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Need Help with System

This is my first post in the Analog forum so have patience. Looking to get back into Analog sometime this year or early next so I am looking for ideas from you seasoned analog junkies out there. I have a "beginners" rig from AudioAdvisor - HW19 Jr with RB300 and a now defunct Blue Point Special cartridge. The phono pre is/was the “VAC in the Box” with the upgraded power supply. This was going into a Golden Tube SEP preamp. After extensive upgrades the front end is now all dCS gear (digital inputs only). I will be most likely be getting the Grieg (an upgrade to the Purcell with phono and analog inputs) from dCS when it comes out later this year. So for now the analog rig sits idle. I have about 350 albums in storage and would like to listen to them again. My budget for the entire analog rig (up to the Grieg) would be about 2-3 K total – new or used.

PS – No - I am not going to sell the dCS gear so don’t ask…. :-)

Cheers, Dan
dan2112
doug28450
199 posts
 
Dan2112, The SAMA that I spoke of is the Stand Alone Motor Assembly that VPI has for the HW-19 series turntables. After reading some of the posts after my first and some of your additional thoughts you should probably go with the cartridge replacement. As previously noted, Lyra is a good choice as well as the Benz-Micro line. Both make a variety of cartridges in varying price ranges that offer very good sound and performance. If you make the decision to stick with the phono pre, I use the Pass Aleph Ono. It is very flexible as far as cartridge loading options and gain adjustments go. It has recently been replaced by the Xono so you will probably be able to get a used one for around $1500 if you watch the used listings. If you choose to continue to "digitize" the analog signal then spend the money on a tonearm. Upgrade the turntable as spare cash allows. Good Luck, Doug
dan2112 OP
144 posts
 
Well I see I offended at least one person with my last post. If I offended anybody please accept my apologies. However my focus of this thread was intended to be the improvement of my existing analog rig and not getting into a debate about the merits of "digitizing" the analog signal. Doug I thank you for clarifying the SAMA acronym – much appreciated. I have heard good things about the Pass Xono. I can always bypass the dCS gear and use a conventional preamp too. – Dan
sean
6,231 posts
 
Dan, don't worry about negative votes. Post your honest opinion and let them learn to deal with it. It's not your problem, it's theirs. You'll get over the "shock" of seeing negatives REAL quick if you continue to post on this forum. Sean
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sedond
1,387 posts
 
hi dan,

ewe *can* get a killer analog rig for $3k if yure willing to buy used - it *will* make a substantial improvement over your current set-up, imho. i upgrade my rig a while back, & it ran almost exactly $3k. and, the origin-live modded tonearm & dc-motor/power-supply upgrade were purchased brand-gnu.

anyway, my current set-up is an oracle 'table updated to mk-v specs, w/the exception of the motor/powersupply, which is gnu, from origin-live. the tonearm is a brand-gnu fully-modded origin-live rega rb-250 w/vta base. (o-l, btw, sez this tonearm is even better than their fully-modded rb900, which is considered a giant killer, even in its stock form). cartridge is a lyra clavis, brand-gnu re-tip/rebuild from symphonic-line/vandenhul. fono stage is a little-known (in the usa, anyway) german unit, the pentagon ps-3 (retails for ~$1800). this fono-stage was purchased only because i recently upgraded my preamp, & the gnu pre dint have a fono-stage. oh yeah, & i could even get a few bucks back if i ever decide to sell the mint grace 727 tonearm that came w/the oracle when i bought it! ;~)

good luck, doug

onhwy61's avatar
onhwy61
5,259 posts
 
Dan, please let me expand on my earlier comment. I believe your existing VPI/Rega setup is capable of very good sound reproduction. To substantially improve upon this setup will require more than your $3k budget, IMO. I still stand by my recommendation that your money is best spent by upgrading your cartridge and paying careful attention to setup. The whole issue of digitizing the phono signal is problematic. The best signal path is nearly always the simplest signal path. If your analog rig was substantially upgraded, I believe the improvements would be negated by the subsequent digital processing. I could be wrong. One area where digital processing could actual help analog playback is in RIAA equalization. I wonder if a digital implementation of the RIAA curves could counter balance the degradation resulting from the A/D process. Good luck!
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