Ok,
Interesting reading. Guess I will just have to put in my 2 cents for what ever it is worth.
1: The Project RM-5 is belt driven per the owners manual.
I own a Project RM-4 very easy to setup with the right tools. I use a Sumiko Blue Point Cartridge. This combination is shall we say IMHO very good for the cost. $499.00 for the table and $250.00 for the cartridge.
Although I have listened to other tables thay have not been in my system therefore I can only compair to my digital front end. A friend of mine says I would have to spend considerably more on my vinyl front end to better my digital front end.
At this stage I would consider it a tossup between the two. Now this is a $750.00 vinyl set up aginst a $5000.00 digital setup (Theta Data Basic II transport, SR digital coridor phase II active digital IC, MF Tri-Vista tube dac). I run SR Kalidiscope phase I active between the digital front end and the vinyl front end.
I am very pleased with the tone and sonics that I get from either front end. The seperation in the sound stage is execelent with both.
The setup of the table and cart is critical. In moving my table my VTF got knocked out of whack. I had to go to the dealer and borrow a VTF gague to get it right again. The result of to light of a tracking force in my case was week bass and an overly bright tone. Once the VTF was re-adjusted to a heavier tracking force within the recomended cartridge range the tone is much better and smoother.
The last piece of the puzzle is the phono pre. I use the internal phone pre in my integrated.
Could I achieve better sonics and tone with a dedicated pre probably but not without the cost factor of the pre and cables.
Interesting reading. Guess I will just have to put in my 2 cents for what ever it is worth.
1: The Project RM-5 is belt driven per the owners manual.
I own a Project RM-4 very easy to setup with the right tools. I use a Sumiko Blue Point Cartridge. This combination is shall we say IMHO very good for the cost. $499.00 for the table and $250.00 for the cartridge.
Although I have listened to other tables thay have not been in my system therefore I can only compair to my digital front end. A friend of mine says I would have to spend considerably more on my vinyl front end to better my digital front end.
At this stage I would consider it a tossup between the two. Now this is a $750.00 vinyl set up aginst a $5000.00 digital setup (Theta Data Basic II transport, SR digital coridor phase II active digital IC, MF Tri-Vista tube dac). I run SR Kalidiscope phase I active between the digital front end and the vinyl front end.
I am very pleased with the tone and sonics that I get from either front end. The seperation in the sound stage is execelent with both.
The setup of the table and cart is critical. In moving my table my VTF got knocked out of whack. I had to go to the dealer and borrow a VTF gague to get it right again. The result of to light of a tracking force in my case was week bass and an overly bright tone. Once the VTF was re-adjusted to a heavier tracking force within the recomended cartridge range the tone is much better and smoother.
The last piece of the puzzle is the phono pre. I use the internal phone pre in my integrated.
Could I achieve better sonics and tone with a dedicated pre probably but not without the cost factor of the pre and cables.