Your greatest return in vinyl playback?

I would point to some what I call "surprise upgrades" - little things I've done that actually made a bigger difference than I had at first expected. Like, if I spend $X on a new phono stage or whatever, I'm expecting to have some sort of upgrade. If it isn't there, I send the item back and try again. But there's been two things I can think of where a change yielded bigger returns than I had considered:

1) Being able to switch to mono for mono recordings. I first tried a mono "strapped" Denon 103 and then built a mono/stereo switch. I didn't know what to expect with either of these, but was very much impressed with how much better a mono recording sounds via mono playback. Both solutions were cheap but have convinced me to never be without a mono playback option again. It just makes my mono records sound right.

2) Record vacuum cleaning machine. Again, for the outlay, it really, really makes a difference in sound quality. Not just "oh, there's no more crackle." A good cleaning just makes the listening experience better.
 
Putting all my 300 plus CDs in a carousel changer. Now I just have to push a couple of buttons to play one or all.
 
I have 2 setups here, 1 2 CH soley for audio, the other part of my HT/2Ch second system.
For the Audio system, the biggest improvement was upgrading my Oracle Delphi Mk1 to Mk6 specs and especially the MVSS micro vibration dampening system. This made a huge difference and was well worth the cost. Runner up was adding a Koetsu Urushi Vermillion.
For the HT/second system, the biggest upgrade wrt vinyl was putting a Lim motor isolation base on my RP6 table. Again, interestingly enough, vibration control seemed to have a huge difference, in this case by moving the motor off the plinth. Runner up was adding the RB-2000 arm to that table.
 
I've changed several things that have enhanced my vinyl playback experience...different carts, stylus', etc...but the one that made me really sit up and go 'wow' was when I added a Little Bear T11 preamp to my system, and stopped using my receivers phono input.
It just added so much more headroom and detail that I was floored. And of course switching from the stock tubes to some Tung Sol just made so much better. It's the best $200 I've spent on an upgrade to date. :)
 
For me, one of the biggest "gain" was to finally buy an upgraded stylus (HE), had been using "generics" for so long.
But it was quite the step for me, given my limited budget allowed for my "hobby" (given my level/budget I truly only "play" at this hobby)

In fact the cost of the HE stylus was 60% of the overall cost of my entire system, which made it hard to justify for a while.
That being said, I DONT regret the purchase one bit.

Caveat was, though, that the HE made a lot of my records sound AMAZING, but at the same time made others a bit "worse."
Reality is that the HE showed me the true range in condition/mastering/etc. of the albums I own.

Ben
 
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For me, one of the biggest "gain" was to finally buy a upgraded stylus (HE), had been using "generics" for so long.
But it was quite the step for me, given my limited budget allowed for my "hobby" (given my level/budget I truly only "play" at this hobby)

In fact the cost of the HE stylus was 60% of the overall cost of my entire system, which made it hard to justify for a while.
That being said, I DONT regret the purchase on bit.

Caveat was, though, that the HE made a lot of my records sound AMAZING, but at the same time made others a bit "worse."
Reality is that the HE showed me the true range in condition/mastering/etc. of the albums I own.

Ben

It's great you were able to achieve a big difference in a single step. :thumbsup:
 
It's great you were able to achieve a big difference in a single step. :thumbsup:
Agreed.
Admittedly though, its easier to get "good portion gains," when you are working form the "bottom" (low level).
And as well, when I stopped trying to be extreme-budget-minded.

I am at a stage now where I am "content" with my system/set-up, where I fail is making time to enjoy it!

Ben
 
A highly respected member with many posts suggests epiphanies have a price tag. There may certainly be a correlation, but it is not ironclad; and many upgrades as measured by dollars are incremental, not epiphanous.

I've just upgraded my entire vinyl front end by changing to a new tonearm. I say 'entire vinyl front end' because every cartridge I've tried so far is dramatically better — each cartridge, no matter how much I liked it before — is a new epiphany. This tonearm did not have high price tag yet made so profound a difference. Its cost was low because it was missing the cable: it used an odd, unobtainable connector. I devised a way around that, which cost very little, and now every cartridge and every favorite record is epiphanic.

Of course this is only IMO, YMMV and all that — and maybe my infatuation will fade. But I can't remember so transformative a change in my many years of seeking them.
 
1. Buying well-engineered, well-mastered works on quality vinyl - especially for the stuff I really get into as opposed to stuff that is usually background fun to make work go by faster. No price tag here - although being fussy about what I buy can sometimes save me money (not buying something that is of sketchy quality) or it can sometimes hit my bank account (buying as many Elvis Costello MoFi releases as possible all at once in fear of MoFi running out of stock).

2. Upgrading from the loud, in-your-face Ortofon 2M Red to the much more refined Audio-Technica VM750SH was a good move. I like the AT cart a little more than my Shure V15 Type III w/JICO SAS stylus. It has a fuller sound compared to the Shure's more "polite" presentation. The AT cart cost me $379.

3. Upgrading the stock cables on my HD650 (to Silver Dragon v3 cables) and my Elex (to Black Dragon v2 cables). Both upgrades were less than $500 and both were money well spent.

4. Buying a Spin Clean cleaner - really makes it easy for me to wash those brand new (or used) LPs and get rid of the unwanted particles. I bought the package that came with a huge bottle of cleaner, extra pads, and extra cloths, so I think I paid $150.
 
I improved my listening experience when my next door neighbour had has walls re-plastered,there was an issue with volume,all resolved and a comfortable 80db going on.
 
With 500 a NOS vintage cartridge,one with a following of accolades. For 500 you can get a cartridge that will compete or better a 2000 dollar cartridge priced today.
 
Organizing all my records alphabetically. Now I can grab whatever I want whenever I want, no more searching. It took a whole day to do it with a helper, but 1000% worth it.
Recently the shelf holding my LPs collapsed. I didn’t realize how much they weigh. The turntable below also took a hit. After fixing the shelf with cleats, gorilla glue and screws I alphabetized the albums. Kind of nice to be able to go right to the album. Although my collection doesn’t seem nearly as extensive. As a plus I found $300 stashed in a T Rex album. I vaguely remember stashing some cash, but didn’t remember the amount or where.
 
Recently the shelf holding my LPs collapsed. I didn’t realize how much they weigh. The turntable below also took a hit. After fixing the shelf with cleats, gorilla glue and screws I alphabetized the albums. Kind of nice to be able to go right to the album. Although my collection doesn’t seem nearly as extensive. As a plus I found $300 stashed in a T Rex album. I vaguely remember stashing some cash, but didn’t remember the amount or where.

That's a bummer....I hope the TT didn't take it too hard. Three hundy should put some new vinyl on the shelf....or maybe a new cartridge...or a couple decent concert tickets ....or...found money ya know :banana:
 
Speaking only for the vinyl playback portion of my systems, I've had 2 influential moments, 1 of which qualifies for the OP's $500 limit:
  1. Probably the biggest improvement to my vinyl experience was when I purchased a VPI HW-19 Mk III fitted with an Audioquest 'arm for $750. Prior to that, I had been using mid- to late-80's plastic Pioneer 'tables with predictably underwhelming results. Stepping up to the VPI, I got my first glimpse into what good vinyl playback was capable of doing.
  2. Purchasing a VPI RCM. As many others have already posted, clean records sound soooo much better. Plus, removing the dirt and grunge from my records' grooves helps preserve my precious records and ensures maximum life from my stylii. Buying an RCM was probably the best $450 I've spent on this hobby.
 
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