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Post by Tim on Jul 24, 2014 21:22:16 GMT
Linn Sondek LP12Ever since I first saw/heard one of these in the early 80's I have always loved them and they have always been something I could perhaps see myself owning one day, but as most will know I never really got back into vinyl. I get the impression they are not liked by the AoS 'Techy' crowd . . . so what do folks here feel? I think they are a thing of beauty and epitomise all that's great about a love of music and I have yet to see a turntable that I personally think is more attractive.
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Post by MartinT on Jul 24, 2014 21:34:43 GMT
Never liked the sound of them, I'm afraid. The rich fruitiness of the deck's bass and the jangly tone of the classic Ittok pairing were never for me. I've not heard a fully loaded up to date one, though.
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Post by Greg on Jul 24, 2014 21:38:48 GMT
Yep, but actually they don't sound so good, bringing their own signature to the sound which IMHO is coloured and false. I would take a well fettled Techy (which I don't like) much before I'd buy a LP12. I've been down this road, owned a Valhalla Lp12 and moved on to a Origin Live, superseded by a Michell Orb'd Gyro and now settled with a Garrard 401 which I expect will see out my days. The Linn's look good but IMHO, don't do the sound correctly. You need to either take the advise offered or suck and see for yourself as I did.
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Post by canetoad on Jul 24, 2014 21:51:28 GMT
I've actually never heard one. I prefer direct drive to belt drive.
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Post by Dave on Jul 24, 2014 21:58:17 GMT
Never liked the sound of them, I'm afraid. The rich fruitiness of the deck's bass and the jangly tone of the classic Ittok pairing were never for me. I've not heard a fully loaded up to date one, though. I feel very much the same way about the original. I would welcome the chance to listen to an example of the current iteration though which appears to be a far more substantial beast
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Post by ChrisB on Jul 24, 2014 21:59:01 GMT
I think they're great at what they do - a hugely infectious sound. I can see why some think they're great, but not for me thanks.
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roy
Rank: Trio
Posts: 116
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Post by roy on Jul 24, 2014 21:59:40 GMT
Got a working one second hand at a good price (knowing it would benefit from a service) but it's taken a back seat to my other decks, got a PL-112D that sounds better.
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Post by walpurgis on Jul 24, 2014 23:18:31 GMT
Heard loads, used a couple. Buy a TD150 and save a couple of grand (or a lot more). Also didn't think much of the Ittok arm it was sold with. It looked great, but sounded unrefined, in fact quite coarse at the top end.
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Post by AlanS on Jul 25, 2014 0:49:06 GMT
My secondhand one is a pleasant change to the ancient Rega Planar 3 I had for years. And I really think that
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Deleted
Deleted Member
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Post by Deleted on Jul 25, 2014 3:41:18 GMT
so what do folks here feel?
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Post by John on Jul 25, 2014 4:02:11 GMT
I can see why people like them and never heard a fully loaded one but not for me
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Post by jammy on Jul 25, 2014 4:47:17 GMT
Rip off Tat, Soundly thrashed by any decent DD TT for a N'th of the price.
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Post by pinkie on Jul 25, 2014 5:33:23 GMT
The original was a slightly engineered up copy of the Aniston, with a highly :'(distinctive sound. Distinctive but coloured. It was the cornerstone of a very successful marketing campaign which controlled British hifi for many years. As a package that Linn naim sound could be quite warm and rich and engaging - easy listening, but it was a million miles from accurate. The arrival of cd was the start of the exposure of how coloured and inaccurate the lp12 was. It's simple design was a pig to set up which provided cover for any criticism of the sound "only an authorised Linn specialist can get it right". Worst sinners for the sound were the felt mat and flimsy sub-chassis, so like that other famous triggers broom, the sl1200 if you change enough of it, as Linn have with their £15000 flagship version, you end up with something much more acceptable, if still not my choice. But like a landrover freelander mk1 compared with a mk2- the lp12 original shares only the name - almost everything else in it has changed. It is iconic by virtue of the colossal marketing control and influence of British hifi for so long. Not because of its performance as a device for playing music:'(
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Post by Tim on Jul 25, 2014 6:47:19 GMT
Interesting comments guys, many thanks and much as I suspected I still think they are a thing of beauty however, which in my world is an important consideration as records will always take second place to my file based audio system . . . maybe one day?
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Post by John on Jul 25, 2014 7:05:53 GMT
I think you can make your 401 a thing of beauty and I personally prefer what the 401 does. You got yourself a very capable TT that if you add a decent cart and phono stage will surprise you
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Post by ChrisB on Jul 25, 2014 7:22:11 GMT
I'd agree with John. If I were you, I'd blow up a picture of a nice LP12 and hang it on the wall above your Garrard. You get the best assets of both that way!
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Post by Tim on Jul 25, 2014 7:42:33 GMT
That's my big problem though John, I have been wrangling over what to do with the 401 for ages now as to me the last thing I would call it would be attractive (darned ugly to be frank) and I really dislike the strobe platter. So to make it acceptable it would need something like a Russ Collinson plinth, a new PAC platter, complete strip/rebuild restoration and repaint to black (I don't like that Garrard brown at all). Then add a new arm and cartridge with SUT and we are talking very serious money for something I would use maybe 10% of the time and still not be happy with visually and which would to be blunt only equal the sound I already have and cost more than my total current system has cost - so as you can imagine its proving a tricky problem! Ha, I like your solution Chris maybe I could do that and stick it in front of the 401.
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Post by MikeMusic on Jul 25, 2014 8:42:18 GMT
I still have my LP12 and I'm going to play it alongside my quite high modded Tech sooner or later Assume the Tech will win, but will be interested to hear differences Then I may sell it - or not
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Post by welder on Jul 25, 2014 8:55:33 GMT
Hi Tim I should make clear I’ve not owned a Linn, but when I was getting into Hi Fi a few of my friends had Linns and being the guy with the mechanical skills and the right equipment I got to set a number of these decks up for my friends. What I write below isn’t really for your benefit; I’m sure you’ve worked this stuff out for yourself. There is as you have read a small group of embittered people, mainly from the trade in it’s various guises who at some point it seems have extolled the virtues of Linn above all else only to find at some later point that other makes have suited their ears/systems better and now eulogise about alternatives with the same fervour; my thoughts is if they were that deaf then then with age their hearing probably hasn’t improved and their views on Linn are probably prejudiced by other factors rather than the decks sonic characteristics. I’ve head some excellent Linn based systems in the past, mostly before the endless upgrade options came on the market. What seems to be overlooked by some who have no problem remembering this for other components is an awful lot depends on the system the decks is put in and the componants such as arm and cartridge that accompanies it. If imo the Linn does have major drawbacks they are that for what you get the price is completely ridiculous and more importantly they are difficult to set up and tend to wander ‘out of tune’ very easily. A dial test indicator and small weights to load the suspension points can be very handy in setting them up and there are some helpful guides on the net. I’ve had good results in the past using my old Haddock arm and Decca cartridge on a basic Linn and the SME 3009 with a detachable magnesium head-shell with a Goldring (1GC if my memory serves me) MM cartridge made surprisingly decent sound. I’ve even heard one with one of those old Moth arms and a MC cartridge (can’t remember the make) sound very pleasant. So, don’t rule out Linn because of it’s sonic potential, they can be made to sound very acceptable. Ruling them out on price or setting difficulty would seem far more sensible. However, if you like the look and can get one at a sensible price why not. Lots here and elsewhere have some technically and measurably appalling bits of old kit that they love to bits, myself included. It’s a hobby after all and you make get a lot of fun out of a bit of Linn tweaking.
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Post by John on Jul 25, 2014 9:05:32 GMT
That's my big problem though John, I have been wrangling over what to do with the 401 for ages now as to me the last thing I would call it would be attractive (darned ugly to be frank) and I really dislike the strobe platter. So to make it acceptable it would need something like a Russ Collinson plinth, a new PAC platter, complete strip/rebuild restoration and repaint to black (I don't like that Garrard brown at all). Then add a new arm and cartridge with SUT and we are talking very serious money for something I would use maybe 10% of the time and still not be happy with visually and which would to be blunt only equal the sound I already have and cost more than my total current system has cost - so as you can imagine its proving a tricky problem! Ha, I like your solution Chris maybe I could do that and stick it in front of the 401. That's a shame for sound quality the 401 is a great TT If looks are more important than sound then perhaps best to sell the 401 but it really is a good TT
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