Quoted from dasvis:

I too love the mid-1970's EM pins. I am amazed in what they could do with the technology that they had to work with. I'm partial to Bally pins of the era. Old Chicago, Captain Fantastic, Bow & Arrow -- great stuff. Working on a '74 Bally Amigo project right now.

Quoted from snyper2099:

Mid to late 70s EMs. Those are really the only EMs I’ve really liked. Fast Draw, Grand Prix, Hot Tip, Joker Poker, Argosy, and Space Mission are all really good.

Quoted from too-many-pins:

Once you get into a bunch of ramps, DMD displays, etc something is really lost instead of gained in my eyes.
What is kind of funny is I am in the hobby with my adult son and in his eyes if a machine didn't have a ramp in it then it wasn't any fun. As time has gone on he has actually warmed up to playing earlier SS machines and they are slowly taking over our collection. I am sure EM's will be the next step down that path once he gives a few a second chance.

Quoted from dasvis:

Well, my Bally Freedom is just parts. I picked it up a few years back for free from a guy who made a coffee table project out of the playfield & cabinet. I got the complete backbox (with broken backglass) & the lower cabinet board and put them in storage. Turned out to be a great pickup for me, as the Amigo that I am working on now needed a game over lock relay and several coils - all of which I harvested off of Freedom. NEVER pass on parts games!

Quoted from electricsquirrel:

Freedom is a wonderful game. Especially if you like spinners.
Ours continues to be a family favorite!
E

Quoted from Noobee:

I'm partial to the mid to late 70s gottlieb EMs. I grew up on these games back in the day when the large arcades were booming. I currently have seven refurbished games in my collection. Being an old fart, I appreciate the relative simplicity of the rule sets.
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Quoted from Noobee:

Nice!

Quoted from weeze:

If you own Ballys or Williams Ems from the 70s and you can find gottlieb chime sets at a reasonable price, buy the rubber grommets and coil sleeves and put them into you games. Those chime sets are just SUPERIOR in sound! at least to my ears.
My first 15 years I owned a bunch of different games but eventually I ended up a bit heavy on the 70s 4 players Ballys. Now its 25 ,30 years later and I still own the first game I ever bought. Bally BOW & ARROW> still play and still love it. In all these years I have replaced bands, bulbs. TO this day the only breakdown its ever had was the first week I owned it one of the kick out holes went "poop". got a used coil and soldered it in. That is absolutely the only thing Ive ever had to work on besides maintenance.
Last ten years have been all about the 60s Wedgeheads from Gottleib that have backbox animation and are "add a balls" I guess cuz I grew up in New York State that was one of the two add a ball states. Only thing that will limit you is space. Pinball people are like goldfish, they grow thier collections to the size of the space they have!
I certainly welcome you into the fold , if you ever need advice there are some really incredible people here in the EM section!
Oh shoot, one other thing, comparatively speaking, I think most guys will tell you that the 4 player gotts are more complicated then the Wills or the Ballys. Thats been my expierience anyway. Your mileage may vary of course.
Good Luck to you!

Quoted from wolverinetuner:

I'm EM-only, and Target Alpha is my favorite (I drove from Michigan to Delaware and back in 24 hours to get one). My Grand Prix is generally a favorite when we have friends over. I have the rarer Team One, the add-a-ball version of Abra Ca Dabra, and I find it challenging. I have a Freedom, which is probably my fastest pin. A buzzer goes off for about 10 seconds when you reach 100,000, a great feature. I recently got a Strato-Flite, which is wide-open fun.
EMs have lots of advantages:
-lower price tag
-easier to get into the basement/gameroom because the head comes off
-generally readily repairable without the need to work on delicate circuit boards
-classic sound of chimes/bells, which almost sounds like music when a bunch are played simultaneously
-more durable
-still a blast to play

Quoted from EricHadley:

Sorry guys. I can apreciate older games, but I really enjoy modern pins a lot more. I know, I’ll get thumbs down for this, that’s ok.

Quoted from ryan1234:

Please stop saying how great 70’s EMs are! The prices are just going to climb...
The 70’s multiplayers EMs are the best multiplayer pins ever!

Quoted from pinzrfun:

Like most people, I used to think ems were slow and dull. Then one night at our pinball League we played at a guy's house that had well cared for and restore EM's, and a couple of them I just kept going back to. Right away I bought my first two EMS I probably had half a dozen or so since then. Right now I have an Aladdin's Castle that iclearcoated to help preserve it and an Old Chicago. These games have something special about them. Despite the fact I have many newer games, it's fun to just strip it down to you and the ball, no ramps, dmds, bash toys...just being able to hear the ball roll around on a 50 year old piece of wood is transcendent in itself.
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Quoted from Electrocute:

I’ve passed on Target Alpha several times to hopefully get El Dorado. Target Alpha is a great game, may get it one day.

Quoted from Electrocute:

Best to just sit back and see what comes your way. Never thought I’d own Ding Dong. Package deal that came with Volley. It’s actually a very fun game. There is a nice one on EBay.

Quoted from NicoVolta:

Did you... happen... to see... a middle-pop Freedom for sale?!!? Because if you did, you must buy it immediately. And if not, you must PM me immediately! :p
Everyone here is lucky because we GET IT. Agreed with so much of what has already been said here. Let me add 2c more:
EM's (particularly multiplayers) provide THE BEST social experience in pinball, period. The reasons are many:
1) The sound of clicks, clacks, chimes, and bells are harmonious across all decades and create a unified "sound environment". A room full of 20 EM's with Led Zeppelin playing in the background puts everyone in the same 1970's headspace. Shared experience = that extra dimension we crave.
A room full of modern DMD's is cool, but everyone is in their own individual space/laser/fantasy/rock band environment of sound. Thus, the experience isn't as unified. More like everyone doing their own thing.
2) Short ball times. A 5-ball game between four players goes quickly. Lots of elbow rubbing and smack-talk and almost no waiting. The smartphone has no time to intrude here. Whereas many modern competitions LAST FOREVER... can get boring, and bored people aren't as social.
3) The mechanical/biological connection. EM's are "alive". You can sense every infinitesimal physical kick/clack/reaction with your fingertips and eardrums. This is a stronger kinesthetic connection than digitized callouts and music (though those can be quite good indeed if done well).
4) The EM rhythm! The heartbeat of the game. 500 points = 100-200-300-400-500. Press start: BUZZ-clacka-chacka-chack, clacka-chacka-chack, ticka-ticka-ticka-CLACK-CHUNK. All in the rhythm. The rhythm of the game. It's also in the score. It keeps you engaged for more.
Most of these aspects are pure serendipity. The original designers didn't get this deep into "pinball psychology"... it simply worked the way it did because technology of the time demanded it function more like a clock than a computer. But now, in hindsight, we're able to dive deeper and find out exactly why these things are so compelling. And, perhaps, eventually reclaim some of the magic.
My fleet:
2001
Argosy
Aztec
Big Day
Bow & Arrow
Cleopatra
Dixieland
Expo
Flip Flop
Flipper Fair
Freedom
Grand Prix
Grand Tour
Gridiron (Williams pitch & bat)
Hang Glider
Ice Show
Joker Poker
Jumping Jack
Little Chief
Mini Pool
Old Chicago
Out Of Sight
Queen's Castle
Pioneer
Rancho
Sheba
Sinbad
Skyrocket
Snow Derby
Solids & Stripes
Spanish Eyes
STARS
Surf Side
Wizard!
My favorite is the middle-pop Freedom prototype. Multiplayer, huge figure-eight flow, random awards (but not rule-breaking), fantastic risk/reward, and best implementation of the middle-pop style. Spinners, drops, surprises, no waiting. Just has it all. It is Norm Clark's signature game IMHO, exactly when he was hired to lead Bally to its greatest period.
Some of my games turned out to be VASTLY better than I had originally expected: Expo, Flipper Fair, Hang Glider, Little Chief, Skyrocket, Surf Side

Quoted from iamdrunker:

They also run the horn when you go "Over the top" on my Hokus Pokus. First time I saw those bulbs under there I had to come here to find out what they are for.