I vote for the Orbit Theory, which starts out a buck under 1K. Made in USA, you can order direct with or without phono stage. It comes with a tapered cast magnesium arm, and you can up grade to Ortofon Bronze cartridge. The Theory features a solid wood plinth, and triangle feet layout. The feet are above price point, IMHO. I bought one to replace a Pro-Ject Debut Carbon in my third system. The only two minor complaints I have are the cheap dust cover hinges, (they seem to work and are holding up well) and you must buy a replacement belt, (as far as I know) from Orbit. If you like to tinker, consider a used Thorens, for which there is great parts support, and service manuals can be down loaded from <vinylengine.com>. You will find a wide range of models out there that will fit under your price cap from "entry level" to true audiophile. I bought a Thorens TD 165 series 1 as a project, I have about $500 total into it so far which includes, new belt upgrade phono leads, and suspension springs. It has impressed me for the bang for buck. . .... Good luck
Going to replace my Fluance rt85
In the next few months, I would like to replace my Fluance rt85 turntable with something better. My budget is under 2k. I use a Ifi Zen phono stage into my Lab12 Integre 4 Integrated into my KLH Model 5 speakers. I have a Ortofon Blue Cart on the turntable now. New or used is fine. Any suggestions would be great. Thank you.