Products of the Year

Analog Source of 1994:

Linn Sondek LP12/Lingo turntable ($2645–$2745; reviewed by John Atkinson, Vol.14 No.1, January 1991, & Vol.16 No.11, November 1993; Corey Greenberg, Vol.16 No.12, December 1993; Robert Deutsch, Vol.17 No.5, May 1994 Review)

"Analog Source" pits tuners against turntables, with the superbly engineered Arcam Delta 100 cassette deck getting a look in. But when push came to vote, the 23-year-old Linn Sondek edged out the other nominees, even the various incarnations of the megabux Forsell turntable from Sweden. Of course, the Linn in its current Lingo'd, Cirkus'd form is a bit like the old story of the man who owned the original hatchet with which George Washington cut down the cherry tree: "Of course, the handle's been replaced three times and the head twice." But no matter: Linn Products and their North American distributor, Audiophile Systems, regularly promote dealer clinics where owners of vintage Linns can have handles and heads replaced. And this modest-looking belt-drive turntable is still the most musical in the land, say the Stereophile scribes.

Finalists (in alphabetical order):
Arcam Delta 100 Dolby S cassette deck ($1800; reviewed by J. Gordon Holt, Vol.17 No.10, October 1994)
Audiolab 8000T FM/AM tuner ($1150; reviewed by Larry Greenhill, Vol.17 Nos.5 & 11, May & November 1994)
Forsell Air Force One/Air Reference turntables ($12,500–$20,500; reviewed by Jonathan Scull, Vol.17 No.1, January 1994)
Magnum Dynalab FT-101A FM tuner ($875; reviewed by Donald A. Scott, Vol.8 No.4, June 1985; Vol.10 No.3, April 1987; Vol.13 No.10, October 1990; Vol.17 No.10, October 1994)