Linn Lp12 Serial Number History
Faustina Bartsch
The Linn Sondek LP-12 is now an obsolete 1970s design that has had a number of mainly minor (in audibility, but not in cost!) improvements in the last 30 years. It is, by far, the most overrated audio component of all time* and it is also the most obvious example that, especially in the audio world, marketing skills are much more important to the commercial success of a component than its ultimate performance.
While the Linn sounds very good, all of the turntables in the higher classes ("A" and "B") have noticeable sonic advantages, and some of them are superior to the Linn by a relatively large margin (for turntables).
These others turntables all have much more up-to-date designs. It is actually amazing that the Linn sounds as good as it does, but the Cetech modification, discussed below, demonstrates what Linn has overlooked and ignored all these years. This is the result of marketing trumping basic engineering.
The Linn simplifies* and homogenizes the music, and it is also noticeably colored compared to its competitors. The frequency extremes (especially the bass) are also substandard. This is the reason why Linn, and its dealers, usually stress focusing on the most basic and simple audio goals ("follow the tune" and "PRaT") when it's auditioned.
This is because "the tune" and "the beat" will always be relatively easier to hear, in comparison to superior turntables, when the natural musical complexities have been compromised (by being subtracted). This ploy epitomizes the most cynical and misleading marketing strategies; those which turn actual weaknesses into "strengths".
"The Aries' timbral balance is different from that of the LP12/Aro combination - the latter sounding a little more 'open,' the VPI making chords sound a bit richer, thicker, and more tonally complex. Which is right? Beats me."
Mr. Dudley didn't just come out and write that the Linn sounds "simple" by comparison. He also avoided* stating a clear preference, which should be a no-brainer in this particular instance. I'm somewhat more direct. When it comes to music (though not audio):
Even the Linn's "pleasant" character, which is just an innocuous distortion and coloration, has been misrepresented by them (and their fans) to be a "musical" strength. The Linn also has a practical downside...
The Linn (along with some other spring-loaded turntables) has a tendency to bounce if it is not placed on the proper shelf or stand. This problem must obviously be corrected before an expensive cartridge is mounted on it.
The Linn, when optimized, retains a noticeable share of "musical life", which many other turntables do not possess to the same degree. This is the primary reason why the Linn is still a Reference on this website, even though this "life" is at least partially caused by a distortion from its mat. This positive observation is a "gut feeling", but that's what most music appreciation is ultimately.
The financial investment and risk are reasonably low at that point, and the reader will have a turntable quite a bit better than any Regas, Aristons and most Thorens etc. Linn's service reputation is also excellent.
You may live happily ever after with the used Linn, but if not, it should be very easy to resell it and recoup most, or even all, of your money. However, never fool yourself into thinking that you own "one of the world's finest turntables", you don't.
To end the "Linn bashing" on a pragmatic note: Serious audiophiles can use all the Linn-hype to their advantage when reading and assessing the opinions of 'audio reviewers' and all other self-proclaimed 'experts'. The rule is simple:
Since my (actually our) opinion on this turntable has proved to be the most controversial of any of the components on this entire list, a further personal explanation may help to clear the air.
I owned my first Linn Sondek LP-12 back in around 1976. I purchased another one in 1979 after I realized I had made a serious mistake selling the first one (for a number of expensive direct-drives and then an Ariston). I greatly enjoyed listening to them at the time.
I have made more comparisons with the Linn versus other turntable designs than I care to remember, including many at my customers' homes. I routinely used the same models of tonearm and cartridge on both turntables, which is the only method that is fair and accurate. On a number of occasions, I even went to the further trouble of having both the exact same tonearm and cartridge removed from one turntable and placed on the other, just to isolate the exact differences between the turntables themselves.
I had the finest set-up men I knew do the actual work, to make sure there could be no excuses or uncertainty as to the final results. I even used special stands, that were supposed to enhance and optimize the sound of the Linn. The results of those numerous comparisons are discussed above. The other auditioners were virtually unanimous in their agreement with my characterizations of those results. That is why I (actually my store) ended up with around 20 Linns; essentially all of them were trade-ins.
(For years, I actually kept a Linn LP-12 in my store to help sell the VPI HW-19; making A/B comparisons on a regular basis. Those comparisons enabled me to become one of the best selling VPI dealers in the world during the 1980s. Tricks of the trade.)
These (consistent) results were not unique in any manner. Virtually every other knowledgeable person I knew in the audio business realized that the Linn's basic design was obsolete after the Goldmund, Townshend Rock and Oracle designs came out. At that time, more than 30 years ago now, we all expected Linn to radically change their design, but Linn decided instead to play the "follow the tune" marketing game. The fact that this ploy was actually successful is a depressing thought.
The other common experience I had back then, and which is still very true today, is that most owners of the Linn turntable will rarely, if ever, seriously compare their Linn to the competition. There is a good reason for this reluctance. It is the same reason why religious fanatics will never seriously study comparative religions, or any "true believer" will always avoid the alternatives...
The stronger, more untenable and increasingly irrational their belief, the less likely that person will ever consider arguments, or even information, that would contradict that belief*. (Far too) Many Linn owners have huge emotional investments in their turntable. Accordingly, it becomes far too emotionally painful and unsettling for such a person to even just contemplate (let alone recognize) that their now comfortable and deeply satisfying opinion may not be true. To finally admit that you were wrong all that time, is to accept the devastating fact that your many years of "devotion" were ultimately wasted. Maybe worst of all are the possible social consequences...
Most of the Linnies I've met are part of a group of Linnies, some of whom would be considered real friends. Changing your feelings about the Linn would mean inevitably having to leave this group, since the common belief would no longer be shared, just like a person changing their religion or political party. The now former Linnie would become an "apostate" to the group. They, accordingly, would consider him "disloyal", and probably shun him (like the late Art Dudley). So, it isn't much of a surprise that only a few people will ever choose to go through such a highly unpleasant experience as this. They would rather live in "bliss", and ignorance of course.
"You dont have to look very far for examples of people holding on to their beliefs in the face of overwhelming evidence to the contrary. Thousands still hold to the idea that vaccines cause autism, that all life was created a few thousand years ago, and even that drinking industrial bleach is a good idea. Look at comment threads across the internet and youll inevitably find legions of people who boldly support for these ideas in the face of any rational argument.
Gal and Rucker were inspired by a classic psychological book called "When Prophecy Fails"...The case study inspired (Leon) Festingers theory of 'cognitive dissonance', which describes the discomfort that people feel when they try to cope with conflicting ideas. Festinger reasoned that people will go to great lengths to reduce this conflict. Altering ones beliefs in the face of new evidence is one solution, but for... (the "Prophet's") followers, this was too difficult. Their alternative was to try and muster social support for their ideas. If other people also believed, their internal conflicts would lessen.
Festinger predicted that when someones beliefs are challenged, they would try to raise support for those beliefs with paradoxical enthusiasm. Amazingly enough, during the intervening half-century, this prediction has never been tested in an experiment that is, until now.
A reader has complained in an e-mail that I have not given the Linn LP-12 a fair shake. This is his (edited) letter. My reply (which differs slightly from my personal reply to him) is greatly expanded, because it leads to my take on the much more important issue this reader brought up:
If you have not heard the Lingoed LP-12 in the right circumstances. The performance may be ...close or equal to the Aries. You, yourself, agree that your comments on the LP-12 have created your most contentious backlash from readers, so why not do this right and be beyond reproach. Your admission that you have based all your comments on the LP-12 without a Lingo is already quite unsettling for me. The cost of the Lingo may not be a concern for a lot of people, as they may have already owned the LP-12 for years...The "big picture" (general) comments you make on the LP12 is on principle not right. And being a self critical person like yourself, you should set things right...Anyway, you owe it to yourself to hear a fully fitted Linn - after all, almost anyone old enough would know the LP-12..."
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