Phonostage


I have a Vintage silver direct drive Pioneer Quartz - PLL - Automatic (model PL - 560) turntable that my husband purchased around 1979.  It currently has a Shure M97xE phono cartridge and N97xE stylus.  At this time I don't have a phono stage.  I listen to Vinyl LP's by directly connecting the TT to our vintage Yamaha amp. I have about 4 dozen vinyl LP's.  Most of them I've recorded to my computer using Audacity at 192/24.  The computer versions have more micro details and clarity than the vinyls played on the turntable. Maybe that's the fault of the vintage Yamaha amp and MA-6 speakers the turntable is connected to, which is not my main system. In the past I purchased a $100 phono stage (to connect to a Harmon Kardon AVR)  and was not impressed with the results I heard.  Yes I know, AVR's stink when it comes to quality music listening.  Since the turntable was never a top-of-the-line model would it make any sense to purchase a phonostage that cost more than the turntable's original price and a better cartridge and stylus? Or should I just forget it?  I will not be investing in a new turntable based system.  I just want to know if it would be worth it to improve on what I already have. So I guess I'm asking (anyone familiar with this vintage TT) "Is my turntable "capable" of increased clarity and details?
mewsickbuff
czarivey, thanks, ebay is a favorite online buying site. frogman, yes my Yamaha is an integrated, & I have a pre and power amp in the main system. Connected the Yamaha to a pre-amp input.  My mistake was trying to listen through the "tape out" instead of "phono" but I've got it now. Listening to vinyl the music leans a tad bit toward the warm side with less sibilance and sparkle. But I've never before heard my vinyl this detailed. Same as with CD's, some albums were better engineered than others. But I'm smiling! And surprisingly there's almost no crackle or pop.
For cleaning vinyl, I suggest Vinyl Stack, a US company. They provide products all the way from hand cleaning to ultrasonic. As the manufacturer, they can offer superior quality for bargain prices.
I am a big fan of the  DYNAVECTOR - 10x5 MC Phono Cartridge.  It is a high output MC and doesn't need a MC pre stage.  I have sold and installed 100+ of them in every turntable you can imagine.  Big improvement!  Put one in an AR turntable and your are 96.5% of your way to Nirvana.

  "Is my turntable "capable" of increased clarity and details?  Yes!  All the amps and speakers in the world can't make up for a bad cartridge.

I had manged to accomplish reasonable quality with Grado gold MM cartrige and Furutech GT40 phonostage. My equipment is:
1.Turntable Technics SLD2
2. DTC 9.8 as preamp
3. Cary audio SA-200.2 power amp
4. Monitor Audio PL 300 speakers

I think Grado gold can be a good inexpensive choice for this turntable, since I was using Shure M97xe before and Grado produces better sound.