TT quandary

What can you do to upgrade?  You have a great rig with a great tonearm.  The mk4 is pretty nice.  Can you afford to buy a prime and compare side by side?  Get a nicer phono amp?

I have a mk4 but just with a Jelco 250st arm, upgrading the tonearm would be my upgrade.

I would stay with the Moerch vs a VPI arm imho. 

What phono pre are you running?

Well. Yes, probably a significant upgrade. I owned a VPI Aries for twenty years.  It is going to sound different. I would also look at your phono stage. My turn tables out performed my phono stage until I got an Audio Research PH8 about 15 years ago. 
 

Phono stage is Aesthetix Janus preamp. It’s phono stage has got good reviews but I have thought about a separate phono preamp or maybe an upgrade to my cartridge. It’s a Micro Benz glider about 24 years old but it was unused for 22. Pretty sure it’s MC

What exactly do you think you can improve by changing the TT. Frankly if I were starting new I doubt that I would have chosen a VPI, but that said its more of a different choice in design - there is nothing wrong with your VPI that will IMHO audibly improve by 'upgrading'. It gets the job done! Now selection of tone arm/cartridge and phono stage is a potentially big change and is subject to tonal preferences. Especially phono pre and cartridge. (BTW I liked the Glider a lot when I did vinyl. Excellent. That line stylus properly set up is hard to beat, and, especially if its a low output model, the signal it puts out, I think represents what MC cartridges and tubes are all about. Figure out exactly what about your present sound you want to improve and work toward that goal. BTW, I don't know much about your arm, but my choice was based on on the simplicity involved in using it, like VTA on the fly, VTF using a threaded weight with an accurate scale.  Have fun...:-) 

TT was set up and purchase from Audio Connection/John Rutan in the 90s. It is really good but I wonder if a new bearing from the newer VPI tables would help. The reviews I’ve read the platter I have is second only to the super platter. Maybe getting the cartridge re-tipped? In any event I thing I’ll pass on the Prime and upgrade what I’ve got now
 

from all the feedback here I think the phono pre might be worth looking into.   Anyone have suggestions on what might work well with my setup?  I see a vote for AR.   Thanks 

 

Upgrade the arm on your HW19 will yield the greatest improvement.  If you decide to go with the Prime TT, look at getting the vpi gimbal tonearm over the uni-pivot. 

Sorry but many yrs back owned VPI and their tonearm. Table was OK but arms not so much. Things like a used Triplanar or just about any Kuzma will be superior to any VPI arm IMHO. More adjustable and will sound wonderful.