Turntable Advice Needed

Ocean2059:

Great to hear about your purchase.  I’ve had my setup for about 6 months now and I am blown away by the performance of this turntable. It is so much better than anything else I’ve owned. I’ve had the exact same experience you have; I would much rather hear the vinyl version of most music rather than from CD or streaming. I still want to have those digital options but when I am just sitting down to listen (not doing something else at the same time) I much prefer vinyl. A couple of months ago I switched my integrated amp from the Plinius Hiato (a great amp by the way) to the PrimaLuna Dialogue HP Premium. I really like the tube sound with the Feikert.

Enjoy your new toys!!!

puppyt

Thanks for the recs

I’ve heard others mention the Technics 1200GR. What is the appeal of this turntable? The dealers seem a bit odd: Sweetwater, Crutchfield etc. Not trying to sound snobbish but not what I would have expected.

Thanks very much for these thoughtful recommendations and great advice.

Thanks @nick the knife.  I appreciate your views.  Very helpful

Thanks jtsnead.  I am excited about my purchase and am looking forward to getting everything set up. By the way, I don’t live anywhere near Maryland but I do love crab cakes!

@jimmy225.  Thanks for the recommendation. Two questions. How does the VPI Scout compare to the Mobile Fidelity, Technics or Rega Planar 6 in your opinion. And if I start pushing the budget up a bit, do you have any thoughts on the Rega Planar 8?

thanks Gillatgh,

 A few questions if you don’t mind:

1. How did you decide on the cartridge?
2. What type of music do you listen to?
3. Do you find that the turntable requires a lot of tweaks and adjustments?
Much appreciated!

I appreciate all of the thoughts and comments.  As I continue my research I am realizing I need to up my price point a bit to get a significant improvement over my current setup. I am also coming across some terminology I am not completely familiar with.  What does it mean when someone says a turntable "plays fast"? My literal mind says that is not a good thing as I assume the perfect world has the platter spinning at 33 1/3 rpm.  I'm sure I am wrong though.  Also, what is VTA? Finally as I continue searching I keep coming back to two turntables: the VPI Prime Scout and the Rega Planar 8.  They seem like two ends of the spectrum. The Rega looks strange to me but I care little about looks and more about satisfying sound.

Thanks again.  As always, insights, commentary and thoughts are greatly appreciated.  This forum has been and continues to be a great resource.

puppyt 

gillatgh/bpoletti

Thank you both very much! Exceedingly helpful! I actually had a short discussing with Upscale Saturday evening right before they closed. I will have a more in depth call Monday. Once again, many thanks for advice and help.

I really appreciate all of the great advice.  I have increased by budget to around $5K all in and have narrowed my choices down to the VPI Prime Scout or the Dr. Feickert Volare.  I decided against the Rega Planar 8.  I’ve had nothing but Rega since returning to vinyl but I am ready to try something different.  (I have to admit paying that much for something that unsubstantial looking is a factor albeit a superficial one.) I’m looking at a variety of cartridge and phono stage options including potentially doing a tube phone stage.  I didn’t realize you could do that if you had a solid state integrated but I have been enlightened.  As always I welcome and appreciate any and all comments from this forum.

@jtsnead:

What did you dislike about the VPI?

Once again, I really appreciate everyone's advice and insight.  This forum is an incredible resource.  My motto is never to be the smartest guy in the room and with this forum that is never a concern for me.

I ultimately connected with Kat at Upscale Audio and I can't say enough about the experience.  She educated me and never tried to sell me.  (I had the same experience with Dave Lalin at the Audio Doctor when I bought the Lumin T2 streamer and Innuos server.  I am extremely happy with those choices and with Dave's advice and counsel.)  Anyway Kat and Upscale were very patient and helpful and made the entire experience a pleasure.  Here is what I ultimately chose:

Dr. Feikert Volare
Jelco TK-850S Tonearm
Delos Lyra MC Cartridge
Pro Ject Tube Box DS2 Phono Stage

This was significantly more than my budget but after a lot of research I wanted to make a pretty significant leap and realized each dollar spent doesn't necessarily achieve a dollar of upgrade (anyway that's what I told myself!).  Unfortunately due to some sheetrock work being done in my listening room I haven't unpacked everything and set it up.  I don't want to subject the new members of the family to dust and debris before I even get started.  The wait is killing me but I will report back when it is up and running.

Thanks again for everyone's help.

puppyt

I wanted to follow up on my purchase after having a chance to listen for awhile. Just to reiterate I purchased:

Dr. Feickert Volare
Jelco TK 850-S Tonearm
Delos Lyra MC Cartridge
Pro Ject Tube Box DS2 Phono Stage

To start, I went a fair amount above my original budget.  At the beginning, I didn’t know what I didn’t know.  During my research it became clear that there isn’t a smooth and direct correlation between an additional dollar spent and an equal amount of improved performance received. So I concluded that I needed to spend more than I originally thought to get some really upgraded performance. As it turns out I am really glad I did. The system sounds amazing. I’m not really proficient in all of the audiophile terminology but I am just really impressed with everything. I am hearing instruments and notes that I hadn’t heard before. Playing “Keith Don’t Go” from the Nils Lofgren Acoustic Live album just blew my socks off.  It felt like I was there. For me this is so much better than streaming although I still stream and still play CD’s. I am a believer in embracing all of the formats but I can definitively say that vinyl on this new system is my #1 choice.  It really allows me to just listen to the music which, after all, is the point of the whole thing.

Many thanks to everyone in this forum for their advice and ideas. They were invaluable.  Also, working with Upscale Audio was truly a pleasure. Kat and the rest of the team there know their stuff.