I got a cheap "vintage" turntable, a Pioneer 112D. Just a novice, but among the points I considered and researched were:
* belt drive or direct drive; the lore seemed to be that direct did not hold steady speed as well over time and was more likely to communicate motor shake into the audible output, except of course the luxury models
* cartridge choice, and whether the turntable had the standard 1/2 inch-mount into the tonearm or not
* how to adjust the tracking weight, anti-skate, and protractor patterns for alignment
* bare turntable feeding into equipment that has a genuine phono input (hence with RIAA equalization) or a table with a built-in phono pre-amp
In my case the turntable feeds into a Yamaha A-S501 integrated amplifier which drives Focal Aria 906 speakers. The setup is pleasing with a record in decent condition. It reveals a lot about the qualities of how the record was recorded and mixed.
I listen at low-moderate volume. I don't have a number for the dynamic range, but with a good record I hear plenty of detail.