I look at the Cartridge/Tonearm/Phono Stage as one unit. They have to be considered as one unit to achieve the best performance. Modern systems are incredibly good compared to what we were using in the 60s and early 70s. The differences in the top systems are incredibly nuanced as compared to the top Speaker/Room systems which can be night or day.
Relative Importance of Analog Components
We see people struggling with what to upgrade next, or where to direct their attention if everything seems to be working fairly well. I'm probably a bit more inclined to give more importance to sources and less to speakers than most people, but in general I like to look at which component is the 'rate-limiting factor' which one holds back the rest and then concentrate on improving that.
But to look specifically at vinyl reproduction, I have the strong impression that out of the four main components, they can be ordered in importance of potential effect on sound like this:
Cartridge
Phono stage
Tonearm
Turntable
I'm sure other people would list those four in a different order. How would you rank them and why?
Showing 3 responses by mijostyn
No argument from me @rauliruegas. There are several turntables of modest cost that can handle any cartridge on the market as long as the tonearm is well designed. Two that come to mind are the Rega RP10 and the Thorens TD 1600. They are not ultimate turntables but certainly 90% of the way there and I can not think of a better value. |
There you go @dogberry, The one thing that can f-ck up a cartridge more than anything else is a bad tonearm. I think there would be less variation between reasonably decent phono stages. However I also believe the most important part of the chain is the Speaker/Room. There can be a vast difference even between set ups that could be considered reasonably high performance. |