The best answer is "It's complicated." There just isn't an easy answer because the table/arm/cartridge is a combination and some combos have a synergism and some do not. The issue is made more maddening because the types of sonic changes from an upgraded table are different from the changes with an upgraded arm or cartridge. I don't doubt Cousinbilly's story above comparing the Linn arms and cartridges; it shows how important the tonearm is, and I agree with that completely. However, improving the table the arm is on can result in some qualitative changes in the sound that, once heard, are indispensable. When I replaced my VPI 19 III with an early Galibier some 8 years ago, I was stunned by some of the changes----a profound sense of quiet that I had never experienced before; a lack of mechanical artifice; and a remarkable sense of see-through transparency. These changes were in addition to the normal audiophile stuff like improved detail, frequency extension, imaging etc. My conclusion was that a table upgrade can result in some qualitative improvements that cannot be achieved with a new tonearm or cartridge. So all 3 are important, but if I were to rank them in my order of priority, I would say the table is #1, arm #2 and the cartridge a distant #3. In fact, right now I have a $400 cartridge (AT 33EV) on my Triplanar VII and Galibier Gavia, and it sounds very, very good. Not as good as my Benz LP, but it doesn't give up anything I consider essential to listening to records. Going backwards on the table, however, would not be an acceptable compromise.
