Old Gyrodec and some issues.. Analog Gurus Please chime in!!

@bensturgeon

This is a very low output cartridge, I believe like .26 mV.

Not correct, the output of the Talisman Virtuoso B is 1.8mv.
This cartridge is designed to work into a MM phono stage with 47k load. 

I used to sell these in the 80's and they matched well with tube phono preamps, but if you are going to use a long phono cable between phono and line stage, then you are probably better off with a solid state phono.

@dover 

I looked around the interwebs and you appear to be correct. I was confused as the Vinylengine listing for this was .26 MV, but I didn't look closely enough as the listing was actually for the Virtuoso "A" not "B".  Good catch!!

Any recommendations for a decent phono stage for this? roberjerman above recommended a Project Phono Box, but I have had a bad experience with a broken phono stage from them and they did not honor their warranty and tough to deal with/communicate with. 

Any direction would be appreciated!!! 

I'm not necessarily advocating that you lay out big bucks for wire, but I must point out that roberjerman's blanket assertions that basically any wire will do because there are no sound quality improvements to be had is definitely "misinforming" and misguided, in my experience.  I have used variously with my SME V arm the Van den Hul 501 cable that came with it, and then a series of Straightwire Maestro, Cardas Golden Ref, Silver Breeze, and Stealth Hyperphono - - they each sound distinctly different, and they more or less represent in order a progression of unmistakably improved sound quality in my system.  If one couldn't hear the differences and improvements that I have heard, I wouldn't know what to think or say.

So, don't think the wire won't influence the end point sound quality.  What the right "jump off point" is for a particular wire selection is certainly much to be debated, and is a personal decision of taste and budget.

I tend to agree that cables/wires do have their own sonic attributes/signatures. However, I am also not a deep pocketed music fan, and think that with uber expensive wire you tend to have a diminishing rate of return as the price gets higher. If my system were a highly resolving 80K system maybe I would play with the spendy, opulent, cables, but at my stage of finance I must start with basic and affordable and move up to higher quality when finances permit. 

I appreciate the thoughts. Any specific recommendations for a phono stage at or below $500 other than the Ortofon mentioned above?

great table