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Does a record player make that much of a difference??

Question for all you Audionerds - in your experience, how much of a difference does one record player make over the next compared with the differences that a cartridge, phone pre-amp, and separate head amp make in the signal chain?

Reason I ask: I just upgraded from a MM cart to a MC cart (Dynavector 20x2-low output). Huge difference - the Dynavector sounds much more alive and detailed compared with the MM. I find my current record player (a Marantz TT16) to be a real pain to work with - I have to manually move the belt on the motor hub to change speeds, and the arm is not very adjustable or easy to do so. But, aside from that, it's not terrible. How much of a difference can I really expect if I upgrade to a better record spinner vs the change I heard from upgrading to a better cart? 

My next acquisition is a separate head amp to feed the phono stage.

Thanks for all your insights!

Josh

joshindc

Showing 2 responses by simonmoon

simonmoon's avatar
simonmoon
484 posts
 

The phono cartridge, and the phono stage may make the most sonic difference, but the TT is more important.

If the TT is not doing its job correctly (spinning at the correct speed, suppressing airborne and vibrational noise, ’sinking’ record and motor noise through the platter and plinth, etc. It won’t matter how good your cartridge and phono stage are.

And of course, the better the rest of the system is (amps, preamp, speakers, etc) the more noticeable improvements in the TT will become.

simonmoon's avatar
simonmoon
484 posts
 

Let me add, that last year, my rich audiophile cousin upgraded his TT from a Clear Audio Ovation, to a Kronos Pro, using the same arm, cartridge, phono stage. 

And there was most certainly a substantial improvement.

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