LINN Kolektor Preamplifiers
LINN Kolektor Preamplifiers
[Mar 14, 2005]
srplus
AudioPhile
Strength:
Price and versatility
Weakness:
Phonostage For its price an excellent piece of equipment which benefits from, or requires, excellent sources such as the sondek turntable or at minimum the ikemi cd player. A cheap upgrade (approx 200 dlrs) is a rebuilt lk1 amp where all except for the RIIA ha been shut down (the RIIA is still excellent despite the age of the design, especially considering it´s´price as a second hand commodity). The quality of the inbuilt phonostage is debatable but OK. A separate RIIA also allows for MC to be used. The preamp has also grown with improvements such as upgraded CD and improved turntable or upgrade to Linn silver interconnects. The preamp is also able to drive a poweramp situated as far away as up to 10 meters (according to Linn). Works fine for me with poweramp situated 6 meters away, between speakers. Similar Products Used: Edison tube preamps, Linn Intek |
[Dec 18, 2003]
michael
AudioPhile
Strength:
Well built, compact size, simple design, extreme functionality, remembering volume levels for each source, volume fad in / out when switching sources, tone controls for balancing the recording quality of many CD's
Weakness:
None I just purchased the Linn Kolektor / LK140 combination to replace my beloved 15 year old Linn LK280 / LK1 rig. Have no fear, the latter gear is still going strong and is a great home office enhancement. Twenty years ago I bought into the "Linn For Life" benefit and have never looked back. Moreover, Linn really takes care of their customers which is the best part of their value proposition. Without question, Linn has made remarkable advancements in their entry level gear. The LK140 and Kolektor sound absolutely wonderful together. Clear, crisp, clean and powerful. I really could not be happier. My other equipment includes a Linn Genki, LP12 / Basik / K9, Quad FM4 tuner, Nakamichi CR-3A tape deck and Thiel CS2 speakers. I've now come to realize that the Thiel CS2's were slightly underpowered with the LK280 but not anymore. My thought of replacing them with Linn speakers have vanished since they have never sounded better since being driven by the LK140 / Kolektor. I'm hearing things I never heard before. It's marvelous! I'm a Linnie for life! Similar Products Used: Linn LK280 / LK1 |
[Aug 29, 2002]
Ola Nyberg
Audio Enthusiast
Strength:
Great sound, loads of inputs, packed with features and no potentiometers that can start making noise. In my previous review (posted over a year ago), I stated that the Kolektor doesn't have a tape-loop. This is not true, I had misunderstood the meaning of the term. There is a "tape out" output, so there is a tape-loop. However, there is no listen-record switch. Since last year, I have replaced the power amp (from Rotel RB-991 to ADCOM GFA-585) and the CD player (from ARCAM CD72 to Sony CDP-XB740, believe it or not), but the Kolektor remains in my system. Still love it. |
[Jun 29, 2002]
Ali
Audio Enthusiast
Strength:
Easy to use, flexible, open sound
Weakness:
Poor interconnects, lack of attack Last year I decided to treat myself and upgrade my Mission Cyrus amp and Marantz 67SE MKII CD with a LINN Genki/Kolektor/LK140 combination. It sounded great in the shop but when I got it home I was underwhelmed. It was better than my old system, but not much. Did it need "running in"? Were my venerable Mission 753S speakers or QED Silver Aniversary Biwire speaker cables the problem? Eventually, I replaced the LINN interconnects with VAN DEN HUL 102 MKIII Hybrid. What a difference! Suddenly there was detail and stereo depth not heard before. If you like the LINNs and want to get the most out of them, you certainly need to use decent interconnects between CD and pre-amp and pre-amp and power amp. |
[Apr 22, 2002]
Jake Bach
Audio Enthusiast
Strength:
Controls, custom user options, great control, very usefull bass and treble controls.
Weakness:
Remote not very handy, otherwise none at this prizerange The Kolektor is a very strange unit with lots of custom user options, a great discrete design and, when used with other Linn equipment, very good sound. Since there are no moving parts, this unit will function perfectly for many years to come, and there are certainly enough inputs to expand your system in the future. Also the MM Phono input is very good, i´ve tried it with the Linn LP12 and K18II, and it sounded just great. Actually, i had the opportunity to compare the Kolektor directly to my old Rotel RSP-966 Surround preamp together with a Rotel RB-980 Poweramp, and to my surprise, the Linn was not nearly as musical as the Rotel, but the bass was clearly better and more controlled. When the RB-980 was removed and the Linn LK85 power amp put in, it all changed. What i am trying to say is, that Linn sounds best together with other Linn equipment. When doing so, there is not much that comes close to it, perhaps the Kairn preamp from Linn, but it has a much higher price. Similar Products Used: Linn LK1, Linn LK280, Linn LK85, Linn Kairn, Rotel RSP-966 |
[Mar 23, 2000]
Romeo Conte
Audio Enthusiast
Strength:
Superbly user friendly,excellent sound,remote control
Weakness:
I can't think of any! I've been quite critical in the past about some of Linn's substantial price rises so it was quite a pleasant surprise when I had a demonstration of the Kolector/LK140 pre-power amp.This pre-amp has to be one of THE Hi-Fi bargains of the moment.A 10 Input(inc. mm phono),fully remote controlled unit with, wait for it,TONE CONTROLS! Having upgraded from a Naim Nait 3 the sound quality from my LP12, Lingo,Cirkus,Akito,K9 front end & Royd Abbot Speakers has improved in every aspect. Detailed,punchy & with so much grip I think I've found an amplifier I can be happy with for a very long time! |
[Mar 29, 2001]
Ola Nyberg
Audio Enthusiast
Strength:
Transparent sound, lots of inputs, no potentiometers, ease of use
Weakness:
No tape loop, no listen/record switch I am not really a fan of Linn products, but when I set out to find a good pre-amp that didn't cost a fortune, I fell in love with the Kolektor. My pre-amp had to have a phono stage, preferrably tone controls, and lots of inputs for future use. I didn't want any potentiometers, so my choices were rather limited. Similar Products Used: None |
[Oct 04, 2000]
Jerry
Audiophile
Strength:
Transparency, detail, focus
Weakness:
Too cheap for the sound and facilities on offer ! I confess to being confused by the little, low cost Kolektor. Similar Products Used: Rowland Consummate, Audio Research SP11/2; Musical Fidelity F22, Audio Synthesis Passion 8 |
[Apr 11, 2001]
Jason
Audio Enthusiast
Weakness:
Can't think of any, especially for the price My reason for auditioning the Kolektor in the first place was primarily due to its features - I wanted a preamp with a remote, a phono stage, the ability to drive multiple amps, and the ability to integrate (if and when I decide to do so) into a home theater set-up. Similar Products Used: Auditioned adcom, bryston, arcam and classe |
[Jun 08, 2001]
Blackie
Audio Enthusiast
Strength:
Flexable, compact affordable unit
Weakness:
No volume knob Not a bad unit for the money, offers a lot of flexibility but is not the last word on transparency. Slightly muffled sound but can also be fatiguing. Decent build quality and if speakers are under 2K or not very revealing not a bad choice but recommend stepping up to a better unit if more resolution and detail are needed. Similar Products Used: Krell KRC-3, Musical Fidelity A-3, CJ PV-14 |