Advice for a new analog system

@blisshifi Your assessment is seemingly available as a result of your first hand experiences of the devices. Your evaluation is that there is Sound being produced that has been not so impressive and impressive, there is a better experience to be found across devices for you at a closely shared price point, and even more, if the Value of a Particular Brands Device, that already impressed, is from a Model more expensive in the range.

I have experienced this on a few occasions whilst at  Phonostage Bake Off, where similar cost items are compared, there are Models that stand out as being much more impressive than another. A phon' that has won the most favour is moved onto the next increased in Value Demonstrations, it is surprising how certain more expensive models can leave a Phon' that has impressed sound quite wanting and not so attractive. Only experiencing these types of demonstrations and making ones own assessments, will there be a better understanding produced.  

It is this type of encounter that is being encouraged to the OP, to experience and process a evaluation and assessment.

Hopefully whilst doing the footwork, a discovery of a Presentation is met, that is satisfying and one wanted to be maintained or be built on.

Recommendations are immediate, but they are not encounters in a audible sense, where the end user has their chance to experience how a device impacts on them.  

Gold Note Mediterraneo with their phono stage and power supply.....

@pindac 100% agree. Unfortunately for us audiophiles, direct experience is unavailable for many brands and units, and most have to rely on the assessments and recommendations of others. As citizens of this community, it is in our best interest to be as helpful to each other as we can, and that is the intent of these discussions. But I agree, there is no better way to land on a decision other than hearing a component in your room and in your system.

@blisshifi The Holy Grail is today the Home Demo' in the Room used for the Set Up.

The next best is to have the demo' in Home where the Set Up and Room are familiar, and some of the Systems devices have been used in your own system.

There is enough on offer to get an extremely good feel for the Sonic of the device under the knife. 

Maybe you don't know that the top 6 tubes on the c1000 are part of an excellent built in phono stage: With whatever TT you choose, you might want to try that 1st before sinking $ into an external phono preamp. As far as choosing TT, You have to go listen. I use a Technics SL1210G with an Ortophon 2m Black with great results and no itch to add another preamp in the mix. If you do decide on adding a preamp, I would think that would consider the 1100 matching phono preamp. It would have been designed by the same design team that worked on C1100. Thus, keeping the true McIntosh sound from source to speakers.

@ftrot 

How important is having multiple arms on a turntable?  This would help narrow suggestions.

There is nothing wrong with VPI products - they are no worse than other turntables. I suspect Agoners who are not fond of VPI is a matter of preference for other brand/model turntable rather than something defective in the design, or they dislike the amount of the cost. 

VPI has been around for a long time and I expect will continue to be around with young Matt Weisfeld taking over the VPI business from his founding father Harry.  VPI generally are high mass simple straightforward designs.  VPI turntables, usually a recent turntable model like the HW40 or Avenger, are commonly found in audio shows systems like AXPONA.

The VPI Avenger Direct offers a top high mass platter, option for up to 3 tonearms, and one of the very best speed accuracy turntables.

I have a VPI Avenger Rim drive.  Although VPI arms are are a fair value at their price points, I opted to get a Kuzma 4point and a Schroeder CB-L.  

@jb1 Yes I am aware of the phono preamp built into the C1100, in fact my local dealer has loaned me a VPI Prime 21 turntable plugged directly into it while I decide on the purchase. I hope to be able to listen to it early next week once the room setup is complete (I'm changing rooms), maybe I will have a chance to listen to it with the CJ phono preamp and compare. I will keep you posted, thank you very much.​​​​​​

You may want to check out the Luxman EQ-500 phono stage. 

I honestly don't understand (I don't argue it, just don't see it) the big difference between a 2K turntable and and the more (way more) expensive ones. I had to replace a part the manufacturer sent me and got to find out - yes that's how little I knew - how freaking simple a turntable is. And I am aware of my ignorance, I am not an engineer, but still, how hard is it with decades of manufacturing background to spin a plate at a steady speed and make a balanced arm? The mystery to me is the cartridge, a tiny pin, picking up all that data and sending it down without any data loss to the amp. Yes, I can imagine, those are tricky, but they have been perfected too for a 100+ years now. So all in all, how much better is the sound with the super expensive ones?

I honestly don't understand (I don't argue it, just don't see it) the big difference between a 2K turntable and and the more (way more) expensive ones.

 

@grislybutter

it’s not a “big difference”, but there is sonic improvements.  Whether this sonic improvements is worth spending $ on is totally subjective.  

@kennyc right. Let's say Rega P6 and P10.

The quality difference between the sound of those must be substantial.

I also give credit for looks and reliability, ease of use, user experience  

Dear @blisshifi : Yes, the Stellar is designed inside a market price-point but performs at way higher level and no can’t outperforms the 810. My experiences is that the PS Audio unit has very low noise , maybe something around " disturb " it.

However even at ist bargain price is very good option for the OP and been so inexpensive could be a good test for him around the other units in his analog rig he choosed.

I think that the Stellar si so good that any audiophile must has to gives a listen when has the opportunity.

One higligth of what Fremer posted:

""" At home, using the Ortofon Anna Diamond cartridge on the SAT arm, the result was sensational and fully corroborated Myers’s claim that his design was "innately transparent and present(s) the music with a correct display of tonal balance." It did that and more. The brass on the Bruckner was equally glorious, sacrificing none of its "bite" in service of string tone. """

That cartridge has a price tag over 4 times the Stellar unit and that tonearm is around 55K. He tested too with His Continnum Caliburn and the Air Force with the top Graham tonearm and the whole comparisons/tests were against the Swiss CH P1/X1 phono stage ( over 2 times ther SimsAudio price tag. )

So, we are not talking here of " penauts " but very serious quality level performance of the humble Stellar.

R.

R

" that tonearm is around 55K"

not a typo, right?

Dear @grislybutter  : That's the price for the 9" tonearm and for the 12" is around 70K.

R.

@rauliruegas thanks! That's awesome. 

Sounds like for tonearm/inch, the 12" is a significantly better deal.

I will start saving for the 36" one