I upgraded all my analog gear during the pandemic and I found that upgrading my cartridge from an high output Dynavector MC to a Hana ML (microline tip) had the biggest impact on noise levels. That and investing in an ultrasonic record cleaning machine. 😁
Are your record surfaces as silent as CDs?
When I got my new analog setup (please refer to my profile if interested ) I was very surprised that surface noise virtually disappeared from most of my records. It’s like I was listening to CDs. I’m wondering if others have had that same experience.with their setup.