Linn
Linn Kandid Moving Coil Cartridge
Linn Kandid Moving Coil Cartridge
Available to Order
Linn Kandid Moving Coil Cartridge
The Linn Kandid is a high-performance moving coil cartridge with no cartridge housing — the generator is left nude and exposed, removing potential sources of resonance at the point where resonance is most damaging. The result is a cartridge that is as much a statement of engineering philosophy as it is a component.
Nude / Exposed Generator
The Kandid's most immediately distinctive feature is its lack of a cartridge housing. With no enclosure around the generator assembly, the resonance paths that a conventional body introduces are simply absent. Linn refer to this as their Nude / Exposed Generator design: with no cartridge housing, potential sources of resonance are removed, resulting in purer, cleaner sound.
20° Mechanical Body and Cantilever Tracking Angle
When placed under tracking force on the LP surface, the Kandid's 20° mechanical body and cantilever tracking angle ensures the flux lines remain symmetrical. This means the mechanical forces acting on the coils and iron core remain equal in all directions, avoiding deformation that would otherwise introduce distortion into the signal.
Triple-Point Mounting System
The Kandid uses a triple-point mounting system, which Linn say ensures a more rigid and accurate coupling to the tonearm headshell than a conventional two-point fixing. Greater rigidity at the headshell interface means less energy lost between the stylus and the tonearm — and less lost energy means more of what is in the groove reaches the phono stage.
Precision Machined Body and Hand-Wound Coils
The body is machined from solid 7075 aluminium alloy — a grade chosen for its rigidity. The plastic front yoke screw is a deliberate choice: it keeps cartridge weight down, allows the counterweight to be positioned closer to the bearing point for a quicker reaction to changes in the vinyl surface, and eliminates magnetic interference to the coils. The coils themselves are hand-wound and secured in a high-precision rigid assembly; an extra winding increases output. Flying leads terminate in gold contacts for signal transmission.
Technical Specifications
| Cartridge Type | High-performance moving coil (MC) |
| Stylus Type | Nude line contact diamond |
| Cantilever | Boron |
| Armature | Square |
| Pin Connection Type | Flying wire with termination clips |
| Mounting Points | 3 |
| Coil Wire | Copper |
| Output Voltage | 0.38 mV @ 3.54 cm/s |
| Channel Balance at 1 kHz | ±0.5 dB |
| Channel Separation at 1 kHz | Better than 35 dB |
| Load Resistance | 50–200 Ω |
| Load Capacitance | 100–1000 pF |
| Tracking Force | 1.72–1.77 g |
| Cartridge Mass | 5.7 g |
Who Is It For?
The Kandid is for the committed LP12 owner who is ready to take their front end to its highest level. It is designed to be fitted to a Linn tonearm, and it rewards the finest LP12 configurations: the Linn Krane Tonearm and Linn Arko Tonearm are the natural partners, and the Kandid will respond to every upstream improvement — from the Linn Karousel Bearing Kit to the Linn Klimax Radikal motor control. Those building a complete reference Linn front end should also consider the Linn Klimax LP12 Turntable and the Linn LP12 Selekt Turntable as the platforms on which the Kandid is designed to perform at its best.
Buying from Martins Hi-Fi
Martins Hi-Fi has been in Norwich since 1968. Elizabeth Gould runs the business today, and we stock only brands we have heard properly and stand behind.
You are welcome to hear the Linn Kandid at our Norwich showroom, where we can demonstrate it fitted to a high-specification LP12 so you can judge what the nude generator design achieves in practice. When you get in touch, you'll be speaking with Dave and Chris — experienced specialists who can advise on this cartridge and your whole Linn system.
Contact us at info@martinshifi.co.uk, call 01603 627010, or WhatsApp on 07554 687137. You can read more about how we work on our Why Martins Hi-Fi page. We are at 85–91 Ber Street, Norwich, NR1 3EY.
