2. analog
  3. 1377724163

Upgrade: Turntable or Cartridge?

I currently own an early generation of the Clearaudio Emotion turntable (no CMB, spiked feet, aluminum Satisfy tonearm). My cartridge is a Grado Sonata1 (new version) Reference (High Output). I'm trying to decide if I should upgrade the turntable or the cartridge, and between the two, which would provide the greatest benefit. My phono stage is the PS Audio GCPH, which I've found to perform pretty darn well, and don't think I need to upgrade that at the moment.

I do feel that the Emotion turntable could still handle a cart a good deal more expensive than the Sonata1. To my ears, the table is extremely quiet, with fairly decent speed stability. There are a few convenience things that are annoying, such as the decoupled motor which always ends up sitting against the table and needs to be moved. The location of the switch to turn the power on, and also the exposed belt can get annoying. However, I'm still willing to live with those things if upgrading the cartridge will provide much benefit. In the end, I'm in this for the sound, not the convenience, otherwise I wouldn't have a turntable.

For cartridges, I was considering quite a range: Shelter 501 Mk II, Benz Ace or Glider, Clearaudio Concept MC, Ortofon 2M Black, Dynavector 20X2 or Karat, etc. I'd like to try out a decent MC for once, if I do choose to upgrade the cart. I've had trouble getting rid of inner grove distortion with the Sonata1 and Satisfy tonearm, even after very careful alignment. Maybe they aren't a perfect match?

Any ideas here?

Thanks
jwglista
manitunc
795 posts
 
I have a Clearaudio Performance with a stand alone motor and Satisfy carbon arm. I also have a boat. the boat cost more to buy and maintain. As for the turntable, my motor does not constantly move towards the plinth. somethingn doesnt seem right there, even if the plinth is cut out in the shape of the motor like mine. I use a Clearaudio Maestro Wood and the sound is excellent, clear, detailed and warm bodied. The speed contol is excellent measured with a strobe disc that never varies from dead on.

However, if you dont have everything set up properly, you are wasting your time. You might want to take it apart, and setup the entire table again from scratch. I try to do that every 6 months or so on all my tables, just to be sure. Its too easy to fall into complacency over time. and its not just an adjustment from where it is. I take the arm and cartridge off, and start over as if I was doing it for the first time. Of course, with some tonearms, the hole and mounting screws dont give you much option as to where to mount the arm unless you want to start drilling new holes.

So, try that and see if you can tell any difference. If not, I would try a different cartridge first.
jwglista OP
206 posts
 
Lots of great suggestions and help here, much appreciated.

Regarding the decoupled motor, yes it is quite an annoyance. I don't notice it moving while a record is playing, but it mostly seems to move when I have to press the switch on the side of the motor on or off. I normally check to see if this has happened before I play a record by grabbing the tonearm with my thumb, index, and middle finger; if the motor has moved and is touching the plinth, I can feel vibrations coming into the tonearm. I then move the motor so that it's not touching the plinth at all. The old Clearaudio Emotion has a round "cut out" for the motor to fit into, so it's very easy for it to move just enough for any one point of the motor to make contact with the plinth; not a very good design choice. However, the bearing still seems to work very smoothly. I could probably benefit from a new belt though.

I actually ended up ordering a Dynavector 20x2L, which is being delivered today. I'm excited to put it into place, because now I'll be able to hopefully tell which audible limitations are due to the cartridge and/or turntable. Way back when I upgraded to the Emotion from a Music Hall MMF-5.1 about 4.5 years ago (it came with a Virtuoso cart), I do remember noticing less bass compared to the MMF, but can't recall exactly on the depth or quality of it. However, reading recent reviews of the Clearaudio Concept, they all point out that bass is not a particular strength of the unit. So it might be fair to say that historically, Clearaudio has chosen bass as a design compromise in its lower-priced 'tables.
porto
20 posts
 
If I were in your position I would change first turntable.
Let me explain.
In vain have the best cartridge in the world, if the cartridge can not show exactly what he can do.
The cartridge is the last to be changed.
I see so sequence change: turntable, arm and cartridge
dougdeacon
3,338 posts
 
Jwglista,

If the motor is moving because of a side-mounted on/off switch, which I agree is a poor design choice, try holding the motor down firmly with one hand while operating the switch with the other. Simple fixes for simple problems. :-)

If the motor *still* ends up touching the plinth despite this extra care, odds are the belt tension is pulling it there. A fix might involve any or all of:
- a less slippery surface beneath the motor feet
- less slippery motor feet
- lower tension on the belt
Each of these is likely to have audible effects too, but you must do something to prevent motor vibrations from transferring directly to the plinth and thence into the tonearm and cartridge. That's a guarantee of sonic mud and an excessively high sound floor.

As Manitunc stated, few if any vinyl rigs are set-and-forget devices. Their "convenience" resides mostly in a ready response to incessant tweaking!

Good luck and keep at it!
sballs
23 posts
 
Jwglista

Congrats on the new cartridge. I'm using a karat with the Emotion TT with really nice results. One suggestion, consider the CMB upgrade for the Emotion. For far less than a new table, I found it to be a big jump in perofrmance.

sballs
More to discover