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Pro Ject Debut Carbon improvement possibilities

Good Day All,
In the past couple years I’ve been slowly re-entering the vinyl universe.  My current vinyl set up is a Pro Ject Debut Carbon with an Ortofon 2M Blue cartridge (the turntable came with a 2M Red, the Blue was a marked improvement), a Schiit Mani phono pre, and I also recently changed from the standard issue steel platter to the acrylic one. I’ve noticed a mild improvement with this platter change, most especially in improved bass quality.  I have been using the manufacturer supplied cables to connect to the Mani, and I’m going to scrounge around the house today to see if I have a set of Blue Jean cables to swap in, as I use Blue Jean in the rest of my system.  So that’s the first possible improvement I’ll try. But where to go from there?  I’m consider moving up to the Ortofon Bronze, but what other cartridge choices in that price range should I consider? Will vibrapods be a worthwhile improvement?  They are very affordable, and I’ve heard good things. My stereo rack is substantial, home made with solid steel bar and veneered MDF.  MC instead of MM?  A different phono pre?  I listen to a wide variety of music, but what I’m most enjoying in the vinyl realm are jazz recordings, mostly older in both new and older pressings, and smaller scale classical recordings.  Any suggestions appreciated, I’m still way down on the learning curve regarding vinyl playback. It’s been a long time since I first dropped the JC Penny’s tone arm onto Led Zeppelin II, and things are a lot better now. 

Much thanks,
Dave
dprincipato

Showing 3 responses by bkeske

bkeske's avatar
bkeske
5,597 posts
 
I also re-entered the ‘vinyl world’ after a many many years absence. I had almost the exact set-up (Debut Carbon, acrylic platter, Mani, etc.), but changed the cartridge to a Grado Red as soon as I received it. I also got a separate power supply for the Mani, and installed DynaMat to the underside of the table, also added a little bit to the arm itself. All improvements. It was a good set-up to reintroduce myself to vinyl again, and it worked.

I just sold the Pro-Ject.

To be frank, I don’t think you will get much more out of that table. ‘It is what it is’. Yes, you can get more expensive carts, but there is a limit to what that table can offer for the money spent. Yes, you can keep the cart and move-on, but I would not expect any miracles.

So, I went in a much ‘bigger’ direction, and could not be more pleased. The difference in my new table, arm, and cart is incredible over the Debut Carbon, and I could have never achieved that improvement by trying to tweak it further. And, I’m still using the Mani currently.
bkeske's avatar
bkeske
5,597 posts
 
@dprincipato 

What did you move up to?

An older SOTA Sapphire table, Jelco 850 MK II arm, and Soundsmith Zephyr MK III ES cartridge.

Even still running the Mani, zero comparison.
bkeske's avatar
bkeske
5,597 posts
 
The MoFi Ultradeck would be a great choice, and would definitely provide a much better experience than the Debut Carbon. Almost went in that exact direction myself, but after some consultation per the money to be spent, went the direction I did.
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