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Bottleneck

J

jofo

New Member
Hi fellow vinyl-nerds!

I had an very unpleasant discovery my vinyl rig sounded worse then my digital setup :'(

So i naturally started thinking about a new cartridge and/or a new turntable and ultimately a separate phono preamp.

It turned out that it was my battery driven TC 750 phono preamp who was the culprit. Everything sounded compressed and there was no separation between instruments and so on...

I remembered that stereophile raved about my Marantz PM 5004 and it's built in phono preamp, you can read about it here: http://bit.ly/2cfIfc7

So i ditched my TC 750 and plugged my Rega RP1 into the Marantz and now it bettered my digital setup (but not by much).

Still this got me thinking how much i would have to spend (and what gear) to get an even better sounding phono preamp. I don't want to side step i wan't a real upgrade but i'm kind of poor (read; a wife with no audiophile understanding).

As for the cartridge when will my RP1 be bottlecking, would i get everything out of a Ortofon 2M black? (having a Red now). I will problebly just upgrade the stylus to a Blue one for around 200 dollar.

Sorry for the lengthy post and the poor language, i'm from Sweden. But hey this is my first post here so i guess it can only get better ;)
 
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Would a Dual 1019 be an upgrade if it's in a good working condition? I can score it for around 200 dollar.

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Grbluen said:
Welcome to AK! Tell us about your alignment.
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Well thanks! I don't remember which one I choosed but i downloaded one from vinylengine. But I also tried a protractor that Ortofon sent with a cartridge.

I think it sounds good but I'm sure I can get more from my system. Don't want to tweak to much with my RP1 though cause I think I'll be better off buying a new rig instead cause all those tweaks seams pricey.

What do you think?
 
jofo said:
Would a Dual 1019 be an upgrade if it's in a good working condition? I can score it for around 200 dollar.

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Hi, welcome to AK!

I regret I have nothing to offer to help resolve your problem, but I have to say that's a fantastic looking cabinet on that Dual.
 
Be careful ! You won't be able to better your digital setup, assuming you're using CD or Uncompressed files, it doesn't work like that. You can however, get close, but to do so costs plenty - new turntable, tonearm, MC cartridge etc

Basically, if you're happy with the sound, stop there.

To answer your other question, no, the Dual won't help, you need to think LP12 or better.
 
I think you should sell the TC-750, if only to show your wife that you're not collecting junk! ;)

Congratulations for comparing and hearing the difference. I think Marantz has some damn decent stuff these days.

Rather than tweak your turntable, or try for two-in-a-row with another phono preamp, I would try a cartridge change next. By reputation, the one I would try on a budget is the Denon DL-110.
 
grottyash said:
Be careful ! You won't be able to better your digital setup, assuming you're using CD or Uncompressed files, it doesn't work like that. You can however, get close, but to do so costs plenty - new turntable, tonearm, MC cartridge etc

Basically, if you're happy with the sound, stop there.

To answer your other question, no, the Dual won't help, you need to think LP12 or better.
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Can we agree to disagree :) I think it's down to taste, digital vs analog. I would sure love to have a LP12 though and a fancy MC cartridge as well.

I read that a lot of AK members hold that Dual as one of the best Dual's.

Anyhow thank you for your answer!
 
sqlsavior said:
I think you should sell the TC-750, if only to show your wife that you're not collecting junk! ;)

Congratulations for comparing and hearing the difference. I think Marantz has some damn decent stuff these days.

Rather than tweak your turntable, or try for two-in-a-row with another phono preamp, I would try a cartridge change next. By reputation, the one I would try on a budget is the Denon DL-110.
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Yes it's going away! And it's not hard to hear the difference between the TC-750 and the Marantz, I can't get why it's been regarded so high. I think that most vintage revivers will better it.

I have been very interested in a Denon cart but i think my arm is to light for it. So for now the Ortofon 2M seams to fit my turntable better.

I would love to get more recommendations though!

Thanks for your thought's!
 
Well i've haven't got the opportunity to listen to the cartridges above but this site http://bit.ly/2cvqK9Y suggest that the Blue will suit my taste best and they compared it to the 440 and some others and favored it over them. Plus i only need to buy the stylus. Well will see. Anyhow happy for you guys recommendations!
 
Vista Audio makes $299 phono stage that is fully flexible to adjust gain and load for all cartridges (MM/MI LOMC, HOMC). It's a very simple and nice piece of gear. Sounds excellent.


You want vinyl to sound like vinyl, different than CD? My tastes would take me away from Ortofon Blue and to maybe a Nagaoka MP 200, or an older Grado cartridge body with 8MZ or MCZ stylus upgrades. I think that each one is a step further in the reproduction of the warm vinyl sound (which includes deep bass and lush mids).
 
bobins08 said:
Vista Audio makes $299 phono stage that is fully flexible to adjust gain and load for all cartridges (MM/MI LOMC, HOMC). It's a very simple and nice piece of gear. Sounds excellent.


You want vinyl to sound like vinyl, different than CD? My tastes would take me away from Ortofon Blue and to maybe a Nagaoka MP 200, or an older Grado cartridge body with 8MZ or MCZ stylus upgrades. I think that each one is a step further in the reproduction of the warm vinyl sound (which includes deep bass and lush mids).
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Will definitely check that RIAA! NO i don't want it to sound like CD but i do want it to sound better as I know it can!

I've always been interested in the Nagoakas as I've heard some of them seems nice with not so much surface noise. Would be nice with a comparison of those two.
 
I'd take a Denon DL-110 over anything else in that $150 - $300 price range, AT, Ortofon, Nagaoka, Grado, whatever. Hands down, no questions.

If you listened to them side by side, you'd get why I make this recommendation as strongly as I do.
 
bangsezmax said:
I'd take a Denon DL-110 over anything else in that $150 - $300 price range, AT, Ortofon, Nagaoka, Grado, whatever. Hands down, no questions.

If you listened to them side by side, you'd get why I make this recommendation as strongly as I do.
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Isn't it made for heavier arms? Or is that only DL-103? I think I need to make a poll for what cartridge to use with my Rega RP1 :) Btw have you heard the Ortofon 2M blue?
 
DL-103 is an LOMC made for old broadcast (heavier) arms. An awesome, rock-solid cart in its own right in the proper setup.

I've heard the Blue. It sounds just like what you'd expect from an Ortofon in that price range -- smoother than the Red, somewhat clinical, kinda boring, some brittleness in the top end. Meh. You can get more emotion out of the grooves using a Shure M91 and an aftermarket stylus than you can with a Blue.

The DL-110 is an HOMC. No special arms, SUTs, or fancy phono stages needed. Silky highs, full bass, beautifully wide stereo soundstage. They cannot be topped for "wow" factor in this price range. Listening to it would prove it to you.

Every customer -- without fail -- who has heard one in my shop has wanted one. If they could afford it, they bought it.
 
bangsezmax said:
I'd take a Denon DL-110 over anything else in that $150 - $300 price range, AT, Ortofon, Nagaoka, Grado, whatever. Hands down, no questions.

If you listened to them side by side, you'd get why I make this recommendation as strongly as I do.
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I have listened to the DL 110 side by side with the others I recommended. I have three of them. It is great for the money but not the end all in sound. The 110 is nicely balanced but to me a bit lean in the middle. Since the 110 was already recommended I did not mention it but yes, it is quite good. If the op likes a fuller mid range and mid bass then my other recommendations will be better.

So much depends on the rest of the system, personal taste, and how you hear.
 
bobins08 said:
If the op likes a fuller mid range and mid bass then my other recommendations will be better.
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This is the thing I don't "get" in terms of Grados. They are the only cartridge maker that bumps the mids like they do, so either they sound wrong or everything else does. So yeah, if you're listening to Grado regularly, the Denon (and most everything else) will sound lean in the mids.

So much depends on the rest of the system, personal taste, and how you hear.
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This is, of course, what it's all about.
 
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