Working at a record store in the mid-1980s after graduating from high school, I was regularly baffled by the people who would trade in crates of vinyl LPs - collections that sometimes included pristine, rare stuff - for enough credit to cruise out with a mere handful of expensive CDs. (I seem to remember some of them smirking as they left, al- though I might be inventing that detail.) To these folks, it was a sweet deal: They unburdened themselves of an obsolete format and, at the same time, got a foot in the door of the new Compact Disc revolution. To me and my co-workers, however, they were just Yuppies (a slight that carried some weight back then) who were committing a crime against music.

Fast-forward to the present: People are buying a lot fewer CDs, while the vinyl market is not only chugging along nicely but expanding. Any artists with an ounce of self-respect make sure that their new albums get released on both CD and vinyl, and there's a thriving reissue industry for rock, jazz, and classical LPs. Over the past decade, I've been content to listen to records old and new on my first "real" turntable, an entry-level Pro-Ject 1.2. But as my fascination with vinyl has evolved, I've often wondered what could be gained by stepping up to a mid-level turntable - something like Rega's new P3-24.

The British-made P3-24 takes over from the P3 2000, a now-discontinued step-up model in Rega's well-established line of turntables. A number of elements have been retained, including the 15mm-thick glass platter, the main bearing, and the drive belt. But the P3-24 is an otherwise fresh design, incorporating a low-vibration 24-volt motor (previously found only in the higher-end P5), a Medite plinth with resin laminate overlay, and Rega's new RB301 tonearm, which improves on the tried-and-true RB300 by adding a three-point mounting system for extra rigidity - as well as the same heavy-duty phono cable with gold-plated connectors found in the RB700.

For this review, Rega sent me a P3-24 outfitted with the company's Elys 2 moving-magnet phono cartridge (a $200 option) and TTPSU power supply ($375, shown to the left of the turntable in the photo). The latter is a nifty external box that feeds the motor (located under the plinth) with a line-conditioned, low-distortion 24-volt AC input; it also triggers the motor's anti-vibration circuit. But the TTPSU's most tangible benefit is a front-panel switch to conveniently toggle between 33 and 45 rpm. Otherwise, changing playback speed on the P3-24 requires lifting its platter and switching the motor pulley that the drive belt is connected to - the same rather clumsy procedure as with my Pro-Ject 1.2. Needless to say, I find the TTPSU to be a worthy upgrade.

Right off, I was struck by the P3-24's appearance. While not fancy, this turntable manages to look at once solid and sleek. It's also relatively light - Rega's apparent philosophy being that excess mass only serves to store up excess energy, which can ultimately have a degrading effect on sound quality. The glass platter rests on a slim slab of a plinth, and the whole thing balances on a trio of rubber feet that serve to distribute the 'table's mass evenly, as well as couple it firmly to whatever surface it's placed on. Rega's impressively solid acrylic dust cover is also completely nonresonant, and it flips up with fluid, graceful motion when you lift it to move the tonearm or change record sides. (You remember record sides.)