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Best Powered Speakers for Rega Planar 1

Personally, I am a big fan of Rega turntables. It is probably the turntable brand I recommend the most here on Vinyl Restart. So if you got yourself a Rega Planar 1, then please let me congratulate with your choice. It is a fantastic turntable. 

If you don’t want to take the route of a traditional stereo setup with an amplifier/receiver and passive speakers, then powered speakers with the amplification built-in is a valid alternative. 

We will however need to pick quite decent powered speakers to extract the full sonic potential from a Rega Planar 1. 

So, in my list of recommended powered speakers for the Rega Planar 1 below, I have ignored budget and entry-level powered speakers and focused on the absolute best midrange and high-end powered speakers. 

It simply feels wrong to recommend $100 powered speakers for such a great turntable. Budget powered speakers can be great in many situations, but they won’t be a perfect match for the Rega Planar 1. They will simply limit the sonic performance of the system too much. 

If you are looking for budget powered speakers, then you will find my top recommendation in my 10 Best Powered Speakers for Turntables article. 

Now, let’s review 5 high-quality powered speakers that are perfect for the Rega Planar 1. 

1. Klipsch The Fives 

Best speakers for Rega Planar 1 overall

During my 25+ years as an audiophile, there are few products that have impressed me more for the money than Klipsch The Fives. These are powered speakers that tick all the boxes and a few more. And they are simply a perfect match for the Rega Planar 1 turntable, in my opinion.  

With the Fives, Klipsch have put everything they know about powered speakers into an amazing package. The attention to detail is impressive. 

They connect directly to your Rega Planar 1 with a new redesigned built-in phono stage and a turntable phono input. No separate preamp needed. 

They are furthermore bi-amped, meaning that there is a dedicated amplifier for the tweeters and a dedicated amplifier for the bass drivers. This enables Klipsch to design each amplifier to perfectly match the characteristics of the driver it powers. Something we normally only see in more expensive high-end active speakers. 

In my ears they sound very impressive for the price. All the Hi-Fi critics I listen to and trust say the same. The sound is rich, dynamic, fun and super-engaging. Perfect to extract all the soul and emotion that you want to extract from vinyl records. They also play higher than any powered speakers I know of. 

There is currently a trend moving away from analytical and “boring” audiophile speakers. And towards dynamic, engaging, fun and emotional speakers. Klipsch is definitely one of the speaker manufacturers that drives this trend. Not only with The Fives, but with many of their speaker models. 

Klipsch The Fives look expensive and elegant. They feature all the connectivity you will need. Including Bluetooth for wireless streaming and HDMI Arc which is the latest standard for connecting TVs. 

They aren’t the most affordable power speakers on the market and might cost more than you had planned to use on speakers for your Planar 1. But remember that these are much more than two speakers. We also get 4 amplifiers (one for each driver), the newest tech, a good sounding built-in phono preamp and lots of features and connectivity that make these super versatile and suitable for many different uses. 

I have been a Rega fanboy for a long time. And I have to admit that I am starting to become a Klipsch fanboy as well. Klipsch simply do so many right things with the products they put out these days. Their sound is fun and engaging. And their prices are very competitive, especially if you live in the US. 

(My dad recently asked me to recommend a good soundbar to use for TV watching and music listening. I am now doing my best to convince him to forget about the soundbar and get these powered speakers instead. We’ll see how that goes…) 

Key Features 

  • Turntable PHONO input 
  • Bluetooth 
  • HDMI Arc input 
  • Subwoofer output 
  • Separate amps for treble and bass (bi-amped) 
  • Remote control 

Key Specifications 

  • Type: Powered speakers
  • Size: 12” x 6.5” x 9.3”
  • Power: 160W RMS
  • Frequency response: 50Hz – 25kHz
  • Connectivity: HDMI-Arc, Bluetooth, Phono, Line, USB Digital, Optical Digital  
  • Finish: Walnut or Black 
  • Origin: USA 

Pros 

  • Powerful and engaging sound 
  • Elegant finish 
  • Sate-of-the-art connectivity 
  • Highly versatile 
  • Latest tech 

Cons 

  • Might stretch your budget a bit too far 

Price 

Click here to check price on Amazon. 

2. Audioengine A5+ Wireless 

Best “affordable” option

The Audioengine A5+ Wireless is another favorite powered speaker of mine. I picked these myself when I was shopping for powered speakers for my Audio-Technica AT-LP120 turntable. 

They sound good, probably best in their class, and they are great “budget” options for the Rega Planar 1 in my opinion. They are not at all budget powered speakers per se, but in the context of matching the performance of the Rega Planar 1 turntable, I think we’ll need to raise the “budget bar” to this level. 

It is hard to find midrange powered speakers that have received more praise from Hi-Fi critics than the Audioengine A5+. It is a very highly rated speaker and a great choice for turntables. They also look fantastic, especially in bamboo finish. 

They future a fully analog amplification circuitry that is rarely seen in speakers at this price point. It makes the signal path fully analog all the way from the turntable cartridge to the speaker drivers. Perfect to enhance that smooth and rich analog sound of vinyl records.

Audioengine is based in Texas and design and manufacture the drivers and all critical components in house.

You can choose between a fully analog version or a version with optional Bluetooth built in. 

PS! The Audioengine A5+ doesn’t include a turntable PHONO input. So if you have a standard Rega Planar 1 without preamp, then you will need a separate preamp with these. 

Key Features 

  • Fully analog amplification 
  • Bluetooth (Optional) 
  • Remote control 

Key Specifications 

  • Type: Powered speakers
  • Size: 7.8” x 7” x 10.8”
  • Power: 100W RMS
  • Frequency response: 50Hz – 22kHz
  • Connectivity: RCA Analog, 3.5mm Analog, Bluetooth (Optional) 
  • Finish: White, Black, Bamboo  
  • Origin: USA 

Pros 

  • Great sound
  • Deep bass
  • Analog class A/B amplification
  • Elegant design
  • Loved by Hi-Fi critics

Cons 

  • No turntable PHONO input 
  • Bluetooth costs extra
  • Bamboo finish costs extra

Price 

Click here to check price on Amazon.

3. Klipsch R51-PM

Best “affordable” with preamp 

If the Klipsch The Fives that is our top recommendation stretches your budget too far, then you will get much of the same performance in their less expensive Klipsch R51-PM. They are not fully as good, refined and versatile as the Klipsch The Fives, but they are still extraordinary lively, engaging, fun and emotional for their price. 

They come with a built-in phono preamp as standard that makes it possible to connect your Rega Planar 1 directly. They also come with Bluetooth connectivity as standard.

The lively and engaging nature of these speakers in companion with the warm and rich sound from vinyl records will make for a setup that really creates emotions. And for many of us, listening to music is an emotional experience. These are great powered speakers for vinyl. Highly recommended.

Key Features 

  • Turntable PHONO input 
  • Bluetooth 
  • Subwoofer output 
  • Remote control 

Key Specifications 

  • Type: Powered speakers
  • Size: 11.3” x 7” x 9.1”
  • Power: 120W RMS
  • Frequency response: 68Hz – 21kHz
  • Connectivity: Bluetooth, Phono, Line, USB Digital, Optical Digital  
  • Finish: Black 
  • Origin: USA 

Pros 

  • Powerful and engaging sound 
  • Great connectivity 
  • Highly versatile 
  • High value for money 

Cons 

  • Black finish only

Price 

Click here to check price on Amazon 

4. KEF LS50 Wireless II

Best High-End option 

The KEF LS50 Wireless II (upgraded version) is likely the best sounding powered (active) bookshelf speakers you can buy. This is the “crème de la crème” powered speakers for hardcore audiophiles that are looking for the ultimate excuse to ditch the stereo receiver. 

I use the terms powered and active speakers interchangeably here, but in all correctness, these are genuine active speakers. That means that there is one amplifier for each driver in each speaker. In each speaker, a 100W analog amplifier drives the tweeter while a 280W class D amplifier drives the bass.

The KEF LS50 Wireless II is one of KEF’s flagship speakers and has received fantastic reviews by Hi-Fi critics around the globe. Designing these is arguably one of KEF’s best efforts ever.

Compared to our top recommendation for Rega Planar 1, Klipsch The Fives, these will sound a notch more analytical and “correct”. They sound amazing and they are designed to have traditional audiophile sound character. But they can’t fully match the fun factor of the Klipsch’s. (Few speakers can…)  

With the KEF LS50 Wireless II you can stream music with Bluetooth and also connect streaming services like Tidal, Spotify and Apple Music through Wi-Fi. It is a very versatile music system. 

PS! The KEF LS50 Wireless II doesn’t include a turntable PHONO input. So if you have a standard Rega Planar 1 without preamp, then you will need a separate preamp with these. 

Key Features 

  • Genuine active speakers (one amplifier for each driver) 
  • Compatible with all main streaming services
  • Bluetooth 

Key Specifications 

  • Type: Active speakers
  • Size: 12” x 8” x 12”
  • Power: 760W RMS
  • Frequency response: 40Hz – 47kHz
  • Connectivity: Bluetooth, AUX, HDMI-Arc, USB Digital, Optical Digital  
  • Finish: Black, Grey, red, White 
  • Origin: UK

Pros 

  • One of the best sounding powered speakers on the market 
  • Great for Wi-Fi streaming
  • Elegant design 
  • Super versatile 

Cons 

  • High price 
  • No turntable PHONO input 

Price 

Click here to check price on Amazon. 

5. KEF LSX

Also Great

The KEF LSX is a smaller and cheaper version of the KEF LS50 Wireless II above. They will not fully deliver the audiophile experience of their bigger brother, but these are still very high-quality active speakers.

If you looking for very good compact speakers for your Rega Planar 1, but think the LS50 Wireless are too expensive, these might be the perfect sweet-sport between cost and quality.

Just as for the LS50 Wireless, there is one set of amplifiers in each speaker. A 70W amplifier drives the bass while a 30W amplifier drives the tweeter.

PS! The KEF LSX doesn’t include a turntable PHONO input. So if you have a standard Rega Planar 1 without preamp, then you will need a separate preamp with these. 

Key Features 

  • Genuine active speakers (one amplifier for each driver) 
  • Compatible with all main streaming services
  • Bluetooth 

Key Specifications 

  • Type: Active speakers
  • Size: 10” x 6” x 7”
  • Power: 200W RMS
  • Frequency response: 54Hz – 28kHz
  • Connectivity: Bluetooth, AUX, USB Digital, Optical Digital  
  • Finish: Multiple 
  • Origin: UK

Pros 

  • Great sounding speakers
  • Compact 
  • Great for Wi-Fi streaming
  • Elegant design 
  • Super versatile 

Cons 

  • No turntable PHONO input 

Price 

Click here to check price on Amazon. 

Conclusion 

There you have it. 

5 powered speakers that will be great companions to your Rega Planar 1 turntable. 

I hope this article was valuable for you and that it helps you narrow down the list of great speakers for your turntable. 

If you have further questions on this topic, don’t hesitate to contact me. 

Related Articles 

Best Cartridge Upgrade for Rega Planar 1

10 Best Turntables (Record Players) from $100 to $1000

10 Best Phono Preamps from $10 to $500

Rega Planar 2 Test and Review