getting back to vinly

I want to send out a thanks to all of you who have helped me find my way back to vinyl. I remember saying I always used to record my albums to tapes so my albums would always sound new. I know some of you had a problem with that and I now know I was compressing the sound. But there is one good out come-all my albums are as good as new! Also, I inquired how to get rid of the pops. I purchased a cheap record washer, relearned how to use my Zerostat and life is good. I'm amazed about how clean they sound. (I was "brought up" to use a "Parastat" each time before playing.) Even though I have read you only have to wash albums occasionally, I have best results washing them each time before playing. All pops are virtually non-existant. I dry them with a soft clean cotton cloth and they sound really good. OK-I'm sure there is a reason why I shouldn't do this so I'm ALL ears- please tell me they best way to preserve my albums. Also, since I'm in the buying mood,where is the best place to purchase albums? I have logged on to Elusive Disc, as well as Mobile Fidelity. I'm amazed about the cost of new albums. As I stated, I still have a few unopened albums that have a price tag of $6.99! I recall reading somewhere a guy said he had to purchase multiple albums of the same title before he found a "good" one(???) Anyway, teach me about high-end vinyl. I have a PL-71 turntable, with a Shure V-15 III cartridge going into a Bellasri (sp) tube pre-amp, going into a Theta CB3 preamp. Keep in mind-I'm going slow back into vinyl, but do you have any suggestions on front-end equipment? All you vinyl purists-close your eyes. I have about $5k invested in my CD front end, but still am not playing that many albums (which I feel will change once I find the right formula.) Any suggestions as far as vinyl front end? As always, thanks for your patience and advice.