Detail, soundstage, timing, vocals, build(great draw,just like the ML39).

A little stingy in the bass depart.

First of all I don't want to do the comparison thing. The sound that comes out of that little black box is immediately noticable! Detail, air, depth, soundstage and fantastic with voices. If you are into jazz you might do yourself a favor and have a listen to this little puppy! Guitar, sax, violins, and piano all excel. I have a couple of "high end" cd players but this has immediately become my favorite. One of the things that draw you in to this music machine is it's ability fo convey "musical truth". You find yourself listening to the music rather than trying to critic everything in your system! After years of putting together different systems, I believe that the Linn has brought this to a screeching halt! I will have to pursue another avenue. (digital cameras) If you are looking for a cd player, do yourself a favor and listen to the Ikemi. My shelf now consists of a ML 39, Meridian 588, and a Krell 280. All these units are great and it is not that one sounds better than the other, just different. The Linn sounds different in a way that I prefer! Three cheers for the Scotts.

Similar Products Used:

ML39, Meridian 588, 508.24, Krell 280, Sonic Frontiers FSCD1.

Complete range in music, nice design

Ugly remote

While all other CD players I've listened to I could categorize as sounding good here and there, strong bass, nice mid-tones, good sound-stage, the Linn Ikemi was the first player to brough everything together for me. The sound is simply complete, and listening to it for the first time in the store (after auditioning a Rega Jupiter) I got goose bumps when Rachmaninov's 2cd spoke to me like it never had before. The instruments are distinct and the nuances are clear, which make listening to this player closer to live than I've ever heard before. I tried out Primare D20, Arcam 92, Classé and Marantz, alongside the Ikemi. I understand those who might say that the Ikemi is a little "clinical" or "boring" as one person put it. But I believe that this player is bringing the true sound to us, not bending it to make it more exciting. The music flows dynamically and classical music sings sweetly while rock really rocks! It's almost hard to believe that one can produce such great treble and bass at once -- I felt like the music "shined", and something that was once missing was there at last. The design of the player also won my heart over: the quiet and fast-moving disc holder and the discrete size. It also worked well with my Arcam AVR100 surround receiver. It has to be said, though, why make such a beautiful player and such an ugly remote? I wasn't looking for a player in this price range, but I had to stretch -- it just played music so beautiful it gave me goose bumps.

Similar Products Used:

Arcam, Primare, Classé, Marantz

Linn great if you like Mid range listening.

Miss the base, missed the mark.

The linn Ikeme touted by many including our local High end audio store left us very disappointed. But, thanks to all the reviews on the Naim CD5 with the Flatcap2, compairing it to the Linn Ikeme. We bought the Naim on the reviews only, never listened in person. The sound reproduction is the finest analog sound available in this price. The reproduction was full-sounding, clear and multi-layered. Didn''t miss any instruments. Vocals, Pops, Jazz all sounded like we were there in person. We enjoyed 5 hours of total listening bliss the day we received the units. We were very disappointed in the sound of the Linn Ikeme which was very detailed in the mid-range to treble, but completely lacking in base. It left us wanting for the other half of the music. We also listened to the Arcam CD23, down to the 92 and 72, and the Rega Planet. Not even close.

Similar Products Used:

Arcam CD23, Naim CD5 with Flatcap2.

Very smooth !

none .......

Actually , I already had SONY SCD-1 for SACD and CD . But Ikemi can gave a warm , analog , musicial feel than Sony ...... I can''t believe this small box can bring me so much happy for listern to CDs I think only CD12 , otherwise ....I''m no need to chnage another CD player ..... Linn is best ! my system : SACD : SONY SCD-1 CD : Linn Ikemi pre-amp : Linn Majik pow-amp : linn LK140 spk : Linn Keilidh cable : Linn K400 and analog interconnect

Similar Products Used:

Philips LHH-200R , philips CD960

Ikemi, beautifully smooth cd drawer from an aesthetic viewpoint. The clarity and reallness of the cd reproduction is incredible.

The Ikemi handset is a bit of a sledgehammer to crack a nut, with me only interested in about 10% of the buttons. I''ll use the older and simpler one ! Other weaknesses, none found yet

Having used an aktiv Linn system (Mimik//Magik-aktiv-treble//LK100-aktiv base//Keilidhs/kustone-stands//k400)for the last 5 years, I knew it intimately. I have recently upgraded to Linn Ikemi//Kairn-pro//LK140 aktiv-treble//LK100-aktiv-base Keilidh speakers unchanged, however I am upgrading to latest tweeters. Well what difference would one expect? When you listen to something for hours every day for 5 years, you know the system very well, and learn to love it. This new upgraded system has over exceeded my expectations, it sounds alive, crisper, deeper, sharper, moves more air, improved separation, an incredible reproduction of the whole soundstage. My advice is get one ! I listen to many MFSL/DCC/Mastersound 24kt original master recordings, and I am so impressed with the reproduction. I also have a number of HDCD titles, some of which I had expected to hear the difference so musically.

Similar Products Used:

My system is Linn Ikemi, Kairn pro, LK140 aktiv treble filters, LK100 aktiv base filters, K400 cable, Aktiv cherry Keilidhs on kustone stands

Verry musical

NONE /price

I heard this player today and was impressed enough to write a review. Verry musical ,not digital sounding meaning it exaggerated tone, timber with detail . It didnt sound like digital bit's forced steral through your stereo . Audition one you'll like it. I wish it was cheeper not because it isnt worth the money ,but this format war has me holding out . If Linn does SACD I'll buy Linn!!!!!
verry impressed!

Similar Products Used:

Wadia ,Sony sacd Meridian 508-24

Detail, soundstage, musical...

Price

I owned this baby a few weeks ago however auditioned it for a long time. After the long run, I chose this one. I firstly brought a Genki back and found the pre-amp part of it was a waste of money to me as I've already had an Arcam Alpha 10. And the $1700 for a plastic transporter seemed not a good deal. Then I listened to Ikemi which is much more expensive. I found listening to music seemed a quite different experience. I heard much more details than ever with an other cdpl. The bottom line is tight and nice and the tremble so sweet. The whole impression Ikemi gave me was definitely musical and with a taste of Linn, sweet and neat. Then after the little moment of paying pain, I finally enjoyed this cdpl on my sofa in home.

My system:
Arcam Alpha 10
Ikemi
Linn Keilidh
Musical Fidelity Nu-Vista inter-connector
Cable Talk 3.1 speaker cable
NBS Monitor IV/Stingher II power cable

Anyone have any suggestion on my Speaker Cable changing, please advise.

Similar Products Used:

Genki

Excellent proprietary transport mechanism
Sounds very large
Amazing 3D imaging

Doesn’t have a variable output as the GENKY does

The first approach that I had with this gear was very surprising. You don’t hear scratching noise when opening and loading CD into this player. This mechanism doesn’t give this awfull impression that it will screw up after loaded 10 CD’s ( and a lot of cdpl do ).

Hearing :
System used : Kolector preamp
2 Linn LK140 amps with activ crossover
driving the Linn Keilidh.

For first notes, first seconds of hearing, the warmer and the depht of the sound come throught your body right away, as if you pass the door of a concert hall when a orchestra is playing.
This player give a unfatiguing enjoyement, a so realistic sound that your you forget the "analytical" listening to go to emotion.
I think this feeling is due by a deep bass but never invasive, a large medium and a lot of precision with treble, but without sounding « digital ».

Everybody who can afford a 3,000$ cd player can go ahead with this one. Don’t need to have a all Linn system to sound great, I’ve heared IKEMI with a Chord amp driving the Martin Logan electrostatics loudspeakers very fine too.

The only weakness that I found is : Why Linn did’nt setup a variable output as they do with the GENKI ? I found very usefull a cdpl able to drive directly the power amp.

Recommended for anybody for who music is necessary for life balance.

Similar Products Used:

Mark Levinson n39
Naim CDS
C.A.L. 15

This is the best CD-player except from Linn Sondek CD12

none

Honestly I don't own this cdpl, I own the Genki but I will upgrade to it as fast as I can. I will tell you about my experiences with it. Me and my friends made a one-day comparison between the Genki, Karik/Numerik, Mimik, and the Ikemi. It was not done professionally but we are all very into hifi so I think this review gives you relevant thoughts.

We started with the Mimik. It has been discontinued for several years now and it is an okey cdpl. Sound was nice and nothing to complain about. Not so involving with not so many details but it did its job fairly good. Somewhat fatiguing abut on _one_ single CD, the music was more involving than the Genkis! (We tried approx 30 different CDs that day). The listening method was the famous tune-dem method.

The Karik/Numerik sounded easier and more involving (of course), than the Mimik. We all wanted to play louder and we had real fun. Fatiguing was not so apparent as with the Mimik.

Genki was like the Karik when it comes to fatiguing, easy to listen to but with more details. Some of us thought the music was less muusical due to the details but I like the more involving feeling the GEnki offered me. Most people agreed that Genki was abit better but that it was, as a whole, a matter of taste.

Ikemi. IKEMI!!! wow* This player made all other player look like runway sweepers. More details, more involving feeling and better swing in the music. You felt as if you were sitting in a 3D soap-bubble with music all around you.
This player is the one to go for if you can afford it. Compare it to your competing brand and thee shall see.... :)

Thanks... I give it 5/5 for value. 5/5 for the features, ease of use and its nice look. It also gives you a toslink output which is good if you have a MiniDisc... Neat bonus..

Similar Products Used:

Linn Genki, Karik/Numerik

No listening fatigue whatsoever

Non

I'm a Linnie - I admit it. I like basically everything about their products from sound to apperance.

But, every now and them a carefully audition competing products to se hos they stand up. So was the case with the Ikemi. I was bit hestitant to spending this sum of money on a new CD player given the relativly short expected lifetime of the media. But the sound totally won me over and good a trade-in price for the Karik it replaces made the chice easy.

The Ikemi is much better than the Genki and the Ikemi sound much more natural/neutral than other competing CD-players that I still find "etchy".

Similar Products Used:

Linn Karik 3