In my opinion, the P2 does not distinguish itself sufficiently from the P1 so as to be worth the extra money. I haven't compared the two extensively, but they're fairly close, and would be much closer if the P1 were fitted with the Bias2 cartridge.

However, I've determined that the P3-24 is head and shoulders above the P1 and P2. You may find otherwise, but the P3 is a force with which to be reckoned. I don't mean to suggest that you need to spend that much money to be satisfied, but that's what I'm shooting for.

I think the P1 with a glass platter and upgraded stylus/cartridge would be a serious contender. I encourage you to do lots of listening! Good luck and welcome to the Brotherhood of Vinyl!

greetings: i owned a P2 for a little over a year and for the budget, it was nice with a bias 2 cart. it made recently bought 150-200 gram records sound very good, a little better than well recorded cds. so-so records still sounded so-so. however, i recently upgraded, but it worked into my budget to do so. you may find yourself feeling the same way after a while. send me a p.m. if you would like info on buying my former P2 at a good price. it has about 300 hours on it and a recent bias2 with less than 50 hours.

tom

My problem with the P1 is that it comes with an Ortofon cartridge that is too tall for the arm. When I use an OM20 in my Planar 2 I use the 2mm spacer ring. A review I read mentioned the same problem with VTA with the Ortofon. The cast arm on the P2 and P3 are superior to the arm on the P1. The P2 performance can be improved by aftermarket mods. I am not sure how many of these if any will be available for the P1. I replaced the subplatter with a machined metal subplatter and that has helped with speed issues. I also use the Michell Technoweight replaceable counterweight along with an improved wiring harness for the arm. This is more than you might want to think about right now but it would be possible with the P2.

Overture Audio here in AA is an excellent shop, and I've never been anything less than pleased. They're a great bunch of guys with real knowledge and enthusiasm.

They're also a Rega dealer, and will certainly be able to help you find the table that's right for you.

http://www.overture-audio.com/

Regarding cables (forgot in my last post), I don't really have anything to recommend. I don't try a lot of different cables, but that's not because I think they don't make a difference, I just have bigger fish to fry (like that P3-24 )

I recently replaced my speaker cables with Linn K20, and I'm pleased with the performance.