I went with Soundsmith. Carmen II (medium compliance) MI cart..
Ortofon Black is a real keeper for a MM cart.
Both are right at 700-1,000.00
No SUT needed either..
I’m using an external Decware ZP3 for a phono/tape preamp from a 40 year old Ear and a few Macs with serious tweaked phono stages... I have a Puffin that is a real keeper for the money too.. Great for recording/playback and just so tweakable..
You need a decent phono stage, to go with your cart choice.. Both of these carts work well with either phono stage, ZP3 or the Puffin.
Regards