A short history of Linn Hifi by Michael from Lyric Hifi in Belfast. SUBSCRIBE FOR FREE 

Ariston RD 11 was indeed first and taken from the same production line part of them were relabelled Linn LP 12, only changing name plate, even afvertised as the turntable formerly named Ariston RD 11 is now sold as Lin LP 12 (12 inch LP) excactly the same where much metal parts were made by Jack Tiefenbrunn father of Ivor. Hamish Robertson died during the court process being the patentowner of the design and actual designer, before the judge came to a verdict and as parts maker Jack toke over, Robertson not having children. Later claims from Ivor and his son the turntable was changed being better regarding the bearing and casing were valse., because they were made latter, form of shaft and support inside casing corners not being in the first LP 12.. There had been an even earlier production RD 11 sounding better by having narrower tolerances than the last models but inevitable they were more difficult to make. So the story of Linn foundation is another one, and maybe Ivor was responsible for invention of the name Linn, but actual hie father Jack was the owner of the factory that made the metal parts and that they found Hamish an alcoholist selling not enough turntables and want to get rid of him is another story , in fact they broke the contract , where Robertson was the designer partly based on an American Acoustic Research model from Athur Vilchur's team. Nice your story from a Linn perspective but to much coloured for someone selling them for so long! Of course it's afantastic machine but the kind of criticless admiration I don't like , thinking of the same plagiat that's doen by the Microsoft boys around Bill gates to get himself established, I always get a bad taste when people tried to backwarts changing history., having owned a later Ariston RD 40 AC flatbelt using the same springs having long ago even better base respons than early RD 11's and Linns, who made these I don't know, Dunlop or others when the company was sold using the name Ariston after Hamish died. Nice story about washing machines but as old hififox you missed teh point!

Fascinating, lively, informative and well-presented. Thank you for making this.

Absolutely fascinating, thank you for sharing.

Beautifully presented and so clearly narrated. If only other reviews and discussions were as clear and well researched.

This is the most fun audio system video I’ve seen in years 😂🤣👌👍

First time I get to see Michael and his channel. Very informative and it shows that he knows his business. I always appreciated Linn products but just couldn't afford them. I am a fan of simple and "all in one" systems thus I was able to buy a DeVialet 120/Atohm GT1 combo a few years ago. But I still dream of winning at the Loto so I can buy the Linn stuff I wish I could enjoy!

The story is that Linn snitched the turntable from Ariston. "The Linn Sondek was essentially the original Ariston RD11. Nothing more. Nothing less. The Thiefenbrun's of Castle Engineering were taken to court by the owner of Ariston Hamish Robertson who claimed that they had stolen his design. The Thiefenbruns won and the rest as they say is history. That is why the pre-Linn Ariston RD11 has a single point bearing shaft with no ball and the post Linn Ariston RD11 uses a ball bearing. Castle won the right to use Ariston's single point bearing. They simply made the original Ariston RD11 and renamed it the Linn Sondek LP 12. Linn acknowledged that they were using Ariston's design in their first advertisement as quoted in the post #3 above this. The Original pre-Linn Ariston RD11 is the exact forerunner of the Linn LP 12. The first post Linn Ariston RD11 had to be different due to the court challenge, hence the ball bearing at the base of the spindle."

Absolutely brilliant and fascinating; and all off the top of your head. Astonishing. Now where did I put that winning lottery ticket? :)

Great video, love the presentation style. My dad bought a LINN LP12 Turntable back in 1985- it was a terrific piece of equipment- the acme of product design and engineering. It transformed the experience of listening to records. I bought a complete LINN system in 2002- LINN GENKI CD Player with HDCD chip, NINKA Speakers and a LINN MAJIK Power Amp. I LOVED that system and it served me for 20 years. I built up a collection of over 100 HDCDs and they sounded awesome, almost in the same bracket as SACD. I only replaced it in 2022 on my retirement. It's now my secondary system and has pride of place in my bedroom. 20 years and not 1 problem ever. Beautifully made, minimalist design. I decided to get back into vinyl after 32 years and bought a Technics SL 1500C and fitted a 2M Ortofon Blue cartridge. I have no intention of buying any new vinyl- just play my large collection that was carefully stored in the attic. Now I have the itch- I'm thinking of upgrading to a LINN MAJIK LP12 or Technics SL1200G. I'm torn between them, the Technics is probably the most practical in many ways but it doesn't have the design aesthetic and cache of the LINN which is a thing of timeless beauty, a real design classic equal to the best Apple products. My head says Technics in terms of versatility but my heart is saying LINN.

Very cool! My daily drivers are a pair of Linn Nexus LS250 I purchased new in 1989. A lot of speakers have come and gone over the years, but I always go back to the Linns. People like to criticize these speakers,. I believe those that do have never heard them properly bi-wired. I build my own cables and run 11 gauge to the bottom and 14 gauge to the top.

Gosh, Michael, how on earth do you remember all that information and talk about it non-stop. I thoroughly enjoyed this video, and learned a hell of a lot. Thank you.

Excellent video, thank you.

Hi Michael: Here in 2022, I still greatly enjoy my 3 separate Linn LK systems in perfect shape. These include 2 LK140 and 1 LK85 amps, 3 Kolektor pre-amps and 1 Genki CDP with different speakers (Thiel, Bang & Olufsen and KEF). I started with Linn in 1983 with my first of three LP12's and bought into the "Linn For Life" proposition. I also started out with an LK280 amp and LK1 pre-amp. Linn kit has clearly enhanced my life the last 39 years and expect it to continue to next 20 years. Thanks so much for this Linnie video!

Your a really clear thinker. That narrative was very well constructed.

Thoroughly enjoyed that so thank you! Love how you have an abundance of older products that you just couldn’t bear to sell.. 😀

That was absolutely brilliant, I thought I knew Linn well, I knew nothing 😂 👍👍

Very entertaining and enlightening Michael. Keep em coming :)

As a long time fan of Linn, owning a "humble" Majik DSM /3, I already knew most of the stuff, but I have never heard it brought to me in such a brief and entertaining way. Thank you very much! Lovely video!

I have played with 2 earlier models of the LP12 (early 70's and mid 80's). The build quality of the plinth/base/bracing etc was shocking. I'm sure they would have made substantial improvements by now, especially considering the price they are charging. If you really want a battleship class build floating deck, buy yourself a Sota TT instead. The quality of the construction is first class. They were built like a tank.

WOW thank you for this video, LOVELY to see the "Sara" speaker.

Brilliant video many thanks

Very interesting and informative. Well done

Many thanks for a wonderful presentation. Really interesting and I learnt a lot. Apart from the wonderful sound of Linn’s products I love their philosophy of being able to upgrade them. My 1980 LP12 and 2012 Akurate DS have been upgraded/updated and sound better than ever thanks to two great Linn dealers who have come out to the Canary Islands to do the work over the years.

Enjoyed that! Thank you.

That was just awesome such knowledge and no teleprompter !!!! Linn is an amazing company great to know where the name came from. Thanks and keep the videos coming.

Great presentation, v informative, super delivery

I worked in Glasgow for 6 years. I heard more than once that you could get 'cheap' LP12s from workers there.

Love your channel, great tribute to Linn, how about some other brand tributes?

Correct me if I am wrong but I think the LP 12 was a copy of another turntable that was out in the early 1970's and it was called an Ariston RD 11. The only apparent difference was the single point bearing that was offered on the LP 12.You pretty much have the rest of the Linn timeline correct. Best Regards

Thanks for this video, really interesting. My Linn Karik fab b be up the ghost around 10 years ago. I still have it but it won't play any discs .😔

It took either 3 Naim NAP 260 stereo power amplifiers, or 6 NAP 160 monobloc power amplifiers to properly drive a pair of Linn Isobarik loudspeakers, as their efficiency was extremely low at about 82dB, ( most modern speakers are around 87 - 92dB efficient, with some horn speakers going up to around 110dB or even more!)

Interesting in the live music production world splitting the signal into treble mid and bass is pretty standard. Nowhere near hi fi quality of course more for volume control. Great vid Michael, learnt a lot.

"The text of Linn's first advertisement(Hi-Fi News and Record Review May 1973): Please note that Castle Precision Engineering(Glasgow) Ltd., 241 Drakemire Drive, Castlemilk, Glasgow, G45 9SZ, wish it to be known that they have designed(Design Copyright), Developed(Patent Pending) The special bearing and bearing housing assembly, and pressed steel chassis incorporated into the transcription deck sold up to December 1972 under the name Ariston RD 11. In order to satisfy consumer demands, we have purchased new premises adjacent to the present factory and formed the company of Linn Products Ltd and are now manufacturing our own unique product, the 'Linn-Sondek LP 12' transcription deck." ----‐--------------------- "The Linn Sondek was essentially the original Ariston RD11. Nothing more. Nothing less. The Thiefenbrun's of Castle Engineering were taken to court by the owner of Ariston Hamish Robertson who claimed that they had stolen his design. The Thiefenbruns won and the rest as they say is history. That is why the pre-Linn Ariston RD11 has a single point bearing shaft with no ball and the post Linn Ariston RD11 uses a ball bearing. Castle won the right to use Ariston's single point bearing. They simply made the original Ariston RD11 and renamed it the Linn Sondek LP 12. Linn acknowledged that they were using Ariston's design in their first advertisement as quoted above. The Original pre-Linn Ariston RD11 is the exact forerunner of the Linn LP 12. The first post Linn Ariston RD11 had to be different due to the court challenge, hence the ball bearing at the base of the spindle."

The LP12 turntable is a decent piece of kit, mine still works after 40+ years. The three way active crossover for the Isobariks is a meticulously designed analogue piece of kit. The LK1 uses CMOS switches in a ladder array, the switches affect the dynamic range of the signal. The Isobariks are loud and powerful but the image is poor because of the upward facing mid range drivers and tweeters. The LK100 power amplifier sounds grainy, I had one give up the magic smoke while driving Quad ESL 57s. These comments are based on having used all of the above for a few years.

You omitted the Ariston link in this story🤔!

I owned a sondek lp12 and about the worst turntable I’ve ever owned, the best for the money has to be the original Rega planar 3.

Hi Ryan Yes that is a Grace 707. This tonearm was distributed by Linn in the late 70s until they started manufacturing their own arms starting with the Ittok. Best Michael

Great video

Hi Rob Delighted to hear you've enjoyed your Linn all these years! How much hifi costs compared to 40 years ago is an interesting point as there are very few products that allow you to compare. In the 80s when your LP12 cost £ 570 we bought 2 new vans at £ 2200 each and last year a new van cost me £18000 plus vat. A new LP12 is now £3500 so that has gone up by less than the vans. Also both a new van and a new LP12 are massively better than the old ones. I know the numbers are all bigger however you could say that the Linn Sondek costs less than ever! Of course they have higher performance tonearms, power supplies, subchassis, cartridges and even motors that take the price to that of a new van !

It would be nice to see a brief history of the Linn arms and cartridges.

Hello Michael knew you when you worked in Nick shop in newtownards,I used to borrow lots of stuff.lived in the West winds and worked in browns.name was allister.remember lentek monitor x

Nice video sir!

Like a bedtime story ..in a good way :0)

No mention of the years you couldn’t get a LP12 turntable for love or money while the legal stuff court case went on and it increased in price overnight 👌😎👍

👍

Hi Dave, yes that was me playing Tracey Chapman and Nina Simone records, 80s demos

Remember well your premises on the Stranmillis Road. Great guy to deal with.

Back in the 1980s, you didn't have to be a millionaire to own a Linn Sondek LP12. I bought my Black Ash LP12 back in 1984 with a Linn Basik LVX matched with an Audio Technica AT-OC5, which If I am not mistaken, cost me £570? The HIFI salesman kept trying to guide me away from the AT-OC5 saying that it was against Linn/Naim thinking. The solution? Within 6 months, I upgraded my Basik LVX for a stainless steel Ittok LV-II. A year after that I upgraded to an Audio Technica AT-OC9. The point being that every component was upgraded in small increments over a period of a few years, getting top prices for my second hand components along the way. You can't do that today and mores the pity. I feel that they kind of lost the plot along the way and left the average guy behind. I still consider the Linn Sondek LP12 to be the finest turntable bar none and the fact that you cannot buy an entry level model from Linn today, means that most are deprived of this wonderful musical experience. I suppose you could buy an old 1980s/90s model on EBAY buy then you'd have to take it to a specialist Linn engineer to be refurbished and setup. I would imagine this would cost a fortune.

Great video Michael and very informative, but if you want to start at the beginning you need to mention the Thorens TD150 introduced in1965 and the Ariston RD11 which was introduced in 1971ish I think. The original LP12 was not new as its design was almost identical to the TD150 and RD11.

Thanks for the neat history.There was also Linn’s collaboration with Sony making all those dvd-players. I wonder if there ara many still using Unidisc and that Kisto beast?

Did you work at Linn during the mid 80's? Memory 's beginning to fade! I used to sell/service/install LP12's at Cleartone Hifi, Bolton. Pretty sure I remember you from the Sound'n'Vision weekend shows we ran at the Last Drop Village!

Hi Michael. That was a belter! I bought my LP12 from Peter at Stereo Stereo in Glasgow in the early Eighties. Weren't you involved with that store? Anyway, I was having some updates done to the old fruitbox a month or two back (at Mingace Custon Sound, Jensen Beach, Florida) and heard the Klimax DSM & 360 speakers. I saw God. Or maybe it was just Ivor. It has made me rethink my passion for/commitment to my Naim electronics, which is probably unreasonable of me. Regards, David

I have... Linn Ninkas (Active) 3 LK140 amps (Active) with Chakra cards to match the Ninkas, wired with K600 cable. Linn Kairn Pre amp. Rega Apollo R CD player. Rega Apollo R DAC. 2 Tel T5i subs (yes they are great) (infill lower frequencies not wanting to shake every house in the street). I use the pre outs of the LK140 that's the bass amp to feed the Rels. Stereo bass. Nice. And....(humble) a cheap DSM from Tibo called the smart streamer. It's WiFi connectivity etc. I fully am aware the Tibo is nowhere near the quality of the linn dsm's. I use the pre outs of the streamer into the Kairn. What linn dsm would do the same job? Simply use it as a 'source'. Use the pre outs of the DSM into the Kairn etc.

Does anyone know what tonearm is on the Linn? Is it a Grace G707?

Ariston RD11 was designed by Hamish Robertson. LP12 first gen was identical. RD11s were on sale before Linn products even existed. The invention story is fluff.

I remember living for a few weeks with a really tiny, thin pair of floor standing Linn speakers which had just been released in 1988. Despite the shop being really excited about them, I simply could not get on with them and returned them to the HIFI store for a pair of Monitor Audio 1200 Golds. Does anyone know the name of these LInn speakers? I believe they were rather short lived.

Great story, expertly told, and no notes!

what a headache Lynn tables are.. countless maintenance, adjustments... UGH

Thanks Michael, does this mean that all Linn amplifiers digitise the signal? Or just to split the base mid and treble when active? Thanks

Linn, 1950’s technology at 2050 prices. What a load of bollocks.

I've seen that shirt before somewhere...

Can you feature the kef blades please

Wieviele Whisky hat dieser Typ schon getrunken?👍👍👍👍😂😂😂😂😂 Viele Grüße aus Germany

Why on earth did i sell my LP12 ? I got to buy another one !

It seems like Linn is for High End music, what Apple is in computers...manufacturing all the way from scratch everything themselves...

I still have a pair of Linn Sara. Not so very bassy though, not sure why.

thats a solid wig.

Linn Classik?

Do you sell more Linn only systems or more Linn/Naim systems?

The Really BIG Question is!!!!! Did the Wife get her washing machine????

Think the shop was called Manchester and Midland and you had a little cats in car

Honun.lettore cd Linn karik eccezionale e silenziosissimo..pagato usato 80 euro ma il valore usato si aggira su 400/500

Those Sara’s look very odd have they bee modded?

Sorry a little datsun

Great idea Tony