I Need Some Opinions...

Hi dmac67,

Please take a look at my system and read the description to be assured of the quality of the following advice. https://systems.audiogon.com/systems/8367 Starting with a Technics table way below your Pro-Ject we have gained experience to where we were able to build the Miller Carbon Turntable- and then continue to tweak ever more performance from it. Same as great performance was tweaked out of the earlier tables.

If you are looking for improved detail then long before spending $400 on a new cartridge try fo.Q tape for 1/10 as much. https://systems.audiogon.com/systems/8367 This amazing tape has piezoelectric properties that dissipate vibrational energy as heat. In other words high tech damping, removing micro vibrations you never even knew were there. If you stop and think about it, there’s two ways to improve detail. Detail is essentially dynamics so one way is to improve dynamics. But another is to remove micro vibrational noise that obscures detail. This is what happens with fo.Q.

The improvement is not subtle. One little piece 1/4" x 1" on my arm base was easy to hear. There’s about a hundred times that on the 2 sheets. Its beautiful tape too, very high quality, with the best adhesive ever it sticks easily and well yet is removable without any residue.

In order to preserve the attractive factory look mine is one strip on the under side of the arm tube, with smaller pieces hidden under and around the base and counterweight area. Also around the outside edge of the record clamp, and on the platter around the spindle area. So the record is effectively clamped between this vibration damping tape. You could probably put quite a bit under your platter, or on the plinth (top or bottom, or both) or under the footers- or all of these and more. It would be easy to do more on my table and more is on order but a lot went to replace the speaker driver gaskets and with strips on the basket, the frame that holds the driver and magnet together. Huge improvement. Tremendous value for the money.

Another choice also a lot more value than the cartridge is Synergistic Research PHT. https://highend-electronics.com/products/synergistic-research-pht-phono-transducer?_pos=246&_sid... The two are very similar in that they open up and expand the sound stage in depth, width, and focus, with improved dynamics and tremendous improvement in clarity. Green Dream is a bit more liquid, Black Widow a bit more neutral, and they work great together. Look close at my pics, there’s a BW and GD on the Koetsu and another GD on the arm.

Also Synergisitic ECT. While these are sold as "electronic" circuit transducers notice two on the arm and one on the turntable motor. Very similar imaging, liquidity and detail improvements to PHT.

Please read the recent system comment from one who came and heard and knows. Its easy to look at this system and say well of course look at those speakers/amp/whatever. Wrong. Take away the tweaks and its just another stereo. Its the details that make the system. You just have to be willing to get off the component upgrade merry-go-round and try to know.

The beauty of this approach, in addition to the fact it gets you more for the money right now, these are all things that last forever and can be used again and again as your system changes over time. Compared to a cartridge that inevitably depreciates to zero.

Choose wisely and happy listening.

Thank you for taking the time to reply.  It is appreciated.  I will reread your advise  in the morning.  You’ve given me new things to consider which is always valuable.  Thanks again.

dmac, I am not familiar with the Goldring but I can highly recommend the Lyra Delos which should work marvelously in your table. Millercarbon tends to bury himself in complexity. I prefer simplicity. Most of us have to approach this hobby in a step wise fashion as we can not blow a lot of money at once. So we try to make meaningful changes one at a time. The Delos will be a meaningful change. A lot of us blow money on silly mostly cosmetic changes. The industry reinforces this activity to the chagrin of many of us.  

Consider a Denon DL-301 MKII or a Hana SL.  Or a turntable upgrade.  As you said, you have a modest turntable and you'll only get so much out of a cartridge upgrade, less than you'll get if you put the same cartridge (or even a lesser one) on a better table.  I have no experience with the cartridge you have or the Eroica, so can't comment on the degree of difference it would make.  I wouldn't put a really expensive cartridge on that table though.  

My thought is I could likely improve the performance of this setup by changing cartridges; looking for more detail I THINK a LOMC might be a good idea. Is this a correct thought?

No necessary, but your new cartridge must be perfectly matched with your tonearm (you must know and learn about calculation of resonance frequency according to cartridge compliance and tonearm effective mass). And you have to think what you are willing to improve, what was wrong with Sumiko and its presentation ?

You can easily buy more expensive LOMC cartridge that in fact will be inferior in comparison to the best MM or MI available for lower price (especially vintage top models).

Looking at any LOMC cartridge you have to check GAIN of your phono stage and loading options (if there are any).

Also you have to check for stylus and cantilever of the LOMC you’re after, never buy conical or elliptical if you want the best quality and long life span, cantilever is also important and aluminum is the cheapest, the best today is probably boron (or ruby, sapphire). Here is why it is important (also for MM).

The life span of the MC cartridge is mainly the life span of the stylus tip, because you can’t replace it by yourself. If the manufacturer can’t replace the whole cartridge for you when it’s worn then you can only ask retippers (bad idea).

With MM or MI cartridges you can simply buy spare stylus even for some rare discontinued cartridges. And those styli often comes with the best profiles and best cantilevers. I have a great luck finding them for my needs in NOS like this, and for practical reason i like MM and MI as much as i like some of the best LOMC in my big collection of cartridges.

One of the best cartridge in my collection with dosen of different original replacement styli (nos) is Grace LEVEL II and Grace F14, it’s so much fun, because the manufacturer made nearly all possible variations from very cheap aluminum with best diamonds (Luminal Trace, Line Contact, Micro Ridge, Utility-4 Shibata) to very expensive and exotic (Boron/MicroRidge, Beryllium, Sapphire, Ruby, Ceramic...) and even the compliance is different. Grace made MC cartridges too, this is the rarest Grace MC in my collection.

If you think MC is equal to the word "improvement" then you’re wrong.
You have to be very careful when you’re choosing MC cartridge.
Same with MM, because most of the modern MM just sucks (with some exceptions).

Another favorite is Stanton SC-100 WOS signature model with sapphire coated cantilever and Stereohedron tip, absolutely killer MM (collector’s series 100)


Modern MM cartridges are limited to few few brands, unfortunately.

Would I be able to reap more benefits from a much better (i.e. more expensive) LOMC or would my current system make such a purchase meaningless?

Modern MC are too expensive and most of them are not better than vintage MM

Hope it will help :))