Managed to talk a friend into buying an Lp12(used,no cirkus).He is going to put his old rega rb300 on it just now and has an offer of an old wakonda lingo for £250 including fitting.Does anyone have any memories of this item and the reasons why Linn decided to put it in an external box.

"Wakonda Lingo"..? What is that? If it's a Valhalla then it's a compleatly different construction compared to Lingo, and £250 is probably a bit expensive.

The only Wakonda I know about is the pre-amplifier?

It was the lingo before Linn decided to put it in the shoebox initially called the wakonda ..it was fitted in the lp12 like the Valhalla

Looks like this is getting good answers on the linn forum: http://forums.linn.co.uk/bb/showthread.php?tid=31070

Interesting.

There's also this from Stereophile in 1995:

According to Paul Messenger of the English magazine Hi-Fi Choice, Linn tried to replace the internal Valhalla with an external power supply, the "Wakonda," a couple of years back, but this didn't go into production, it not being felt to offer any sonic improvement.

The Lingo, however, is a different kettle of silicon...

tokenbrit wrote:Looks like this is getting good answers on the linn forum: http://forums.linn.co.uk/bb/showthread.php?tid=31070

Interesting.

There's also this from Stereophile in 1995:

According to Paul Messenger of the English magazine Hi-Fi Choice, Linn tried to replace the internal Valhalla with an external power supply, the "Wakonda," a couple of years back, but this didn't go into production, it not being felt to offer any sonic improvement.

The Lingo, however, is a different kettle of silicon...

Thanks Tokinbrit that quote should help my friend make up his mind

I have a Wakonda pcb. Haven't compared it to a Lingo 1 but like that it's contained (under) the deck. One less box.
Eventually, I'll $pring for a Radikal but until such time, I'm happy with the Wak.

In terms of your friend's buying options, I'd suggest the following:
1. Check with the dealer if the Wakonda has been serviced recently. It is likely to be at least 25yrs old and the caps may have gone/ or will soon. Mine did just last month after 4.5 years of steady service. I've discussed having it reconditioned with Darran at Class A (Sheffield) and Johnny at Audio Origami (Glasgow). So, should it eventually happen, your friend can be taken care of.
2. It is significantly larger than a Valhalla - as you'll see in the images - and Peter @Cymbiosis will confirm that it takes a well qualified fettler to install it properly below the top plate, on account of its' size. Another question for the dealer.
3. £250 for a Wak; or approx £400 - £500 for a Lingo 1. You pays yer money......

Some background...
They were produced in very limited quantities and mainly gifted to staff once Linn decided they wouldn't release to market. In Sept last year, whilst Peter Swain was installing Cirkus parts and Kore to mine, he was visited by ex-Linn employee, Bill Livingston who now operates Dynaudio UK. Bill remembered the long and passionate debate that took place at Linn HQ, with the Marketing team keen to launch the internal dual speed motor (they'd done this with the entry-level Axis deck, remember) and R&D dept insisting no. The latter eventually came up with Lingo, of course.
Bit more info embedded in this very lengthy post, should you be interested. Lots of pics in case you get bored.

moog_man wrote:I have a Wakonda pcb. Haven't compared it to a Lingo 1 but like that it's contained (under) the deck. One less box.
Eventually, I'll $pring for a Radikal but until such time, I'm happy with the Wak.

In terms of your friend's buying options, I'd suggest the following:
1. Check with the dealer if the Wakonda has been serviced recently. It is likely to be at least 25yrs old and the caps may have gone/ or will soon. Mine did just last month after 4.5 years of steady service. I've discussed having it reconditioned with Darran at Class A (Sheffield) and Johnny at Audio Origami (Glasgow). So, should it eventually happen, your friend can be taken care of.
2. It is significantly larger than a Valhalla - as you'll see in the images - and Peter @Cymbiosis will confirm that it takes a well qualified fettler to install it properly below the top plate, on account of its' size. Another question for the dealer.
3. £250 for a Wak; or approx £400 - £500 for a Lingo 1. You pays yer money......

Some background...
They were produced in very limited quantities and mainly gifted to staff once Linn decided they wouldn't release to market. In Sept last year, whilst Peter Swain was installing Cirkus parts and Kore to mine, he was visited by ex-Linn employee, Bill Livingston who now operates Dynaudio UK. Bill remembered the long and passionate debate that took place at Linn HQ, with the Marketing team keen to launch the internal dual speed motor (they'd done this with the entry-level Axis deck, remember) and R&D dept insisting no. The latter eventually came up with Lingo, of course.
Bit more info embedded in this very lengthy post, should you be interested. Lots of pics in case you get bored.

Dear Moog thanks for that, love that link ..great images!! Were in Glasgow so you're spot on with Jonny