Thanks for all your time spent offering your ideas. I purposely didn't state what I was looking for for three reasons: I wanted opinions regarding my system's shortcomings; I don't like to limit responses when I'm not sure what question I should be asking (I am a former journalist and I know if you ask a well-defined question, you'll get a well-defined answer, but you may miss the story altogether); and I love the sound of my system and I really just want better, even though I am always in sound heaven.
1. I now have some room treatments up. A great improvement.
2. Is audiophilia a rich person's game? Yes and no. If you buy used and purchase components from the big brands, the resale value stays pretty static and you MAY only incur the cost of lost "interest" if you had otherwise invested the money. Buying new or obscure brands is very likely a different scenario, but I haven't done that so I'm not sure.
3. As stated in my second post, I am focusing on upgrading the phonostage first. Having a table and cartridge worth over $6,000 and stage worth $2,000 (new prices) does not make much sense.
4. As I play my music at blaring levels and my thiels reach down to 20Hz, I'm less sure that a sub trumps the gain from a better phonostage. That said, I will get a sub in the near future, just not a used sub worth $300. In my experience, bass is cheap, but tight bass is far more expensive than top-end clarity. I'll be looking for a Thiel sub or the like.
5. Rauliruegas: Your questions were not "rocket science," but if they were I'd understand them as I am 55-year-old tech editor who always reads carefully.
6. Moonglum. I like my cartridge and my tomearm is a Satisfy, which holds its own on far more expensive Clearaudio tables. I'm not sure how to pose this question, but do you think I would gain more from just a tonearm upgrade or just a table upgrade?
7. Atmasphere, along with my stereo-as-equity position, I started out with a Grado gold, Rega P3, and a NAD PP2, and I was in heaven. It's just that heaven gets better and better as I upgrade. But before I upgrade I've never believed that I was not already in heaven :-)
Thanks again guys, I really appreciate these responses.
Bill
