EMT tables are amazing works of engineering. Especially the 950. I own several 930s, 950s, 948s and even a 938. I studied these tables while I was working on my new table. Of the 45 or so tables I studied for this project, the EMT 950 is the stand out when it comes to build quality and they taught me a lot. I would say the 950 is one of the most accurate and silent tables ever made. The sound is slightly a bit light weight, otherwise VERY little to criticize, especially when compared to current tables. The 929 arm and built in phono stage are another story. Unfortunately EMT did not do their homework on the 929 arm. It looks and sounds like they copied the Ortofon they were selling previous to having their own arm. Don't get me wrong, it is not a bad arm but certainly not world class like the 950 itself. The built in phono stages EMT made were not bad either and probably were fine for their intended purpose of radio station use. Again, it is not up to the sound quality of the table. Bottom line, install a top notch arm and cart on a 950, run it through your own phono stage and you will have a world class table. A 948 is not too far behind.
EMT turntables as good as other great vintage TT?
Are the EMT turntables as good as the great Micro Seiki turntables, or the Pioneer Exclusive P3, or any of the other great vintage turntables. How would they stack up to today's modern turntables? I realize there are many different turntables in the EMT line. I have been reading that the 930st or the 950 seem to be the one's to buy with the 927 being quite rare and very expensive. Could someone take the mystery out of this line? Are they more collectible than sonically relevant?