Wow...great advice here. I’ve read through it all in detail...
I can’t respond to each person individually, but here’s what stuck and some steps I’ll take before pulling the plug...so to speak.
I’ve had two generous offers of help from people on here who live in the area, I’ll be contacting them... Thanks
The Oppo 205 I use as a DAC is not just an Oppo, it’s a Modwright which is a whole different animal...not looking for a debate, just stating a fact.
The Manly Chinook is considered a top of the line phonostage, so I’m not suspecting it.
I believe the problem lies in the setup (overall), the cart, and I’m suspect of the "Zorin" tonearm and possibly the records I chose to listen too. I have better records in my collection, but was hesitant to play them until I had the time to clean them and insure I wasn’t going to do damage by playing them...by the way the Kirmuss mentioned on here looks interesting.
I’m currently selling off a bunch of "stuff" I’ve gathered over the years. It’s just money laying around and filling up closets. When I’m done with the sales and depending on what I find out about my system from those who offered help, I may sell off parts of the record collection "MFSL" and the tt and reinvest the money into a new and improved system.
Thanks again