Wow. Tons of great posts in this thread. Thank you all very much. Let me try and respond:
@p05129 - The sprout is great and works well with the Totems. As for whether this is a "starter," it’s hard to say. I’ve had my AT-LP120 for five years and have been slowly amassing a collection. So I don’t think I’m necessarily a newb, but I haven’t upgraded anything since getting the Totems so I am new in the sense of upgrading and perhaps its a starter system that is beyond entry level.
@deadhead1000 - what I spend here won’t impact my future speaker purchase one bit. Glad to know you loved your Totems! Since you are happy with your P6, why would you upgrade if you used it more? Do you find it to be "good enough" or is it a price/quality equilibrium for what you were willing to spend given your listening habits?
@rockyboris - I have two questions for you. Why didn’t you ultimately go with the Feickert? And if you love the P6 why would I want to upgrade it? Just curious.
@guy-incognito - since I am assuming you listen to your dad’s system as well, are there noticeable differences between your setup and his? Maybe this is a loaded question since I don’t know what else is in your chain.
@ocean2059 - what made you choose the Jelco over the OL arm? Also, you mention that the table is stable. So you’ve not had any of the issues that the two reviews noted above experienced?
@liamowen - I too want to leapfrog the sideways upgrading I see a lot of folks doing. However, I’m not sure I’m ready to jump all the way to a P10. When you say you had the RP6, is that the old one or the new P6?
@tastypeter - wow, that is quite an endorsement coming from someone with such an expensive main TT. What phono stage did you ultimately pair the Volare with? Also, are you happy with the OL arm, and did you consider any others (I see some people opt for the Jelco)? I actually had a very long conversation with Kat, which is what made me seriously consider this option. She also has the Sutherland. I agree, it speaks volumes. And yes, having a wife who enjoys this hobby makes it so enjoyable. In fact, she is the one who got us into it!
@yogiboy - I do have my LP120 plugged into the Sprout’s phono section (labeled "vinyl") but since the LP120 has a built-in phono stage I don’t think that can be bypassed. I could be wrong.
I notice from this thread that there is perhaps a divide between MM and MC, with some strongly suggesting I move to a more expensive MM while others welcoming an MC. My thinking here is that if I was going to buy a new phonostage, I wanted to get one that would work with both so I would have flexibility in the future. Other than cost, are there any downsides to switching to an MC at this point?
Finally, in a weird twist of fate, I actually bent the stylus on my cartridge this evening. I had a spare AT95e and did my first ever cartridge change. It was slightly terrifying but it went well. I can definitely see the value of a removable headshell now as @rauliruegas mentioned.