Let me provide a different perspective since I am in the process of (possibly) upgrading some components in my vinyl rig. Actually, I thought I was pretty much decided on buying a Fosgate Tube phono preamp, Benz Ruby Z cartridge, and Cinemag 1131 SUT.
But I haven't ordered the stuff yet. Why not? Well, because I haven't been able to get the purchase past the part of me that is critical of and scrutinizes any audio equipment purchase. And it really is that simple. In order for me to spend money on gear I have to justify it and have some concrete expectations about what spending the money is going to do for my music enjoyment besides giving me a few new toys to play with. Once the novelty and newness wears off the new purchases will be just other gear in your set up.
I like the way my vinyl set up sounds right now, so I was not entering into these purchases to solve some sort of perceived deficiency in the sonic character in my vinyl playback rig. My current set up is no slouch: SOTA Star Sapphire table, SME 309 arm, Ortofon Jubilee cartridge, and RSA Nighthawk Li On battery powered phono preamp.
I budgeted up to $5,000 for my upgrades. But the more I think about it the more I am questioning whether or not this truly is an upgrade. More money does not necessarily equal better sound. And when I ask myself the question where I would get better value and enjoyment: spending $5K on vinyl gear or spending $5K on records it isn't even a close call. I would rather have the music than the gear.
I will probably follow through on my plans despite the misgivings. I need another high quality cartridge since I don't have a backup. But the other stuff is still very much up in the air and I probably will not pull the trigger on that until the critical part of me gets comfortable with the idea.
I suggest you set some clear goals for your upgrade strategy and look at what you want to accomplish with your audio dollars. Too many audiophiles justify the money they spend after the fact by giving testimonials about how much better their system sounds. While I agree that having better sound is a possible outcome, I have also observed that there are often many self-fulfilling prophecies in audio (it sounds better because I bought better and more expensive gear).
Try to identify where your current setup is lacking before you embark on an upgrade path. Alternatively you can throw a lot of money at it and hope for the best.
--Jerome
