I would suggest to you that in an analog audio system the most crucial is where the translations occur. The cartridge translates the record groove into an electrical signal and the speaker translates the electrical signal into the wiggling air molecules that we hear as sound. But just as the performance of the speaker depends on the interaction with the listening room, so does the performance of the cartridge depend on the interaction with tonearm and turntable. They are the 'environments' in which the transducers need to operate, so in a sense the turntable/tonearm is the cartridge's room.
If these environments are not capable of eliminating the most intrusive audible interferences (noisy bearings and motor instability with tonearm/turntable platform, standing waves and other acoustic anomalies in a room, etc.) these transducers will never reach their full potential.
So a high quality turntable/tonearm platform that largely eliminates these intrusions is where you should start, but in today's niche market this usually costs big money. But if you're prepared to look back in time you will discover that most of these problems were already dealt with pretty succesfully in the 20th century, when analog playback was still the dominant music playback source. No need to spend 10k, as $1500 for a solid 80's turntable and another $1500 for a really good vintage tonearm will provide you with the largely non intrusive platform that is required to take full benefit of the best cartridges. This is when tonearm/cartridge synergy will start to make sense and you will discover that certain combinations will sing beyond your wildest expectations, to a certain extend even regardless of the cartridge cost. This is where the fun really begins.
However, be aware that such a quality platform will not magically make a budget cartridge sound like a top level one. I know there are people who believe a Denon DL103 is all they need, but you know what they say about polishing a turd.....
If these environments are not capable of eliminating the most intrusive audible interferences (noisy bearings and motor instability with tonearm/turntable platform, standing waves and other acoustic anomalies in a room, etc.) these transducers will never reach their full potential.
So a high quality turntable/tonearm platform that largely eliminates these intrusions is where you should start, but in today's niche market this usually costs big money. But if you're prepared to look back in time you will discover that most of these problems were already dealt with pretty succesfully in the 20th century, when analog playback was still the dominant music playback source. No need to spend 10k, as $1500 for a solid 80's turntable and another $1500 for a really good vintage tonearm will provide you with the largely non intrusive platform that is required to take full benefit of the best cartridges. This is when tonearm/cartridge synergy will start to make sense and you will discover that certain combinations will sing beyond your wildest expectations, to a certain extend even regardless of the cartridge cost. This is where the fun really begins.
However, be aware that such a quality platform will not magically make a budget cartridge sound like a top level one. I know there are people who believe a Denon DL103 is all they need, but you know what they say about polishing a turd.....