Why every LP12 is set up by a dealer

Linn does something with the LP12 that almost no other turntable maker does: it does not finish the product. A new Sondek leaves Glasgow assembled and tested, but the final setting of the suspension, the arm and the cartridge is done by the dealer, in the dealer’s workshop, and Linn is firm that it should be. When Stereophile reviewed a Klimax LP12 in 2022, Linn’s own brand manager told the magazine that every LP12 has to be installed by a trained LP12 specialist, and sent one to do it. That is not ceremony. It is how the deck is designed.

Why the design needs it

The LP12 is a suspended turntable: the platter, bearing, arm and sub-chassis hang on three springs inside the plinth, isolated from the outside world. For that to work, the three springs must carry the mass evenly, the sub-chassis must sit level and bounce straight up and down with no sideways wobble, the arm cable must leave the sub-chassis without pulling on it, and the belt must run true on a motor pulley that is itself aligned. Change the arm or the cartridge and the mass on the springs changes, so the suspension is set again. Change the sub-chassis or the bearing and everything is set again. None of these is an adjustment a customer can make by ear at home, and a deck set up slightly wrong does not sound slightly wrong; it sounds dull, slow and closed in, which is what most of the LP12s people describe as disappointing turn out to be.

What a setup involves

On our bench a full setup runs through the top plate’s fit to the plinth, the motor and pulley position, the bearing and its oil, the belt, the three springs and their grommets, the arm cable’s dressing, the arm’s level and bearings, the cartridge’s alignment, tracking force and anti-skate, and finally the bounce: the sub-chassis is pressed and released until it moves in a pure vertical line and comes to rest where it should. Specialists elsewhere quote three to four hours for a precise setup from scratch, and that matches our experience. A deck whose top plate does not sit flat on its plinth takes longer, because that has to be corrected before anything built on it can be right.

Then it runs. New springs settle, a new cartridge wears in, and a setup that was right on the bench on Monday is checked again on Thursday and often touched once more before the deck goes home. That is why an upgrade usually means leaving the LP12 with us for a few days, and why we schedule the bench rather than take decks at the door.

What that means for buying one

It means the dealer is part of the turntable. Two identical Majik LP12s from two shops can sound different, and the difference is the hours on the bench and the experience behind them. Linn trains and certifies its LP12 specialists for this reason, and it is why the Karousel, the Lingo and every other upgrade are sold as dealer-fitted parts rather than kits. It also means that an LP12 bought second-hand is only as good as its last setup, which is why a used deck should go to a specialist before anyone judges it.

At Pearl Audio that work is done by Russ Sherrell, our LP12 master, who builds almost all of the decks that leave here; he and I have each set them up for more than a decade, and we keep five LP12s in different specifications on the floor so the result can be heard rather than described.

Start with a call

If you have an LP12 that has never been set up by a specialist, or not in years, a setup is the cheapest improvement available to it. Call (503) 222-2599 or write to sales@pearlaudio.com, tell us what is on the deck, and we will set a time. A first look is free.

— John Loranger, Pearl Audio

See also: How often does an LP12 need a service, and how to tell · Why the Majik LP12 is the best way to buy a Sondek · Moving an LP12.