New LP12, I like some things and some I don't.

Have you tried it without the bottom cover off? Many people find the sound to be more satisfying with the bottom open.

I'll be getting to that today.

Sorry to say, but I have never been a fan of the cirkus bearing. To me, it always made it sound more "digital" and lost the magic of the LP12. Removing the trampoline is a step in the right direction in my opinion.

I would also check to see if the top plate "rattles" in either corner, near the switch and near the motor. I have experienced that and it makes it sound very "shouty", especially in the upper midrange. If you rap on it with your finger you can see how solid the fitting is.

I don't know if this will solve your "problem", but I got good results from using Mapleshade's rubber/cork/rubber footers under their 2-inch maple with 3 triple-point brass cones under my Lingo 1(those triple-points are a pain to set up). I no longer desire a Lingo 2. I also believe the current Linn mat is much better than the old(circa 1992) mat. If you were using an Archiv, I would recommend their Linto step-up(soon to try reference points under, with the maple and r/c/r footers). I use a Mana Reference Table with the bottom plate removed from the Linn, but I have heard that a wall shelf is almost optimal. I have read that some people prefer pre-cirkus. Probably putting the r/c/r footers and Mapleshade's 2-inch maple under the Linn would eliminate the midrange problem, and I did that to good effect on an Ariston RD110, but it might diminish some of the qualities that you bought the Linn for.

Hello, you also may want to check to make sure things aren't overtightened, especially the strap that mounts the power supply board. LP12s, like any other 'table, sound like bad digital when overtightened. BTW, overtightening causes the top plate to rattle and that is why Linn added the corner bolt to the top plate.

You may want to have the Ekos looked at as well. The early examples are notorious for having some bearing issues that can definitely affect the sound. Have a dealer give it a once over,