I have talked to Harry at VPI on the phone several times and I must say that he is a wealth of information and one of the nicest guys I have ever talked to. I own a VPI Aries 2 extended TT with JMW 12.5 arm and ZYX Atmos cartridge. I know many people think the "boutique" brands of turntables are much better than VPI's, but I am very happy with mine. I have had the opportunity to hear many turntables, but I love the sound of my VPI. For the money, they are hard to beat. Maybe some of the uprgrades are not worth the coin they cost, but the rim drive sure sounds promising.
