The beauty of the Stella phono pre is that it can serve a wide range of TT setups. Fremers review in stereophile essentially says the Stella outkicks it price point. Really you can’t go wrong starting at a low to mid price point and work your way up if you desire. It is hard to make a bad purchase with the wide swath that the Stella covers.
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In my experience it is the other way around. I am very pleased that my digital is getting so close to the sound of vinyl. So close.
I’m guessing you have a REAAAALLLY NICE phono setup, Al.
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Like others here have already mentioned, don’t leave out quality 70’s and 80’s Japanese direct drive turntables. Most of the higher end ones back then are still going strong today, and are rock solid performers.
Heck, I still have my father’s Technics SL-1700 MKII from 1979 (I was only 4 years old then!), and the only “repair” if you want to call it that was the small belt for the tonearm auto-return that dry rotted and hardened by the late 90’s. A quick trip to the hardware store for a simple 49 cent o-ring of the correct size and it’s been working flawlessly ever since.
One of my brothers has been using it now for the past couple of years without issue after I had my fun with it for nearly 20 years!
Those old Japanese DD turntables were built like tanks and were meant to last.
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I am using a Linn LP12 Sondek with the Stellar. It’s an older table (1985) but semi upgraded-Excellent table and really reliable. I found it on the cheap and rebuilt it. That said, If I could swing a VPI, I would certainly grab one of those suckAs! Also, you need to ask yourself, am I the kinda person that doesn’t mind getting out of my chair to pick up the needle, or require an automatic return. Either way, so many great choices out there.
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Thanks again everyone. As I’ve really thrown myself into the hobby in the last 18 months after being kinda dormant for about 20 yrs, I’m really enjoying learning the finer points, and thanks for those sharing their insights.
I’ve kinda become an audio forum junkie, mostly to just learn as much as I can, and part of what was pushing me to explore vinyl was the sentiment aangen was mentioning that I’ve read about: that if you do the vinyl thing right that it is difficult for digital to approach in sound quality. But I also think the other comments above from terzinator are correct that it is probably easier to get really good digital sound (with less $$ output), and I think I’m already there with my main rig (ARC integrated amp, Spendor D7, REL S/5, Teac NT505, MIT IC, speaker cables, Audio Art power cables).
But there’s always the curiosity that drives for even more engaging sound…I’m gonna proceed cautiously, as recommended above, but intrigued…
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@terzinator makes several great points but the above quote is what I thought needed emphasizing. If you spend $3-4K on electronics, TT, cables, record cleaner, etc., how many records will you need to buy to really get your money out of that investment? Can you buy vinyl that is worth playing on the system you propose? Some of the current vinyl releases are really awful but there are some gems, especially older pressings found in used record stores. If money is no object, then its a moot point. If not, consider the total investment including the vinyl itself and what you think will you get for that outlay. Spend a weekend or two browsing in used record stores to see for yourself. Find an audio club and listen to vinyl on a really good system. Attend an audio show or two (if we ever get out of quarantine).
I’m not trying to talk you out of anything - I like vinyl. But I never would have gotten back into it if I didn’t have over a thousand albums that otherwise would just collect dust in my garage. A lot of memories and music there - much that was never remastered in digital form. And like Chis, I love to read the liner notes. So for me, all that more than made up for the cost of a NuWave phono preamp and Rega P2 TT. But after reading everything you posted, I kept wondering why you wanted to commit yourself so thoroughly before you had any idea you’d even like it.
Good points for sure. It is daunting. And money is def an object, haha, sigh.
If I’m being honest with myself, it is the virtual limitless access that Tidal provides me (vs what I was used to) that is primarily responsible for my awakening from audio dormancy.
But that said, and while I love exploring new genres and artists, there are the 100 or so songs I keep coming back to again and again, luckily some avail in MQA for a nice SQ boost. But if those favorites could be accessed in a format that was better still, hmmm, it’s tempting.
The advice to attend a show is sound. I gotta do that, maybe this fall either axpona or rmaf …
And to the last point, I’m far from being ready to commit. No sir, this just exploratory info gathering. Like I said earlier, it took me 30 serious speaker auditions to settle on the ones for me. I don’t jump into stuff without scoping it out.
It could be that due to potentially prohibitive cost and rabbit holeness of getting system and starting from scratch with vinyl that it’ll have to wait til retirement for me but maybe I’ll at least be able to help my bro with some guidance in a year, who knows??
Yes sir, it’s pretty fancy. When I borrowed the fancy new PS Audio Stellar phono preamp to try it sounded really, really good. Just not as good as the phono preamp built into my Preamp.
Rega RP10, Soundsmith Zephyr MIMC ☆, NBS Universal II Preamp. What is amazing is how quiet the noise floor is. Not much in the skips and pops department either. But I also have one of those insanely expensive LP washing machines.
Vinyl, on the right gear, slays Digital. And these days with all the compression applied to digital music, if you want to enjoy wide dynamic range, vinyl is your only choice. It make no sense, but that is what the music industry is doing.
The Audio Desk Systeme Pro unit? If so, I am also contemplating such a thing. But might wait until we’re on the flip side of the horrible record that’s currently playing. 
“Virus hoax” ?? I hope you were not serious.
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was gonna try to clarify the same thing 
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Please do not go here, seriously or in jest.
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Thank you, Elk. That’s beyond insulting and it has no place here.
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Does Rega tend to be the brand that is most easy to maintain or most “idiot-proof?” It was mentioned above that Rega had features that made cartridge replacement easier if I’m not mistaken.
If you put a Rega cartridge into a Rega turntable, their “three point” mounting system aligns the cartridge for you. No worries about distortion caused by a misaligned cartridge. Put any other manufacturers cartridge (that doesn’t use their 3 point system) into a Rega TT and you must insure the alignment is correct which can be a bit finicky.
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Mea culpa, I was being sarcastic. Thought it would be obvious.
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Ok, that makes sense on Rega cartridge mounting. Do any other brands have similar user friendly features or are they all similar in terms of ease/difficulty in making changes (changing cartridges or other necessary maintenance or adjustments)?
Not sure of other brands having anything similar to Rega’s 3-point mounting system. However, I converged on a Rega purchase after only 6 weeks research (2 years ago) so I may have missed some. From everything I could gather at the time, for a price I could afford, I was getting a TT an order of magnitude better than what I had and that was good enough for me.