Meridian Unplugged - Powered by MrTechGuy.co.uk Forums Discussion Off Topic OT - Linn stops making CD players

I think some of the server based setups are trying to give us more metadata- Kaleidescape does this and I would be surprised if Soolos didn't. Interesting discussion none the less. My own personal experience is even though there will be marketing in everything, at the end of the day one can trust Meridian's stance on things audio.

With all due respect ... one of these day's it would be nice to come across a single brand forum where people accepted that there are many ways to get to audio nirvana, and that other manufacturers while having a different philosophy, have that philosophy for their own reasons and that doesn't make their products snake oil...

There's just so much "personal" attack from Naim forum on Linn; Linn forums on Meridian; Meridian forums on Lexicon; etc. Its not just this forum so please don't take it that way.

Eloise

Unfortunately, I've heard a lot of bad things about the Tiefenbruns... I'm not saying that Linn products are bad, just that I know nothing that Linn has done which has been truly market-leading since the LP12.

I think you are reading too much into my comment Eloise. I have an LP12 in my system which has been there for 23 years now, and is the only unchanged component in that time. Linn electronics were never to my taste, but I did nearly buy a pair of their Nexus loudspeakers (they lost out to big Tannoys).

My opinion is that Mr Tiefenbrun, whilst running a company which has produced some excellent products, will turn on a sixpence and decry anything which no longer suits the marketing stance which he wishes to adopt at that point in time. It is my opinion that he has a very long history of making arrogant, dogmatic pronouncements, which have less to do with engineering integrity and more to do with where he sees the money. It could be argued that he's simply a good business man, but the company's recent history (pre-recession) may suggest otherwise.

So, no fanboy stuff here, just personal thoughts about the chief protagonists of each company.

Cheers

George

Different people have different sources, ears and tastes.

Linn (via their dealers) is the only audio brand that has ever told me that my sources are the wrong ones, my ears aren't working right and my tastes are wrong.

That sin was never committed by Arcam, Audiolab, Quad, B&W, Tannoy (Meridian!) or any other dealer/brand I have purchased/experienced.

Re the split between Linn and Naim audiophiles, I think that may have it's origins in the launch of Linn's own amps. Until that point the two brands had been seen as synergistic, with each company recommending the other's products as being the best match for audio nirvana. If I remember correctly though, at the launch of his new amps, Ivor was highly critical of the Naim designs, and the great divide began...

Cheers

George

I was at an event back in 2005 where the chief of another British brand was bashing Naim for basically selling the same �23 of components as a �2000 power amp for 30 years. So it's not just Linn with those feelings

CD is not going anywhere. The only thing that has gone is demand for Linn's CD player. It's not competitive. They still sell their Unidisc which plays CD, SACD and DVD, so its not like they are giving up on audio discs despite how they spin that there is no demand for their CD player.