I recently started down the turntable rabbit hole with a nice deck and cart and some nice old pressings. But my oladra is more enjoyable and just more engaging with the same tracks. Wondering if/where i might be going wrong
I suspect one would need a analog front end (table, cartridge, tonearm, tonearm cable, phono stage) that is 1x to 2x the retail price of the Oladra to be as engaging. But it would have to be some of the best vinyl pressings with the records cleaned properly and the cartridge perfectly aligned.
I base this on previously owning an analog front end that had a retail price that exceeded my K30.
Interesting! So you got rid of yours?
My decision to sell it happened before I got the K30. I stopped listening to vinyl as often as digital got to the point where it became enjoyable. I found I was only listening to my best pressing. I opted to sell both my analog and digital front ends and then invest the proceeds in a better digital front end. An Innuos Zenith was part of that but it wasnāt until that was replaced with the K30 that I felt I was hearing the tonal weight and density I would hear from vinyl. Having heard the K50 G4 in my system, I suspect it would embarrass my previous analog front end.
The setup I had: VPI Aries 3 with JMW-10.5 tonearm, Lyra Skala stereo and Lyra Helikon mono cartridges, Pass XP-15 phono stage, Nordost Tyr tonearm cable.
Some of the best sound came from older mono records played with that mono cartridge. Jaws would always drop when I played these for guests. I have original UK pressing of the Beatles albums though most not in the best shape because I couldnāt afford better condition. Surface noise was significantly lower with the mono cartridge, which was a huge plus. I think one can still arrive at better sound quality with vinyl from these albums if one has the cash to spend as the source tapes were in much better shape when the earliest masters were stamped. I have a ātop loaderā of the White Album. Side 3 plays in close to mint condition. The tonal colors on āMother Natureās Sonā are mind blowing and I suspect that no amount of money invested in digital can come close because too much has been lost in the tapes used to master the digital versions.
I still have all of my vinyl but only because I have been too lazy to sell it. At one time I thought I might get back into it, but I doubt I will. There are a few albums that I would love to record to digital. I have early UK pressings of two Yes albums that also smoke anything available on digital but there arenāt many that fall into this category.
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sounds like you had an impressive setup. and that its worth pursuing. i expect my system isnāt properly configured so will keep at it. for sure there are magic moments to be had with vinyl which hopefully make it worth the effort. thanks for your inisghts
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I have just have a Rega P10 turntable and a PS Audio Stella phono stage and I get as much enjoyment from my vinyl as I do from my K50. Generally very close in performance overall but both have advantages and disadvantages depending on the recording.
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āJustā a p10 )) Glad you enjoy it anyway. Ill keep trying
I have a Spiral Groove SG 1.2 and Centriod with the Lyra Etna with a Lamm LP2 phono stage and enjoy vinyl when I am in the mood to listen to vinyl. Vinyl sounds a bit more fleshy and digital a bit more articulate. I mainly listen to digital due to the greater selection and convenience. I have the K50 with Aqua Formula HD Dac.
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