Table,cartridge,phono...where to put most of my money?

This is not a suggestion to purchase, but only a list of items that can be a very attractive Set Up for Vinyl Replay.

It is a result of your making it known a Cheap DD TT has generated a Revisit to pondering an Analogue Source.

Denon DP80 @ $400 + Import Shipping + Tax - Approx $650.               Panzerholz/Permali Plinth @ $350.                                                          Tonearm @ $800-$2000                                                                        Cartridge @ $900 - $2000 (Bought with usage and Refurbished can get a substantial performing Cart)                                                              Phonostage @ $1000

Mount this on a decent support structure and a @ $4K Spend can have one with a TT that much much more monies spent will struggle to surpass. 

Will the Set Up satisfy to the condition that is being sought after, nobody know's, only experiencing the Set Up in the listening environment will be enough to make this known.                                

Hello, 
I like the Hana ML for you. It’s semi warm and somewhat forgiving. If you want a little more detail take the VTF/ weight below 2 g. Maybe 1.9 g. 
Music Direct has it for less than $1k. I would skip the Ortofon carts with the Shibata stylus unless you are going to pay a few hundred to have it setup properly. Shibata styli can be difficult to setup by eye. 
I like Sota a lot but it might pull too much from your budget. So maybe a used technics 1200 variant for $1k- $2k. I like the idea for you that you can switch cartridges/ headshells as needed. Last but not least is demo phono stages if you can. The Herron is really nice if you can find it. Get new tubes if you can. I like the Idea of the MOFI deck because it usually goes on sale and you can pick it up at Music Direct with the cart. The most important thing is setup. I would tell you J.R. From Wally tools but it will blow your budget. Brian Walsh travels to several states and lives in the Chicagoland area. If those two do not work and you buy the cart and tt from MD then have Bess from MD set it up using Analog Magic. Two more phono stages to look at are the a used Pass labs 17 dice you have pass or the Hegel V10. They are both very good. Don’t be fooled by the Hegels size and wall plug in. It is a transformer not a switch mode. It is balanced too. I believe 72db of gain. I have one on my system along with a Hana cart. I hope this helps. 

If I had to start over:

Rega P3 (upgradeable) $1300

Audio Technica OC9 or ART9 $700-1500

Darlington Labs MP-7/SU-7 (or favorite SUT) $1000+

This is actually pretty close to what I used to have.

I'm in the stick with digital camp. I am of that generation that came up with vinyl and tape. Digital sounds a little harsh to me, yet I have CD's out the ying yang. I do stream a little; mostly to audition music I would like to own. I wonder sometimes if the order of enjoyment ascends or descends from historian to collector to archivist to aficionado to preservationist to ........perfectionist.

My only advise to you is to please YOURSELF. Analog playback just may not be your bowl of grits. Both digital and analogue have limitations, strengths and weaknesses that appeal to different appetites, nothing will satisfy every desire, so satisfy yours. I won't judge..... promise.      :)

We are all guessing for at least two reasons. You said you couldn’t get your turntables to sound good. What exactly was missing? Detail and clarity I’m guessing compared to your digital sources? Something else? If my guess is right, a couple of thoughts. 

Old vinyl can involve poor pressings or accumulated grit that only an ultrasonic cleaner can remove. To test this go out and buy a really good recent pressing of an album, preferably not rock with its amplified instruments which often add their own distortion and noise. I bought a recent Columbia Legacy pressing of Kind of Blue by Miles Davis. The difference between it and my old pressing was revelatory. Clearer, more detailed than the old vinyl yet more full bodied and realistic than my streamed high res or my cd versions. 
 

My second thought concerns equipment matching. Again I’m guessing since I have not listened to your Pass/Dynaudio amp/speakers together, much less in your room. To my knowledge your gear tends toward the slightly warmer side as others have noted. Digital sources tend to be on the “cooler”, detailed, less full bodied side. So my guess would be to go with a cartridge that is highly detailed, a moving coil like a Sumiko starling or a Lyra Delos, both just under $2k.  Find a knowledgeable dealer that sells both and others if at all possible. Listen on his setup, even if different from yours and bring a new, high quality pressing of a record you like and know well. If you like what you hear ask to bring home whatever TT/cartridge, phono stage combo you auditioned and have the dealer suggest what he views as the best for your budget, music tastes and preferred sound characteristics. If you find a cartridge you like, it may or may not be a good fit for your current turntable and arm. You can stay within or close to your budgets with tt’s from Mofi, Clearaudio and Rega, each of which have somewhat different house sounds, with the Rega being the most detailed to my ears in the $1500-$2000k price range of these three widely available brands. One of the tt manufacturer’s own cartridges might be a good fit and when purchased together could save you a few hundred dollars, but I went with a cartridge not of the same brand as the tt and found it a better fit for my tastes.

Finally, if my guess about detail being lacking in your past experience, within your budget I’d recommend a solid state phono stage. Others have made some good suggestions, including the Musical Surroundings Nova and Sutherland units, to name two I’ve heard.

We’re all guessing here on Audiogon. There is simply no true substitute for auditioning gear, especially if you can do it in your listening room with your gear. 
 

good luck!