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LP12 sweet spot under a grand

Seanm

Seanm

pfm Member
Old chestnut no doubt. I’d just like to try one so I can take part in all the threads, but I’m not trying to replace my main deck (Orbe), so don’t want anything modern or ridiculously expensive. Don’t want an arm, would be using a Mission 774.
 
Just ask here on a wanted ad' or use HiFi Shark.
The LP12 is what it is, sounds as it does. This and that variants are variations upon a theme.

For me - comparing the same arm and cart' on the LP12 and your Orbe would count for more.
 
I’d buy on condition rather than spec. Any era of LP12 can be really nice and to be honest I don’t have much preference between pre-Cirkus, Cirkus, red button, Valhalla etc. Just grab one that looks the closest to brand new throughout, has no main bearing wear, ideally has full packaging etc.
 
Seanm said:
Old chestnut no doubt. I’d just like to try one so I can take part in all the threads, but I’m not trying to replace my main deck (Orbe), so don’t want anything modern or ridiculously expensive. Don’t want an arm, would be using a Mission 774.
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Nothing wrong with wanting to take part Sean. No contributors, no forum. Go for it.
 
Tony L said:
I’d buy on condition rather than spec. Any era of LP12 can be really nice and to be honest I don’t have much preference between pre-Cirkus, Cirkus, red button, Valhalla etc. Just grab one that looks the closest to brand new throughout, has no main bearing wear, ideally has full packaging etc.
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You don't believe all of the later sub chassis, speed controllers etc are of profound value then Tony?
 
Tony L said:
I’d buy on condition rather than spec. Any era of LP12 can be really nice and to be honest I don’t have much preference between pre-Cirkus, Cirkus, red button, Valhalla etc. Just grab one that looks the closest to brand new throughout, has no main bearing wear, ideally has full packaging etc.
Click to expand...

Tony is correct.

I have a 1981 model, the only mod. was having a Valhalla board fitted a year or so after purchase.
It’s had two ( if I recall correctly ) belts fitted by me, plus lubrication.

As it was 40 years old in 2021, I decided to have it serviced.

It didn’t require a new bearing.

New springs and grommets were fitted, plus a new belt.
The complete service was about £230, if I remember correctly.

It works perfectly, as it always has.

Considering I received a very good discount when I bought it ( I was friends with the retailer ) it’s
proved to be a good buy.

Westwoods fitted an Entre MC ( in a Mission 774 arm ) when I bought it.
It had a few new styli ( courtesy of the Expert Stylus Co. ) over the years.

A rebuilt Denon 103 MC was fitted in 2018.

The Linn has given many hours of pleasure over the years.
Long may it continue to do so...
 
Agree with Tony and would add another point (as a former Linn mechanic -big deal to me) -none of the various versions AFAIK ? have had reliability/service issues. Especially when looking for something at this price it will likely have some time and use - the only known issue is Valhalla PS will likely need capacitors replaced at some point or will fail (did on my personal unit- not a big deal to fix) and there always seem to be a few Valhalla boards available used somewhere. But LP-12's work -tuneing one up is no big challenge and if at all possible have it demonstrated before purchase. If you buy a working unit you have a very good chance that bearing oil and a new belt (buy 2) are going to allow you to get years of use out of it. Assuming you are in the UK ? I am constantly amazed at just how many LP-12's are on the used market (musta been like mess kits in the military for Brit audiofiles :) .
 
Martyn Miles said:
Tony is correct.

I have a 1981 model, the only mod. was having a Valhalla board fitted a year or so after purchase.
It’s had two ( if I recall correctly ) belts fitted by me, plus lubrication.

As it was 40 years old in 2021, I decided to have it serviced.

It didn’t require a new bearing.

New springs and grommets were fitted, plus a new belt.
The complete service was about £230, if I remember correctly.

It works perfectly, as it always has.

Considering I received a very good discount when I bought it ( I was friends with the retailer ) it’s
proved to be a good buy.

Westwoods fitted an Entre MC ( in a Mission 774 arm ) when I bought it.
It had a few new styli ( courtesy of the Expert Stylus Co. ) over the years.

A rebuilt Denon 103 MC was fitted in 2018.

The Linn has given many hours of pleasure over the years.
Long may it continue to do so...
Click to expand...
I sometimes think Martyn is the most chilled, level headed audiophile on this forum.
 
Being something of a Luddite, if I was offered the choice of a Linn from any era (assuming pristine condition in every instance) I'd take my first one, from 1978, with a Grace G707 and Supex SD900.

With hindsight, so many things wrong with that on any number of levels, but to which the only reasonable response to criticism would still be 'f*** off.'

Probably the most fun I ever had from vinyl.

Replaced it in the early eighties with a newer LP12, Ittok and Asak, and progressively bought fewer and fewer records, albeit it took me at least a year to realise that.
 
I'd like to own a nice '78 deck like that @notevenclose. Although I enjoyed an '07 deck with Cirkus/Keel/Ekos SE/Akiva, and still own a '92 deck with Ekos 2/Lingo 1, it's the late 80s black liner/Valhalla/Ittok deck that I have a real soft spot for. Not sure why but it does just sound 'right' somehow, hence I'm curious to hear an even older one.

Finding the right system to match these old decks is part of the fun/challenge as well though, but that's another topic :)
 
notevenclose said:
Replaced it in the early eighties with a newer LP12, Ittok and Asak, and progressively bought fewer and fewer records, albeit it took me at least a year to realise that.
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It's primarily down to the Ittok, and it took me twenty years to realize it! Fantastic arm on twenty percent of your records, makes half of them sound shite!

I'd agree that condition is really important but my take would be to buy a clean deck expecting to change things. If you buy from a good dealer, and not all are, you'll get a deck that should be in good working order but you'll pay for the privilege. Buying privately will be cheaper but far more chance you'll need to replace bits or get the deck serviced at the very least. Check out the prices of parts so that you know what it will cost to replace bits on any deck you look at. For example a new lid is £150 and hinges, which are a common fail item, are about £25.

You also might want to change the deck to get the sound you want. Bottom line is it's best to hold back some budget to give you room to maneuver later.
 
Mr Pig said:
It's primarily down to the Ittok, and it took me twenty years to realize it! Fantastic arm on twenty percent of your records, makes half of them sound shite!

I'd agree that condition is really important but my take would be to buy a clean deck expecting to change things. If you buy from a good dealer, and not all are, you'll get a deck that should be in good working order but you'll pay for the privilege. Buying privately will be cheaper but far more chance you'll need to replace bits or get the deck serviced at the very least. Check out the prices of parts so that you know what it will cost to replace bits on any deck you look at. For example a new lid is £150 and hinges, which are a common fail item, are about £25.

You also might want to change the deck to get the sound you want. Bottom line is it's best to hold back some budget to give you room to maneuver later.
Click to expand...

It's odd that Ittoks seem to be fashionable again. In the 90s/00s when I was an LP12 owner, they were the first thing you replaced.
 
You're not going to get much for under a grand. Maybe an early 80's deck with the R/C network motor circuit or, if you're lucky, a Valhalla. Forget a Lingo or Cirkus. You might want to put the money elsewhere.
 
And keep in mind on your first tinkering with an LP12 that there might be a tendency to over tighten some of the hardware, especially some of the smaller bits. Some -maybe all- of the hardware actually has published torque specs and it may be worth picking up a screwdriver type torque wrench so there is no guessing or mistakes that may ruin a part. ...Otherwise it's not rocket science, some even find the whole experience fun & therapeutic, and I agree with an earlier post that the minimum power supply to help gain the most playback -and a 45RPM option- enjoyment is the Lingo 1, very inexpensive these days on the secondary market and easy to re-cap. Good luck..
 
Tim Jones said:
It's odd that Ittoks seem to be fashionable again. In the 90s/00s when I was an LP12 owner, they were the first thing you replaced.
Click to expand...

Thry were always a great arm (I had a from new black Vll & LVlll) , it was just that upgrade choices were more limited so people (inc. me) tended to upgrade to an Ekos or an Aro.
 
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