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Honest question about cartridge vs. turntable performance.

I’ve been a vinyl lover for a few years now and I have an ortofon black cartridge setup with an mmf 5.1 turntable with acrylic platter and speed controller. My question to all the vinyl audiophiles out there is this. How much difference does a turntable really make compared to the cartridge? Will I hear a significant difference if I upgraded my turntable and kept the same cartridge? Isn’t the cartridge 90%+ of the sound from a vinyl setup? Thank you guys in advance for an honest discussion on this topic. 
tubelvr1

Showing 1 response by andrei_nz

andrei_nz
192 posts
 
As an owner of three turntables (all direct drive) I consider the merits are approx:
Turntable 35%
Cartridge 35%
Phono 20%
Tonearm 10%
But these merits are for performance.  There is an overwhelming argument to put your money into the turntable.  It is that you keep your turntable, whereas cartridges wear out.  Not to mention breaking them.  
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