EMT turntables as good as other great vintage TT?

It would be informative if one of you EMT owners could clarify the nomenclature. I know that the 950 is direct-drive and that the 927 and 930 are idlers (or I think that is the case). But where do the others fit in? And what is the accepted gospel on which of the direct-drives and which of the idlers are the best in terms of performance? (I gather from Vetterone that the 950 is tops among the DD EMTs.) Thanks.

I am currently using EMT 927 with ortofon arm and 139st phono stage.
First of all my opinion.I consider the 927 the most musical turntable I have heard.Since using the 927,I am not interested in hearing the last nuance of the 3rd oboe in the fifth row,i quite simply enjoy the performance.
Some turntables are more `hi-fi`,but none more musically satisfying.I find the EMT idler drives more musical than the others.
The phono stage on EMT`s is of paramount importance;the 139st is quite simply the best.The limited variable EQ is also of huge benefit.
I have previously owned SME 30,Forsell AFO,Goldmund Reference,Versa Dynamics 2.The last two were the best I had previously owned;I have also compared these with Rockport Sirius 2 and many others not worth mentioning.
It is very amusing for me to see modern turntables been touted as `worlds best`,at exorbitant prices,which do not hold a candle to the Goldmund and Versa,let alone EMT.
The EMT 927 is not cheap,do not confuse e-bay items with a properly serviced EMT from a reputable dealer.EMT 927`s in top variations sell for over 50,000 Euro`s in Japan,they know what quality is.
Do yourself a favour,ignore the opinions of others,and make the effort to hear one.If you value musical enjoyment over Hi-Fi detail,then there will be no going back.
I have gone overboard and bought a second one!

Hi Channel10,You are speaking my words.I have the same
setup as you do.EMT 927,Ortofon arm and 139st.I have
also the other preamps 139 Mono,155st and 153st, but
they are not even close.
I bought also the EMT 997 arm just for the good looks,
but I don't think I'll install it since everything is
so good now.
I've been close to going overboard too.

Some words to defend the EMT 929 arm earlier on the thread.
929 accepts only the diamond pattern EMT TSD-15 or some
small enough to put on the EMT cartridge adapter.
The one I could fit was a Denon DL-103.So basically
if you don't like these you are in trouble.
To me it was a revelation to hear EMT 930 with TSD-15,
I liked it so much that when I tried to get more out
of the SME 30, I stripped a TSD-15 out of it's shell and
put that on the SME V. I liked it more than with Koetsu
Rosewood and others, but still no go compared to EMT 930/929/TSD-15 combo.
So tastes may vary...

I heard the EMT 930 idler-wheel drive on Cyprus (fully restored under the supervision of A.J. Van den Hul himself among others) when I and it basically parachuted in at the same time, and I was awed at the master-tape-like quality I heard at that time, in terms of tonal correctness or lack of editing/addition, an amazing, powerful and musical record player to boot. I did not attend the comparison between the EMT 927 and my own work, which was organized by others without my knowledge, having been informed only a couple of days before the event, I hardly "went bonkers" (but I did - on my annual peregrination to the Greek islands - bring a 'table over to leave against some possible demonstration, which some might consider "bonkers", which I won't deny ;-)). The outcome of the vote was e-mailed to me after the event, which was posted unedited. Like my landing in a living room on Cyprus (also with a 'table) just as those fellows were setting up their newly-restored EMT 930 (which I only discovered as I got there), so the owner of an EMT 927 (who also owned an EMT 950, but was nevertheless and idler-wheel fan) simply popped up from out of the blue and offered (being an idler-wheel fan). Wish I could have been there, the 930 was a thing of beauty sonically and in terms of engineering. I seem to have some EMT-karma, and glad of it, I look forward to the next bolt out of the blue :-).