Linn Bedrok LP12 Plinth Upgrade

Like @lewm, the AR XA was my first good table. But the arm wasn't so hot. I replaced the AR with a Thorens TD-150, which had a suspension, platter, and bearing very similar to the AR, but with a much better arm.

I then got a TD-125 (with an SME 3009 mounted on it), which was nothing but trouble. I had it in the repair shop many, many times, and the electronics were never fixed. Too complicated.

The Linn Sondek was a much better approach to turntable design. The basic design (including 3-pt. spring suspension) was the same as the AR and Thorens, but with superior machining and finishing (especially of the bearing).

While folks have a point that the LP12 was derived from designs like the AR etc., it has now evolved into a far superior product. 

I question how many here who have posted so far have actually heard a new Linn LP12, even if it is a Majik ( entry level) version? 

@daveyf

An old friend of mine, now sadly upstairs and now looking down on us kind of worshipped his Hi-Fi. He never stuck with the same brands and I was always conveniently right behind him when he was upgrading and l bought two turntables.

l remember the saying he was always coming out with and on reflection a parable of sorts….

‘’A good turntable should be seen, and not heard!’’

Please take this in good spirit……l am sure he was just talking about wow and rumble.

@mylogic  Your friend was 100% correct. Noise generated from the table is not beneficial. Which is one of the reasons why Linn has gone to significant effort to minimize the input from the table to the upstream components. For example, the new Karousel bearing is certainly a lot more accurate than the very good Cirkus bearing. Accurate and quiet. With my set up, I can put the stylus into the lead in groove and there is still dead silence until the music starts to play. It's a bit unnerving when you first hear this, as one thinks there must be something wrong with the system, but that S/N ratio is important..as your friend was alluding to.

Noise once you lower the cartridge onto the LP surface is going to be primarily do to the quality of the pressing and any defects in the stylus shape or tracking, surely not due to the bearing assembly, which noise ought to be way below the threshold set for noise by the stylus and the vinyl. Doncha think? That said, I guess it might be possible to perceive that the noise floor is lowered independently of "groove" noise even though that latter is dominant by measurement. It's actually a complex question.