Giantsfreak, congrats on winning the TT. I've been in both places - old vintage and modern. My first reintroduction to vinyl was about a year or so ago. On a whim, I had my old Thorens TD 160 serviced and slapped a Grado Sonata on it. My intro phono pre was a cheapy SS which cost me about $150 and away I flew. Take a look at my current system to find out where I landed.
IMO and IME, I think I'm doing better with my current set-up: a MODERN VPI Classic and Sound Smith VPI Zephyr cartridge. The entire chain of my phono set up was purchased pre-owned from A'gon members. The rest you can see by looking at my system.
A couple of observations. If you pull my TT/carty thread history, you will see that I had a lot of false starts and stops and hit a lot of dead ends before getting to where I am. I think you'll learn a lot from my mistakes.
Another observation is that when folks ask for similar type equipment recommendations (whatever the equipment might be), they're going to hear "experienced" audiophiles list every make a model out there. You're also going to hear "absolute unequivocal" opinions about vintage versus modern. It's all damn confusing.
Here's my advice. Go for pre-owned. That will do best to stretch your $1500 budget. But be careful. Check the member's feedback. That's very important. Turntables, tone arms and carties can get really expensive and fast!
As to modern versus vintage, I personally favor the modern equipment - but that's me. Also, carties can get quite expensive too, like $5000 for a Benz LPS moving coil. I recommend a quality used moving magnet (MM) such as a Clear Audio MM or something from the Ortofon 2M series. One of the members, Raul (something) is a real carty expert. If he catches this thread, maybe he can make some good recommendations. Lewm, Stringreen and Almarg are also very helpful and knowledgeable. Of course there are many others, but these guys come to mind first.
The hard part is the TT. As the recommendations start rolling in, you'll start to see the same names coming up, older VPIs (like the HR-19 series), Clear Audio and so forth. Keep track of the more frequently recommended names and check the Forum threads. The members offer their opinions and experiences often.
Last point, it will be helpful to know what's behind your TT: that is, your current preamp, amp, integrated, CDP and speakers.
Good luck and let us know how you make out.
IMO and IME, I think I'm doing better with my current set-up: a MODERN VPI Classic and Sound Smith VPI Zephyr cartridge. The entire chain of my phono set up was purchased pre-owned from A'gon members. The rest you can see by looking at my system.
A couple of observations. If you pull my TT/carty thread history, you will see that I had a lot of false starts and stops and hit a lot of dead ends before getting to where I am. I think you'll learn a lot from my mistakes.
Another observation is that when folks ask for similar type equipment recommendations (whatever the equipment might be), they're going to hear "experienced" audiophiles list every make a model out there. You're also going to hear "absolute unequivocal" opinions about vintage versus modern. It's all damn confusing.
Here's my advice. Go for pre-owned. That will do best to stretch your $1500 budget. But be careful. Check the member's feedback. That's very important. Turntables, tone arms and carties can get really expensive and fast!
As to modern versus vintage, I personally favor the modern equipment - but that's me. Also, carties can get quite expensive too, like $5000 for a Benz LPS moving coil. I recommend a quality used moving magnet (MM) such as a Clear Audio MM or something from the Ortofon 2M series. One of the members, Raul (something) is a real carty expert. If he catches this thread, maybe he can make some good recommendations. Lewm, Stringreen and Almarg are also very helpful and knowledgeable. Of course there are many others, but these guys come to mind first.
The hard part is the TT. As the recommendations start rolling in, you'll start to see the same names coming up, older VPIs (like the HR-19 series), Clear Audio and so forth. Keep track of the more frequently recommended names and check the Forum threads. The members offer their opinions and experiences often.
Last point, it will be helpful to know what's behind your TT: that is, your current preamp, amp, integrated, CDP and speakers.
Good luck and let us know how you make out.