Good, better, best. VPI Classic 1 accessories and upgrades.


The time has come! Here and now. The venerable Thorens VN-150 (Vinyl nirvana gussied up) Is going to be replaced with a VPI classic 1. Vinyl Nirvana, I like that…
The available accessories and upgrades are being bandied about and I'm interested in which ones you more experienced VPI owners would recommend. The HRX center weight and dustcover are on my must-have list with these others as maybes:
HRX ring peripheral weight
HRX feet
SDS
3D tonearm

Look forward to your input and Enjoy the tunes!
budburma
All your inputs are helpful and on the money. After a little more due diligence, I also see that the SDS is likely unnecessary with the new Classic. A fair amount of my record collection is aged nicely (like me!), so the periphery weight seems like a good first step.

The Soundsmith Zephyr looks like a good place to start as a cartridge.

The 3D arm is definitley pricey, but may be worth the price. What are the improvements/differences you hear with it?

I recently sold my extra EdenSound BearPaws, but think that a wall mounted myrtlewood shelf will provide good isolation....
Zephyr is high output so best matched w/moving magnet phono input. If your Klyne expects lower output moving coil cart, could be trouble. Klyne makes great phono stages so I'm sure you'll be happy and be able to hear the subltler changes you're contemplating. Cheers,

Spencer
I've had a Classic since 2010 and never had the inclination to change decks, which is really rare for me. I had an Aries back in the day and hated it. I only bought the Classic after being disappointed with Sota and Mitchell tables. The Classic had all of this great word of mouth, so I tried it, and have never even thought about changing it since. It's been wonderful.

The only issue I've ever had, is due to the placement of the motor it requires a well shielded cartridge. But the Soundsmith VPI Zephyr has been amazing since the day I put that on.

Accessories that I've tried:

SDS - No change in sound at all. I have an APC S15 power filter/battery backup that works great and I think that gives me very good power. I used a couple of PS Audio products that were good as well. I sold this after trying it out for a month with not change in sound at all.

Center weight - they are all about the same, I have an off brand one now, I don't remember the name. It's exactly the same to my ear as the VPI center weight (which I bought with the turntable). I sold the VPI version, kept the current one that I used with an older table.

VPI Periphery Ring - an absolute must. Great items worth it's weight in gold sound-wise.

Gingko Isolation Platform - I've used these with every table since I first tried one. It makes a huge difference in sound.
I have an ET 2.5 arm on mine with 4 Stillpoint ultra 5's for feet. They are also using isoclean points.

The sound that comes out of this tables has stopped me from thinking about upgrading.

Tim
Now I really wish I hadn't sold off my Eden Brass!! I think that the SDS is scrubbed given the speed stability and the new table's even improved stability. The periphery ring, center weight and good isolation look like the triumvirate. A new arm maybe down the road....that ET looks pretty insane, flying in the "classic" face in a good kind of retro industrial precision way. And, some cartridge experiments to have some fun with along the way. I'll post follow ups as it comes together.....MUCHOS GRACIAS AMIGOS!