Dear @daveyf : I owned Linn cartridges , the last one was the Akiv.
As Lyra Linn cartridges are manufactured by Scan-Tech not by Lyra.
I never had the opportunity to listen the Kandid but something that worried me about the Linn characteristics design is that ceramic boron cantilever due that ceramic is way resonant in that place.
Lyra Clavis D'Capo came with a ceralloy cantilever, I owned and when I change that cantilever for a boron one the differences for the better was nigth and day.
Lyra knows that and I don't think that could recomend to any one a ceramic/boron cantilever type.
The Akiva is very good performer and I can assume that the Kandid too.
@normantaylor , as the quality level performance increase in a cartridge the improvements in new cartridge designs goes in lower and lower increments but the prices goes higher and higher because when the quality levels is so high any tiny increment in the quality performance levels is an achievement not easy to touch. Needs a lot of research and tests/voicing evaluations and that means time, knowledge and skills to do it to " stay there " and this means too a lot more money for a tiny quality increment..
But all those does not matters if you don't have the room/system quality level performance that can honor that cartridge so high qualityperformance. Of course that that room/system needs a really high resolution levels with extremely low overall distortions and you need very experienced ears not only in audio but in live MUSIC and how it sounds at near field seated position.
Now, you started this thread and other two threads in other forums where in the other forums you were asking for amp or speaker and your budget limit is 12K and now are you looking for a cartridge on the $$$$$ price that can goes over that small budget of what you are looking for? or maybe you already left the speaker or amp for other future times. Who knows.
Regards and enjoy the MUSIC NOT DISTORTIONS,
R.
