To answer your question, the answer is yes, a better tonearm can make a difference. Sometimes the improvements are small, and sometimes they are not so small.
I recently upgraded my SME IV arm to a Tri-Planar arm, and the improvements were significant. So much better that I am a true believer in the significance of how a tonearm affects the sound.
I found the Tr-Planar locally as NOS for $2K. It's not easy to find this arm so cheaply, so I got lucky. But chances are if you are patient you should be able to find something in your price range that will make a big improvement over what you have now.
I recently upgraded my SME IV arm to a Tri-Planar arm, and the improvements were significant. So much better that I am a true believer in the significance of how a tonearm affects the sound.
I found the Tr-Planar locally as NOS for $2K. It's not easy to find this arm so cheaply, so I got lucky. But chances are if you are patient you should be able to find something in your price range that will make a big improvement over what you have now.