I'm sad and glad!

[Ron The Mon]

deleted

[beck]

What a great post Ron! Thank you for reminding us all about what is important regarding the Sondek. I hear you loud and clear and when my living situation is more stable (in between houses) I will take notice and think my Sondek situation through.

Regarding Analog Man I do not own it and was only refering to the titel.

[u252agz]

Ron

If one had a Majik LP12, should the first upgrade be the Radikal ?

I am thinking of changing my trusty RP3 but want to keep things simple.

[sunbeamgls]

Not defending if Exakt sounds good or not (Ive had mixed experiences), but those of you who are complaining about mixing a Majik DSM with Akubarik Exakt might like to re-read how Exakt works. Nearly all the work is done in the Exakt processing which, in this case, is in the Akubarik. So you're getting Akurate DACs and slightly better than Akurate amps in that system but Majik DACs and amp when using the Majik DSM with the M140.

Majik DSM with Akubarik Exakt is the correct system hierarchy in this instance. Putting an Akurate DSM in there is unlikely to make an improvement, KDSM might make a small improvement.

Also, it seems easier to set up an Exakt system badly compared to trad digital, but that may not have been a factor here.

[lejonklou]

Ron: Thanks for your interesting post! I agree about the Radikal - it can't be praised enough.

If one had a Majik LP12, should the first upgrade be the Radikal ?

In my opinion: Yes!

[ThomasOK]

Ron: Thanks for your interesting post! I agree about the Radikal - it can't be praised enough.

If one had a Majik LP12, should the first upgrade be the Radikal ?

In my opinion: Yes!

Agreed. I have done it for customers, as well as doing the PS upgrade and arm/cartridge downgrade for Ron, and there is no question it will give the most musical improvement.

[u252agz]

Re Majik LP12 / First upgrade:

Thanks for the advice Fredrik and Thomas.

Why is it only on this Forum I get consistent and good advice?

The ensuing clarity shines a light on what can be a dark and mysterious world.

Last year I became so confused with the LP12 upgrade paths - I just switched off and continued to enjoy my 31 year old RP3 and limited, but valuable vinyl collection.

The Sagatun Monos, and later the Tundra Mono and KDS upgrades helped to keep my mind off the Turntable situation.

[u252agz]

Re Majik lp12

Today, it took just seconds to see off an RP6 at the local dealer, using an MDSM and 109s.

On returning home , i realised how much better my 31 year old RP3 sounds compared to the dealers RP6.

I can only assume this is due to the Gaio/Sagatuns/tundra Mono2s and 242 doing something that the MDSM /109s are lacking.

Majik LP12 had something really quite special which I cannot describe ( my first real listen to an lp12) but it would be interesting to run it with the Gaio, monos and 242s.

Heaven knows what a major upgrade like the Radikal would do to the LP12, using Fredriks boxes.

[beck]

Yes, the Sondek is the turntable to have. Whatever you do enjoy the ride!

[haraldur]

I find this thread to be highly interresting. I just returned home from my playmate afterm hours and hours of Sondek surgery and vinyl heaven! He had just recieved two sets of AT95SA for himself and a friend. His deck also has a Radikal fitted,Keel,Ekos 2,early T kable and solid baseboard,turntable on IKEA Lack table..

Rest of the kit,a pair of late Isobariks,a LK280/Spark and LK1 waited for us when we finally were ready for audition..

As soon as the tip of the needle hit the groove i had a flashback. I got the same feeling as that very first time i visited a Linn retailer in the early 1990's,the party was on the very same moment the needle hit the track!

We couldnt stop play until about an hour ago,finally at home i noticed how the morning sun just had begun the new day.

The LK1 and cartridge must have been a perfect match. With a Radikal fitted i am quite sure that many people had hard to belive that they actually were listening to such a cheap cartridge!

[beck]

I would love to listen to that setup!

What is the difference between the AT95E and the AT95SA?

[beck]

Latest news from the "beck" camp:

I have now for some time listened to my Sondek without use of a preamp (my Linto is my preamp). It led me to evaluate the difference between my Linn Black interconnect and my Silver interconnect running from my Linto to my LK100.
Both makes music with a lovely flow but the Silvers has a more open approach to the sound. A more seductive sound.
What does make me end up using the Blacks? The Silvers do not retain the same focus on pitch relations. It is more difficult to listen as a musician into the music mix and find your own pitch if you should play along.
Another thing I have noticed is that the Blacks show a more clear difference between the sound and the resulting echo. You can more easily define the beginning of the note and the beginning of the echo.
With the Silvers it is more like note and echo mixed together as one sound.

I do think that most people on this planet would choose the Silvers in a heartbeat but these small differences intrigue me and makes me question anything that is considered the norm in the hifi world.

After listening to some recordings on YouTube in relation to the Lingo/Radikal discussion it is quite clear to me that the same issue is relevant to discuss when going from the one to the other.
The Radikal opens up the sound and makes the music so seductive and sexy it would be preferred by almost anyone. Still the Lingo has a better focus on pitch relations.

The more I learn the less I know! Whats next? MM pickups instead of MC? Tubes instead of solid state amps? Time will tell!

[haraldur]

AT95E=eliptical
AT95SA=shibata profile

I also own a silver T kable,early model,perhaps it's faulty,but i had to go back to my previous cable,same with my friend. At the time i was running a Troika into a Linto and my friend used a Dynavector with his Kairn. The only time heard the silver doing a nice job was into an Uphorik,but at the time we never compared the two of them and assumed that silver must be better always.

Anyway,life is good when music just rolls out of the speakers and one forget everything else. Just sitting in front of a big pile of vinyl playing record after record!

[beck]

I know the feeling. A very happy situation indeed.

My Silvers sound great but the differences I mentioned before are still obvious.

Which AT95 should one choose to try out on a Sondek?

[haraldur]

I would go for the SA version,it costs about four times the elilpic version and are way better in all aspects. Tracks great the whole record through. Imagine yourself a Linn K9..

At the cost of 1/4 Adikt it's a bargain. The dynavector we replaced should have left us with something missing but i cant say we really find what it could has been in that case:) Timing,body and soul,rock'nroll!

[beck]

The value of the conversation is reflected in the way the sand in the hourglass behaves. Right now it has almost come to a halt! :-)

The right words from professor Slughorn are: "The sand runs in accordance with the quality of the conversation. If it is stimulating, the sand runs slowly."

[Music Lover]

But, but the source is in the speaker! So the front end can't matter, right?

Seriously? I take this is a cheap retorical trick?

[some text removed]

That Linn states that "The source is in the speaker" is not completely correct, and as we know better, I think it is cheap to fall back to simple retorical use of their marketing lapsus.

The sad truth is that it's not just a marketing lapsus, it the official message. And when challenged, you going to get a lecture.

[hcl]

But, but the source is in the speaker! So the front end can't matter, right?

Seriously? I take this is a cheap retorical trick?

[some text removed]

That Linn states that "The source is in the speaker" is not completely correct, and as we know better, I think it is cheap to fall back to simple retorical use of their marketing lapsus.

The sad truth is that it's not just a marketing lapsus, it the official message. And when challenged, you going to get a lecture.

I do not know the opinion of the engineers at Linn, but if they suddenly believe this they have either grown stupid or they are simply maintaining a unified official line - as dictated by the management and/or marketing. The Linn engineers have shown to have very good knowledge of the quality architecture of a hifi-system and I suspect that is not something that suddenly vanishes.

I agree though that they have shown signs of not being able to maintain the standard of constant improvements that they have shown in the past (varying DS-firmware performance to give an example).

[beck]

Finally I got lucky. I found "Jazz på svenska" by Jan Johanson 2013 Heptagon Records AB on vinyl. What a joy to listen to.
Then I rediscovered my 1976 CBS vinyl record with Elgar Cello Concerto (Jacqueline du Pré) and Enigma Variations. Once again the music just hit me hard.

I can wish for nothing more. :-)

[hcl]

... Once again the music just hit me hard.

I can wish for nothing more. :-)

:-)

[Lego]

Seriously, I do feel that something has changed. In the old days you could buy an entry level system from Linn and just enjoy the music even if it was kind of "low-fi".

I think this still applies.

Anyone heard a Linn Basik (the Rega alike turntable of the early nineties) thorugh a top flight Isobarik or Keltik system? An experience similar to the one you have got, I think.

No but Linn used to play a ghettoblaster through aktiv Sara's on the factory floor.apparently