Good, better, best. VPI Classic 1 accessories and upgrades.

I've had a Classic since 2010 and never had the inclination to change decks, which is really rare for me. I had an Aries back in the day and hated it. I only bought the Classic after being disappointed with Sota and Mitchell tables. The Classic had all of this great word of mouth, so I tried it, and have never even thought about changing it since. It's been wonderful.

The only issue I've ever had, is due to the placement of the motor it requires a well shielded cartridge. But the Soundsmith VPI Zephyr has been amazing since the day I put that on.

Accessories that I've tried:

SDS - No change in sound at all. I have an APC S15 power filter/battery backup that works great and I think that gives me very good power. I used a couple of PS Audio products that were good as well. I sold this after trying it out for a month with not change in sound at all.

Center weight - they are all about the same, I have an off brand one now, I don't remember the name. It's exactly the same to my ear as the VPI center weight (which I bought with the turntable). I sold the VPI version, kept the current one that I used with an older table.

VPI Periphery Ring - an absolute must. Great items worth it's weight in gold sound-wise.

Gingko Isolation Platform - I've used these with every table since I first tried one. It makes a huge difference in sound.

the Aries always sounded bright to me. I thought for a while I had it set up poorly, bought the mirrored protractor for the arm, tried different cartridges.... It never sounded good in that system

From the day I got the Classic, it was money, just what I was looking for. Warm, huge bass, and crystal clear.

The Gingko platform focuses it even more.