The hi-fi industry loves selling upgrades. Special cables, isolation feet, record weights, spirit levels, degaussers — the list of accessories that promise to transform your listening experience is endless. Most of them are a waste of money. Some of them aren’t.

After twenty years of listening to turntables at every price point, here are the upgrades that actually make a measurable, audible difference, ranked by cost-effectiveness.

Tier 1: High Impact, Low Cost

New Stylus

If you haven’t replaced your stylus in over 500-1,000 hours of play, this is the single most impactful upgrade you can make. A worn stylus doesn’t just sound bad — it actively damages your records. Every hour of play with a worn tip is grinding away at your grooves.

Replacement styli for common cartridges cost $30-100 AUD depending on the model. The Audio-Technica VM95 series, for example, has interchangeable styli at different price points, so you can upgrade the stylus profile without replacing the entire cartridge.

A fresh stylus will immediately improve clarity, reduce distortion, and make your records sound noticeably better. This is the cheapest, highest-impact upgrade available.

Anti-Static Inner Sleeves

I’ve covered this elsewhere, but replacing the stock paper inner sleeves with poly-lined anti-static sleeves reduces static charges, eliminates paper fibres, and protects your records for about 50 cents each. The reduction in surface noise is audible.

Cartridge Alignment Check

Not technically an upgrade, but re-checking your cartridge alignment with a proper protractor costs nothing and can dramatically improve sound quality if the alignment has drifted. Misalignment causes channel imbalance, distortion, and accelerated record wear.

Tier 2: Meaningful Impact, Moderate Cost

Cartridge Upgrade

Moving from an entry-level cartridge to a mid-range one is probably the most significant sonic upgrade you can make to a turntable system. The jump from an Audio-Technica AT-VM95E ($80) to a Nagaoka MP-110 ($200) or an Ortofon 2M Blue ($350) is substantial and immediately audible.

Better cartridges track more accurately, retrieve more detail, and present a wider, more natural soundscape. If your turntable is decent but your cartridge is entry-level, this is where your money should go before anything else.

Phono Preamp

If you’re using the built-in phono stage in your turntable or a budget amplifier, upgrading to a dedicated external phono preamp can make a significant difference. The Pro-Ject Phono Box ($180), iFi Zen Phono ($300), and Schiit Mani ($200) are all excellent entry points that outperform most built-in phono stages.

A better phono preamp means lower noise floor, better channel separation, and more accurate RIAA equalisation. The improvement is particularly noticeable on quiet passages and acoustic music.

Speaker Upgrade

If you’re running your turntable through small powered speakers, upgrading to larger, better-quality speakers will transform your listening experience. The Edifier S2000MKIII ($600) or a pair of bookshelf speakers with a separate amplifier will reveal detail and dynamics that smaller speakers simply can’t reproduce.

Tier 3: Diminishing Returns, Higher Cost

Turntable Platter Mat

Replacing the stock felt mat with an acrylic, cork, or rubber mat can tighten bass response and reduce static. The difference is real but subtle. Cork mats ($30-50) are a good, affordable option. Audiophile mats costing $100+ offer marginal additional improvement.

Record Clamp or Weight

A clamp or weight pressed onto the record spindle helps flatten minor warps and improves coupling between the record and platter. The difference is audible on warped records and subtle on flat ones. The Pro-Ject Record Puck ($100) or a basic metal clamp ($30-50) does the job.

Isolation Feet or Platform

If your turntable is on a surface that transmits vibrations (particularly near speakers or on a suspended timber floor), isolation feet or an isolation platform can reduce rumble. IsoAcoustics ISO-Puck ($70-100 for a set) or a simple butcher-block platform with rubber feet works well.

What’s Not Worth It

Expensive Cables

The interconnect cables between your turntable and phono preamp make virtually no audible difference as long as they’re properly shielded and of reasonable quality. The stock cables that came with your turntable are almost certainly fine. Spending $200 on “audiophile-grade” RCA cables is not a rational use of money.

Spirit Levels, Record Weights, and Clamps on Already-Flat Records

These accessories solve real problems when those problems exist. If your records are flat and your turntable is level, they add nothing.

Full Turntable Replacement

If your current turntable is a proper hi-fi unit (not a Crosley suitcase player), upgrading the turntable itself offers less improvement per dollar than upgrading the cartridge, phono preamp, or speakers. A $500 turntable with a $300 cartridge and a $200 phono preamp will outperform a $1,000 turntable with stock everything.

My Recommendation

Spend your upgrade budget in this order: stylus replacement, cartridge upgrade, phono preamp, speakers, turntable accessories. That sequence gives you the most audible improvement at each step and ensures you’re not putting expensive components in a system that can’t resolve the difference.

And play your records. No upgrade matters more than the simple act of putting on a record and listening.