Before buying NAS, I had bought a Lynn Basic, because I thought the LP12 was not sufficiently better than the Basic to justify the price. Then I heard a NA Hyperspace, and was sold.
So I talked with Tom Fletcher (owner) at NA, and I ended up buying one of the last Mentor turntables (Dais bearing), with Mentor arm and Tracer 4 cartridge. Wow!!! Dead quiet, elegant, neutral sound. Wow.
The Tracer 4 was not misnamed - it's never mistracked anything. But that Mentor arm - solid but not in any sense adjustable. I moved to a Trans-Fi air bearing tonearm, sold straight from the factory for $1000. Now THAT's adjustable! Wow!!!
Replaced the plinth with an aluminum/plywood/aluminum sandwich. Wow!!!
Now I use my higher end Koetsu all the time, because that's what it takes to bring out the best of a really high end cartridge.
My modified Mentor was the best sounding TT I had ever heard, until I finished my DIY air bearing unit. So I really think highly of that brand. The Dais bearing is something else. I don't think you can go wrong at any price point, although I would try for a Dais if I were you.
So I talked with Tom Fletcher (owner) at NA, and I ended up buying one of the last Mentor turntables (Dais bearing), with Mentor arm and Tracer 4 cartridge. Wow!!! Dead quiet, elegant, neutral sound. Wow.
The Tracer 4 was not misnamed - it's never mistracked anything. But that Mentor arm - solid but not in any sense adjustable. I moved to a Trans-Fi air bearing tonearm, sold straight from the factory for $1000. Now THAT's adjustable! Wow!!!
Replaced the plinth with an aluminum/plywood/aluminum sandwich. Wow!!!
Now I use my higher end Koetsu all the time, because that's what it takes to bring out the best of a really high end cartridge.
My modified Mentor was the best sounding TT I had ever heard, until I finished my DIY air bearing unit. So I really think highly of that brand. The Dais bearing is something else. I don't think you can go wrong at any price point, although I would try for a Dais if I were you.