My top plate is the original from 1988 but I’m now looking at some updates. It seems really odd that Linn never seem to have updated the top plate 
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if Linn thought an upgrade was necessary, they would have proposed it, right?
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Yeah, that’s how I read it too. Yet, there are plenty of third party top plates out there, are they all wrong?
I’ll be discussing with my dealer but just wanted people’s thoughts. 
I am interested also by the opinion of others.
I’ll admit that my answer is what my Dealer tells me every time I ask the question 
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I thought the upgrade of my top plate (to tigerpaw) was the best value upgrade I made to my lp12 …and I had many upgrades…Inc DC motor/sub chassis/ arm boards / bases/ arms etc etc over the years…
Eventually realised that the modular design is a money pit…and went back to Rega
What a relief !!
A Rega RP10 is nearly 4k. A Planar 8 is 2.5k.
Apart from a recent Majik subchassis upgrade I’ve have no upgrades since the Cirkus came out (early 90s).
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At the moment I am asking the question of upgrade cirkus… I can currently have an opportunity on a majik subchassis for my LP12 of 1982. Are you happy with your change Cirkus?
I can’t remember what the Cirkus did as I upgraded mine when they came out in 1993. I remember the Lingo upgrade was amazing at the time but the Cirkus must have been less off a difference for me not to remember.
The recent Majik subchassis change retains the Cirkus bearing was quite significant and taster for a upcoming Kore.
I think that’s a tad unfair. The modular design allows for upgrades and new developments to be retrofittable so any LP12 owner need not be left behind if they wish to upgrade, which is optional not compulsory. There are many different variations of LP12 to suit most budgets with a logical and coherent upgrade path should one wish.
Rega are great but once you’ve bought a particular model, that’s it! If you want to upgrade you need another turntable.
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A P8 is less than £1700 …linn don’t include a free cartridge…so Rega shouldn’t be priced with one
Rega however do include a decent power supply…that doesn’t have to be changed immediately like the majik
I did answer the original question …does a top plate make a difference…infact all the LP12 changes make a difference…some positive…some not
But all the Linn’s I had (3) became triggers brooms …and the last one with Aro /DC motor and supply/ tigerpaw top plate/chassis/armboard /tranquility /valkan shelf …and a rebuild by Mr Swann in person STILL did not live with a run in P8 at a quarter the price
I won’t be getting on that merry-go-round again…and while not trying (intensionally) to ram it down anyone’s throat … others may benefit from my past (expensive) mistakes
Rega fit and forget misses out on the LP12 USP which is the ability to keep throwing money at it. Surprising how it mounts up over the years.
Yes, their designed to be that way. If one doesn’t like the concept, other record players are available
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I’m running a 1990 LP12 with anniversary plinth, Aro arm, Armageddon PS and Linn Krystal cartridge. I have the standard top plate, original motor, non-circus bearing and Aro arm-board. I simply love the sound it produces and have been very cautious of making any major changes. The cartridge, plinth and a couple or rebuilds have been the only cost for nearly 30 years. I’m reliably informed that if I spend lots of money it is likely to get much more analytical but a lot less romantic. I’m just not sure I want to go in that direction? Sometimes the grass isn’t always greener!
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Thank you …I had no idea…I thought the world revolved around an LP12
Depends on your plane of reference.
Has almost everything changed yet?!
Aghh! Wrong thread!
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Follow the source first hierarchy and your unlikely to go wrong;
Motor/power supply
Sub chassis/arm board
Arm
Cartridge
Why are you considering a top plate at this stage, for similar money a Lingo 4 in Linn terms is a sonic bargain.
I have recently auditioned at length Lingo 4, Radikal and Keel.
Initially I was considering third party upgrades and ended up spending the money on a Radikal, Keel
I have a seperate thread on the subject
it’s the same for me, I’m worried about switching to the Cirkus Kit and losing that nice roundness to something more analytic like a Rega RP8.
Linn has a logical and cohearent upgrade path. Deviating from that or utilising an otherwise worthy upgrade at the wrong stage of the process leads to expensive mistakes. The LP12 only then can become a “money pit” as more money is wasted on other “upgrades” going on a " merry go round" trying to correct those mistakes. Introducing third party mods & “upgrades” in a haphazard manner exacerbates the situation and leads to disillusionment.
Just because you may have got it wrong, doesn’t mean that Linn and its design concept is wrong.
As for your view that the Rega is better at a quarter of the price;
Consider after owning 3 LP12’s and numerous expensive upgrades/mistakes on the road leading to your deciding to return to a Rega, how much has that Rega really ended up costing.