I went up the Oracle Dephi chain and ended up at the mk5 but wasn't engaged in music anymore. so i've found a home in music again with a Garrard 301 with a layered Bamboo plinth and Jelco 12" arm. admittedlyI'm still cart hunting but using the Van Den Hull MC 10 low output MC I have had for years and still love it but may move on as its probably not a perfect match for the arm table. but i'm listening to much more music then I have had in years. so i think that says it all.
If this sounds like YOUR Turntable story, please share your final chapter
You had a nice budget ($2k-$4K) table, which you enjoyed for years. It always served up the analog goods, and you always felt as if you were in a good place. However, like many of us, you have audiophilia nervosa. Having succumbed to this mystical force that commanded you to upgrade, you took the leap to the next plateau. You immediately heard the advantages of what your new, well designed table was offering up. It was quieter, music emerged from a blacker background. It had tighter, more articulate bass.....mids were clear, layered, involving, yet organized.... Highs were more extended, filling your listening area with a more believable, 3D presence. You were in awe, for a while! Fast forward to the middle of the story. Even though the table was more substantial, and did many things better than your baby boomer table, you soon realized it appealed more to the brain than your heart. It could tend toward the drier side with many of your go-to vinyl treasures. You ultimately realized that while the new table received more check marks on the audiophile checklist, it was not as engaging on an emotional level. Let me cut to the chase. So you took one or two wrong exits, but you found your way back. In doing so, you once again found that engaging, special something, analog is capable of delivering. Which table brought you back to the analog promise land?