walker proscenium

Koegz, as a Walker Proscenium owner (but without the most recent tonearm upgrade), I would say "Yes" in response to your question:

is it possible that his turntable can make that big of a difference as he says?

The Walker turntable makes a huge difference in the overall sound. The qualitative difference is something one simply has to experience, as you have, to begin to understand why the Walker truly is so special. Granted, Lloyd is a genius at setup and there are a lot of additional items in that system of his that make a sonic difference (his Velocitor power conditioners, his isolation devices and stands, his Extreme-SST contact enhancer, his line stage...). But it is largely the turntable that you're hearing and reacting to.
.

Koegz, we made the decision to buy the complete rack along with the top shelf and have not regretted doing so. Our thinking was: "this is what Lloyd used as he developed the turntable and as he continues to improve it; it's an integral part of the overall sound he's getting in his room as he's tuned the table and all of its components." Yes, it's a fair amount of expense, but we didn't want to wonder if we've compromised anything by not doing it. It has completely met our expectations of being able to reproduce in our own listening room all that we were hearing from the table in Lloyd's listening room.
.

Congratulations, Koegz! Getting a Walker turntable is a major financial commitment, but the rewards are also significant. My wife and I have never regretted making the same decision. I agree with you: don't change another thing now. Get the Walker, enjoy it. It will allow you to make better decisions down the road should you later choose to make any changes.
.

Ah, it is hard to be without vinyl. Live in anticipation of the wonderful addition coming to your listening room!

Congratulations on the quick sale of your VPI.

BTW, what cartridge have you decided to use with the Walker?
.