best turntable for 500$ or less


im looking for advice on which TT for 500$ or less would sound good with my mcintosh rig.

here is the deal,im not looking for somthing for everyday use just somthing that i can play some of my lps that i dont have on cd & looks are important to me.

i dont know much about turntables or the different carts so simple is better for me.

i dont have any particular model or brand in mind but i have been looking at some denon models with the rosewood finish.

here is a lowdown of my system.

mcintosh c-38 preamp.
mcintosh mc300 amp powering mcintosh xrt 22 speakers.
mcintosh mc7104 amp powering klipschorns.
mcintosh mc 122 amp powering mcintosh ht2 sub & xl1 monitors.
mcintosh mcd 7007 cd player.
mcintosh mcd 7000 cd player.
mcintosh mr 7082 tuner.
mcintosh mq 101 eq with the klipschorns.
mcintosh mq 101 eq with the sub & monitors.
dbx 20/20 eq with the xrt 22s.
cary audio tube cd processor with both cd players.
interconnects & speaker wire are a mixture of audioquest & monster gold series.

i listen to a wide range of music like miles davis,
the mahavishnu orchestra,spyro gyra,weather report,
zappa, bb king & all the classic rock from the 70s.

i have included as much info as i could think would be helpfull in matching a TT to my system & i defenitly dont want to go over the 500$ mark beacuse listening will be very limited.

mike.
128x128bigjoe
take a look at some sota's. they offer very good performance at a incredible price.

mike
Bigjoe, I agree with Mikesinger about the SOTAs too. I have upgraded(? some would agree) to a SOTA Sapphire series II(mid 80's) model, beats the Rega for quietness. It also has a speed control to fine tune the speed. Also can be had on the cheap wihout the arm again on Ebay. I have seen these sit idle for around $250 b/c of no arm. I put my modded RB250 arm on it, with the detahable armboard, it makes adjusting the VTA easier b/w records.
Big Joe: If you really want to stay within the $500 limit, the NAD is a good choice. It really is a P2 knockoff--the biggest difference is a lighter platter. (The arm may also be different; I don't remember.) Comes with a decent-sounding low-end cartridge, but of course that's where you're going to want to start experimenting. My advice would be to save your money now, so you'll have more to spend when and if you're really ready to go whole-hog.
Or a Goldringtable(built by Rega) there's one listed in the classifieds with the RB250 arm and cart. for under $400!
The used systemdek 900x with a decent arm at 360/bo looks very good. Add an acrylic platter and a modded rega arm and you are off to the races. Stock arm would be quite serviceable.

Has the original box, too; such a deal. At that price there is room left over for a Denon high output moving coil for just about 500 total inc the table.