End Game Turntable suggestions

+1 

I have a Feickert Volare, a SOTA Star III (vintage) as well as a TW Acustic Raven.

All are better than any Rega IMO.

Have no experience with Acoustic Solid.

The TW is on another level above the others I own, as it should be as it costs 2X to 4X as much.  They are hard to find on the used market, especially within the stated price range.

The Volare has the smallest footprint of my tables (if that is important) but is very well built and finished.  At less than $5K (without cartridge) paired with my Audiomods Series 6 arm, it sounds great.

Biggest problem for you is hearing, seeing and touching all your contenders.  Depending on where you live, there may be no local dealer.

Hope this helps.

Good luck!

+ 1 on TW Acustic. I have a Raven AC for more than 15 years now.
First : the sound fits my tastes, second : it is built like a tank, third you can install up to 4 tonearm, fourth : you can upgrade the initial model to put it close to the Black Night. 
Durind these years I replaced the one motor with the 3 motors in a round shape, replaced also the original PSU with the battery one, and lastly replaced the platter with the 20kg « black night ». Each of these changes were useful and put the table up a notch or 2. 
Now I think the TT is hard to beat. 

OP,

I look forward to hearing your decision.

I commented earlier, but not on what I did. I had a VPI that I loved for over 20 years.

I retired, and realized I had an opportunity to upgrade… as I was upgrading the rest of my system. I did the kind of survey you are. While I looked and compared contemporary turntables and higher end VPIs. I got really interested in Linn… for its simplicity, history and contemporary performance. The more I read and researched the more I realized that contemporary performance was available with a really attractive, elegant, small footprint turntable with a wonderful history and upgradabilty.

I have really enjoyed it. I enjoyed its performance so much, I was drawn to upgrade sub-component after sub-component. While I started at the mid-level turntable… I upgraded it to very close to the top level. It has been a constant source of enjoyment over the last three years.

This is not a pitch for Linn. But for the enjoyment of reaching for your dreams. For experiencing really top level performance in something you really love. It doesn’t happen often. Enjoy.

@willy-t 👍 +1

@ghdprentice thanks for your post, everything you have said so far has been very thoughtful.

Regarding you first and second comments (min budget of abt 10K to match my remaining components "level", and "speakers first" principle: I can share my position. Ultimately my decisions are dictated by currently available budget, and that "might" mean a winding road to an optimal state. Keeping this in mind:

a. I decided to stay below 10K for table+arm+cartridge

c. I hear your point about first buying speakers. The speaker upgrade is going to be a very significant outlay, which simply has to wait until retirement. But i can't wait till then to see how far i can get with analog. Also, after 21 years, not a day passes that I do not admire my current speakers for what they can do (NHT 3.3s). This is why everything else in my system has been upgraded multiple times, but the speakers have been a constant. Eventually when I buy new speakers (owing to age, asthetics and the desire for new), I may have to re-jig some of my components somewhat, maybe or maybe not.

Back to the turntable - I did a lot of research and got lots of advice from this forum. In the end I am buying a Thorens TD-1601, with a high end cart (have not decided between Lyra Kleos and Soundsmith xxxx). That will come to about 8K. The new Thorens has the time tested principles, similar in design to the Linn, and from what I undertsand, will stand up well to a high end cartridge. I like the simplicity, timeless aesthetics, the auto arm lift and the impeccable build quality. I really did not want to deal with a complex, spherical/cylindrical/industrial 100lb behemoth offering multiple arm options, and requiring a giant stand. And at least for now, I wanted a set it and forget it setup so i could use my limited time to listen, not tinker. That may change in retirement!

Most reviewers suggest  it outperforms the 160/125 MkII, and is similar to Linn, so i feel its worth trying out - if it doesnt meet expectation, it will be a small loss to take, and go in a different direction.

If budget was not a concern, staying true to the principles above, I would have gone for VPI HW-40 DD or STST Domus DQ II - but with cartridge those will just bust bu budget. I really feel Acoustic Solid MPX could be a good choice, but again it throws off my current budget....

Thanks all once again for all the suggestions and advice. If anyone has a view on $4K range cartridges - particularly Soundsmith because of low-cost rebuild - will appreciate any suggestions.