picking over all day. I'm currently testing the Rega System One. By the by, it's excellent. It also means that the top of my rack looks like this;

View attachment 123465

Having these two sat side by side has been itching at my brain and it ties in with starting the year so I propose the following hypothetical scenario which I'd love to see responses to.

It is January 2022 and a confused and possibly drunk genie gives you the choice of being in possession of;

- A Vertere MG-1 MkII with SG PTA HB arm. Give or take a benjamin or two currently in the region of $17,000.
- A Rega Planar 1 and $16,500 to spend on records.

Rules of the game

- Choosing either turntable replaces your existing turntable(s) as if an audiophile Thanos has snapped them out of existence.
- Choose the Rega and you may not buy another turntable for one calendar year.
- If you choose the Vertere, no new records for a year. The Rega locks you out of hardware, the Vertere software.
- Choose the Rega and the $16,500 can only be spent on records (no downpayment/life saving surgery/hookers and blow for you). The records may be new or used however.
- If you can't currently support a moving coil cart, the MG-1 will have a Vertere Sabre put on it instead; this 'only' costs $1,000 or so.
- You can't cash out and sell either arrangement in Jan 2023 but normal purchase rules will resume.

I'm guessing that most people will go Rega and records (and... to be clear, had I not been dealing in trade purchases, I'd have found it hard to look past that option too) but I'm still interested if some of you have collections and supporting systems where option 1 looks more fun.

Go!
Click to expand...
With vinyl being quality over quantity these days and inevitably bringing down the vinyl purchases, I would have to go with the Vertere if THIS option presented itself :)
 
I’d go Vertere. I believe my current system would pair well with it. (Just guessing.)
Not buying records for a year would help me focus on the collection. Besides, even though I have some pricey records on my want list, I’d feel like crap spending 16.5k ALL on records.
 
Vertere because:
Bsdmr2 said:
Another point - most people (I imagine) will end up spending $16.5k on records over the course of a few (lots of) years, but not many would go out and drop that much capital in one hit, so it makes more sense to take the shiny TT as it’ll never need replacing and you’ll get those records eventually…
Click to expand...
 
Ed Selley said:
I present to you something I've been idly picking over all day. I'm currently testing the Rega System One. By the by, it's excellent. It also means that the top of my rack looks like this;

View attachment 123465

Having these two sat side by side has been itching at my brain and it ties in with starting the year so I propose the following hypothetical scenario which I'd love to see responses to.

It is January 2022 and a confused and possibly drunk genie gives you the choice of being in possession of;

- A Vertere MG-1 MkII with SG PTA HB arm. Give or take a benjamin or two currently in the region of $17,000.
- A Rega Planar 1 and $16,500 to spend on records.

Rules of the game

- Choosing either turntable replaces your existing turntable(s) as if an audiophile Thanos has snapped them out of existence.
- Choose the Rega and you may not buy another turntable for one calendar year.
- If you choose the Vertere, no new records for a year. The Rega locks you out of hardware, the Vertere software.
- Choose the Rega and the $16,500 can only be spent on records (no downpayment/life saving surgery/hookers and blow for you). The records may be new or used however.
- If you can't currently support a moving coil cart, the MG-1 will have a Vertere Sabre put on it instead; this 'only' costs $1,000 or so.
- You can't cash out and sell either arrangement in Jan 2023 but normal purchase rules will resume.

I'm guessing that most people will go Rega and records (and... to be clear, had I not been dealing in trade purchases, I'd have found it hard to look past that option too) but I'm still interested if some of you have collections and supporting systems where option 1 looks more fun.

Go!
Click to expand...
This should have been a poll so we could have a quick count, lol.

Personally, I’m going gear. I already own decent copies of most records I like. It’s hard enough to give love to the 800+ records we own. Plus I really enjoy rediscovering details in the music I’m familiar with. So for me, the choice is easy.

Now to counter those saying they wouldn’t have space for $16k in records… you might actually. My first though I had it I were to choose records is that it would allow focus on extreme quality and/rare records. I’d replace a lot of records I already own with One Steps or rare gems. If I’m doing that, I’d assume cost per album jumps to a $125-150 per album average. That only results in 110 - 130 albums. I think everyone has space for that.
 
displayname said:
This should have been a poll so we could have a quick count, lol.

Personally, I’m going gear. I already own decent copies of most records I like. It’s hard enough to give love to the 800+ records we own. Plus I really enjoy rediscovering details in the music I’m familiar with. So for me, the choice is easy.

Now to counter those saying they wouldn’t have space for $16k in records… you might actually. My first though I had it I were to choose records is that it would allow focus on extreme quality and/rare records. I’d replace a lot of records I already own with One Steps or rare gems. If I’m doing that, I’d assume cost per album jumps to a $125-150 per album average. That only results in 110 - 130 albums. I think everyone has space for that.
Click to expand...

Unless I purge first that’s coming close to exactly how much space I now have left, less with one step boxes. and with no space for more shelving…

That said one step curation is a steaming pile of shit anyway so I’d be more likely to be going after rare out of print stuff instead.
 
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