sorry, i yust cannot see buying any new turntable at the $1k price point. one may have a preference as to what one wants to buy used; there are tons of great used decks for $1k. but, as many know, i think a used empire is a no-brainer, comparable to anything you could buy new up to $2k. more, if you are willing to upgrade to a more modern arm. and, if you spend $500 on a used empire, you are at the upper end of the pricing. they are bullet-proof, and should present no issues for getting proper set-up, even for a winyl nowice.
if you wanna spend $1k, you can find nice eye-candy that also offers stellar performance, like an oracle delphi; this would also allow for future upgrades as budget allows, as they can be upgraded to the latest model...
ymmv,
doug s.
