Best tonearm under $2k

rickraymond, that is correct you want a higher effective mass arm for cartridges with lower compliance. However, there is no typical 12" arm. The SME V-12 has an effective mass of 12 grams and the Kuzma 4 Point 11 16 grams. I am sure there are 12" arms with effective masses over 20 grams. The Sorane certainly looks like a high mass arm but numbers speak louder than looks. Never make assumptions. Assumptions are the mother of all f--- ups.

Mike

@dodgealum 
 I looked into the Origin Live arms and they seem to claim quite a bit about their arms and not really too concerned about arm mass vs cart compliance. They state that a very well built arm supersedes any issues with mating mass and compliance. There’s a ton of informative info on their website which is hard to take it all in. I would say though that their arms do look very well built and their methods of engineering are very convincing. I’m interested for sure but need to do some more homework. 

I'd suggest having a look at a Thomas Schick 12" or 9.6" (available in the US @ $2000 I see).  On my Nottingham it performs superbly with low compliance cartridges and should work very well indeed with both the Denon and the Soundsmith.

It's very much a "less is more" design and the fit, finish and in particular the bearings are all superb. In my opinion there isn't an arm out there which can touch it at the price and I grow ever more fond of mine as I test it with different cartridges.

The standard graphite headshell from Schick is 15g, but way too expensive @ $289, so pick up an excellent Audio-Technica AT-LH15H (or AT-LH18H) instead and you're good to go.

However, if you're loath to spend the full stated budget then the Jelco 850 is also an excellent arm and a superb value at the $795 mentioned above.  I'd personally take it over an SME 309 without a second thought, though the 309 is also a very competent arm.

@Chakster that’s strange that the table came with the Denon 103. Do these German TT manufactures know what the heck they are doing? So I should be looking at high mass arms with the low compliance cartridge?

Sometimes it is very strange indeed. Some dealers have no clue what they’re selling. The manufacturer did not designed Rega arm for Denon for sure, just because it is oldschool cartridge (not for everyone). The manufacturer instead made the arm with 11g mass for most of the modern cartridges on the market today.

Yes, heavy arm for a low compliance cartridge is rule number one, it’s the basics. Just like a light mass arm for high compliance cartridge. The reason is tonearm/cartridge resonance frequency, this is theory, practically you can actually see how the arm wobbling and shaking at the resonance frequency, to do that you just need Hi-Fi Test LP. If the resonance frequency is in the frequency range of the real music then it is a problem.

The best high mass arm is probably Fidelity-Research FR-64s, this is a heavy monster. Another one which i am using is FR-64fx and Victor UA-7082, Lustre GST-801 also great. With those arms you can change the mass with different headshell (and different counterweights) for example.

Schick "12 inch tonearm is one of the most elegant tonearms, i owned this one in the past. Schick is very simple. Very nice for low compliance cartridges, but FR, Victor, Lustre are much better.

Maybe you can find used Reed 3p "10.5 at $2k, they are very nice.
My Reed 3p "12 Cocobolo has 18g effective mass, a few more grams can be added by special screws.

Rick, there is no getting away from physics. Effective mass and compliance determine the frequency the suspension oscillates at. You can dampen the oscillation with various damping methods like a paddle in viscous oil but the frequency remains the same unless you change either compliance or effective mass. You want that frequency between 8 and 12 Hz. I like to keep it under 10. Below 8 and you start getting into record warp frequency. Which means when your cartridge hits a warp the tonearm rockets skyward comes down and bounces back up again and if you get it just right it will keep bouncing till it jumps off the side. Get it above 12 and you start getting into low bass causing feed back and softening bass transients. Origin Live might not be concerned but you certainly should.
Agrippa you and I obviously live on different planets. The Jelco is a fine arm for the money with medium to lower compliance cartridges but it is no where near as sophisticated as the SME 309 with its tapered arm tube and aerospace bearings. The SME is much lighter and therefore adaptable to far more cartridges. It is easy to add weight to an arm. Not so easy to take it off. I have not played with a Schick arm but the pictures do not look promising. 
The Reed arm is intriguing to say the least and I would love to get to play with one. They look more expensive than 2K though. You never want to buy a used arm site unseen. They are too easy to damage. Just letting an arm sit out uncovered is enough to permanently screw up the bearings. 
Chakster, 18 gms is up there. I use my Koetsu in an arm with an effective mass of 19 gms and the Koetsu is about as stiff as they get. 18 gms might be good for something like the Air Tight cartridges. Lyra's and Clearaudio's would get into trouble. The Ortofon Anna Diamond would work nicely.