[188479]

Hello All:
 
Looking to get back into records after a long time away.  I gave the nice folks at Needle Doctor a budget of $2500 for a turntable, cartridge & preamp.  What they came up with was the Music Hall MMF 7.1 with mojo cartridge and the Musical Surroundings Phonomea 2 preamp.  It will be used as a source for my newly ordered Woo WA6-SE driving a pair of T1's.  So I did a little research and it seems like a good match.  My question to all of you...would you do anything different?  If I could stretch the budget another 500 or 750 would it make a difference?  And then as a part 2 to my question, what accessories do I really need?  I purchased a Spin Clean system and a Sure tracking gage.  I'm thinking that I also need a carbon fiber brush and something to clean the stylus...any brand recommendations on these items?  Anything else that would be a must have or a nice to have?

 

[Baxide]

That is a big budget! Have you considered tipping your toes in the water first before jumping in the pool? I would have grabbed a cheaper but good TT from the 70's off ebay and made sure that I wanted to splash out a lot more afterwards.
 

 

[188479]

Quote:

That is a big budget! Have you considered tipping your toes in the water first before jumping in the pool? I would have grabbed a cheaper but good TT from the 70's off ebay and made sure that I wanted to splash out a lot more afterwards.
 

 
That's a fair question, but a good friend of mine has a VPI Classic 3 that I have been listening to for a while.  Can't go that rich, but I'm convinced that I'm an analog kind of person.  He also has an AR XB turntable that he saved all of these years, when we put that into his system the difference between it and the VPI was not subtle.  That being said, looking for something mid range that I can enjoy for a while!

 

[Stevtt]

Can't say much about the stage or cartridge but I am very happy with my 7.1. When I do change the cartridge I'm leaning toward a Grado sonata

 

[silwen]

You should be fine. Don't worry about the budget possibly being high, if you have listened to it enough and like it I am sure it will be good for you. My first TT was the Rega P7. No regrets there.
As for the cleaning goods, don't forget a stylus brush. I think ClearAudio sells a little box with all the basic necessities for cleaning. Look it up and see what else you think you need/want. 

 

[colinharding]

I would seriously consider a ClearAudio table with that budget.  The music hall tables are ok, better than VPI IMO, but both are quite subpar when considering a ClearAudio.  If you want a vintage table take a look at a Thorens TD-124 and grab an Ortofon arm for it, that table will outperform most of the Clearaudio tables right out of the box.  With your WA6SE I would lean toward the Thorens as it will be a rich musical table that will balance out the signature of the Woo.  

 

[188479]

So I looked at the ClearAudio table. L?ooks like only the Concept would be in my price range. Do we think that the Concept would be a better choice then the 7.1?

 

[colinharding]

Definitely!  That table has just been redesigned and is absolutely wonderful sounding.  This will give you a very nice description of what it sounds like.  I used to have one that I replaced with a higher end model and then a TD-124.  Also had a MMF 5.1 a while back and was not a fan, quite dry sounding when compared to the rich analogue character of the clearaudio.  

 

[Greyson]

There's also the fact that changing between 33/45rpm on the 7.1 requires removing the belt and changing the pulley. The Concept has 33/45/78rpm automatic switching.
 
May or may not be a problem. I have lots of 33's and 45's so I switch between the two speeds often.