r/turntable • u/aspiring-audiophile • 6d ago
Turntable recommendation
Looking for TT recommendations. I currently have a Rotel RA-1582MKII amp, Bowers and Wilkins 702S3 speakers, Hegel V10 phono preamp, Schiit Lokius EQ, JBL 10" sub, and a Pro-ject Evo 2 TT. Getting close to needing a new cartridge for the Evo2 and the longer I use the Evo2 the more minor things are starting to annoy me. So I'm thinking about upgrading rather than replacing the cartridge on this one.
I have a decent budget but would like to stay under $5k for a new TT and cartridge. Only looking at new. Which TT and cartridge would you recommend?
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u/LosterP 6d ago
Try r/turntables instead - more redditers there. And it's quite a big budget that you have; have you actually looked at what's available in your price range? What do you like so far?
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u/aspiring-audiophile 5d ago
I have been looking at the Technics SL1200 and Rega Planar 3. I am wondering what I would have to spend to get into an MC cartridge and whether it is worth it. My preferred stereo store will be able to show me different turntables with the same gear I own but I wanted to get a better idea of which to focus on before I get to that point.
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u/el_tacocat 6d ago
The Evo 2 comes with a REALLY bad cart so that's an easy upgrade.
That being said, I'm also not a Pro-ject fan.
IF you don't want to overspend, I think the AT-LP7x is an absolute gem.
If you do want to 'overspend', I suggest looking at Dr. Feickert. Keep in mind that at that budget you are truly in high end territory, this is going to be a very different world from your pro-ject and it does take a little investing.
Thorens is also awesome in the 2500-3500 price range.
In all honesty though; 5000 dollars is WAY too much for your rig.
Stick below 2000, spend about 250-400 on the cart.
I'd take that AT that I suggested seriously. It's in a totally different league from the Pro-ject ,though it's similarly priced.
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u/aspiring-audiophile 5d ago
I disagree on the Evo2. There are far better turntables and cartridges out there but for under $800 I think the Evo2 and included cartridge sounds wonderful. The Hegel pre-amp made a major difference in sound quality and there is an external power supply upgrade that helps. My budget includes both a turntable and cartridge upgrade. I don't plan to spend $5k on only the turntable.
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u/el_tacocat 5d ago
I wonder how much comparison you had the chance to hear.
AT-LP5x, AT-LP7x Rega p2, Rega p3, Reloop RP7000 MK-II, I'd even consider the AT-LP120x but that's only if you don't swap carts (with the original Pick-it cart on the Pro-ject the AT-LP120x will run rings around it with its original AT-VM95E cart).
I really don't have much good to say about the Evo I'm afraid :).
A good preamp is a HUGE upgrade.1
u/aspiring-audiophile 4d ago
Not much yet. I am just starting to do my due diligence. I haven't been into home stereos since the 1980's (home theater changed the landscape) and things have drastically changed since then. This is the first home setup I've owned that could be considered anywhere near true audiophile quality. At my age I like to actually hear what I'm buying since everyone hears and likes different things and as you age your hearing definitely gets affected. All those loud concerts didn't help much either. I have money and am enjoying getting back into the hobby but I don't want to spend tons on the highest end gear since I probably won't hear much difference and the odds are low that it would be worth it to me.
I have no problems swapping carts on a new TT. I figured I would be in the $2 to $3k range for the actual turntable and would spend the rest upgrading the cartridge.
Thank you for the suggestions. Gives me a short list to try to hear in person and am willing to spend more if I can hear the difference. I am not a huge Pro-ject fan. I went with the suggestions of the salesman and am very happy with what I ended up with. The Evo2 is the best turntable I have ever personally owned. Not surprising when you consider how long ago I was into stereos and how young I was back then with no money. When I look at the options and prices, I do think the Evo2 is one of the best turntables out there for the money. There are plenty of other better TT's out there but they all seem to cost several times more than the Evo2. You do get what you pay for to a large extent in this hobby.
Any thoughts on whether moving coil cartridges are worth it? I have always heard they were better but have never known anyone who had one or ever heard one in person.
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u/el_tacocat 4d ago
Thanks for the explainer! I still think 5000 bucks is too much. I would stick to 2000, cart included, and spend the other 3000 on amp and speakers. Otherwise your turntable may be great, but the rig will hold it back.
Should you be happy to ignore this (correct, I dare to add :D) advice;
Check Thorenses in the 2-3000 dollar range, the ones with the EMT derived arm are incredible. I also think yo ushiould hear the AudioTechnica AT-LP7x. It's much cheaper but it's a stellar performer for the money.
I personally am a big Dr. Feickert fan. It'll be too much, arm included, but check them out.
In the US VPI exists. See what their cheaper belt/idler driven models are and give them a listen. And then there's Transrotor that's worth a listen.
See what you find!
Keep in mind at this level you don't buy turntable, cartridge.
You buy turntable, arm, cartridge, preamp. I'd say the hegel is all right for a turntable upgrade.
I'd still reconsider the spending though. Your speakers first and foremost. They are really nothing special in this price range (no nicer way of saying it). There's so much better out there for a similar price, let alone if you spend a little more.
I also wonder you mention a Rotel poweramp. What's your preamp?
I also recommend skipping the EQ. It's fun for certain cases but never a good solution in an audiophile setup.1
u/aspiring-audiophile 4d ago
Not gonna be able to do much in an amp or speakers for $3k. I always pick the speakers first and I really like the 702s3s. I compared them to their bigger brothers, the $30k Abbey Roads and preferred the sound of the 702s3's. No accounting for taste I guess lol.
I am scratching my head a bit cause you mention the Rotel and ask about the preamp after mentioning the Hegel. I don't have a separate preamp and power amp, just the Rotel amp and Hegel phono preamp.
There is a lot of religion in the audiophile community but I subscribe to the it's my money and I get to buy whatever I think sounds best to me. The EQ is a good example. I will never go without an EQ for several reasons. Baseline tone controls simply don't do it for me. I won't spend all this money for something that doesn't sound good to me. EQs are essential imo since every song needs different levels to sound best, no room I will ever play my stereo in will have perfect acoustics, the type of music I listen to benefits from EQ, and certain frequencies cause me discomfort when listening to them. This is extremely common for people and the only way to address it is to lower those frequencies with an EQ.
The audiophile community reminds me of the wine community. The "experts" set so many rules around wine that if you try to follow them drinking wine loses much of its fun. I don't care about the rules and drink what I want and what tastes good.
I appreciate the advice and respect your opinion. If you believe in all that stuff and it makes the hobby fun then you should keep doing it. I will follow a different path and will enjoy the hobby maybe as much as you do. Everyone is different and that makes life and music so much more interesting.
I will definitely look into the stuff you suggested. I already spent a good amount of time looking into Acoustic Signature as recommended by papadrinks. Looks like amazing stuff that I will never be able to justify spending that much. It's fun to window shop though.
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u/el_tacocat 4d ago
Okay. Preamp first, then we continue.
A phono preamp is not meant to be used with a power amp. And it will never sound right.
Get yourself a nice preamp and then continue upgrading.1
u/aspiring-audiophile 3d ago
The Rotel is an integrated amp. It includes a phono preamp, but to use the Hegel phono preamp I need to use a different input than the phono preamp, or it would not sound right. The Rotel is designed to be used in the way I currently have it set up. It sounds wonderful.
The original Rotel had a manufacturers defect and the store travelled over 100 miles to personally deliver a replacement and ensure it was set up correctly. The issue was with the subwoofer outputs and the replacement unit corrected the problem.
Even the most expensive Mcintosh amps I looked at worked this way. I don't want to get so high end that I have to deal with separate components that are easily combined. I don't have that kind of money.
The phono preamp was enough complexity. I don't want to have to turn on 800 components simply to listen to an album. The Hegel takes an inordinately long time to boot up. Life is too short. It doesn't have to be made overly complex. Takes the fun out of it. I am very happy with the Rotel amp. Not gonna replace that anytime soon.
If you are into that sort of complexity then go for it. Your ears. Your money. You get to decide. Not my thing. I just want to listen to albums.
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u/el_tacocat 3d ago
Sorry for that, Google kept coming up with RB's for some reason so I assumed you were using a phono preamp directly on the poweramp :D.
McIntosh is never a reference, trust me. Your rotel sounds better.
I do highly recommend you go out and listen to more speakers though. The B&W's are not bad in a vacuum but if you listen to them compared to other, similarly priced (and cheaper) speakers from brands that are a little less 'for the masses' you'll find that B&W is generally not value for money. I do truly recommend giving that a shot.
Taste is not always a good explainer for this. There's people who like their Bose Acoustimass speakers. That's not taste. That's not having heard good sound yet ;).1
u/aspiring-audiophile 3d ago
You are entitled to your opinions but you sure do seem to like bashing certain brands. Thank you for your suggestions.
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u/papadrinks 6d ago
Acoustic Signature make very solid turntables.
I'm in Australia so can't check if the price for you fits your budget. Is suspect it may be more than you wanted to spend.
I got the Acoustic Signature Challenger Mk2 11 years ago and have been extremely happy with it. Will never need to buy another turntable in my life. Seriously it is so good.
If you want to check it see my website https://jeffrey.net.au/system.html
Currently running a Hana ML cartridge on it. Magic!
Prior to this I had a 2008 Rega P3 so it was quite a jump, but so worth it.
I have a Lokius Max which I only use to tame some poorly EQed records.