Pioneer Direct Drives - Now and then?

What’s your budget, Erik?
PL50L is cheaper

With inexpensive Technics SP-20 you could build your own turntable buying tonearm separately, with custom plinth etc.

Here is what i put together for a friend locally.

@chakster  I understand that the opener is looking for entry level turntables and not turntables top level. 

@best-groove maybe, but anyway it's nice to see the whole picture
Pioneer was great in the past, i'm still using their top MM cartridge. 
Japanese archive is here

I'd like to spend $1000 or less, given I may buy like 5 records. :)

Cost for cartridge + player. 

Main requirement for me is that it not damage the vinyl while playing, and have rock solid settings.  Want to set it up exactly once.

Chosing between these 3 turntables I think *1st one is the best:

Technics mk7 $999 *
Denon VL12 PRIME $899
PLX-1000 $649

But you can’t buy a turntable you’re looking for, and a proper cartridge, within $1k total.

A good cartridge alone is about $400

FWIW, I had a Pioneer PL-600 (I understand there were two Pioneer turntables with this model designation...mine was the higher end one from ‘79 or ‘80 in grey finish). With, first, an ADC ZLM cart and later a Shure V-15 type (4 or 5), it was a good sounding rig.....sort of a “loaded out Chevy Impala” of a turntable.  The Shure cartridge was a step up.  It started having pronounced platter speed stability issues suddenly in about 2005-ish after a quarter-century’s worth of light/moderate use.  I replaced it with a Music Hall MMF 5/Goldring 1012 cart which has been an infinitely better match for my sonic sensibilities 

Thanks everyone for the ideas!!