The Planar 6 RS Edition is supplied with one of two Rega cartridges fitted at the factory, and the choice determines what the rest of the system needs.

The Nd9 is the finest moving-magnet cartridge Rega makes. It is hand-built, and its fine line nude diamond stylus is bonded to a boron rod cantilever rather than aluminium, which is stiffer and lighter and so responds faster to the groove. The monocrystalline diamond has an exceptionally small radius, and a new generator geometry with near-perfect symmetry gives very accurate channel balance. Because it is a moving-magnet design, it runs into any standard 47 kohm phono input, so an amplifier with a phono stage is all that is required.

The Ania is a moving-coil cartridge, using Rega’s hand-wound micro coil, a bonded elliptical stylus and an aluminium cantilever in the same rigid PPS body. Moving-coil designs have lower moving mass than magnet types, and the result is a more three-dimensional, spacious and open sound. The practical difference is that the output is far lower and the cartridge wants 100 ohms of loading, so it needs a phono stage built for moving-coil cartridges. Rega offers the deck bundled with the Fono MC Mk4 for exactly this reason, its settings pre-configured at the factory for Rega’s own moving-coil range.

Here’s how the two cartridges compare:

The RS Edition is the Planar 6 with the Planar 8’s best ideas brought down into it. The tonearm is the RB880, which normally belongs to the deck above. The motor drives through a CNC-machined twin pulley and two Reference EBLT belts rather than one. The plinth wears a brushed aluminium metal skin, and the platter is 16mm of dual-layer float glass. What it keeps from the standard Planar 6 is the classic Rega form and the dust cover, so it looks like a Planar 6 and behaves like something rather closer to a Planar 8.

Brief product overview

A two-speed belt-drive turntable built on Rega’s ultra-lightweight Tancast 8 polyurethane foam core plinth, here finished with a brushed aluminium metal skin high-pressure laminate and matching edging, reinforced by the double brace system positioned between the tonearm mount and the main hub bearing. The tonearm is the hand-assembled RB880, taken from the Planar 8, with a custom stainless steel balance weight and low-capacitance Rega phono cables terminated with high-specification plugs. A 24V low-noise synchronous motor and its control board drive a custom CNC-machined aluminium twin pulley through two Rega Reference EBLT belts, turning an aluminium sub-platter and a 16mm dual-layer Optiwhite float glass platter. Each motor is hand-tuned to its own Neo Mk2 power supply, supplied as standard, which gives electronic speed change, anti-vibration control and fine speed adjustment in 0.01rpm steps. A smoked dust cover is included. The deck measures 447 x 117 x 360mm with the lid closed and weighs around 5.4kg. There is no phono stage, so one is needed in the amplifier or as a separate unit.

How it sounds

The RS Edition sounds like a Planar 6 with the brakes taken off. The RB880 is the largest single reason: a better bearing assembly and a stiffer arm tube hold the cartridge more securely, so tracking is more assured and fine detail survives that a lesser arm loses. The twin pulley and paired belts do something subtler, evening out drive to the platter so pitch stays steadier through sustained notes. Against the standard Planar 6 the improvement is in composure and resolution rather than in character; it still drives music along in the way every Rega deck does, but with more of the recording intact and a quieter background behind it. With the Nd9 it is exceptionally detailed for a moving-magnet setup; with the Ania it trades a little of that precision for space and dimensionality.

What we’d partner it with

The RS Edition has no phono stage, so the amplifier needs one, and the cartridge decides what kind. With the Nd9, any good moving-magnet input will do: the Rega Elicit Mk5 suits the deck well at 105 watts into 8 ohms, with preamplifier circuitry taken from the Aethos above it and a moving-magnet stage that the Aethos-derived front end noticeably improves. The Elex Mk4 is the more affordable route.

With the Ania, a moving-coil stage is required, and the Rega Fono MC Mk4 is the natural choice, supplied set for Rega’s own moving-coil cartridges and connecting to a line input rather than the amplifier’s phono input. The Aos MC is the step up if you want more adjustment and a circuit derived from Rega’s reference Aura. As a Rega turntable, the deck earths through its phono lead, so there is no separate ground wire to attach.

For speakers, the Fyne Audio F502S is a natural match: the flagship of the F500S series, a 2.5-way floorstander built around a 200mm IsoFlare point-source driver with a 25mm magnesium dome compression tweeter at its centre, plus a second 200mm bass driver firing down into a BassTrax diffuser. It is 91dB sensitive with a straight 8-ohm load and rated 30 to 180 watts. Floorstanders from Wharfedale, Dali and Monitor Audio work equally well.

On cabling, use a well-made speaker cable of appropriate gauge for the run; AudioQuest and Chord are the cable brands we stock.

Who shouldn’t buy it

If you do not need the RB880 or the twin-belt drive, the standard Planar 6 costs considerably less and can be specified with the Nd5, Nd7 or Ania Pro. If you want the next real step, the Planar 8 takes the low-mass approach further with a skeletal plinth. And if you are drawn to the Ania, remember a moving-coil phono stage is a genuine additional cost, which is why Rega offers the deck bundled with one.

The RS Edition arrives with the cartridge factory-fitted and aligned, so setup means fitting the sub-platter, belts and platter, balancing the arm and setting tracking force and bias. Note there are two belts rather than one, both running on the twin pulley. Level the deck on a solid, isolated surface away from the speakers. The Neo Mk2 is hand-tuned to this particular motor, so keep the two together and use the supply that came with the deck; speed changes electronically, with fine adjustment in 0.01rpm steps if you want it. The 16mm glass platter is heavy and should be handled carefully. With the Ania, connect the turntable to the Fono MC Mk4 and that stage to a line input, leaving the amplifier’s own phono input unused; the Fono’s settings arrive configured for Rega moving-coil cartridges.