Not Enjoying My Turntable

I too tried to enjoy vinyl again. But I experienced the same muffled sound and lack of dynamics and my needle didn’t skip.  And Yes, I was comparing a 5k setup to a 1.5k turntable with a not very expensive external phone pre-amp.  But it became clear the additional cost and return of the hated ticks and pops would be an outright ridiculous use of my savings to return me back to my teenage years.  I have finally achieved better sq than I did with my first system in high school.  It costs 20 times more which seems ridiculous, but finally the realization of great music with thousands of albums at my finger tips and no ticks and pops is realized.   

It’s a wonderful hobby and I would own an expensive analog setup if it could afford it, but for now I am more than content and proud of what I have. 

A sign of god to throw it away

Getting really good sound from a turntable setup requires a level of involvement and effort that in my opinion only pays off if you actually enjoy doing that stuff (the tactile and involvement part of playing records).  I don't think it's so much the amount of $ spent (over a certain minimum) but the care of setup, alignment, record cleanliness, proper electrical matching of components.  Its a delicate chain. I've gotten really good sound from inexpensive turntables and cartridges but its hours and hours spent on alignment, cleaning, tuning etc.  But I love doing it.  Don't enjoy that level of involvement? Just go digital.

I had a turntable back starting in 1965.. (Garrard Lab80, Shure M55E) back then I just stuck the cartridge on the arm, eyeballed it, set the tracking to one notch below max, set antiskate one less than the setting on cart. Finished.     Azimuth? wtf is that??
Now over fifty years later how do I set up my turntables? (Kuzma Stabi/Stogi S Dynavector 17D3) ((Rega P5 Benz Glider) same way, exactly the same way. no problems.  Ahhh I did try to get the unipivot arm level, after all. eyeballing it.
Maybe I am an unrecognized genius of set up? NO idea, but they sound fine.   

@elizabeth Don't sell yourself short, you ARE recognized genius. At a minimum, acknowledged pragmatic enthusiast.

@gorgeousstyle When it comes to ticks and pops one can't underestimate the impact of super clean records and controlling static electricity via humidification and anti-static brushes. You don't need to spend a bunch of money, but you've got to actively attack those issues. It makes all the difference. Cheers,
Spencer