Which TT will take me to the next level

they are hard to find, but a maplenoll ariadne will take you to the next level but the table and arm will probably cost close to your budget. for the price range you are looking at a michell gyro with a rega 300 arm and denon or grado cartridge would probably be a good choice along with the scout from vpi.

Ziggy and Wwshull,
Go BEYOND the next level.
Consider the Lenco idler wheel. This vintage rebuilt table beats the belt drives. You are in the price range for an excellent DIY project, or one already built, ready to spin vinyl.
With your nice electronics, the Lenco is a fabulous analog source.
Email me for some pics and see the lencolovers.com site.
Good luck!

I second the VPI Scout and a Dynavector 20X cart, used. All else at your price point will disappoint.

the denon can be tweeked to the next level...agree with the above.

Just wanted to say thanks for ALL OF YOUR SUGGESTIONS. Thats why I love this site. With that said, can a $1000 to $2000 TT/arm combo alone really make that much of a difference in overall sound compared to the Denon. I can see a more expensive cartridge getting deep in the grooves and bring out details a cheaper cartridge couldn't do. I'm guess I'm just new to high-end players. When I posted the original question some of you said keep the Denon TT/arm and just add better cart. and other tweaks. Obviously that would save me$$$.
I'm going to do more research on all your thoughts.
Thanks ziggy