Turn table

I'd also check out NeedleDoctor. The staff there is very helpful with thoughts and recommendations on gear they have for sale vs what you have.

Best to get a used Denon 47F, and Denon 103 cartridge. $500 should do the trick. Great sound, great value. What is the catch? Well, must find one you can pick up and test before handing over the cash. You will waste your time and money if the seller wants to ship, regardless if they have the original packing materials.

Given the number of records you have, also considering allocating some money for a good recording cleaning machine.

Thanks to all. I appreciate your comments.
Richard

Richard,

It sure sounds like you love music with so much selection both in lp form and cd.
First of all, in my opinion, is you need to settle out a couple of things - 1) is budget and 2) functionality.

What I mean, is a fully manual table okay, or does some automatic features more meet your needs?

I wanted a fully automatic table because of some health reasons. After a lot of research the entry level tables either did not have any of the automatic functions that I wanted or they were quite poorly made.

So I went the direction of buying a vintage table. As one poster suggested you buy a Denon DP 47F, I did purchase a mint 1 owner Denon DP-45F Direct Drive fully automatic table that I then mated with a new Denon DL-301MKII cart. It is a wonderful sounding combination.

These tables can sound and perform amazing. But they can have drawbacks. Like finding parts for them if they begin to loose some of their functions. Also, do you have someone locally that can properly service these tables?

You have lots to consider. Do your homework. Look around at new Hi-Fi dealers for what they offer and maybe look at some used tables too. I don't know where you live but if you live in or near any major city you should't have any problem finding plenty of both, new and used, to look at and compare.

If you want to look at some real nice vintage tables lovingly brought back to life and more take a look at www.vinylnirvana.com. They have some amazing tables there.

Good luck / take your time / and really get what you want.

cat9

If I were you, I would either go for a Rega RP1 or a Continium Caliburn.

If I were to retire soon and enjoy vinyls, I would go for one for mono and one for stereo, assuming at least 20% of the records are monos.
Getting into MC cartridges would make things complicated. I might probably try a turntable with removable shells so that I can easily change a few different cartridges.