I would absolutely agree with Elizabeth - your Yamaha, while a competent piece - cannot hold a candle to seperates, especially a seperate dedicated phono preamp. And the preamp, as I have also found out, is indeed the cornerstone of the system. You've got an excellent table and cart for now, and Vandy's are flat out great speakers.
My suggestion? Start with a seperate phono pre, like a Channel Islands VPP-1, which I think is $300 new. It even has an upgrade path - you can get the upgraded power supply later for around 150 clams. This is a great piece, with excellent detail, soundstage and low noise. You can try it into your Yamaha for now, and see if you like the sound. (CI has a 30 day return policy too)
BUT - if you combine that phono pre with a good solid preamp and amp combo, or a good integrated amp, your results wil be startling. Don't know your upgrade budget, but on the low-cost end maybe something used like a Creek 4330R integrated amp, or models by Nad (C 352 is a nice piece), or Rotel, or my all time old favorite Acurus DIA-100 or 150, (sadly no longer made) or any of the nice Musical Fidelity or Arcam stuff, you'll see what your system can really sound like, and the leap in musicality and satisfaction will be HUGE.
Either way, good luck and great listening!
James
My suggestion? Start with a seperate phono pre, like a Channel Islands VPP-1, which I think is $300 new. It even has an upgrade path - you can get the upgraded power supply later for around 150 clams. This is a great piece, with excellent detail, soundstage and low noise. You can try it into your Yamaha for now, and see if you like the sound. (CI has a 30 day return policy too)
BUT - if you combine that phono pre with a good solid preamp and amp combo, or a good integrated amp, your results wil be startling. Don't know your upgrade budget, but on the low-cost end maybe something used like a Creek 4330R integrated amp, or models by Nad (C 352 is a nice piece), or Rotel, or my all time old favorite Acurus DIA-100 or 150, (sadly no longer made) or any of the nice Musical Fidelity or Arcam stuff, you'll see what your system can really sound like, and the leap in musicality and satisfaction will be HUGE.
Either way, good luck and great listening!
James