Steve, I'm sure the AR XA is very good (thank you for the offer) but I think I'd like to get into something a little less vintage I don't know much about Linn or Thorens. Any particular model I might want to check out? Also, what do you think about linear tracking tables? I know they were quite popular for a while, but maybe not so much now. I've always wondered if those produce better sound on the inner tracks of a record. The increased distortion on those inners grooves has always bothered me, so if there was a table (perhaps linear) that would reduce this problem, I'd really be interested.
Thanks very much for all the info!
Theo