Greetings.
Some of you may be interested in my initial reactions to the new Linn Katan speakers which I recently auditioned and subsequently purchased. The auditioned speaker and the new speaker were/are not yet broken in, so some of my comments may be revised later. My system: LP12/Aro/Lydian Beta/102/small power supply/Supercap/250/A5.
Please note that I am not a experienced audio reviewer. These impressions are based on several years using Tukans, as well as auditioning many popular small speakers.
The speaker is about an inch taller and deeper than the Tukan. The wood finish is first rate. The speaker does not come with any means for a cloth covering, but the mid/bass driver comes with a metal mesh cover, which I easily removed. The shape of the speaker goes from wide at the front, to narrow at the back. My immediate reaction relative to my latest generation Tukans are as follows:
The speakers are much more cohesive than the Tukans. Issues I thought were related to my front end, appear in part, to be related to the Tukans. Everything lines up perfectly, with nothing lagging behind. Everything from the bottom up comes together, while the Tukans sounded phasey in comparison. Timing and pace are miles ahead as well. Returning the Tukans made the music sound confused and lethargic. Bass performance is much better integrated and tuneful. The bottom end is not more extended, but now plays a more important role. When I use words like “much better”, I mean it. The treble range is much more open and clear, without being overly pronounced. The overall sound is more open and detailed, less dark and intimate than the Tukan. Voices do not project like he Tukans. The Tukans would push the voice/some instruments out (sometimes shout) in front of the speakers, with the Katans, voices are kept back with everything else. Everything seems to stay in line with the front of the speakers, versus moving in front of them. Voices seem a little bleached, not as full. This may be due to the less phasey quality of the sound or again, need for break-in. Voices/instruments are very easy to understand. The sound overall is not very colorful, again, sort of bleached, this being due, I suspect, to not being broken in. I know it’s a trumpet being played, yet I don’t think I get a lot of the subtle trumpet color cues. This is relative to the Sonus Faber Concertino speaker I’ve been listening to. Placement is very easy. I have them about 8 inches off the wall, toed in.
I was a bit hesitant about the color issue, as well as the more recessed quality of the voices. I put the Tukans back in, and yes, I liked the added fullness and intimacy, but very quickly realized how much “music” I was missing, usually a sign to me that the “other” component is doing something really “right”, even if the “sound” is not what I’m accustomed to hearing.
I’ll post an update on my impressions as time goes on. Definitely give these Katans a listen.
Lennart Kisner
Posted on: 15 December 2000 by Ron The Mon
Andrew,
I agree with you on KanII being best (though I am a Kan-fan of all vintages). My impressions of the Katan is it is easier to site than all previous models and is heavier. The problem with earlier versions is that most are placed on floor stands and the Kan (on stands) have a very high center of gravity. I believe this instability causes the honkiness, lack of bass, etc. I've heard others complain about. I've used several floor stands and found ANY wall-mount support to sound better. I currently use the Italian-made Audiotech wall mount. The Katans (and Tucans) will boom like a mother if put this close to a wall. I also found the Katans like to be toed-in. BTW in Britain do the Linn dealers get older customers in to update their speakers? What tweeter are you using? I have had all four model tweeters in mine and think each one was well worth the upgrade!!
Lennart,
Welcome to the forum!
I will agree with what you stated and add that I heard the Katans with modest systems as well as with LP-12/Lingo/Ekos/Arkiv/Linto/AV5103/Klimax and it was the absolutely biggest soundstage I've heard in a "bookshelf" speaker!!
Ron The Mon
Posted on: 16 December 2000 by Andrew Randle
Hi Ron,
Regarding my demo with the Katans and whether UK dealers are encouraging Kan users to change to Katans. I haven't seen any evidence of this - with myself I was using the Katans to audition the differences between Linn and Naim amps (I went with the Naim option).
The Katans turned out to be very capable (I was hoping to use Royd Sorcerers as they are similar to my Kan IIs).
The tweeter I'm using... not sure, probably a Vifa/Scanspeak. If it gives you any clue, I'm using a late Kan II with Ku-stone inserts.
BTW, a major part of the Katan's improvement over the Tukan is in its new tweeter. The bass is also improved, though not as significant as the tweeter that adds a better leading edge and timing.
Andrew
Andrew Randle
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Posted on: 16 December 2000 by Ron The Mon
Andrew,
Just to clarify, I meant did dealers encourage updating the tweeters only. I received a letter stating "for $185. we will update your Linn speaker to current model tweeter". I had the Hiquofin tweeter first, changed to the original Scanspeak version because I heard a rumor it was better, then the 3rd model (the one with the little screen over dome) which blew away both soft domers, and lastly the current edition. Because of the relatively cheap cost it is the best VFM retrofit I have ever done! For those on a tighter budget I've seen dealers resell old "traded-in" tweeters super-cheap (my dealer had three boxes of "screen" type in his back room), just be sure to match serial numbers on back of units as these are sold as a set. I believe with the exception of the Index and Helix this retrofit can be done to all Linn speakers regardless of vintage. Check with your dealer.
Ron The Mon
Posted on: 16 December 2000 by Martin Payne
Ron,
these tweeters may be a bargain price, but I'd be very cautious.
A friend of mine updated his tweeters and tried to use the old ones to update another pair of speakers. The plate cracked whilst being gently tightened up.
Much force can be required to remove the old tweeters, and they're not really built for that sort of thing.
Caveat Emptor.
cheers, Martin
[This message was edited by Martin Payne on SUNDAY 17 December 2000 at 12:17.]
Posted on: 18 December 2000 by LennyK
After some break-in time, about 20 hours, the Katans are starting to fill out. The "bleached" quality I mentioned has mostly gone away. At this stage, I would say the overall sound remains very tuneful with a dry quality. I feel that the speaker is actually pretty uncolored though, allowing each recording to show it's own character relative to other speakers I have tried. The less forward character remains, which I find makes for easier listening. I would love to hear these at the other end of a 52,
Lennart Kisner
