TurnTable Quest

It is an inexpensive turntable with a ceramic cartridge. Sold at Urban Outfittters, etc. Many models are portable players, including speakers. Not the quality you are looking for, and not good for your records due to high tracking force, crude stylus, etc.

I just mentioned it as a joke.

I just bought a Teac TN-550 for $900 and so far I'm fairly pleased.

DP-62L was awesome. Denon and Pioneer made some very good TT back in those days. Hard to beat in value for money today. Look for a refurbished unit. Personally I like those heavy plinth DD designs over belt or light weight acrylic or plastic plinth designs that subsequently became popular.

For $1,000 you can get an AR turntable, XA, XB, ES-1 just to name a few, and have everything underneath upgraded with better parts, you can choose whatever wood you desire, a Jelco SA-750 tonearm with a Denon DL-110 moving coil cartridge, and you will have bought your first AND last turntable.

A very good friend of mine who lives in NJ had built me three AR turntables. My last one he built for me is the XB, and this is my go-to turntable in my system today. I also have a Dual 1219 idler with a Shure M97xe cartridge, and a Denon DP-300F with an Ortofon 2M red cartridge.With his upgrades, the Technics 1200 tonearm wand, and the DL-110 cartridge is a combo that will be hard to beat.

If you are interested in going this route, contact me for more information.

I don't know where the $1,000 budget came from (not the OP?), but for about that you can Get a Thorens 240, a Sota Moonbeam III, or a Pro-Ject RPM 3, since you like decoupled motors. I don't think you will get a worthy VPI in that range.

One to keep an eye on for an outboard motor model would be the new Oracle Origine. I heard it will retail just under $2,000 in the USA. It was supposed to come out last Summer. Of course, for $2,000 you could almost buy a VPI Scout without a cartridge.