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Turntable versus tonearm versus cartridge: which is MOST important?

Before someone chimes in with the obvious "everything is important" retort, what I'm really wondering about is the relative significance of each.

So, which would sound better:

A state of the art $10K cartridge on a $500 table/arm or a good $500 cartridge on a $10K table/arm?

Assume good enough amplification to maximize either set up.

My hunch is cartridge is most critical, but not sure to what extent.

Thanks.


bobbydd

Showing 1 response by ihcho

ihcho's avatar
ihcho
612 posts
 
$10K cartridge and $500 turntable/arm is a total nonsense, but 10K turntable/arm and $500 cartridge is not too much of nonsense. I can imagine people using Denon D103r or AT150mlx (about $500 MC and MM cartridges) on their 10K turntable/arm. So, the latter approach makes much more sense.
Probably $10K turntable/arm and $50 cartridge is as much nonsense as the former.  
Having said that, IMHO, getting near perfect match of turntable, arm, cartridge, and plinth is extremely hard for novices (myself included) if purchased separately. If you are a DIY type of person, it will be fun to play around, but it will still take lots of time/money/effort to make it right.

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