Lawrence -
You did not indicate that your purchase decision was imminent so I don't think anyone thought you needed to know right now.
You can get a decent capacity melter - 10-12kg - for well under $1000. As you are confident with your manual tempering skills this is the least expenisve way to expand capacity in the price range you mention.
The other option is a small-capacity Chocovision (the Rev 2 specifically) is about your only choice. Get the holey baffle to increase your capacity, but it will still be lower than the melter. The one advantage a Chocovision does have is that it will do a better job of keeping the chocolate in temper over the course of several hours of working time. With the melter you will have to watch it more closely and be responsible for keeping it in temper.
It's a toss-up. If you are really, really comfortable with your manual tempering skills then you will probably be able to do a better job of tempering by hand than the Chocovision can. The difference is manual versus semi-automatic.
:: Clay
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clay - http://www.thechocolatelife.com/clay/