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Equalization for vinyl nirvana

Hi all,

I have a question for the Audiogon and vinyl community: do you think equalization is helpful for getting good results with vinyl playback? I ask because I'm a vinyl newbie. Recently added a nice turntable and phono preamp to my rig and have slowly been collecting the recommended audiophile jazz, blues and rock albums that I like. But with few exceptions, most of the time I'm underwhelmed by the results. Lack of bass and midrange fullness is usually the problem. Sure, I could look for another amplifier, subwoofer, better cables... but I think a simpler, more affordable solution would be to get some Eq in the loop. So I just put an order in for a Schitt Loki+ 4-band equalizer. Figure it's a low-cost way to test the theory. 

Do any of you have similar experiences or related wisdom to share?

I'm also curious about the Sunvalley All Purpose Phono Eq that Herb Reichert loves, that has adjustable eq curves (https://www.stereophile.com/content/gramophone-dreams-42-sunvalley-audio-sv-eq1616d-phono-equalizer), as well as the Decware ZRock2 eq (https://www.decware.com/newsite/ZROCK.html).

Thanks for your help!
Josh
joshindc

Showing 1 response by ghdprentice

ghdprentice
6,425 posts
 
The dominant view in high end audio is “straight wire”, the least amount of electronics for the best sound. Almost no high end audio equipment has any kind of tone controls... because they introduce noice and reduce overall fidelity. I recommend fixing the problem, equalization is a band aid likely to move you further away from good sound.

My rule of thumb is that at any given cost level (mid-FI up) an analog rig will sound better than the digital end. So my Analog end (TT, arm, cartridge, and preamp) cost about $31K... my digital end (streamer plus DAC) cost $41K. The analog end edges out the digital. It would do this (in general for compatible equipment set up correctly) at the $1K component level as well as at the $100K level.
So, having said that. Is the cartridge set up correctly, the phono stage quality is VERY important. What are you comparing it too. What is your other equipment?

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