Hardware or source materail

@sbsail9 some of these answers look on the right track - yay.

Much more bang-for-buck in improving your music source whether that’s vinyl or cd or drive-stored mp3 / WAV etc. (I don’t stream, so no comment there).

If you know real world live sound and the LS50’s get you close enough to that in your genres to be happy, kit swapping upstream of your speakers will probably be narrowly incremental at best (unless the good old friend of upgrade-itis and sighted comparisons in real time is your method for comparing amps, DAC’s etc. then each change may sound “night vs. day” for sale of bias etc.).

I prefer a live sound, and not one that requires lounging in a single position/seat (not much of a “live” experience doing that IMO); tested and adjusted my approach and compared it to hundreds (literally) of other HiFi setups in like-sized and smaller rooms over a number of years, took the opinions of dozens of other folks from all walks, and I’m pretty convinced that once you get the speaker x room sound to your liking and music files that’ve been mixed and mastered in a form that ticks your aural boxes, you’re set. Upstream kit-swapping at that point becomes a pursuit for shop-a-holics and OCD victims more than folks who aim to let tech be tech, and enjoy a musical experience.

Determine what “close enough” to real music means for you, and then rely on speaker x room and music source file (be that vinyl, cd, mp3 etc) to be the pair of variables that get you there in-home. $0.02 plopped on the table

I own that TT and it'll turn out some pretty sweet sound... but... the Ortofon Blue is the bottom rung cart.  I upgraded to the Red and the difference took about 2 measures to be obvious.  I recall it was about $90-120.  So really, with such low hanging fruit, IMHO, regardless of source etc, it's a must-do.  Enjoy your system!

This is not a simple question to answer in general terms, if possible at all. My instinct says to first improve the source, this includes and can be the first step to get the best quality records/discs possible. Yes, your cartridge needs upgrading, you could also consider better outboard phono stage, your turntable is alright.

Personally, I always look for the best pressing when buying records. They are sometimes difficult to find in excellent condition and often not inexpensive. It is also not always easy to find out which pressing is best without directly comparing. And, do you clean records well, the difference can be night and day ?

Dump the vinyl and stream instead, better selection and SQ, and way less physical effort.  Welcome to 2024…

@benanders 👍

I think it’s pretty well established that the quality of the recording is the single most important factor in sound reproduction. I second the notion that looking into streaming could bring you the biggest benefit since you have access to a wide world of good recordings. I am in the same age bracket as you and I have found that the most fun is trying different types of reproduction equipment. So in the future if you have the itch to spend money try a small tube amp. Consider open baffle speakers. Efficient Full range speakers These bring different virtues to the table. Not necessarily better. It sounds like you’ve got a solid system so go where your muse takes you and have fun.