Well you’ve seen them before but here’s mine to get us back on track
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That’s a good looking LP12 set up that you have there, if I may say so.
Is it all Tiger Paw in origin? The tonearm looks superficially like an ARO, but it’s obviously not, although they must have taken some styling cues from it
Please do, either a jazzy lime green using Linn’s bespoke colours or a specialist plinth ….
Hi Graham, yes a fair bit of TP. It’s all listed in my profile. I’m just pleased I was one of the very lucky few that managed to get a Javelin from Roger before he went quiet. It sounds sublime.
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I believe that a Magik deck is still ‘direct’ mains powered. But any LP12 with a PS (Valhalla, Lingo or Radical) is clearly not. The Valhalla board and the Lingo both create a clean & stable pseudo mains AC - and the Radical creates DC (and so needs a different motor). The Lingo can also change the frequency of its AC output, for 45RPM use.
The actual AC voltage is around 75 to 85V AC, with a Valhalla board. The Lingo is cleverer and actually varies the AC voltage - higher for starting, lower for normal running. The lower, steady running voltage is 60V AC, according to the web.
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Some quality timber on show there - very nice!
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The very early ones didn’t have a PSU at all, the mains connected direct to the motor using the 50Hz cycle to keep the correct speed. The was a small cap on the reverse of the motor to ensure it rotated in the correct direction.
It was more than very early ones. All LP12’s were like you describe, up until Valhalla came in (in 1982). Just a coupleof resistors and a capacitor (which was on one of the 2 phases of the motor). Nothing more.
And - AFAIK - the Magik deck is not so different, from those ‘early’ decks, now.
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As long as it still goes up and down 
Oh no not again I’m out of here.
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My Sondek is doing great after it’s upgrades in April at Moorgate Acoustics. Put 135 hours on the cartridge so will be well settled in.
Spinning some Queen tonight
Next up will be either an Ittok LV III or an Audio Origami PU7-ti for that final tonearm leap.
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Do think about adding the lovely old ARO to your list of possible tonearms. Not at all easy to get your hands on a decent one these days (only around were 1,600 ever built before lack of available parts caused Naim to cease its production).
James at TomTom Audio in St Albans is very good at tracking down impossible-to-find audio equipment. He’s a true gent and will do his utmost to help.
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I thought it was fewer than that. But whatever, changing from a Linn tone arm to an Aro would require a new Keel too and that’s not cheap.
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Clive, that’s my (very) clear recollection of what I read on this Forum some years ago. It certainly wasn’t a high number, given the ARO’s renown.
I remember being struck by the fact that Linn had made around ten times the number of Ittoks as Naim had made of AROs.
Someone from Naim HQ may be able to confirm production numbers.
Cymbiosis say 1350 +/- over a 20 year period (earlier post on this Forum)
Not many given the timescale.
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That’s right and they’re spread around worldwide.
FWIW I put my name down with Wayne at Cymbiosis for an ARO, (it’s a great service they operate for all sorts of secondhand/traded-in stuff if folks didn’t know) and after a year of waiting I got the call. My understanding is that another dealer in Scotland had one going spare from a client who’d traded in their deck and made the call down south. It wasn’t cheap but it is very good. I’m presently with Kore but I do believe a Keel’s a special fit as others have mentioned and if anybody wants one of the arm lifters it requires a spot of drilling too.
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I think it’s time to chime in……… Richard Dane knows I do try very Hard to stay within forum rules regarding retailers so here goes answering the whole series of questions dating back three weeks:
My understanding is 1350 Aros were made.
There were also a number of tops made which were sold separately and these are not included in the number above.
The Aro was discontinued as it was not considered viable to continue production as it would’ve meant buying a lot of new parts. This sadly happened around 2012 from memory just as the vinyl revival kicked in big time 
Anyone looking to buy and use an Aro on an LP 12 actually has at least potentially five subchassis options! The keel is just one and it’s still available like all the others I’m about to list.
There is a Kore for Aro, just as there are options for Rega, SME and Linn mounts too.
All Kore sub-chassis started life as a Majik Introduction before a machined from aluminium arm board was bonded/attached to it. Consequently retailers can order all these versions of the Majik too!
And of course there’s always the secondhand option using a Cirkus steel sub chassis and an arm board. All of which are still available with the addition of a blank arm board for anything else that you might want to fit to a Cirkus steel sub-chassis. The fifth option is of course a third-party subchassis perhaps something like a tangerine Phoenix which I know it’s available for the ARO too.
Although price list from Linn does packages, the only complete LP 12 shipped to retailers as a complete entity is the Majik.
Obviously the name Klimax and Akurate (now Selekt) nomenclature of these packages was meant to make life easy when people are choosing which is the appropriate level to pitch in for them and to make life easier for the retailer. However, nothing in hi-fi is ever straightforward or easy as you all know 
So in reality there are a lot more steps that you can make within the framework of the LP 12. Consequently, the LP 12 these days if it’s not supplied in a Majik form is basically supplied as an empty vessel which you and your retailer can then populate accordingly.
LP12 plinths are available in five wood finishes and each of these finishes now has a fluted variant. You can also order bespoke paint finishes now as well so I suppose the number is pretty much unlimited!
In addition to a plinth what you would get in the box is a top plate already attached. A carousel bearing and inner platter. An outer platter complete with felt mat and belt. You also get the crossmember, lid, hinges and then a complete suspension kit comprising springs, bushes nuts etc along with a chassis earth and a vial of oil.
To this you would then choose which Power supply you wanted and this could be a Lingo 4 or a Radikal ((of which there are two versions one in a conventional folded aluminium box and the other in the machine and aluminium box) Akurate and Klimax respectively Then comes the choice of the sub chassis you wanted, and which arm and cartridge you wanted. (many options as you all know).
Additionally you do need to consider which baseboard to go for is one is not supplied in the LP 12 package because you have a potential choice of three.
The solid baseboard which like all the other baseboards these days is made from aluminium and deserved and comes with simple rubber feet.
The Trampolin 2 which is thankfully a huge improvement over the original trampolin 1 because it’s made of aluminium and is earthed again rather than just thick Formica. But it does share the very same diaphragm mounted larger feet. Finally, the trampolin Can also have a phono stage mounted which then sits within the LP 12 and there are two versions of the phono stage. The first one is the Urika 1 and this would be the one that would be of most interest to you guys on here as it’s analog and will connect easily into a conventional stereo (Naim) system. The second is called the Urika 2, I guess because it came after the original analog phono stage. This one is purely digital in its output and will only connect into Linn System. There are no phono plugs, it uses an ethernet cable!
Quite a few people on occasions have asked me if it’s possible to use this phono stage in the context of a all Naim system, and the answer is no because it speaks in Linn digital language and so you wouldn’t get much joy plugging it into anything else!
I would like to pick up on something that Graham 55 mentioned about three weeks ago: this was his thoughts on how the Keel/A was the biggest improvement he has heard, made in the context of his LP12 I believe. I am pleased about this because I think likewise. I should point out I have never met Graham and consequently he is not a customer of mine but I’m very happy that he is happy with his LP 12/Aro👍🏻.
Yes it is true, I’ve been fortunate to be able offer a helping hand with quite a number of products associated with the LP 12 and vinyl replay generally over the years including things as diverse as the lifter Aro lift/lower device and also the Airplugs for the Superline along with many of their optimal loadings and this was only possible because of the help of Naim’s very own Steve Sells.
Anyway, the important thing to remember here is not who, it’s more about were the improvements worthwhile and beneficial to the users.
In summary, the LP 12 generally is a kit of bits and you can put it together and configure the specification that you require, hopefully without spending more than you want to precisely because it is a case of bits and you can buy new and secondhand bits to do the job and in this respect it’s just the same as a Naim system as so many of us have, systems comprising elements that were bought new and elements that were bought secondhand. What matters is that the items fit our respective budgets and aspirations as far as possible.
I hope The above answers most of your questions and proves to be an interesting read.
I do apologise if there are any typos but I’m having to dictate this post on my iPhone as my Internet went down Earlier this evening!
KR,
Peter
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That is an extremely helpful summary, Peter, if I may say so, which I think will be welcomed by Members who are interested in having their LP12s ‘fettled’.
May I ask a couple of questions, please, about The Lifter, as I believe it is called?
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Am I correct in thinking that this is an Audio Technica (or something similar) product which you have adapted for use with the LP12?
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Is drilling a hole in the Keel/A a fairly simple procedure, and am I right in thinking that there a hollow on the underside of the Keel/A which makes it obvious where the hole needs to be drilled?
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Does the weight of The Lifter mean that the subchassis needs to be reset when it is fitted?
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Can I ask my dealer (Audio T in Brighton) to contact you direct to buy The Lifter? And can you give an indication of the price?
Essentially, what I’m wondering is whether I need to get the deck back to my dealer (it has just recently come back from having a Dynavector Te Kaitora Rua fitted, although an illness has intervened to prevent me hearing it) or whether they can just pay me a visit at home to do all the necessary work?
Many thanks, in advance, for your help.
It could be even more complicated…
How would you rank (say) the Stack and Tangerine sun-chassis and top plate compared to Linn Products?
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