@jb1 - I guess 99.9% of audiophiles have Frankenstein systems. Very few manufacturers offer all components (maybe Rega and Linn?) and even they may not have all the components of a CD system.
I do like turntables sold with arms from the same manufacturer with one continuous cable from cartridge (from a third party manufacturer) to phono stage (no separate headshell) . Of course you want to make sure the cartridge is a good match to the tonearm.
To solve the electronics issue as far as amps go, it's simple, just get an integrated amp and rid yourself of all the extra interconnects.
I do like turntables sold with arms from the same manufacturer with one continuous cable from cartridge (from a third party manufacturer) to phono stage (no separate headshell) . Of course you want to make sure the cartridge is a good match to the tonearm.
To solve the electronics issue as far as amps go, it's simple, just get an integrated amp and rid yourself of all the extra interconnects.