Best cartridge <$200?

"You can ask Ortofon or Audio Technica or other cartridge manufacturers if in the past they had higher quality control with the overall cartridge building. I own old and today cartridges from the same manufacturer and I can't confirm your " intuitive sense ".
Several things already changed over so many years. If the quality been degraded through the years the LP analog experience just already disappeared and it's not that way. After the LP the cartridge is the main analog audio item, it's the one that rides those LP groove modulations: quality is a must down there."
I completely agree with Raul here. 

Let me add too, quality is actually defined in part as repeatability from unit to unit, and if anything the products today seem to be more consistent at least from the big companies.  Ortofon and Audio Technica have always been excellent in this regard, so maybe they have just maintained their always excellent consistency, but they may be the exception that proves the rule. 

Regards,
Bill

Ahhh...another seeker of the Holy Grail!  Sorry for the sarcasm, but based on your investment in digital music I am going to gently advise caution.  This is coming from someone who has a vinyl preference.  Take stock of your goals first because to reach sound parity or even approach it will require quite a bit of time and money.  A good first order approximation might be a ratio of 10:1.  That is it will cost about 10x as much to reach sound parity for a good analog front end as it does for your digital one and to get there is not all about $ because unlike digital, which is plug and play, analog requires a lot of effort based on expertise which does not grow on trees.  So, before you embark on this adventure be sure of what you want and why you want it.  If you already owned a lot of vinyl it would be one thing, but you don't.  If there is music that you wish to acquire that is only available on vinyl, then your quest makes perfect sense.  If you have convinced yourself that the sound of vinyl is sublime to the point that nothing else will do, you are lost to logic.  Welcome to the club.  My point is, first and foremost know thyself.
Understanding that advice is more than you wanted to know, the simple answer to your question is to go to Amazon or LP Gear and buy an Audio Technica moving magnet cartridge that costs somewhere around $100 to $200 (at the most) dollars.  Ortofon has been suggested and that is a good alternative.  I am suggesting AT instead because of your stated preference of high frequency extension.  Ortofons are more neutral, AT will be a bit brighter.  Both are excellent quality.