All I can say is that I listen to vinyl 95% of the time. I have an above average CD player (Meridian 808) and my turntable just delivers a more natural, more enjoyable sound. AND I get some excersize flipping albums over to hear the second half. I find the 200 gram vinyl to be a good workout.
As for phono stages, It depends as much on the cartridge as the TT. I like the VanguardII (from Trigon). It sells for $595 - it just went up $100. It can be upgraded with a battery power supply. Then there is the Grado phonostage that is very nice with Grado cartridges - a lot of synergy there! If you go for a high end table and cartridge, There ar eplenty of choices - my personal favorites come from Ray Samuels - the XR-2 ($1050) or the mighty X-10b at only $5K. There is the very tubey EAR 834, a nice phonostage from Transrotor for $3K.
Cartridges of note - the Lyra Argo, Shelter 501 II, Grado Sonata. All of these are excellent and a great value. They also sound very good on VPI turntables as well as Transrotors and SOTAs.
It is, in my humble opinion, the best way to become involved with the music. I am a vinyl junkie!
Todd
|