I second the preamp advice. I sort of hate to, because I think the Pretek, Powertek and Intek were three of Linn's best value amplifiers, but your system looks fairly well balanced now. I don't think a Mimik would be any improvement at all over your Arcam. (I really think you should forget the Classik.) I thought the Genki was pretty good, but when I heard the Ikemi I forgot the Genki and started thinking about spending money I didn't have.
IMHO take as big a step up as you can on a preamp, like Lugnut says. If you must stay Linn you might get lucky on a Kairn in the next 6 months, but if Lugnut's right about the preamp being next, there's a good chance he's right about a Syrah too.
_Then_ look for a new CDP.
Be of good cheer, super preamps can be found. I can also recommend a Klyne SK-5A like mine. This would cost a respectable amount under a grand, used, if you could find one. However the real glory of the Klyne is its phono stage and there's not much point if you don't play vinyl. |
Again great advice from Lugnut IMO. I agree that Aktiv is the way to go eventually, and I agree preamp first. When I listened to various combinations of Linn components, active and passive, that really stood out. The active setup let me hear all too well if the preamplification was ordinary. I ended up deciding that before going active I'd get a Kairn. (Although I ended up not getting the Linn system, I still remember the sound... ).
One nice thing about a Linn active system is that you don't have to use Linn amplification. An external box ( Tunebox, yes ? Thanks Lugnut. ) will hold the cards.
OK now Joolz, thanks for asking about sources. I like Naim players a lot and you might well find one of them fit very well between Genki and Ikemi. I would listen for depth, timbres, presence and purity, as the Genki has drive down pretty well and you'll get even more of this as you upgrade to active. There are lots of other players too, though, and if you haven't started listening to them yet, you have fun fun fun ahead! |
Yes, I've heard that effect from Moon equipment before. You feel that you are in a room with invisible musicians. Reminds me of a passage in, I think, the Morte d'Arthur: Galahad or Percival, in the Grail castle, hears celestial music from an unknown source.
It's certainly very pleasant not to be distracted from the music by the audio gear. My own system is getting that way now too, I'm happy to say, so the Holy Grail of great music from invisible artists can be achieved with stuff from other manufacturers too. |
Interesting reflection by Lugnut on digital source purchase at this time. I myself am wondering about low end digital, now that I'm looking for a player for a friend. I want to hear some cheap DVD players with CD outs. Good comments I've heard about these recently may be a sign that the digital playing field is leveling.
OTOH my biggest surprise recently was my Apogee DAC. My goodness that was a step up in liveliness and immediacy, a veil torn away.
But to sum up, yes, Joolz, I concur with Lugnut, look into preamps now. When you find one, enjoy, then when ready, glance at the digital source question just in case there are clear signs by then that you should go that way. If there are not, then go right on to Aktiv. |
Joolz, it's great playing backup to Lugnut. He's right, you know. Look at what I said up above: one nice thing about Linn active systems is you don't have to use Linn amps. That goes for preamps too. You can have a wonderful Aktiv system eventually, and with careful shopping it will sound better than anything Linn can sell for the same money... or maybe even for a bit more.
Your Linn dealer will not agree.
Upgrades are expensive. Don't fool around; get the very best preamp you can afford. Do you absolutely, positively feel you must go Linn? Then in Linn-relative terms, the Majik is a lot better than the Classik, the Wakonda is a nice step up from the Majik, and the Kairn is a real upgrade from the Wakonda. In high-end relative terms, though, the Kairn is good; the Wakonda is OK; the Classik will do nicely in a bedroom. If you want REALLY musical, oh-darn-I-hate-to-turn-my-system-off sound for similar money, look elsewhere is good advice. |
P.S. you asked about an AA DAC, and again my advice is to get the very best you can squeeze out of your wallet. IMHO you need to do more research on DACs before you choose one. You may do better with a two-box upgrade, but OTOH you may not. (A tip: if you do go for a DAC, try to find an Apogee DA1000E if you can.) However, if I were you, I would not let the appearance of a deal on a possibly-interesting DAC distract me from my main search now, which is for a preamp. You will not recognize your system once you have found that. |
Well, take Lugnut's advice and try to find a Supratek Syrah. That's the elsewhere I was thinking of.
As for an integrated... if it were me looking, I'd want to hear an Audiomat (French), or for less money, a Cayin or HIT Audio (Chinese). These are tube machines with around 30 wpc depending on the model. If I preferred solid state and maybe more watts I'd want to hear Vecteur, YBA (both French), a SimAudio (Canadian like me) or a Shanling SLM-40 (Chinese). But I don't know... the Pretek / Powertek is good equipment and replacing your Pretek with a Syrah might cost no more than any of these options and give yousound just as good, with an easy upgrade to the amp later on.
It's hard to be asked to recommend a whole system. I don't know what kind of sound you like. I had a Shanling CD-T100 player (about $2G) that I liked a lot, and in Canada you can get two other Shanlings which are equally good value for money at lower price points. As for monitors, I'm listening to an Aurum Cantus Leisure 2 pair at the moment and they're very nice. I would also be interested in Harbeth's current LS 3/5A-type, and a long time ago I heard the Totem Model 1 and enjoyed it, but it needs lots of power.
It's a pleasure and a compliment to be asked for advice and I respect any naive person who has the courage to say so. |
