Russ Andrews is a long-time fan of the LP12 and was impressed by the engineering of the Stack Audio parts and is now able to bring them to the many thousands of LP12 users across the country.

Stack Audio is a new company that produces a replacement sub-chassis, armboard, top plate and baseboard for the LP12. What especially caught Russ's eye was Stack Audio's approach to improving the Linn record player's performance mirrored is his own in so much the components they produce have very high rigidity with the aim of reducing vibrations and colourations.

Moreover, the company has developed a new material they call 'Solid Surface', which is an acrylic polymer, aluminium and 'minerals' composite that is inert and stable. Furthermore, Solid Surface produces less resonance than metal or wood. This material is used for the Base Boards, the Sub Chassis and Arm Board. Fit and finish are apparently second to none. An additional nice touch is that the arm boards are polished to a high gloss piano black finish.

Stack Audio's replacement parts are designed to be a straight swap for the existing Linn parts. Although they are made with entirely different materials, care has been taken to ensure they retain the same mass and balance of the components they are replacing.

The Base Board is the most straightforward component to fit at home and can be completed without any special tools. Customers can choose from the SERENE (£140) or the higher performance ULTIMATE (£215). As with all the components, the Base Boards have been designed to offer a high level of rigidity and vibration dissipation. The SERENE employs two levels of aluminium bonded with their vibration-dissipation compound; the ULTIMATE uses the same 'Solid Surface' material used in the Arm Board and Sub-Chassis.

Stack's LP12 Top Plate is a rigid, stiff plate that dissipates vibration to reveal low-level musical detail and information. Again, there are two versions: the SERENE Top Plate (£150) which consists of two machined 1.5mm hardened stainless steel sheets, bonded by a specially developed vibration-dissipating adhesive. It is twice as thick as the standard top plate but still sits flush with the plinth.  Higher performance can be achieved with the ULTIMATE FF Top Plate (£450), made from aerospace aluminium and precision milled to give a perfectly flat surface. It is then bonded using the anti-vibration compound to a second plate.

The SERENE Sub Chassis (£240) overcomes the problems of the original LP12 sub-chassis, which was made from thin steel and can warp over time, leading to alignment issues. Stack's sub-chassis is machined to a very high tolerance and has a honeycomb structure of varying pocket depths to tune and balance the Sub-Chassis to work in concert with the LP12 suspension.

 
SERENE Arm Boards (£75) can be used either with a Linn sub-chassis or the SERENE Sub Chassis. The aim in the development of the Arm Board was to ensure a positive, rigid and tight connection to whichever sub-chassis it is connected and incorporates threaded metal inserts for a secure, long-lasting bond.

The SERENE Arm Board is available with cutouts for Linn and Linn Ittok arms, Rega and Rega 3-point arms and SME arms with threaded inserts incorporated for fixing the SME and Rega 3-point arms directly.