Radikal Linn LP12 or Palmer 2.5?


The motor of my 25 year old LP12 just conked out and I was planning to use this as an opportunity to get it keeled and radikalized, until I recently went to an audio show and heard a Palmer 2.5 with an Origami arm that sounded fabulous.  I’ve never heard a fully upgraded LP12, but I’ve been living with my Cirkus/Ekos/Linto/Lingo version for some time.  After hearing the Palmer, I thought it might be time for a new direction, but I understand the Linn upgrades to be quite dramatic. I probably won’t be able to do a A/B comparison, so if anyone out there has has a chance to directly compare the two, I would love to hear your thoughts.  This is going to be a big expenditure for me either way and it will likely be my last turntable, so thanks in advance for any insights you may be willing to share.
latenitecity
Thanks, daveyf.  I appreciate it.  It was a fun process and, as you said, there really was no wrong answer. I feel very fortunate that I had the opportunity to audition these wonderful contraptions, and would be delighted to own any one of them.

@daveyf 

 

This is an old thread, and I fully acknowledge that..But in the event someone stumbles into the opinion above, please do your homework...Sound of anything we discuss here is subjective and individual to the listeners ears. But to say that a fiddlly Linn LP12 is in the same league as the Palmer is laughable...On looks alone the opnion here is toast. Both are two radically different designs, two difference categories of TTs. Most shopping for a Linn aren't shopping for a high mass table..The bias in this opinion is almost laughable...Feickert yes I will give the nod to those tables as a viable competitor, Linn, not so much. It's a sprung table with marketing scheme behind it for upgrades. Basically it's a giant hole in the ground you throw money into..I know they have their following, and to each their own...A Palmer however should NOT be compared to an LP12. There is no comparison. 

@jc51373 Now that I own a Linn LP12 Klimax spec model, and having heard a lot of tables since this thread started, all I can say to your post is YMMV. I had the choice of buying a Palmer, a Technics 1000, a Dr Feickert and even a TechDas V Premium ( at considerably more $$). I own the Linn, if that says anything.
Question..when was the last time you heard a current top-flite Klimax LP12...??? It really sounds nothing like your fathers’ ’70 model.