Linn Kandid MC Cartridge | Moving Coil | Martins Hi-Fi

Nothing between you and the music.

Kandid strips away everything unnecessary, exposing the generator to eliminate resonance sources that colour sound. This nude design philosophy, combined with ceramic boron cantilever technology and precision hand-wound coils, delivers breathtaking clarity and detail from every record. When nothing interferes, everything comes through.

Features & Benefits

Nude Generator Design

Kandid's exposed generator eliminates the traditional cartridge housing entirely, removing a significant source of unwanted resonance. Without this enclosure to vibrate and colour the sound, your music emerges purer and cleaner. You'll hear improved transparency, more natural tonal balance, and greater low-level detail retrieval across your entire vinyl collection.

Optimised Mass Distribution

The plastic front yoke screw reduces overall cartridge weight whilst eliminating magnetic interference with the delicate coils. This lightweight construction allows the tonearm's counterweight to sit closer to the bearing point, improving the arm's ability to react quickly to groove modulations. The result is better tracking through complex passages, tighter bass response, and improved dynamic articulation.

20-Degree Tracking Geometry

Kandid employs a refined 20-degree angle between the mechanical body and cantilever tracking angle, optimised from the traditional 23 degrees. When under tracking force on the record surface, this geometry maintains symmetrical flux lines, ensuring mechanical forces on the coils and iron core remain equal in all directions. This prevents deformation and distortion, delivering more accurate channel balance and improved stereo imaging.

Nude Diamond Line Contact Stylus

The finest nude diamond stylus with Line Contact profile traces groove walls with exceptional precision, making significantly more contact with the groove modulation than standard elliptical designs. This superior contact area retrieves more musical information whilst reducing record wear. You'll experience extended high-frequency response, improved detail resolution, and more accurate reproduction of complex musical textures.

Ceramic Boron Cantilever

Ceramic boron offers an extraordinary combination of ultra-low mass and extreme rigidity—ideal properties for cantilever material. The exceptional stiffness ensures efficient energy transfer from stylus to generator without flexing or resonance, whilst low mass allows rapid response to the most delicate groove modulations. This translates to improved transient accuracy, better microdynamics, and more lifelike musical presentation.

Hand-Wound Coil Assembly

Each Kandid features precision hand-wound coils secured in a high-precision rigid assembly, ensuring optimal electromagnetic coupling and minimal mechanical losses. The extra winding increases output voltage compared to ultra-low-output designs, providing improved signal-to-noise ratio whilst maintaining moving coil purity. Gold contacts on flying leads ensure superb signal transmission without degradation.

Triple-Point Mounting System

Kandid's precision-engineered mounting system uses three contact points for secure, vibration-free installation in your tonearm. This rigid mounting ensures optimal mechanical coupling between cartridge and arm, allowing efficient energy transfer whilst maintaining perfect alignment. The system accommodates easy installation whilst guaranteeing the geometric precision required for reference-grade performance.

Precision-Machined Aluminium Body

The 7075 aerospace-grade aluminium body is precision-machined to exacting tolerances, providing a rigid, resonance-free platform for the generator assembly. This high-strength alloy offers excellent damping characteristics whilst maintaining minimal mass. The precise manufacturing ensures consistent performance and long-term reliability.

Technical Specifications

Cartridge Type

• Moving coil (MC)
• Nude generator design (no housing)
• High-performance analogue pickup

Stylus & Cantilever

• Nude diamond Line Contact stylus profile
• Ceramic boron cantilever
• Ultra-low mass, high-rigidity construction
• Extended frequency response

Generator Design

• Hand-wound precision coils
• Enhanced winding for increased output
• High-precision rigid coil assembly
• Symmetrical flux line geometry

Tracking Geometry

• 20-degree mechanical body and cantilever angle
• Optimised for symmetrical flux lines under tracking force
• Equal mechanical forces in all directions
• Reduced distortion and deformation

Body Construction

• Precision-machined 7075 aluminium
• Nude design eliminates housing resonance
• Plastic front yoke screw (non-magnetic)
• Optimised mass distribution

Mounting System

• Triple-point mounting for secure installation
• Compatible with standard tonearm headshells
• Precision alignment capability
• Gold contact flying leads for signal transmission

Output & Loading

• Moving coil output voltage (enhanced winding)
• Requires MC phono stage or step-up transformer
• Recommended for Linn Urika, Urika II, or Uphorik
• Optimised for use with Linn LP12 and Ekos tonearms

Performance Characteristics

• Low mass for superior tracking
• High rigidity for accurate transient response
• Minimal resonance and mechanical interference
• Extended frequency response and detail retrieval

Why Buy from Martins Hi-Fi

As an authorised Linn specialist dealer, we provide expert Kandid installation and precision alignment to extract maximum performance from this exceptional cartridge. Our experienced engineers understand the critical setup procedures required for optimal tracking geometry and loading. Visit our Norwich demonstration facilities to experience Kandid's remarkable transparency paired with LP12 and Ekos SE. We offer comprehensive cartridge consultation, helping you choose the perfect pickup for your system and musical preferences. Benefit from professional installation, expert phono stage matching advice, lifetime support, and genuine Linn products with full UK warranty.

Call: 01603 627010 | Email: info@martinshifi.co.uk

FAQ Section

Q: What does "nude generator design" mean and why does it matter? Nude generator design means the cartridge generator is exposed without a traditional housing enclosure. Removing this housing eliminates a significant source of unwanted resonance that would otherwise colour the sound. The result is purer, cleaner audio with improved transparency and natural tonal balance—you're hearing your records without mechanical interference.

Q: Does Kandid require a special phono stage? Yes, as a moving coil cartridge, Kandid requires an MC-compatible phono stage such as Linn's Urika, Urika II, or Uphorik. Standard moving magnet phono inputs lack sufficient gain for MC cartridges. We'll ensure your phono stage is properly configured for Kandid's output characteristics and recommend the optimal pairing for your system.

Q: What's the advantage of the Line Contact stylus profile? Line Contact styli make significantly more contact with the groove walls compared to elliptical or conical profiles, retrieving more musical information whilst reducing record wear. This extended contact area provides superior high-frequency response, improved detail resolution, and more accurate tracking of complex groove modulations—particularly beneficial for well-recorded classical and jazz material.

Q: Why use a plastic screw instead of metal? The plastic front yoke screw serves two purposes: it reduces overall cartridge mass, allowing better tonearm counterweight positioning for improved tracking response, and it eliminates magnetic interference with the delicate generator coils. Metal screws can create unwanted magnetic fields that distort the cartridge's electromagnetic operation—plastic avoids this entirely.

Q: How does ceramic boron compare to aluminium cantilevers? Ceramic boron offers significantly higher rigidity with lower mass than aluminium—an ideal combination for cantilever material. This exceptional stiffness ensures efficient energy transfer without flexing, whilst ultra-low mass allows rapid response to delicate groove modulations. The result is superior transient accuracy, better microdynamics, and more lifelike reproduction compared to aluminium cantilevers.

Q: Is professional installation required for Kandid? Absolutely. Kandid's nude design and precision engineering require expert installation and alignment to achieve reference-grade performance. Proper setup involves critical procedures including tracking force adjustment, azimuth alignment, VTA optimisation, and anti-skating calibration. Our experienced engineers ensure your Kandid is installed perfectly to extract its full musical potential.

Call-to-Action

Discover the transparency and detail that nude generator design delivers. Book a demonstration at our Norwich facility to experience Kandid's exceptional clarity in a reference LP12 system, or consult with our cartridge specialists about upgrading your turntable. Professional installation and precise alignment ensure you hear every nuance your vinyl collection has to offer.

Call: 01603 627010 | Email: info@martinshifi.co.uk