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Dedicated Vinyl system next upgrade?

Hi. I love my system. I really do. I love vinyl and listen to vinyl nearly exclusively via “appointment listening”. I do Sometimes stream and listen while I walk or while working but I love just sitting and listening to my stereo. I believe I’ve arrived regarding finally achieving a great set up and have experienced that vinyl “magic” that audiophiles obsess over. I understand that limitations exist and a great stereo will reveal the quality of a recording - good or bad. The law a diminishing returns regarding  upgrading is something I’m mindful of. I don’t have endless funds to spend on upgrades. My question is - what should I consider upgrading next? Should I ditch the integrated amp considering I’m using an external phono stage? Or should I go with a better integrated amp? Or should I look at a better cartridge? Do I upgrade my turntable or just the tonearm? Do I upgrade the power cable on my amp? 
Here’s what I’m currently working with - and thanks for your thoughts/suggestions! 

Clear Audio Concept Turntable
W/ Hana SL cartridge 

Herron Audio VTPH-2a Phono Stage

Rogue Audio Cronus Magnum II integrated power amplifier 

Kimber Kable speaker wire and interconnects (I forget which model - an entry lever set - nothing crazy) 

Bowers and Wilkins 805 D3 stand mount loud speakers

Set of two stereo REL S/510 subs

paulgardner
Post removed 
optimize
164 posts
 
Great we are at the same page. :)

My journey in my dedicated symmetrical 2ch listening room. I got some treatment but far from enough. Even then I had that peek in that room at 73 dB still after many, many different listening positions and speaker placements. 

What I could do is to sound treat and target that 73 hz with Helmholtz or membrane absorbers that need to be tuned to 73 hz..

As we know a DSP will easily take down a peek. 

So best bang (sound quality) for the buck.
The Helmholtz or membrane vs DSP:
DSP will "treat" all frequencies not just one.
DSP will be cheaper
DSP will hit that target issue with greater precision.
DSP can give me 6/12/24/48 dB x-over between my sub and bookshelf speakers.
DSP can compensate for our physical hearing capability (Equal-loudness contour) + "house curves"
And so on..

So it were a no brainier for me to go with the DSP.

And I can now enjoy my HiFi even more with better sound quality despite that I have "degraded" the analog signal with a AD and DA conversion. :)
mcmvmx
108 posts
 
Many things can be done for upgraded sound . You haven't mentioned acoustics . If you have not fooled around and invested into a better sounding room then thats where you should start . Carpets , drapes , tube traps , whatever needed . It could make a much bigger differences then any piece of equipment or tweek . 

You have an integrated . Many sound very good but a Good pre power combination will in my estimation sound better . Unless you have something like a Plinius , Mark Levinson or Pass integrated separate units will sound better , although not all , you still have to be careful buying . Your Rogue Audio for the price is very good but even Rogue have their separates . 

You can upgrade your cartridge but in order to be able to extract best performance a better tonearm might be necessary . You have a very good turntable . Experiment with mats .

Your phono stage seems to be excellent . To finish , cables . I use and will always recommend JPS Labs superconductors . They are excellent and sound great with tubes or Solid State , be it speaker cables , intercomnects or power cable . Their Aluminata series are superlative.
 Hope this helps 
 God Bless and stay safe .
paulgardner OP
183 posts
 
@optimize@dannad
The room is 18’ x 30’ with a high vaulted 18’ ceiling. I do not have any room treatment. This is a tricky area for me. Interior aesthetics are important to me. This is both a living area as well as a listening room. I truly hate the idea of hanging RT panels on the wall. I might be able to live with some corner bass traps but my original goal was to build a system that sounds great without making my home look like a recording studio. I understand this poses huge limitations but that’s the deal. I do have my speakers out and away from the back wall. I have played around with speaker/subs placement as well. Thank you all for the great thoughts/ideas, keep them coming if you want but again, I’m not hanging RT panels from my ceiling.
rushfan71
295 posts
 
+1 Lyra cartridge upgrade.

I couldn't be happier with my new
Lyra Kleos. 
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