For $1000 to $1200 you should be able to get a nice used VPI HW-19jr table with a good arm (JMW, SME) and a decent cartridge. Don't worry so much about which ones for now. There's a lot of personal preference involved ultimately, and you'll have to experiment later if you decide vinyl is for you.
You may be shocked at how well any reasonable analog setup competes with digital.
If the sound from something like this isn't at least in the ballpark, then analog may not be for you. And you can resell for what you paid very easily.
You may be shocked at how well any reasonable analog setup competes with digital.
If the sound from something like this isn't at least in the ballpark, then analog may not be for you. And you can resell for what you paid very easily.