Why will no other turntable beat the EMT 927?

Art Dudley wrote a very good article in the June issue: "Idler days are coming".

While I like Art Dudley, based on his "attitude" to this hobby and its importance in the grand scheme, I would not choose him as an arbiter of my own thinking or actions in the context of the hobby. He has a decided bias in favor of devices that color the sound to his liking, to include the Shindo electronics, the TD124, his choice of speakers,etc. That's perfectly all right, but it tells me that he and I are dissimilar in our tastes and goals. So, while I am a "Lenco lover", I do not love Lencos exclusively, and I would hardly say that idlers are in the ascendency.

The older designs are very good but as it has been noted they are not close to current technology, the drive used today did not exist, the software to run them, and the machining accuracy.
I always use this as a reference...I own and have raced my 1969 Firebird with a 426 pushing upwards of 650 HP...but you can go buy a factory car with more power, better brakes, better handing and the list goes on.
I have been lucky in my position to test All of the Garards/Lencos/Sp-10 and at the end of the day they are just like the 1969 firebird.

I know with a $100K investment in the firebird I can keep up with the new cars...but they cost 40k.....

That is simply a hobby of love and looks NOT TRUE PERFORMANCE.

This is the same as the table comparisons..simply not fair 40 years technology vs current.....
Cheers
Larry

"Why will no other turntable beat the EMT 927?"

No one has countered with the question, "Why does the EMT sound the way it sounds?" Yet, many are all too willing to dismiss it out of hand. Personally, I have never heard an EMT 927, so I have no firsthand experience with it. I have studied it's design, however, and I am convinced that EMT did build a superior piece when they produced the 927. Is it the best? Tuchan thinks so. As a turntable manufacturer, I would like to believe that at least one beats it. :wink: Like everything else, your mileage may vary, and so it goes.

There are other issues here that are displayed by the notion of some that we have nothing to learn from history because it produced no true performers. To lump all vintage pieces into a single category based on age alone, and to lump all modern ones into another category for the same reason is folly, in my opinion. It would be like saying that all modern turntables are the same, and we all know that isn't true. The same goes when it comes to drive types, too.

Some turntables from the past are stellar by any measure. The Mitchell Cotter turntable is one example. It looks like a DIY project, but most modern turntable manufacturers can't begin to rival it on their best days. (That's my opinion, but not necessarily Tuchan's. LOL) The Fairchild Studio 750 is another example of a vintage force to be reckoned with. I'm sure there are others.

So, when it comes to turntables (or other equipment for that matter) we should ask why it's good, or why isn't, rather than making hasty generalizations based on age, or whatever.

That's my two cents on the subject, anyway.

Comparing the technology in turntables with that of cars is dubious at best?
The physics and functioning of the turntable system has been pretty well understood for decades.....and in the case of idler drives and direct drives....there are few current or modern designs which can compete...let alone match........the top of the line designs from the 70s and 80s.

A fairer comparison of the art of turntable design I feel....would be with analogue watches.
Ask yourself whether a 2013 Patek Philippe wrist watch is technologically better than a 1930s, 1940s or 1950s Patek Philippe?