Direct button and question on phono pre-amp

It has taken me 10 years of owning a Pioneer VSX 2014i receiver to discover the joys of the direct button. I also set my Blu-Ray/CD/DVD player to pass thru, got rid of the DRC and hey presto those Velvet Underground & Nico and Kleiber Beethoven 5 Blu Ray discs suddenly sounds amazing.

I also own a Goldring Lenco GL75 turntable linked to my amplifier by a cheap Cambridge Audio phono pre-amp. Now I have found the direct button should I consider upgrading my phono pre-amp? If so any suggestions?

I listen to quite a few Analogue Production and ORG reissues and just wonder whether a better phono pre-amp will make a huge difference?

Any thoughts welcome!

 

I would say go for it! I do not have any specific recommendation, but maybe just $150.00-$200.00 invested in a better phono amp should improve the soundstage, just overall a more open presentation. Also make sure your connections are clean, and observe the capacitance that's recommended for your cartridge. The cartridge/ stylus can also be upgraded as the budget allows.

 

Thanks for the info about capacitance. Something else to learn!

My cartridge is a Shure M75 ED Type 2 which I see from a Shure guide says it has capacitance of between 400-500 per channel.

My current phono is a Cambridge Audio Azur 540p which I believe to have capacitance of 240. The sound is pretty good especially as it only cost £40-50 but was wondering whether spending more will make a marked difference.

 

Just FYI, your Azur unit has been well reviewed. You'd probably need to spend 4x what you paid for it to get something "better". You might think about a new stylus for your M75; not expensive and easy to do. Here is some discussion on the topic:
http://www.audiokarma.org/forums/showthread.php?t=250354

 

Do we know for a fact that AVR's pass the analog signal directly by using the Direct/Pure mode?, Just a curious question , Beautiful reciever Irwin by the way