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Am I on the right analog track?

I recently rejoined the big round plastic music spinners group and I am curious if I made some good decisions. Yea, I know that �how it sounds� is how you tell but I will get to that later. I wanted a lower priced but quality turntable and I found a good price on a Project Perspective with a Blue Point Special cartridge. This combination had good reviews and a lot of happy thoughts so I took the dive. The folks at HCM Audio set it up the cartridge for me since I have never done it. I put the pieces together, set the tracking force, and spun it up. It sounds alright. A little more rich, a little more harmonious. But a heck of a lot more work. Being handicap does not help my mood as I need to keep bouncing up and down but I don�t think that I am that bitter. So, I purchased some of those 180g music frisbees and a Nitty Gritty cleaner, some last products. But I will have to tell you, I really expected a lot more. So I must be doing something wrong. I mean, it is not rocket science and I did all the voodoo dances that I know of. But maybe I am missing something. Did I just get my expectations too high? I am an analytical engineer, techie type so I would normally tend towards more detail that goldeness. I am running this table through Harmonic Tech Truth Links to a Nad Silverline preamp with the add on phono. I have the sensitivity set high on the phono preamp so I can compare it easier with the CD�s. Maybe that �beyond the reality of real music� detail of digital has tainted my taste buds so that I prefer sterility to wholesomeness. But I just expected more. And here�s the real clincher to this odd tale. How do I know if I got it all set up right anywise. Do the turntable police show up and cite me. Is there more to the meaning of music on vinyl than I can perceive. IS THERE A WAY TO TELL??? It was a snicker when I realized that the little string with the weight on it was to be over that little post on the back of the tonearm and not to just hang from the little springy goody. Silly me! Dale
mcne

Showing 2 responses by psychicanimal

psychicanimal
1,738 posts
 
Yes, you are! I recently auditioned the same setup you have at a store. It was rigged to a Carver Sunfire tube preamp. My first comment: "Definitely, CDs don't sound like THAT."

As for your phono preamp, is it that little NAD outboad that sells for about $110? If so, that's your weak link. I'm not going to go into what you should buy, there's many outboard phono options available. You might want to look at: Creek (the Special Editions), Audio by Van Alstine, Aragon and others. Klyne Audio Arts is my favorite...I don't particularly like straight tube phono preamps. Hybrids OK. I have an excellent transistor low output MC preamp.

You might want to think again why you went into analog in the first place. You said you had no records before. Do you want to collect stuff that's not on CD? Do you want to save money buying used records in excellent condition for a dollar or two that otherwise you'd never bought? (I do that). Or are you in search of better sound? Careful, you might steer away from the music...the weak link in audio is the recordings, there's nothing we can do about that. Just listen to the music, is all I can say.
psychicanimal
1,738 posts
 
I agree 100% with Frank. Need above average phono stage (which I do). My cheap college years' Yamaha TT with a Sumiko Blue Point (properly tweaked) would beat a $300 Technics CD player (year 1993). I recently bought a Cambridge CD player and was amazed at what it can do for the money...let's see how far I can go when I get done with modifying my Technics table. It's going to be really interesting.
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