Recommended first turntable?

Another thought: You are much better off putting virtually all your budget into the table/arm and getting the cheapest possible stop gap cartridge such as the cheapest Grado with the assumption of upgrading as funds allow. The quality priority sequence goes table, arm, cartridge, phono stage, etc.

$250 on the right day here could land you a used Rega P1. I've seen probably a half dozen here used in the $250-280 range over the last few months. Like Piedpiper, I didn't think I'd see them used for a while, but they're starting to appear. Rega sells a LOT of tables.

06-09-07: Ledhed2222
All of your info is helpful; I appreciate it! What do you think of Grado cartridges? My preamp has an MM input (but not MC) so I was leaning towards Grado.

The Grado Prestige line isn't a bad place to start, but there are other viable alternatives in the same price range, including the Ortofon OM 5 or OM 10 (depending on the sale price), the Shure M97xE (I paid $99 for mine but some on this forum have seen them as low as $50), and Audio Technica AT95E at under $50 or AT440MLa at about $85 if you get a lucky score on your turntable.

When you start putting the rest of your system together some of the people here may be able to help you pick the cartridge that best complements your downstream gear.

Sometimes you can get lucky. I got a Yamaha belt-drive semi-automatic turntable at a garage sale in Feb. for $2. It uses a P-mount cartridge. I replaced the cartridge with an Ortofon OMP 10, added an anti-static mat, and set the turntable's feet on Vibrapods and got a very musically satisfying player in return. Certainly not the highest resolution, but the P-mount arm virtually guarantees your cartridge is tracking at 1.25 grams, which should go easy on your records until you can afford something better.

About 3 weeks later I did buy a Technics SL1210 M5G, and enjoy the difference very much, but really, I could have gotten by on that old Yamaha pretty well if I'd chosen to.

I didn't realize that turntables have to be set up. Where can I find more information on set up and maintenance?

Sorry, I had more to say. What the story with cleaning records? Sounds like a good idea to me, does it require any special or expensive equipment?