Audio-Technica AT91

It’s a *very* low end turntable, which lacks basic adjustability. The anti-skate force can’t be adjusted, and the counterweight is not threaded, meaning you can’t adjust your tracking force without buying a separate scale. And it also comes with the “Rega Carbon” cartridge, which is a rebadged Audio-Technica AT91. The closest competitor there is to the Planar 1 in the US market, in terms of quality, is probably the Fluance RT80 which costs $200 new and is another entry level belt drive model that ships with the AT91.

The AT91 is a conical stylus. It's very forgiving about worn/dirty records, but you sacrifice detail and high frequency response. The reason being is that conical styli have the least amount of contact with the groove surface. Conicals will also usually exhibit more sibilance and inner-groove distortion because of their wide diameter and resulting difficulty tracking high-frequency vibrations well.

The Rega comes with the “Rega Carbon” which is just a rebadged Audio-Technica AT91… a few steps lower down in A-T’s product line compared to the VM95E, with a cheapo conical stylus rather than an elliptical. That means it will have have more sibilance, less bass and treble extension, less detail, more inner groove distortion, and a shorter lifespan. And it will wear your records faster since it’s designed for roughly 50% higher tracking force. Rega makes some good turntables but their good stuff doesn’t start until the Planar 6 in my opinion.