You might consider relaxing your requirement for a phono stage, because you can add an external phono preamp for a couple hundred dollars and buy yourself much more flexibility.
I've owned several tube preamps under $1000. IMHO, the Marsh P2000t is the best bang for the buck. It has just the right amount of warmth, but is also clear, transparent, and dynamic. It's a steal for half of your max budget used. The Audio Mirror T-61 is a great preamp (around $700 used) that has a nice warm sound with good, solid bass. (Disclaimer: I might be selling mine soon.) The Cary SLP-88 is warm and round, but weak on bass (at least with stock 6SN7 tubes). I've also heard Consonance tube preamps that sounded good for the price.
Michael
