PeaceWalker, all of the ARs mentioned here are good. If you have to have that Rolls Royce name, go for it. I just haven't seen any advantages to spending that much money on a single rifle. I don't think that you can say that a Noveske, KAC or whatever is going to be more reliable than half a dozen other well built ARs. Most of what makes a good, reliable AR is attention to detail in assembly. I've built enough with inexpensive parts to know that to be true.
The only problems I've ever seen with the likes of Rock River, DPMS or Bushmaster was that they must have been built on either a Friday or a Monday and they didn't have anything wrong with them that couldn't be fixed with a little TLC.
My point is that getting the rifle is only a part of getting into shooting it. Once you have, you'll need sights/optics (and mount), magazines, sling, maintenance supplies (including replacement parts) and AMMUNITION.
You can find a really nice rifle in the $1K to $1500 range and that would leave you a little for some accessories.
Just as an example, on my last build, I have almost $2K in the trigger, stock and scope alone.