Upgrade cartridge or TT?

Robelvick -

You have already heard some good advice, but I wanted to add a couple of thoughts.

First of all, there's no reason not to upgrade your turntable - I started off with a similar entry-level offering from Pro-Ject and while it's a decent table for the money, there are huge gains to be had but even taking modest steps up their product line.

Most importantly though, you mention that you want more detail/ analytical sound.  That being the case, you might seriously consider swapping out the Project Tube Box.  I have tried one, and seriously wasn't the sound I was looking for.  After trying several preamps, I settled on a budged solid state unit that makes me much happier.

Given your current setup, I would think that you might considering selling off the TT, the tube box and a couple of cartridges to get you into a nicer table/arm and a solid state preamp.  Of your current cart's I would maybe hang on to the DL-110 and 2M-Blue for now.

One thing I will say with 100% confidence is that I WOULD NOT waste any time or $$ on a BP#2 - While "detailed" and "analytical" - it's simply not worth the money - very dry, sterile, anemic in the bass, forward in the midrange and top, and generally unpleasant in every respect - I would submit that the modestly priced 2M blue is better sounding.  For little more money (for a Sumiko) the Blue Point Special Eco III is far superior in every regard.

If you are truly enthusiastic about vinyl and looking for the resolution and detail that you enjoy on your digital side, then I would probably hit the reset button on most of your analog front end.  New phono pre first, new table second and then start trying different cartridges.

Just my $.02

Greg

Robelvick - I haven't had a chance to listen to the Clearaudio that you mention but looking at the specs versus price, doesn't seem to be anything exceptional.  the highest gain in MC mode, is great for LOMC's but remember there are only a couple of tai settings - You strike me as someone that likes to try out different cartridges so you might eventually want to go with a pre that has a vast array of settings for you to tweak.

One suggestion I would make is that you may simply want to try out a very low cost solid state unit just to see how you like the sound compared to tubes.  If you find that you prefer the SS sound in your system, then you can look into upgrading to a higher-end unit.

I've tried a few budget pre's in the last couple years, (Project, NAD, Emotiva and Schiit) and of these I like the sound of the Mani best - it was a little noisy out of the box but I picked up a nice linear power supply that addressed that issue.  The Mani is only $129 and I see them selling for nearly retail 2nd hand on eBay.

You could try it out in your system and if you decide you don't like it or want to upgrade then you won't be out a lot of $ for the experiment.

One that has caught my interest recently that I'm curious to try is the iFi iPhono 2 - Looks great on paper and the reviews are really positive.  It also has gain setting between 36-72db so should match up with everything you could throw at it.

It's really interesting to see how the sub $1K market for phono stages has exploded with the recent resurgence of vinyl and I would assume that in the coming years we're going to see dozens of new products in this price range that will be exceptional.

Robelvick -

You are correct that the Marantz is built for them by Clearaudio.

Depending on price, it might be wort pursuing - As packaged for retail, though, it seems that roughly half the price of the package is from the bundled Clearaudio cartridge.

A couple things that would give me pause - the VTA adjustment on the tone arm is fairly rudimentary, and there is no adjustment for Azimuth.  I also think that you would be better off finding something in the same price range that offers some type of suspension, which the Marantz does not.

If you do decide to go for the Marantz, I wonder how long you'll be happy with it and ready to upgrade again.

Lots of people seem to love it based on user reviews I've seen but I'm assuming that many of those folks are new (or returning) to vinyl and/or purchased it for the looks and the decent cartridge that it ships with.

Again - just my own opinion so take it with a grain of salt :)

Congratulations and can't wait to hear what you think of it!

Take care

Greg

You're totally welcome, and I couldn't be happier that it worked out for you!!!!

Kick back, listen and enjoy!!!!

Take care

Greg

+1 on gingko - and it's actually on sale right now at musicdirect

robelvick - just a guess here (well, not really) but you really don't want the dust cover on the table when it's playing :)

-Greg

Hey Robelvick - 

Now that you've had the iFi for a couple of weeks, it would be really great if you could start a new thread with your detailed assessment of the unit.  I know that there are plenty of owner reviews to be found online but, since we all got to watch you go through the upgrade progress, your opinion would be particularly interesting.

Thanks and hope you're still enjoying your new setup

Greg

PS - I was considering one a while back (still may) but couldn't get past the strange physical layout - If it really is *that* good, I might get one and build it into a more traditional and rack-friendly chassis.