Any Linn LP12 users still on the forum?

[Barry]

They say beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so here are my decks:

EMT930st

I bought this about eight years ago from a seller in Hungary. From the serial number it was made in May 1974, one of 50 made that month. Appearance wise, being a professional TT made for the broadcast industry, its looks are sombre and business like, quite the opposite to what would look good in a domestic setting. It was designed to be reliable as it was intended to be in constant use and only require infrequent servicing.


Thorens TD124/II

The plinth was designed by me and made by my father. The sides are mahogany and the top is 10mm plywood. It does not have a base, intentionally so as to avoid any resonant cavities. The feet are simple no-nonsense 5/8" diameter rubber types. It sits atop a brick-built fireplace, and no matter how loud I play my system no vibration can be felt through the plinth.

I like the TD124/II so much I have three of them, all in non-standard plinths.


As you can see I like 1950/60's styling, but there are several later decks I do like: the Thorens TD125 being one of them.

[Tim]

They say beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so here are my decks:

And that's what so many people struggle to understand.

Has your EMT been restored at all?

[Barry]

No, apart from a change of platter mat. The motor is a three phase type, and the two phase shift capacitors can drift in value with time causing an increase in flutter. The item I bought had been serviced and since then has had little use, so the capacitors have kept their value.

To be honest, I bought the EMT as it was a long held ambition of mine to own one, just as eventually owning a Nagra IV-S portable reel-to-reel recorder was another!

[Pete The Cat]

I have a Nirvana/Valhalla LP12. Fluted afro. I use it to play my second hand records.

Decks have different voices. This one's strength is that it's very, very listenable, like the Cadbury's Caramel bunny. If part of that is as a result of 'colouration' of the upper bass then colour away!

[Barry]

I'm surprised Patrick can hear the, albeit small, difference between a Linn LP12 in a walnut plinth compared to one in an afromosia plinth. IMO it doesn't say much for the design: it's not a speaker, where the wood used in the cabinet is important. I must be missing something here.

[Pigmy Pony]

I'm surprised Patrick can hear the, albeit small, difference between a Linn LP12 in a walnut plinth compared to one in an afromosia plinth. IMO it doesn't say much for the design: it's not a speaker, where the wood used in the cabinet is important. I must be missing something here.

You could well be, Barry If you're referring to post #18, I think Patrick was referring to the appearance, ie the fluted afromosia plinth was similar to the fluted walnut one, and preferred the look of the walnut.

[Barry]

You could well be, Barry If you're referring to post #18, I think Patrick was referring to the appearance, ie the fluted afromosia plinth was similar to the fluted walnut one, and preferred the look of the walnut.

Yes you're right. Having reread Patrick's post it does read as him preferring the appearance of the walnut plinthed LP12. Thanks, I thought I was going a bit loopy there. ( )

[Tim]

They say beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so here are my decks:

EMT930st

Certainly a statement piece and built more like a tank than any other deck I can think of. Am I right in thinking the top plinth is made of Bakelite?

[Wakefield Turntables]

I had a LP12 but decided a Heybrook TT2 did a better job. I have nothing against LP12's!

[Barry]

EMT930st

Certainly a statement piece and built more like a tank than any other deck I can think of. Am I right in thinking the top plinth is made of Bakelite?

Yes it is. I'm not sure what prompted Wilhelm Frantz to choose Bakelite, perhaps it was because it is non-metallic and so would have desirable non resonant properties. The downside is it is fragile, anything heavy dropped onto the top surface will crack it. Mine arrived in a huge packing case: so large I could not get it into my car, so I had to unpack it at Stanstead airport and put the smaller, but still well-wrapped turntable into the boot.