matt78 said:
Im looking at the arcam rphono and then £500 on a turntable... my gut feeling is the debut carbon or esprit sb..and to upgrade cart to the blue at a later date. If I went with the planer is swapping the cart easy as I haven't any experience with turntables. Changing the actual cart and the weight system etc
Swapping a cartridge is relatively easy but it's the setting up afterwrds that can be tricky without the right tools.
I assume you will buy from a dealer and they will do the set up for you. If so then the Project you mention would be my choice also, however, without the normally fitted Ortofon 2M Red cartridge.
Find a dealer that will sell you one without a cartridge and is prepared to fit a more expensive cartridge for you and set the deck up.
Save money on the phono preamp. Good though the Arcam is you are unlikely to need the MC side of it so why pay the extra for it? Substitute it with a cheaper moving magnet only phono preamp and spend the money saved on a better cartridge.
These are my suggestions. You will, of course, get others that may be equallly viable, but understand the quality of sound available from a turntable relates most directly to the quality of the cartridge fitted to that turntable.
For what it is worth I cannot see pairing a £400 phono preamp with a £500 turntable using a £95 cartridge a good way to spend your money.
I look forward to hearing your decisions.