Which turntable should I buy?

If you are willing to pay a little bit extra, go for a Micro Seiki RX3000 or RX5000. These TTs are built like tank with gun metal platter. You won't regret for owning one. BTW, you really need a strong HiFi rack to put the Micro Seiki on. My RX5000 (including the motor, 3 armboards with 3 arms, bronze matt, bronze record weight, and platter stabilizer) weights over 165 lbs, so to speak.

Dear Nick: I totally agree with Ww129: the Micro Seiki RX 5000 is a great TT and beats easily the Teres and other " big names ".
You have to think serious about " the source " for your analog system: the phono cartridge, that's where all begin.
Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.

Ww129 and Raul,

Nick is looking to spend about $2,500 or so, not $25,000.

Dear Artar1: Where do you get that number ( 25,000.00 )?
Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul

It isn't just a question of turntable. There is a cartridge and a Phono preamp or phono section within your preamp and an arm as well. These will make a bigger difference in performance than the table alone. First of all, make sure the cartridge you buy is well matched to the phono preamp. If you get a MC cartridge with .25mlv of output and try to match it to a modest phono preamp with only 45db of gain, you won't get enough output. What kind of sound do you like? Robust and punchy? Buy a Clear Audio cartridge. Smooth and airy? Buy a Benz-Micro. If you have a modestly priced phono preamp, it will never do justice to a great table set-up. I haven't even mentioned the difficulties of matching an arm to the table. My suggestion is to buy an integrated set-up like a Music Hall MM7 or 9 which will be less than what you want to spend, BUT! The sum total of its superbly matched parts - Table, arm, and cartridge ( which will have fairly good output and will better match modestly priced preamps ) will give you much better sound than a big mismatch.