Turntable versus tonearm versus cartridge: which is MOST important?

Normally one would expect the cartridge to be the most important.  After all it is a transducer - the others being microphones and loudspeakers.

However it is the turntable that is the most important.  First, there are speed issues.  This is expensive to get right.  The cost effective way is to get a Direct Drive.  Second is vibrations.  This is critical because the signal from a cartridge is magnified some 10,000 times form cartridge to loudspeaker.  So the smallest imperfections are audible.  Vibrations come from ambient vibrations in the room (typically from outside the room), footfall, the cartridge itself colliding with the vinyl wall (and often magnified by the platter), the sound from the speakers themselves hitting the turntable, the bearing.  All these issues can be resolved but not easily.  

Compare this to a tonearm.  They have their issues but the difference between an average tonearm and a top one is not as much as any other Analogue component, even including phono stages.  I bought a very high end tonearm from Origin Live, but with a few months I sold it and went back to my Jelco.

My ranking from most to least:
Turntable;
Cartridge;
Phono Stage;
Tonearm.

@fsonicsmith , could not have said it better. 1+

The question should be, "how do you go about building a great turntable?"  That fact is you have to evaluate each item, drive, tonearm and cartridge individually then determine if they function together. Obviously you have to stay within your budget. The order is Turntable then tonearm then cartridge. It is no good to pick a tonearm that will not fit on a turntable you can afford. The turntable is generally the most expensive part of the deal so you start there then pick a tonearm that will fit and finally pick a cartridge that is matched to that arm. Since the cartridge is last if you have to skimp this is were you do it. Cartridges are also wear items. If you can't handle this then you can buy a stand alone unit like a Thorens, Rega, Project, Music Hall and so forth. 

Wow this question has caused a few sparks!!

And some varied responses, all the better to understand the issue.

Basically, I'm in the process of upgrading my TT in my second system.  The current unit is vintage (Pioneer PL600 - the good one) into a Hana EL cartridge.  Total investment: $500.

Had the opportunity to directly compare it in my system to a Clearaudio Performance DC/Satisfy Carbon arm/Lyra Delos cartridge.  Total cost around $7K.

The latter was better in most parameters especially with respect to dynamics, detail, resolution.  Tonality/frequency balance was more natural with the vintage system (less upper frequency glare).  Bass was comparable between each unit.  Both rigs were enjoyable to listen to.

So naturally I'm trying to determine how much of the sonic differences are due to the cartridges themselves, versus the other components.  Ideally I'd like the resolution of the new rig and the tonal balance of the vintage set up.

The system: EAT Petit phono, Classe DR5 line stage, Pass XA25 amplifier, Joseph Audio Pulsar 2's on Sound Anchors.

So there you have it ...

I see the Pioneer has what looks like an interconnect of a relatively simple design (attached), whereas the Clearaudio has an interconnect that looks more substantial

Is it possible the Interconnect played a role in the differences you observed?

Are there other interconnect options for the Cleaudio you could try
- I see there are several on their website - which one did you try?

Regards - Steve