My new 'digital' Pro-ject turntable for my V1

Once an avid record collector and part time dj, I'd tired of the constant drag and weight, and pared my collection down to a 100 or so lps and as many if not more 45's, locked away in boxes for the last seven or eight years. My digital replay is tight, but with only a V1 was lacking a way of input for a turntable (the DAC V1 has no analog inputs). 

So did a bit of research, went to my dealer, and lo and behold they had a Pro-ject Essential II Digital with the optical digital out. In white no less, open box for $100 off. They didn't even know they had it. I also had a $200 in trade coming so it was a no brainer to help liberate some old punk 45's and reggae lps, and show my kids some analog tech.

I have to say, I'm pretty damn happy with it. The gain is a bit low so my 110 can struggle a bit. It's an entirely different sound to my microRendu. Gentler, leaner, but warmer too. I have quite a few duplicates on vinyl/digital so could compare. Mostly the rendu wipes the mat, esp with detail (keep in mind these are also some pretty played out records) but  with a few I prefer the TT replay vs the overly mastered cd version. A few I have only on vinyl, and can't get otherwise. In particular, a soundtrack by Tuxedomoon's Steven Brown for a German film, Zoo Story. Sublime late night saxophone and never released on cd as far as I can tell. 

Of course the tweaker in me comes out. I have on order the iFi SPDIF Purifier. It's a powered dongle that reclocks and will allow me to go into the BNC input. By all accounts it should help; if not easy return. Also ordered a deer skin leather mat and simple weight/stabilizer. I have no delusions that this is anything nearing a real turntable/phono amp set up, but the V1 does its thing pretty well no matter what you throw at it. So how cool to plug a TT straight in! No grounding issues either. Burning in nicely I can tell; just keeps getting better. 

I'm really enjoying the tactile experience of once again playing records. My seven year old son was intrigued too, though not much of the music is to his taste (a clubber in 2nd grade!) he did ask for some rock and seemed to connect more. My wife loves that her Christmas records, Puccini, and Tears for Fears lps are available again, though she still doesn't understand why her old dusty Gemini in the basement wouldn't do the trick. Can't plug it in, digital only preamp, sorry! It's pretty lightweight so I've secured it in place with blutack. The suppled feet seem to do the job isolating it, but then this is a family environment but with $8k of new oak floors and sub flooring you can jump up and down to your hearts's delight even with Ikea as stereo stand. 

So I would highly recommend the Essential II Digital if you have a DAC V1 and desire a simple vinyl replay without a computer or fancy preamp, and esp if you can find one at a discount. I'll report back on the tweaks as they come, esp the Purifier. I'll also be powering it with a linear power supply once its freed up after my xmas present of a new lps  for my microrendu comes. I tested the HDPLEX on the TT and it's a subtle improvement, but did tighten up the bass for sure. But this is mostly about fun, not critical listening. And turntables are fun, no matter how you twist it.