Do I buy an upscale TT?

I would expect anybody who is introduced to a System for the first time, in a home environment, where the system has been carefully put together to get the best from the sources selected to be used, will be impressed with the demonstration offered.

It does not take a $50K TT to seriously impress in such a set up, a lesser valued TT, can I am sure offer a great performance.

I in the past and mainly prior to covid times, had travelled a Four Hundred Mile round trip to attend a HiFi Clubs periodical event, where the meeting place has a resident £200 000+ system.

The Speakers and Amplification alone retail at £140K.

The loom is said to be near £20K. 

The main attraction is to get to hear devices brought by others slotted into the system, to see how they perform in such Hi End Company.

Vinyl and Speakers are the biggy, with Digital being the less frequent.

I have heard modified TT's and Tonearms costing a £1000 as donors prior to being modified, hold their own alongside TT > Tonearm > Cart's costing 20-30 time more as a retail price.

No Different with Phonostages, the resident Phon' is a £10K retail price, and it isknown this model quite happily competes with Phon's upto twice its value.

I have witnessed the resident Phon' matched with the homebuilt Phon' Designs, or  even bettered, if a certain range of a frequency is ones most preferred. The home built designs costing approx' £1500 - 2K, produced by adept EE's, can really shine out for the attractiveness they offer.

I have also heard these home produced Phon's make Commercial products sound very inferior regularly, that are 2.5-4 times the price.

As advice for the OP, I would suggest continuance of enjoying the system that has been produced.

Whilst enjoying what is already in place, I would suggest attempting to experience other systems, whether personal owned or from a commercial environment.

There are experiences to be had that can be of equal impression to the friends system, and possibly achievable for substantially less monies, if wanted to be pursued.

Keep a open mind, Branded Items are produced with tight financial constraints, and can quite easily be placed in the more expensive end of the market, especially if aesthetic appearance has been the heaviest of impact on the overhead to produce.

The DIY Market is not so constrained and a lot can be offered for not too much, the end aesthetic might be a little robust but 'hey ho', it is easily overlooked if one does not do their listening with their eyes. Bear in mind the TT's you are focusing on are coming from this background, and is possibly evolved into a cottage industry, with a High Mark Up on a product, due to a small turnover of sales.   

@clearthinker I am wed to Ortofon and have recently become quite interested in the Verismo, it is no longer a curiosity, I would like to experience.

I have a good recollection of a A95 in use and am very familiar with a Windfeld PR in use, but can't recall encountering the Anna.

The Verismo is the one I am now looking on as the cutting edge for the Ortofon Design, it does make it known newer materials are in use for parts that have a critical function.

I am also going to get myself a demonstration of a MSL Platinum and Mutech Hayabusa.

The Verismo and Hayabusa, are the two I suspect, that will the shortlist to be decided on. It would have been nice if more was available, but getting a demonstration of a Cart' comes with challenges.

@clearthinker Thank You for the description.

It is the reduced rich tone that is the appeal to myself. I have become quite adept at adding rich tone when desirable by the use of additional ancillaries.

I will send a private mail.

@sokogear The ideal, is for the TT to not have a sound, equally attractive is for the TT to have a non-eccentric rotation, with the non-eccentric rotation being available a extremely accurate speed control will be a much desired addition.

It is extremely difficult to have a TT that does not produce something as a result of the TT's function that is not a detriment, that does not impart mechanical noise, oscillation or Wow into a replay, either of which are measurable and in frequent cases audible to the end user.

There are ways to reduce these detrimental influences, but these cost money if being resolved from a commercial front and can be met with commissioning a skilled individual with a familiarity with a design, to take the work required on. The average individual can learn to service a mechanical part, but to get to a place of noticeable betterment machining of parts can be required.