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Upgrade path question. Upgrade analog or turn to digital?

I am running a full analog rig and my beloved cartridge needs service soon (6 months about) so I am wondering if I should sell the analog rig (tt+phono+lps) and rather buy digital source. I am planning to upgrade it later if I am not going digital. 

I am satisfied playing lps, I do it when I can focus on music, but sometimes it`s tempting to have the same quality, just a button away. I can afford either the digital or the analog upgrade and I don`t have the space for both. I am thinking about two scenarios. 

A,
Change the diamond in the Ikeda, rewire the tonearm, change the bearing, add a DS Audio ION-001, max out the VPI Classic 1. It`s sittin on a Shun Mook maple board and heavy sandbox right now, looking for a serious platform north 2000 dollars used or that money goes to the phono upgrade.
Upgrade the phono later, what I save on the digital goes here. I am hoping for a used Aries Cerat, but would be happy with other OTL solutions.

B,
I sell the analog rig and going digital. I was thinking about to buy a streamer north 5K used and either a ESOTERIC D-02X, Aries Cerat Kassandra II, or similar. 

I am planning to upgrade the integrated amp either way, the room treatment almost done.

Or a C version,

Gryphon Diablo 120 with DAC and call it a day.

 

 

 

128x128korakotta
elliottbnewcombjr
5,090 posts
 

ADD Streaming; KEEP Vinyl. 

Worn stylus is a great opportunity to try a different cartridge, do it soon, have your existing cartridge as a backup.

Do you have the few tools and skills to align a new cartridge? 

ghdprentice
6,340 posts
 

I guess I would start with how old are you? I’m 70 and have had vinyl all my life. So, it was great having my really good vinyl rig as a comparison as I brought my digital up to the level of my analog… a nearly forty year odyssey. I listen 98% of the time to streaming… but it is fun to spin a disk once in a while.

In general, if components are carefully chosen, it will cost around a 10 - 20% more to get the digital streaming end up to analog in systems in the $10K - $50K system cost area. In the $50 -150K systems you can do digital for about the same cost as analog for the same sound quality. After that analog pulls ahead again with the cost advantage.

But the advantages of digital are enormous. $14.99 / month for access to a nearly infinite library… Qobuz… half a million high Rez albums. So, unless you are an old fart like me I would go for digital and drop analog. I think the vinyl resurgence is peaking and in the next ten years will start falling as digital gets the cost advantage at lower price points and vinyl becomes only nostalgic. Progress in digital is rapid now.

jasonbourne52's avatar
jasonbourne52
2,863 posts
 

Yeah, and put yourself at the mercy of the streaming services with their compressed data streams! They do this to get their files to fit on the 'Net pipelines. Once data is discarded it cannot be recovered!

jasonbourne52's avatar
jasonbourne52
2,863 posts
 

Keep your LP playback system and get an iFi Zen Stream and a Topping DAC. That's all you will need for streaming. Keep buying LPs!

tablejockey
3,769 posts
 

"max out the VPI Classic 1"

Listening to a Classic 1 for 10 years or so. As it is stock, it delivers enough of what the $10K+ setups do. You probably already know maxing the phonostage is paramount before sinking any money into the table.

As a platform for a better arm...a Fiekert or something with appropriate arm board to go with it, which then can be moved to a more substantial one in the future.

The 3D or gimbal will be a less costly, but not as significant in SQ, IMO.

If you don’t already have one-Phoenix Roadrunner/Sota speed controller. More accurate than VPI’s ADS.

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