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Rega RB330

Tonearm

Relative price

well below typical

Among the 26 tonearms in the catalogue, this one is well below typical.

A band places a component against its peers and carries no price. It is deliberately the only price indicator on this page: a second one, measured against a different set, would narrow the two together far enough to give the figure away.

What it is

35+ years Rega tonearm design heritage.

Standard arm on Planar 3 and Planar 6.

Counterweight 100g mild steel.

Competition record

Assessed against 14 rivals across the sixty systems: 1 head-to-head won, 63 lost.

Where it gives ground

The dimension the engine names as the weakest link, counted across every head-to-head it lost.

  • mechanical hush ×47
  • bass control ×4
  • speed stability ×3
  • rhythmic grip ×1

Who it comes up against

Vertere Groove Runner X

17 lost · Anchored, Artisan, BBC Sound, Cavity-Native, Characterful, Intimate, PRaT, Reference, Romantic, Silent Path

Against the Anchored brief, the Vertere Groove Runner X keeps the slot decisively.

With the Vertere DG-X Sabre Lite Pack, the pairing gives up most on mechanical hush.

On its own merits the Rega RB330 is the stronger tonearm — but it loses here on fit: the pairing with the Vertere DG-X Sabre Lite Pack gives up mechanical hush under the Anchored weighting.

It sits well below the share of the budget this brief aims at the tonearm position.

single-piece aluminium casting, zero-tolerance bearingsRega tonearm engineering documentation

Technics S-shape magnesium tonearm (SL-1200G)

15 lost · Anchored, BBC Sound, Cavity-Native, Intimate, PRaT, Reference, Romantic, Silent Path

Against the Romantic brief, the Technics S-shape magnesium tonearm (SL-1200G) keeps the slot clearly.

With the Technics SL-1200G, the pairing gives up most on mechanical hush.

On its own merits the Rega RB330 is the stronger tonearm — but it loses here on fit: the pairing with the Technics SL-1200G gives up mechanical hush under the Romantic weighting.

It sits well below the share of the budget this brief aims at the tonearm position.

single-piece aluminium casting, zero-tolerance bearingsRega tonearm engineering documentation

ProJect Tonearm 8.6 Carbon (Debut PRO)

10 lost · Anchored, Artisan, BBC Sound, Cavity-Native, Characterful, Intimate, PRaT, Reference, Romantic, Twin Arms

Against the Anchored brief, the ProJect Tonearm 8.6 Carbon (Debut PRO) keeps the slot decisively.

With the Pro-Ject Debut Pro (with cart), the pairing gives up most on mechanical hush.

On its own merits the Rega RB330 is the stronger tonearm — but it loses here on fit: the pairing with the Pro-Ject Debut Pro (with cart) gives up mechanical hush under the Anchored weighting.

It sits well above the share of the budget this brief aims at the tonearm position.

single-piece aluminium casting, zero-tolerance bearingsRega tonearm engineering documentation

Origin Live Encounter Mk5

6 lost · Silent Path, Twin Arms, Vocals-First

Against the Twin Arms brief, the Origin Live Encounter Mk5 keeps the slot by a whisker.

On its own merits the Rega RB330 is the stronger tonearm — but it loses here on fit: the way it sits with the rest of this system under the Twin Arms weighting.

It sits well below the share of the budget this brief aims at the tonearm position.

single-piece aluminium casting, zero-tolerance bearingsRega tonearm engineering documentation

Michell TecnoArm 2

6 lost · Anchored, Artisan, Cavity-Native, PRaT, Reference, Silent Path

Against the Silent Path brief, the Michell TecnoArm 2 keeps the slot by a whisker.

With the Michell Gyro 2025, the pairing gives up most on mechanical hush.

On its own merits the Rega RB330 is the stronger tonearm — but it loses here on fit: the pairing with the Michell Gyro 2025 gives up mechanical hush under the Silent Path weighting.

It sits well below the share of the budget this brief aims at the tonearm position.

single-piece aluminium casting, zero-tolerance bearingsRega tonearm engineering documentation

Roksan Attessa Unipivot tonearm

1 lost· 1 won · Twin Arms, Vocals-First

Against the Twin Arms brief, the Roksan Attessa Unipivot tonearm keeps the slot decisively.

On its own merits the Rega RB330 is the stronger tonearm — but it loses here on fit: the way it sits with the rest of this system under the Twin Arms weighting.

It sits well above the share of the budget this brief aims at the tonearm position.

Origin Live Silver Mk5

1 lost · Twin Arms

Against the Twin Arms brief, the Origin Live Silver Mk5 keeps the slot by a whisker.

On its own merits the Rega RB330 is the stronger tonearm — but it loses here on fit: the way it sits with the rest of this system under the Twin Arms weighting.

It sits well below the share of the budget this brief aims at the tonearm position.

Origin Live Illustrious Mk5

1 lost · Twin Arms

Against the Twin Arms brief, the Origin Live Illustrious Mk5 keeps the slot decisively.

On its own merits the Rega RB330 is the stronger tonearm — but it loses here on fit: the way it sits with the rest of this system under the Twin Arms weighting.

It sits well below the share of the budget this brief aims at the tonearm position.

Michell T8

1 lost · PRaT

Against the PRaT brief, the Michell T8 keeps the slot by a whisker.

With the Michell Gyro 2025, the pairing gives up most on mechanical hush.

On its own merits the Rega RB330 is the stronger tonearm — but it loses here on fit: the pairing with the Michell Gyro 2025 gives up mechanical hush under the PRaT weighting.

It sits well below the share of the budget this brief aims at the tonearm position.

single-piece aluminium casting, zero-tolerance bearingsRega tonearm engineering documentation

Origin Live Onyx Mk5

1 lost · Twin Arms

Against the Twin Arms brief, the Origin Live Onyx Mk5 keeps the slot by a whisker.

On its own merits the Rega RB330 is the stronger tonearm — but it loses here on fit: the way it sits with the rest of this system under the Twin Arms weighting.

Origin Live Alliance Mk5

1 lost · Twin Arms

Against the Twin Arms brief, the Origin Live Alliance Mk5 keeps the slot by a whisker.

On its own merits the Rega RB330 is the stronger tonearm — but it loses here on fit: the way it sits with the rest of this system under the Twin Arms weighting.

Technics S-shape aluminium tonearm (SL-1500C/CS)

1 lost · Silent Path

Against the Silent Path brief, the Technics S-shape aluminium tonearm (SL-1500C/CS) keeps the slot clearly.

With the Technics SL-1500CS (with cart), the pairing gives up most on mechanical hush.

On its own merits the Rega RB330 is the stronger tonearm — but it loses here on fit: the pairing with the Technics SL-1500CS (with cart) gives up mechanical hush under the Silent Path weighting.

single-piece aluminium casting, zero-tolerance bearingsRega tonearm engineering documentation

ProJect Tonearm 9" Carbon/Alu (X2 B)

1 lost · Twin Arms

Against the Twin Arms brief, the ProJect Tonearm 9" Carbon/Alu (X2 B) keeps the slot clearly.

On its own merits the Rega RB330 is the stronger tonearm — but it loses here on fit: the way it sits with the rest of this system under the Twin Arms weighting.

Rega RB880

1 lost · Vocals-First

Against the Vocals-First brief, the Rega RB880 keeps the slot by a whisker.

On its own merits the Rega RB330 is the weaker tonearm for that brief.

Systems it is part of

What the reviewers said

industry-standard tonearm for decades Rega RB300/RB330 30+ year heritage + What HiFi Planar 3 reviews· Timing precision
single-piece aluminium casting, zero-tolerance bearings Rega tonearm engineering documentation· Mechanical noise floor
low-texture, nearly frictionless precision Stereophile (Reichert), 2017· Mechanical noise floor
tight timing PROXY: Rega arm house· Timing precision
clear, detailed PROXY: Rega arm house· Presence & articulation

How it scores

Clarity

  • Mechanical noise floor 76 from listening evidence

Rhythm

  • Timing precision 76 from listening evidence

Specifications

effective length mm236.5
pivot to spindle mm222.0
overhang mm14.5
offset angle deg21.55
effective mass g11
bearing typeprecision gimbal
cartridge mass range g4/11
internal wireRega low-capacitance
output connectorRCA
antiskate typeredesigned bias assembly
notes