You are correct, stay away from Belkin. Newer Linksys are owned by Belkin, but as John suggested, the older wrt54g is a great model.
But if you are tech savy and want the latest and greatest, Asus has some great models, I have the RT-AC68 (
http://www.amazon.com/RT-AC68U-Wireless-AC1900-Dual-Band-Gigabit-Router/dp/B00FB45SI4) It is hefty of the cost compared to the wrt54g. But it does have wireless AC,N,g,b capability with simultaneous 5GHz and 2.4 GHz. I have tried Belkin, Netgear, Linksys, Cisco, Apple you name it; Asus has by far the best out of box firmware I have seen. They are pricy but after a year of owning my rt-ac68 it will last you.
But if it is out of your price range, yes, go with the wrt54g! Both will not let you down