2. analog
  3. 188429-179433

Upgrade My Turntable - How Much Do I Need to Spend?

I have recently fallen in love with listening to vinyl on my turntable.  In recent years, I have spent most of my listening time with digital music stored on my server (flac files recorded from CD's), but recently I discovered the beauty of placing an album on the turntable and listening to the entire album.  It's been a wonderful find for me.

My 2-channel room features:

  • McIntosh C260 Tube Preamp
  • McIntosh MC452 Solid State Amp
  • Martin Logan Montis speakers
  • Various upgraded cables and wires
  • Acoustically treated listening room
  • Pro-Ject Debut Carbon DC turntable
  • Ortofon Blue Cartridge

My question is:  how big of a step up do I need to make with my turntable to take full advantage of the other components in my system?  I do not intend to do further upgrades with my speakers or amp system, but I would like to step up my game from the introductory level turntable that I bought years ago.  

I've been doing lots of reading and studying, but I would love to hear advice from some of the analog experts on this forum.  (Please don't flame my current system - there are reasons I love my McIntosh and those components are not going anywhere!)  Should I make a move to a $4000 turntable?  Or????  I would love to find a lightly used Rega RP10, and call my search over - but what do others think?

One thing that I believe I value is a simple setup.  I have read horror stories about how much time and frustration can go into getting a turntable setup and then constantly having to tinker for optimal performance.  I don't see myself enjoying that part of the process.

Thanks!

hikerneil
goodlistening64
98 posts
 

@lewm 

Mijostyn is correct. The volume is not doubled as you stated.

the combined volume will be 21 dB down or double the power, not double the volume. 

FYI- check your work before posting something that is incorrect. 

grislybutter
3,117 posts
 

my greatest improvement was a phono preamp, $600 from Simaudio. So I don't think you need to spend x and  2x or whatever algorithm on TT vs. cartridge vs. phono stage, but do consider a phono stage for sure.

lewm
13,110 posts
 

Goodlistening, I guess you can listen, but I would appreciate it if you would re-read the last several posts about using a mono switch. It was Elliot (not I) who claimed that noise due to vertical deflection of the cantilever (not "volume", the term you used in critique) was doubled if you use the mono mode switch on a preamp to play mono LPs with a stereo cartridge. And I disagree based both on physics (see my post above, please) and my direct experience. Mijostyn may be technically correct but his statement lacking detail and is irrelevant to the issue, which is what happens when you use the mono mode switch to play mono LPs with a stereo cartridge. I have done this hundreds of times, and high frequency noise is always reduced compared to levels that occur when you play a mono LP with a stereo cartridge and use no correction.

lewm
13,110 posts
 

Here is a statement I found on another website that is relevant to the mono discussion: "A true mono cartridge has only one coil and is designed to respond to lateral signals only. It does not respond to vertical signals. A stereo cartridge strapped or otherwise manipulated to become a mono cartridge still responds to vertical signals. The introduction of the vertical signal causes distortion and phase anomolies that are not fully canceled by summing the 2 signals. The anomolies are audible. That is why many consider a true mono cartridge (one coil only) to be superior to a stereo cartridge adapted to mono."

So this statement conforms to my own claim that the response in the vertical plane is cancelled.  However, it also mentions that cancellation is imperfect in that it causes "distortion" (without saying what sort of distortion) and phase cancellation (of course it does, that is how the vertical response is cancelled).  But these considerations do support the notion that using a separate "true mono" cartridge may be additionally beneficial, which in part supports Elliot's experience.  But surely the noise resulting from vertical deflection of the cantilever on a mono LP is not doubled.

goodlistening64
98 posts
 

@lewm 

Is it possible for you simply to admit you made a few innocent but incorrect claims earlier on in this thread? I’m sure you’re a fine person regardless. I only corrected you so as to help others who may be newbies.

More to discover