Thoughts on the Linn LP12 turntable

Mijostyn himself highlights that history is littered with turntables of no significance. That is true. Many models have emerged, had a moment in the sun and faded away. This has been ongoing for decades. And yet the LP12 endures. For fifty years! The LP12 is the lightning rod for passion and debate. Most forum threads on this topic disolve into what we see here.

I don’t have a horse in this race. I have never owned an LP12. I do know solid audiophiles who love their LP12. These are smart people who earn good money. They can buy whatever they like and some of them continue to tinker with their LP12 tables. You can buy a top spec model new for like $30,000. Or you could buy a used model for $1500 and create your own upgrade path and budget and play. You can hire a professional to do this for you or you can do it all yourself. You might be a keen woodworker and build your own fancy custom plinth out of exotic woods or purchase one from several well known craftsmen who do this kind of work. There is a solid market for all kinds of LP12 stuff. Perhaps a wider market than any table ever made?

The point is the LP12 is a very successful product. It had fans in the 1970s and it has fans today.

That being said folks are perfectly welcome to prefer other options, upgrade paths and budgets. No problem. There are a zillion choices. But think of this: maybe the popular (audio forum) alternative that is popular today might just not be around in 15 years but the Linn LP12 might continue to endure and attract new fans?

@ghdprentice  Thank you so much for your very kind words!

Best wishes,

Don

The comment "It's suspension design is inherently unstable and if it is not on a supremely stable surface it will skip easily. Footfall issues are legion with this turntable. A little bump will cause a skip...."

The above statement can be said of virtually any table.  It is accepted by most audiophiles that to get the best performance out of almost any turntable, no matter it's design (whether it's suspended or mass loaded, etc.) that you must use a proper base or stand under the table.  

As shown in the photo below, I use a wall shelf that is attached to the studs of a load bearing wall for a proper support for my LP12.  My wife and I can quite literally dance, jump up and down, etc right in front of the turntable and it will not skip a beat.  It plays rock solid and completely undisturbed.

@photomax  I agree with everything you have said in your post above. Very well said.

Best wishes to all,

Don

Doesn’t anyone own an Oracle anymore? The Townshend Audio Rock table has quite a dedicated cult following.

LP12 is like a traditional tube EL34/Kt88 tube. Some dismiss it as old school while others consider it musically charming and relevant. 

I have heard LP12 sound very ordinary and very awesome.

Many modern TTs have very low (CD like?) noise floor and expansive soundstage, pin point imaging and big dynamics. Thats their achievement which is to be applauded. But do they represent music the way it was intended by the musicians? A lot of them just fall flat on this ground alone. An AMG Viela V12 sounds dead boring🥱. A Dohmann Helix takes pride in its all out effort for isolation, but play some Michael Jackson on it and see if the "king of the pop" feels like he is taking hou back in time to groove again. Just doesn't happen! All the imaging and soundstaging specificity is there to wow the listener as long as that's what the recording is all about. A Kronos TT sounds like a CD with better dynamics. Dry harmonics and discrete flow. I can go on and on. I have heard a lot of these TTs and it is extremely disappointing what today's one man designer voiced equipments sound like. 

Before some consider me as a LP12 fanboy, my favourite reference TTs are Kondo Ginga, Hartvig, SME 30/12, EMT 927, Micro Seiki 5000 and 8000 etc 

If I list out all the modern TTs which suck at keeping the integrity of the music, the list will be very long.