I agree with the go slow crowd. Just because you have 3.5K in the budget doesn’t mean that you need to spend it. Vinyl can be a PITA and once you have had the novelty of playing your new collection you might find yourself not going there.
I wouldn’t bother with an included phono stage, as that is usually a major sonic compromise. I would get solid entry level. Get a decent moving magnet cartridge on a decent belt table. My CA mm only phono stage was good value at around $200. I prefer a Direct Drive table but you seem to lead in the other direction, but you should be able to score a decent weighty-belt drive with good mm cartridge for about $1K, especially if you go used. That should be a high level performance. If after a decent trial you want to upgrade if you stay with mm cartridge then the phono amp can still be used.
If you break the cantilever on a mc cartridge trying to clean or change the cartridge, it’s a problem. With an mm cartridge you probably just need to replace the stylus. Just saying