Looking for a new phon cartridge

I have a 14 year old Urushi.  Last year I had it re-tipped by Expert Stylus in the UK. I had them replace only the stylus tip, not the cantilever.  They were very professional. The whole transaction start to finish took less than 3 weeks, round trip to the East coast US. The cost was reasonable. One always has to question one's aural memory, but to me the Urushi now sounds better than ever and certainly better than it did prior to re-tipping. I can highly recommend their services, and I would not hesitate to own another Koetsu that needed similar attention. So in my opinion, there is no need to fear owning a Koetsu now that there is no factory.

Yes, retipping a Koetsu may be a challenge. Luckily, my Rosewood SigPlat and Coralstone D have very low hours.

@noromance @kennyc 

Any Koetsu will have to be NOS or used. The builder died and the company closed operations.

+1 Koetsu Rosewood

maybe Grado 

Sumiko Celebration 40.

If you find a LOMC cartridge too hot or too bright, maybe the real problem is phono-stage loading. Trying increasing that (i.e. lower resistive values).

I have Lyra Atlas and DV XVX-1s cartridges and I can definitely make them sound overly bright/hot/lively by decreasing loading on my phono-stage. When I get loading right they sound sublime.

Koetsu Rosewood.

A Soundsmith 'The Voice' fits nicely in your budget.

Audio Technica ART9i. Look into it and the original ART9 which has hundreds of posts on this forum. An absolute steal at $1,500 or less. 

I like my Benz Ruby Z. I've had other Benz cartridges (Ebony L) and liked them all. I have a Zyx 4D as well which I considered top dog...until I got the Ruby Z. I believe each of them have a natural sound.

Shure V15 mkVmr - for those who find the treble of mc cartridges too bright.