tenpercenter
Don't ya rile 'em.....
Totally agree on the value proposition with these LK amps - simple precautions like a re-cap and changing the battery on a Kairn keeps them going for sensible money.
Favourite Linn Power Amp - LK series best all rounders ?
- Thread starter tenpercenter
- Start date
Totally agree on the value proposition with these LK amps - simple precautions like a re-cap and changing the battery on a Kairn keeps them going for sensible money.
david ellwood
Kirabosi Kognoscente
The LK280 has measurably better SNR , power output, frequency response, load intolerance, damping factor and distortion than a NAP250.
They don’t overheat and switch off into low loads.
They’re more reliable.
They can be had for 20% of the price.
And they don’t need servicing as often.
What’s not to like?
They don’t overheat and switch off into low loads.
They’re more reliable.
They can be had for 20% of the price.
And they don’t need servicing as often.
What’s not to like?
nostromo
pfm Member
Wow!... I didn't know that.
Makes good sense as the LK280 and LK1 were, I guess, made to surplant the NAP250 when that relationship started to break up.
david ellwood
Kirabosi Kognoscente
Linn had a problem when they decided to focus on active systems as an upgrade path.
Because traditionally amplifiers had a far from flat response. This is fine if you’re trying to make your amplifiers sound superficially impressive or detailed, but when your amps need to work together across the spectrum, they need to be properly flat.
kernow
pfm Member
A lot, tbh
A friend prefers the LK280 to the Klout. I wasn't able to compare directly but certainly didn't feel the Klout was clearly better.
That does seem to be the case at times but it's human nature (for many of us) to want to find someone else to blame rather than yourself.
I would put myself into this category to a certain extent. It was only a few years ago I got more seriously into hifi due to moving into my own house after having lived in rented accommodation plus having more money to spend on the hobby. Since then I've found a whole new world of stuff, most of which I find much more enjoyable to listen to than my Linn gear.You’re never going to get balance on here mentioning Linn or Naim. A certain section of the posting massive for some reason trusted magazine reviews and manufacturer marketing from both companies over their own ears (in some cases seemingly for years) and yet they now view that as the fault of the manufacturers rather than themselves. Maybe their ears were hijacked by special Linn/Naim implants or something equally daft
nostromo
pfm Member
A very interesting thesis...This may be another 'light bulb' moment for me.
I always wondered why I was never 'blown away' when I listened to the systems launched during the Exakt era with speakers having that mid-treble aray, like I was when I heard LK series amps driving Saras, Kans and Briks. As you say Linn were going for accuracy and linearity at the time.
Just another thought....I think Linn wanted to keep things minimalist by naming their first amps LK1 and LK2....but when they upgraded the LK2 to be a bit more powerful they adopted the LK280 name, ... perhaps to copy the Naim nomenclature (NAP250), which I'm not sure is actually 50W per channel.
I have a friend who ran a Klout fort a while, into Isobariks, but he's using Naim power amps now. Whenever I've heard Linn amps they've always struck me as sounding very...nothing. No excitement, no drama, none of the things I actually listen to music for. Very first ones were LK1/LK2 which the exited dealer played against a Naim amp into Isobariks. Just didn't get it. I don't know what Linn were trying to achieve with their amps but it was nothing I wanted.
nostromo
pfm Member
That's 'music to my ears' as I've had extactly that nagging doubt at the back of my mind for years!
I've harboured a nagging regret that I could've had better SQ if I got a stack of Klouts for my activ setup. That name: 'KLOUT' really worked on me as that is exactly what I want from my amps, especailly in the bass aspect.
It's the cost that has stopped me over the years as the Klouts always seem to go for well over a £1K each (LK280 is less than half that). Also I studied the internals with as much detial as I could to see if there is a real design difference to a Klout over an LK280 and to me, I couldn't really find it ( just by looking at online pics). The case was much nicer and the connectors on the back are different, but the actuall transformer and amplifilier boards seem to be almost identical to the LK280. I think the specs were almost identical....but it's that name!
Anyway, thank you sharing your experience, I'll enjoy my setup even more from now on!
Paul R
pfm Member
IIUC the original Naim NAP numbers reflect about the total power output into 4 Ohms. So the NAP135 has a single channel which is slightly more capable than each of the channels in the NAP250.
IIUC2 the LK2 was also known as the LK2-60, they changed output devices and some other details to make the LK2-75, which I think may have been reflected on the front panel, and then again some tweaks into the definitive LK2-80. The numbers roughly reflect the single channel power into 8 Ohms.
I thought the Klout was essentially an LK280 with a bigger transformer and more capacitance, effectively an LK280/Spark in a box with the commonly added extra reservoir capacitors.
The LK1 has bipolar power supplies, individual regulation for each stage and a rather good MM and MC stage. Plus remote control. It stands in stark contrast to the direction taken by Naim with the NAC52. The Kairn is essentially the same architecture with better heat sinking, much more practical socketry, better shielding, a more flexible volume control and a more informative display. A comprehensive evolution. Life was quite simple back in the 80s/90s...
Yes, they are still very expensive due to their reputation. Maybe that also effected my feeling towards it when the LK280 was about a third of the price, albeit unserviced.
I thought it was musically very good with passive Briks, but the BD160 and CB160 both offered better timing / interplay between instruments and that won me over for background music in the office. The LK amps were very slightly distracting cos the timing wasn't quite as good.
In hindsight, Kairn + Klout/LK280 would have been better than using CB Naim in the main system (with Kan 1s). I reckon I may have gone back to them if Linn servicing had been available, although the sound was a little too warm when combined with the pre-Cirkus bearing (needed for Kans to sound right). Anyway, gone down another route now with 2002-spec LP12, Lejonklou amps, and Linn 212 speakers.
Musicman19
pfm Member
Wonky1969
pfm Member
I had three lk140's driving keilidh's aktiv,and enjoyed that setup until I got the chance to borrow a 5105 (2 lk240's in a box sharing one power supply) much better,so I ended up selling the lk140's and got three 5105 aktiv, lovely.
So if you get a chance listen to one if you can,do so,as they have flown under the radar for most,and can be had for around the same price as the lk140's.
So if you get a chance listen to one if you can,do so,as they have flown under the radar for most,and can be had for around the same price as the lk140's.