Rega RP8 cartridge?

I've owned the Clearaudio Maestro and Virtuoso, the Ortofon 2M Black, the Soundsmith Zephyr, and most recently the Lyra Delos and Kleos. More detailed reactions are posted here and there in various Forum posts.

The primary reason for me jumping around with the Clearaudio and Ortofon cartridges is because of equipment compatibility issues. I just couldn't get those carts to settle down when mounted on my VPI JMW uni-pivit arm.

The Zephyr is an ok cartdige at its price point and works very well with my VPI arm. I'm holding on to my Zephyr as a backup cartridge.

But the Lyra cartdiges are a whole "nuther" ball game. I tried the Delos and fell in love with it. It mated very well with my VPI arm and it really produced beatiful music. I loved it so much that I jumped to the Kleos. As good as the Delos is, ... and it's very good, the Kleos is even better.

The reason for the long story is to echo Kiko's and DHcod's favorable comments. I think both Lyra cartrdiges are very strong performers at their price points.

Of course I end with the usual caveats. I am reporting on my exeriences and sharing my subjective opinions. Also, one should be mindful that the output voltages of the Lyra cartridges are low'ish: .5 mV in the case of the Kleos; a little higher on the Delos. Also both Lyra are low/medium compliance rated. Tonearm compatibility is important.

At this point, Lyta cartridges are clear winners. Any other sub $2000 contenders [MC].

The Rega apheta is an excellent sounding cartridge, Big dynamics and resolution. Mounts well with the rp8. One of the best with rock and progressive music

The Delos is a very significant upgrade from the Denon, but you will have to raise the arm significantly to accommodate the extra height. As I recall, you may need 3-4 Rega shims. I personally had no problem with that, but some people don't like to change the Rega arm height for some reason. I'm not 100% sure, but I think the Goldring Eroica MC may well work in the Rega without shims or less anyway. It's a very nice cartridge for under $1K, IMO.

I have a Zu 103 on my RP8 with a Groovetracer counterweight. I think that they sound fantastic together. I'm fairly certain that the Zu guys take that combo to most of the shows. That combo would come in well below your budget. It's a great match as long as you have a solid phono preamp.