What turntable in the $2500 range?

Not yet mentioned, but would definitely meet your requirements is the 
Music Hall - Stealth Turntable. For $1699 including an Ortofon 2M Blue, dust cover and cables, it is a direct drive table with a substantially heavier platter than the equivalent Technics, a better tonearm with removeable headshell, better feet, and IMHO better looking. And, it stops at the end of the record. 

My Plan B recommendation would be finding a used VPI Scout, or better, a Prime Scout. Haters will rant about the unipivot arm, but the fact is that they sound really, really good, and aren't as difficult to cue as they would have you believe. What is undeniable is the sound quality and the fact that they are, especially the Prime Scout with its 22Lb platter and 10.5' 3D Printed arm, the entry point to the 'heavy hitter' class of turntables, and they look it.

Easy.

Nothing in that price limit touches the Technics 1200/12010GR2. 

https://sam-audio.eu/

I recommend looking into Small Audio Manufacture.   Great turntables built to order. I wrote a very detailed review for Audiogon.  

Search for the following review:

The Art of Silence: A Review of the Small Audio Manufacture (S.A.M.) Titan Silver

The Reg P6 with a different cartridge is a great choice so long as you have the turntable properly isolated on a wall shelf ideally, especially if your room is not on a slab. If you want to inker a lot with arms and cartridges, Rega is not your cup of tea. If you want to set it and forget it and just enjoy the music, Rega tables don't sound like anything, the cartridge and phono stage impact the SQ tremendously.

If you can find a used P8 (RB880), that's a better bet because the arm on that one is great, it's what makes Rega tables so well regarded  IMHO.