Marantz TT15/ Clearaudio Satisfy for MC carts?


I’m putting together a second system which I’m very excited about. My new Integrated is the Naim XS3, which drive my Harbeth Compact 7 (non XD) speakers. So on to my question...I recently heard the TT15, and was very impressed. I would say it’s now the #1 choice to be my analog source for this system. I can’t imagine doing much better for the money. I have learned from reviews that the TT15’s Satisfy arm may actually exceed the performance of the (Verify?) arm that comes on the Clearaudio Concept. But my concern for the future is how the Satisfy arm will do with MC cartridges. The supplied Virtuoso MM sounded very impressive running in to the Naim in the dealers showroom. But I would still like to gather opinions to see if the Satisfy arm will also play well with MC cartridges. Btw...for those who are not aware, the TT15 is made by Clearaudio.

fjn04

I have heard the Mofi Ultradeck, but not head to head with the TT15.  I thought it was a nice sounding deck and appeared to be more straightforward to operate and more user friendly than the TT15.

Mo-Fi is coming out with a new table, and judging from the photo, it's pretty sweet looking. A  bit more than I want to spend, but since we are on the subject...It's supposed to be coming in around $6K. 

 

 

 

Whatever you buy, IMO, you should buy from the local dealer who demonstrated the Marantz for you.  As a newbie, you will have a lot of questions about setup, and probably 10 other things.  It is really good to have a local person who can and will assist you, rather than running on forums looking for answers.  Do yourself a favor.  Analog requires a little more commitment than spinning CDs and it's nice to have some help at any stage, but especially in the beginning.  Also, just one more thought - don't drive yourself crazy about which TT to buy, as if it's going to be your last.  It probably isn't.  Just buy something good and play records for a couple of years until you learn what you like and what you don't.  Then you can jump into something higher priced. At this point, you don't know what's important to you as an individual as far as analog playback goes.  Nothing wrong with MoFi products either, but I think it's unrealistic to think your first TT is going to be your last at this stage of the game.  That's it. 

If you're going to bring your budget up to $6K, then you open up a new set of possibilities.  You could spend a lot less than that and have a much better table and tonearm.  This is a good starting place - Restored Turntables – Sota Turntables