Should I Buy These Isobariks?

[Mike Hanson]

There's a used pair of Linn Isobariks for sale near me for what seems a paltry sum of money.

• The cabinets seem to be in good shape, although there are no grills.
• The stands are included.
• They have some Naim NACA5 cable with Deltrons on one end and a DIN plug on the other. I assume that the DIN plug is the "normal" way that Isobariks are connected, and I'm guessing it would be easy to change this to something else like banana plugs or a Neutrik SpeakON.
• I've been told that they function, except that the two marked tweeters are relatively quiet. They work, but just not very loud. I'm OK with changing the tweeters if necessary. I don't know whether they're Scanspeak or Hiqufon, and I do realize that they're expensive (Hiqufon more so).
• My amplification is good, and I would probably want to drive them passively. (I likely have enough spare amps to go active instead, but I'm not sure that I'm inclined to go that far.)
• Unfortunately I didn't get the serial numbers while I was there, so I have no idea how old they are.

Any thoughts, advice, warnings? If it sounds promising, I may visit them again in a few weeks to take a closer look.

 

[tuga]

Have you given them a listen?

 

[david ellwood]

With XLR connectors these are pre ‘87.


If they’re in good working order and cheap then go for it.

Personally I’d wait for a later pair , they’re much easier to service.

 

[retseldrib]

Hi Mike

I have 3 sets over the years - my current set are from December 1992 with Qustones and are driven actively with 2ohm stable amps. Not sure if you’ve had isobariks before but unless they are driven with an amp that is very comfortable with a 4 ohm load then they will sound dreadful passively.

A couple of weeks ago i upgraded my LP12 and heard a £30k set of Linn speakers in the shop. IMO, active Isobariks do not sound that far behind these new expensive Linn speakers.

 

[Mike Hanson]

Have you given them a listen?

Not yet, unfortunately. They wanted a bit more warning to get them setup. I'm able to visit again next month, and I wanted to educate myself and ponder a bit to be sure I wanted to make the trip back.

 

[Mike Hanson]

With XLR connectors these are pre ‘87.


If they’re in good working order and cheap then go for it.

Personally I’d wait for a later pair , they’re much easier to service.

Thanks for that extra info. The price of these is quite reasonable, and unfortunately Briks aren't a common here in Canada.

 

[Paul R]

I think the tweeters with the rings in the mounting plate are a later version. So that might be good. The up facing drive units may not really be relevant, so a bit of swapping and you're on the way.

The mention of 'domestic monitor' on the label means they are earlier internal crossover versions, the alternative active version would be marked 'professional monitor'. The crossovers are in the cavity between the bass units and so not trivial to access. I have some photos somewhere I could look out tomorrow.

What form do the stands take?

The way I see Isobariks is as largish three way sealed boxes, if the mid range units are good they sound great. Just don't expect outrageous bass or volume.

One thing that may be worth checking is where they were made. For a brief time Linn speakers for the North American market were built somewhere near New York (dredging memories here, but I think I'm right.) I don't know what that would mean, but it would be interesting.

 

[Mike Hanson]

Hi Mike

I have 3 sets over the years - my current set are from December 1992 with Qustones and are driven actively with 2ohm stable amps. Not sure if you’ve had isobariks before but unless they are driven with an amp that is very comfortable with a 4 ohm load then they will sound dreadful passively.

A couple of weeks ago i upgraded my LP12 and heard a £30k set of Linn speakers in the shop. IMO, active Isobariks do not sound that far behind these new expensive Linn speakers.

Yeah, I've read that they can sound poor passive, and that the amp needs to be able to handle lower impedance. It's going to be at least an Avondale NCC300 dual mono, which can definitely handle a 4Ω load. I've got another 3-5 Avondale amps in the wings (some just parts that need assembly), so I could go active. However, I would prefer not to have a stack of gear that tall in my family room. Hopefully they'll sound "acceptable" driven passively.

 

[tuga]

Some reading here: http://www.mickandviv.com/pfm/DMSHiFiforPleasureReview.pdf

 

[Mike Hanson]

I think the tweeters with the rings in the mounting plate are a later version. So that might be good. The up facing drive units may not really be relevant, so a bit of swapping and you're on the way.

The mention of 'domestic monitor' on the label means they are earlier internal crossover versions, the alternative active version would be marked 'professional monitor'. The crossovers are in the cavity between the bass units and so not trivial to access. I have some photos somewhere I could look out tomorrow.

What form do the stands take?

The way I see Isobariks is as largish three way sealed boxes, if the mid range units are good they sound great. Just don't expect outrageous bass or volume.

One thing that may be worth checking is where they were made. For a brief time Linn speakers for the North American market were built somewhere near New York (dredging memories here, but I think I'm right.) I don't know what that would mean, but it would be interesting.

I didn't look closely at the stands. I should have also turned them over to see if there were visible passive crossovers. If they're sandwiched between the woofers, that would certainly make things more difficult, if I wanted to go active (or service the crossover).

As for volume, I don't have a massive need. In fact I often do listening at lower levels, and I'm hoping they still sound dynamic at quieter volumes.

I do like bass though, and hopefully being placed right against the wall helps. I have a sub that could be used to augment the really deep stuff.

 

[Tony L]

You don’t need a sub with Isobariks, they have ridiculous bass for their size! The hard bit is getting it to move fast enough, which is why folk ended up with six-packs etc. Mine were late models, passive with 135s and I never got them as controlled as I wanted, but I was fighting too small rooms most of the time. If they are cheap enough you won’t lose on selling and are in fully working condition I’d go for it. What they do well is great fun. They are a rite of passage!

 

[retseldrib]

Yeah, I've read that they can sound poor passive, and that the amp needs to be able to handle lower impedance. It's going to be at least an Avondale NCC300 dual mono, which can definitely handle a 4Ω load. I've got another 3-5 Avondale amps in the wings (some just parts that need assembly), so I could go active. However, I would prefer not to have a stack of gear that tall in my family room. Hopefully they'll sound "acceptable" driven passively.

I had a six pack Avondale active Isobarik system which easily handled the Isobariks - of course you need a separate active crossover too. Not sure if you can passively bi-amp with these Isobariks but this sounds excellent too. Regarding the tweeters that are quieter you could just put these up top and have two fully working ones firing at you. I believe some people disable the top firing speakers and prefers the sound.

 

[Mike Hanson]

You don’t need a sub with Isobariks, they have ridiculous bass for their size! The hard bit is getting it to move fast enough, which is why folk ended up with six-packs etc. Mine were late models, passive with 135s and I never got them as controlled as I wanted, but I was fighting too small rooms most of the time. If they are cheap enough you won’t lose on selling and are in fully working condition I’d go for it. What they do well is great fun. They are a rite of passage!

The only concern is the tweeters, but it sounds like at least two are good. I could use those in the top of the cabinet, and buy new ones for the front.

As for amps, even a lowly Avondale NCC200 betters the NAPA board in the NAP135. At the bare minimum I'll have an dual NCC300, which hopefully is enough umph to make it work.

That does bring up a point of confusion for me. The Brik is a 3-way, but I've heard of people running 10 channels of active amplification. Which drivers get their own channels? Can you run them active with just 6-channels?

 

[Mike Hanson]

I had a six pack Avondale active Isobarik system which easily handled the Isobariks - of course you need a separate active crossover too. Not sure if you can passively bi-amp with these Isobariks but this sounds excellent too. Regarding the tweeters that are quieter you could just put these up top and have two fully working ones firing at you. I believe some people disable the top firing speakers and prefers the sound.

These have a single DIN plug, and I don't know whether the crossover is mounted in the bottom cavity, or between the woofers. If I went with multiple amps, I would definitely get an active crossover. I believe Avondale has one.

As for the tweeters, yeah I was thinking of moving the two good ones up top, and getting new ones for the front. I would probably go that way rather than disabling the tweeter, but we'll see.

 

[Tony L]

The Brik is a 3-way, but I've heard of people running 10 channels of active amplification. Which drivers get their own channels? Can you run them active with just 6-channels?

I can’t understand that at all. Think of them as two Kef Concertos in one box, so six drivers a side in total. They are all in either series or parallel though, so 2 bass, 2 mid, 2 tweeters a side. Six amps. Next stage would be to cut the wiring and go for 12 amps!

PS It is a pro-audio XLR plug, not a DIN. Like the connector of a typical mic.

 

[PerF]

I do like bass though, and hopefully being placed right against the wall helps.

Actually they don't take up much room space as they work right up against rear wall.
Watch your back though, they are very heavy.

A wonderfull speaker which would cost an arm and leg these days new.
If you still use Royds ?, Bariks are very different, and amp demanding.

 

[PerF]

for what seems a paltry sum of money.

Don't hesitate before others find out, I'd just prepay the amount (if paltry) and have them collected later.

 

[Tony L]

As for the tweeters, yeah I was thinking of moving the two good ones up top, and getting new ones for the front. I would probably go that way rather than disabling the tweeter, but we'll see.

Bare in mind you may need dynamite to get the drivers out depending on vintage. Linn used a horrific mastic compound rather than gaskets for a long while, because Linn.

IMHO you definitely need all the drivers working properly to experience them. The sort of semi-omni diffuse sound is all part of what they are.

 

[PerF]

The mention of 'domestic monitor' on the label means they are earlier internal crossover versions,

except that the two marked tweeters are relatively quiet.

I'd check the crossover parts before buying new tweeters.

 

[Mike Hanson]

Don't hesitate before others find out, I'd just prepay the amount (if paltry) and have them collected later.

It's still money, but much cheaper than new speakers that would be in any way comparable. I'm hoping to acquire enough knowledge to make an informed decision as to whether it's worth the money and trouble to proceed. For example, if everyone told me they sound pitiful in passive mode, then that might be a deal breaker.