New DS from Linn

I just came across this, don’t know if its been mentioned here? Stevensegal may have highlighted it prior to this, after all he is the forum Renaissance man.

Linn’s next-gen Klimax DSM flagship streamer introduces Organik DAC | What Hi-Fi?

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It costs about $80,000. Ask @aangen, he could find space for it.

Their Klimax Exakt system had been around for years - one box, active speakers, A/D conversion of analogue sources, full DSP. Basically everything PS Audio isn’t. They’ve upgraded the DAC and the marketing department have found another word that ends in K.

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reminds me of Kerrang, and their refusal to use a C whenever a K would do.
i’ve bounced between the all-in-one approach and the as-many-subunits-as-possible approach for most of my life, and i’m still not sure which is best (though i know which takes up the least space).

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Yes, Linn are famous for bad-spelling and attaching “K” to their products! One example, “Majik” range of equipment, is/was their entry level? I think Linn ( Ivor T ) is a neopaganism sectary. ‘Neopagan sect’ like adding the letter K. “MagicK” spelling being one example. It wouldn’t surprise me if Ivor is a pagan… :slightly_smiling_face:

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there’s a surprising number about :slight_smile:

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I’ll put a Hex on you. Name the singer! :slightly_smiling_face:

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had to google, and found that “spell” is the obvious old standard (annie lennox has done a version though which may be worth a listen!) but “hex” is in a song by The Temptations.
every day is a school day :slight_smile:

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A “k” like 80 k(ilo) $ or Fort Knox. Nevertheless quite the compact 80 k kit. For who likes compact high end or rather “kompact” high end or is it “compakt” high end. Anyway you get what I mean.

Fun thing: you can start with a similar DSM Majik (passive/with power amp stage) for 4 k go to passive Selekt DSM (without power amp stage) for 5 to to 8 k depending if you want 2 or multichannel or high end DAC (not as high end as Klimax).

So there is a ladder to climb or descend, however you look at it. I guess “Klimax” stands for climax in loss of return of investment. You do get a a glass fiber optic input though, something PS Audio also reserved for their top of the bill TSS Über-DAC.

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:clap: :+1:

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My google skills win again :smiley:

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Thank the gods PS Audio is not like Linn …

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quote=“pmotz, post:11, topic:22812”]
Thank the gods PS Audio is not like Linn …
[/quote]

Agreed, so we have something to choose,

PS Audio is very much for the classic high end passive speaker systems. According to the principle of: “there is only one substitute for cubic inch, … that is more cubic inch”. Linear power supplies, class A/B high power in the high end series and A/D high power in the budget friendly series. Very good sounding, I loved the sound and also enclosure design of my Stellar Gain Cell DAC, for the 1.5 year it worked. Thus, I do not like the built quality.

Which is the point I like Linn. Their design looks like a million dollar live style product. Clean and rock solid designs, active speaker approach, allowing compact equipment and equally relative compact speakers to deliver good sound without making the living space look like a electrical sub station.

It is above my pay grade. Perhaps not if you look at component level, but changing from passive speaker system to active speaker system you basically need to buy the entire system at once. Even if you buy the passive speaker system Majik, it all looks so good together that there is no point at buying a single component.

Linn offers ultimate system synergy. Bad for the investment but good for the looks and functionality.

With integration of streaming and vinyl and music production Linn has been leading the industry. Linn was 10 to 15 years ago where PS Audio still hopes to be next year or thereafter. It is a company with 50 years of history, delivering iconic products and keeping production in the home country of the company. All their PCB’s, metal works, speaker cabinets, etc. built in Scotland/UK. They import some goodies from Japanese or German specialists like tonearm or cartridges, but those do come from specialists made to Linn’s specification.

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Each company has its own philosophy. No company in the world can be all things to all people (in a specific product range). There would always have various market segments and different customer needs.

In my life, more than once, I moved from separates to all-in-one and back . Today I am in the separates camp, and don’t know for how long. But I am in the camp of the majority of audiophiles who want something less than the stars. The moon is enough. :stuck_out_tongue_winking_eye:

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Linn are incredibly innovative. They have a state of the art facility, design and fabricate everything in-house, machine all their enclosures, and have a very well structured product range. They primarily make audio systems, not components.

What Gilad Tiefenbrun has achieved is quite remarkable. They launched their high-end streaming systems in 2007. Same with Class D power, launched at the same time. Dumped spinning discs. Then developed active systems with DSP. Every product is upgradeable. There are few if any companies I know of that have judged the future of audio so well.

Almost 40 years ago they also set up one of the best quality record labels, originally to get quality LP pressings to test the LP12, and now have a large roster of leading international artists. Sound familiar?

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Nice that we are able to make choices.

Yello: “yeah, the moon, beautiful, the sun, even more beautiful …”

LOL the sun is our nearest star. :wink:

I don’t deny Linn is innovative, and they make fine products. PS Audio is innovative too, and they too make fine products. My (sarcastic) point was you make frequent references to British audio companies and how great they are, e.g., Rega, dCS, Cambridge, and Chord. As a citizen of Britain that’s ok, I encourage you to support British companies. As an American I certainly like to support American companies and do so by buying Made in USA whenever I can. What bothers me is the repeated references to these companies. It just seems boorish to me. The PS Audio forum is open to all and I’m not advocating censoring anyone or anything, just use a little restraint, that’s all.

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I owned a Linn streaming system from about 2009, which I replaced with a PSA DAC and Auralic streamer.

My current system is Wilson speakers, Shunyata conditioner and power cables, a SoundSmith cartridge, Blue Jeans and AudioQuest Ethernet cables, all products from the USA. Devialet Expert from France, a Koetsu cartridge and Jelco arm from Japan and Innuos server from Portugal. British products are a Claro turntable, Origin Live tonearm and Townsend speaker cables and turntable platform.

My second system has Raidho speakers from Denmark and a CXA81 from the UK, built in China.

I’ve bought and sold three PSA components, two new, one used after it was out of production.

So I may be in the UK, but most of my system is American and a lot of the rest from around the world.

Lots of people here use Rega, dCS make reference digital that has been used in most systems I’ve heard and I rarely mention the other two brands, although I have a CXA81 and a Mojo respectively.

… and my headphones, MrSpeakers, American?

I enjoyed that … while it lasted. Personally I’d only buy a product budgeted by Liverpool City Council.

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I have heard the previous Klimax system. It is just one way of doing things and I was underwhelmed as I do not like the Linn active speakers. Unengaging. The demo room was also poor.

I had a demo of the Meridian Sooloos system before Linn. Impressive, but I discount Meridian as it has lost so much money. The Meridian Sooloos software team left to design their own software - Roon.