In Search of Warmth...

I had a noisy phono that I fixed by running a second ground wire.

 

I tried that, in addition to grounding to earth....No dice

 

I think you are on the right track listening to other speakers in your room. I am looking forward to hearing your impressions. Best of luck.

 

Tekton Lore:

These seem to have a more balanced sound than what you currently have, which will work better in your space.

 

Thanks for the videos, i’m going to order a pair of Lores with the upgrades. I also just ordered a Lounge LCR tube phono stage, should take about a month to get. Then to top it off, i’m about to pull the trigger on a Vinyl Nirvana Thorens repro.

 

You'll love the Lores. I have a pair of upgraded M-Lores and love them. Eric will treat you right.

If you go for a VN Thorens (Dave does great work) you'd best consult him about whether or not your listening environment can handle a suspended table like a Thorens. They can be very sensitive to footfalls, as I learned when I found that my TD-160 was not useable in my new room with its suspended hardwood floor. It now sits unused in its box on a shelf in my garage. Both my Garrard 301 and my VPI Traveler are unaffected when placed in the exact same place! Dave will give you a straight answer.

 

Thanks, I am going to inquire before I buy. The floor that the table will be only is a concrete slab

 

F.Y.I. I have a Vinyl Nirvana, vintage and restored Thorens TD-160 Super with a Rega/Moth RB-202 tonearm, with a upgraded Cardas phono interconnect wiring harness. I am using a Ortofon 2M Bronze & Black cartridge.



Here is a closer look at the Rega arm and the 2M Black cartridge.



Vinyl Nirvana does restorations that are nearly magical. You do get a whole lot of TT for your money. The plith in the photo is a custom made, solid wood plith. The clear dust cover (not shown) is a heavy custom made cover. This TT will give you a nice full organic sound, with a Ortofon 2M Bronze or Black cartridge.

 

Looks awesome. How do you think the Rega arm compares to the Jelco Arms on his more expensive builds? Is it worth the extra cost?

 

The OP has listening space in a garage with a concrete floor, see his photos. He won't encounter the problem's that you have, using a suspended TT on a wooden floor where foot-falls are a problem. My VN Thorens is a suspended model, like yours. But I have in on a heavy MDF table that sits on a tile floor over a concrete foundation.

The OP will be fine with a suspended TT.

 

Honestly, I have no idea. My experience with TT's arms and cartridges is limited to the few models that I personally own.

I would say that the Jelco arms are likely to be a better and more expensive product. The question being, how much do you want to spend? How large is your record collection? What condition are your records in? How many more records do you plan on buying?

Don't forget, your TT arm cartridge and stylus is only going to be as good as your TT's phono preamp. This is my Decware ZP3 tube phono-pre, which I have connected to the Thoren's. Note: I also have a Rega RP6 TT, which also has a Rega arm and I am happy with both.

The ZP3 was sitting very carefully and temporarily on top of the VN Thorens. But, you do get a good look at the custom dust cover on the Thoren's.



Please take some time and read up on the Decware ZP3. and make sure that read up on: The ZP3 Design Notes by Steve Deckert.

 

It’s not so much a question of how much, $1500 - $2000 is my budget. I just want the most I can get for that price, I would like this to be an endgame piece. I have a couple hundred records and am adding all of the time.

I already put in an order for a Lounge tube pre-amp.

 

The lounge is a SS preamp not a tube. There are no quality tube preamps in that price range.

It is not important that you buy the Decware, but do read the white paper by the owner, Steve Deckert, it will give you a better insight on the importance of a phono preamp. Before you spend a lot of money on upgraded arms, etc., it is important that you have a good quality preamp in place first, that's all.

Member @Benzion has a lot of experience on the Longe and is very fond of it and its performance. He has some nice phono cartridges and has made a lot of effort to phono cartridges and stylus combinations, including MC carts.

I have never used a lounge but they enjoy an excellent reputation among forum members. It may be the best $300 phono preamp that you can buy on today's market.

Even though you have already placed your order, there are upgrade paths that you can opt in to with small up-charges. Benzion has a lot of familiarity with them and sold his original LCR III in favor of an upgraded model. Suggest you connect with him in your thread here or by PM, I believe that he could give you something to think about. I doubt if it is too late to upgrade you unit, if you are so inclined.

 

Lounge has a tube amp that is not listed on their website, check out their Facebook. I was going to get the upgraded LCR and when I was doing research I found they were working on a tube amp, gave them a phone call and the rest is history.

I was going to get the Decware, but after I talked to Roberto I felt comfortable taking a shot on the Lounge due to their reputation, and being at a slightly lower price point.

 

Excellent, I now recall hearing something about them developing such a product. It is fortunate that its timing works for you. I have nothing wrong with SS phono preamp's and at the lower end of the scale, it is better to get a decent SS than a not so grate tube unit.

I would bet that Lounge will deliver a bang up tube amp!

There is something about the dimensionality of a tube amp. I find it hard to put my finger on things sometimes, but there is something about tubes that I find very pleasant and I think they work well in a phono preamp.

Congratulations on you purchase!

 

Let us know what you think of the Lore's, they've been on my buy list for a few years now. Those Double Impacts look great, but would be way too big for my environment

 

I know, they are tempting, but I’m trying to keep it realistic. I think with my space, the Lores will be perfect. Zu Omens were in the running, but after reading up, they appear to be on the brighter side of things. If I ever want to move up the chain, flipping the Lores would be pretty easy.

 

Anything Zu is bright. As specially with SS amps. The Tekton DI's are way too large for a room like yours and with your room acoustic's. The Lore's will work much better.

 

I didn't, I sent my original one back to the factory to get it upgraded, for $150. Best $150 I ever spent on audio.

 

I thought I remembered you selling a lounge on the Equipment For Sale Forum?

 

Nope, I'm selling the Cambridge Azur 851A integrated, and the R-O-K turntable.

 

Just my 2 cents but the paradigms are very capable speakers and are able to smooth out with tube amps. I run them with a tube amp and they sound stellar. I would look into getting a belt driven turntable and a tube integrated amp. Maybe a used VPI Scout 1.1 and then a good used tube integrated. Our gear/path is very similar. Good luck!

 

What’s on order:

- Tekton Impact(s) w/upgrades
- Vinyl Nirvana Thorens TD-160 super reprod w/jelco tk-850s tonearm
- Lounge LCR tube phono preamp

I should be transformed within a month