20 Juni, 2013

Linn vs Roksan 

   There’s an interesting aside to close on. Back in the Jurassic era of the 1980’s the Linn may have won the battle. (more LP12s were sold in the UK than any of its similarly priced rivals) but possible Roksan won the war. It’s been a long time since I owned a LP12 but not so long since I’ve heard the latest spec models. Over the years, the sound of the Linn has  changed. It’s less strongly-characterful and arguably more neutral today, with less of a bottom and bloom. In other words, it is more Roksan-sounding. The comparison doesn’t happen often today, in part because the price differential is so steep now, but I think the two are closer than ever today.

   We are in a novelty-obsessed world a computer industry-driven time, where anything more than six months old is viewed as painfully outdated. But it shouldn’t be that way; the Roksan Xerxes.20plus is the perfect example of why good things stay good. It traces a line back to the mid-1980s and has only matured with age. Had I reviewed one when I started this lark, I’d have been impressed. And I’m more than impressed now!

 Från den engelska tidningen HiFi+ nummer 99