April 2003 Reviewed by Anthony Di Marco	Linn Sizmik 12.45 Bass Reinforcement Speaker

Description Model: Linn Sizmik 12.45 Bass Reinforcement Speaker Price: $2995 USD Dimensions: 17.75"H x 16.5"W x 17.5"D Weight: 60.8 pounds Warranty: Two years parts and labor Features 12" long-excursion paper-cone woofer Class-V 500W modular power amplifier	Features (cont'd) High-density switch-mode power supply MDF cabinet Digitally controlled signal processing Eight user-configurable control parameters Variable crossover and selectable phase Variable automatic standby/on Line- and speaker-level inputs Line-level outputs In-wall version available (Sizmik 12.45 Kustom) Available in black ash, cherry, and maple finishes

Active subwoofers have become an indispensable part of building a complete home-theater system. They allow smaller speakers to sound larger while alleviating the stress difficult bass can inflict on a receiver’s power supply. Although a subwoofer may appear to be a simple box with a large driver, competent designs have added substance under their skin. Cutting-edge driver designs, concrete-like construction, and ingenious amplifier configurations are what differentiate the wannabes from true wonders. So while a subwoofer may look like a simple box, building one that produces tight, natural bass is anything but simple.

Linn Products Limited of Scotland doesn’t even call their Sizmik series "subwoofers." They prefer to distinguish themselves with the name "Bass Reinforcement Speaker." However, setting oneself apart from a sea of similar products takes more than a name; it takes a product that delivers class-leading performance, and after living with the $2995 Sizmik 12.45 I can tell you that its performance speaks beyond any name.

The unassuming box

Heavy, dense, and impeccably finished, the Sizmik 12.45 Bass Reinforcement Speaker will not bowl you over with an overstated appearance. This is a modest-looking subwoofer that exudes class through fine workmanship and seamlessly applied furniture-grade veneer. The only organic element that serves to contrast the Linn’s boxy stance is a curvaceous, concave steel grille. The Sizmik’s appearance is so crisp and angular that parents of young children should take note of its sharp, pointed corners and edges.

The Sizmik uses a high-efficiency, low-heat, "Class V" digital amplifier to drive its 12" paper driver, which is doped with a resin for increased stiffness. An offshoot of Linn’s Klimax amplifier design, the Sizmik’s internal amplifier is claimed to deliver 500W of continuous power with 1000W peaks. Its pulse-width-modulated design works similar to other PWM amplifiers by tracking the incoming audio waveform and supplying current as needed. By keeping track of the audio waveform’s moment-by-moment demands, this "smart" amplifier isn’t required to store vast amounts of energy in a large power supply. It simply requests it from your wall outlet as needed.

The low-heat amplifier also contributes to the clean lines of the Sizmik 12.45 by forgoing the bulky heatsink plate found on the majority of subwoofers. Instead, a plastic assembly is inset into the lower portion of the Sizmik’s enclosure. Integrated into this fixture is a standard IEC power receptacle, single-ended connections for inputs and outputs, speaker-level connections, and vents for the amplifier’s cooling fan. At first glance you may wonder where all the knobs and switches went: An LED readout appears beside three tiny "Up," "Down," and "Feature" buttons.

By alternately pressing these black buttons the user is able to scroll through and adjust any one of eight parameters via the green-colored readout. Settings for high- and low-pass frequency, course and fine gain (volume), bass equalization, and phase are all user selectable. I found this aspect of the design quite ingenious but very frustrating at the same time. Although the interface does allow for a wide range of adjustments, changes are not easy to make when the Sizmik is positioned next to a wall. Unlike traditional knobs or switches, there is no way to make adjustments by touch. Fine-tuning the parameters required me to tilt the 62-pound enclosure forward while reading the digital readout upside down -- or twist the enclosure around and plant my chin against the floor. The small, closely spaced, black buttons do not help matters. Pressing them requires precise aiming and a bit of squinting since their color effectively blends in with the surrounding black plastic assembly. White buttons, mounting the readout on the front, or supplying some sort of remote would have made setup easier. It might even make sense to mount the controls upside-down.

I spent some time playing with the internal high-pass frequency control. This setting allows users to restrict the Sizmik 12.45’s low-frequency extension. The factory preset is 2Hz, while 44Hz is the highest frequency available. By setting the frequency closer to 2Hz the amplifier will deliver more power to lower frequencies but have restricted output. Conversely, a setting closer to 44Hz will increase output because the amplifier is not trying to reproduce ultra-low frequencies.

Users should be aware that Linn’s claimed 9Hz to 220Hz frequency response is based on a "theoretical" frequency response for the Sizmik’s amplifier and driver. According to Linn, 20Hz (-3dB) response is attainable through proper room placement. Why Linn doesn’t just specify a 20Hz response is a mystery. Early in my evaluation I adjusted the setting to 16Hz because I figured it would suit the majority of media I listened to. I also figured that 16Hz was the best compromise between overall output and extension. Not surprisingly, I later discovered that the extra extension did make a difference with certain sources. I also found that increasing the bass equalization to +3dB (from +1) yielded a smoother response in my room while offering added punch below 30Hz.

The Linn ended up sitting between a pair of Canton’s Ergo 900 DCs. I set the Linn’s internal low-pass frequency to "No Filtering" and used my B&K AVR 305’s bass management. Crossover frequency on the B&K was set at 50Hz.

The bodacious box

According to Linn, the Sizmik 12.45 is designed to be a "pitch-perfect bass-reinforcement speaker." In other words, the bass it produces should sound natural and free of apparent distortion. Linn doesn’t state whether the unit uses servo-feedback control, but they do admit to utilizing digital processing. I know there are audiophiles who cringe at the thought of anything but a straight wire handling their audio, but for me the end justifies the means and in the Linn’s case the means proved to be more than justified.

To state it bluntly, this is one impressive sub. Chapter 16 of Toy Story 2, where Buzz and friends cross a busy highway, prompted the Sizmik to reveal more low-frequency energy in the scene than other subwoofers I’ve auditioned. When the truck screeches to a halt and swings around, the weight of the bouncing trailer shook my living room with solid bass. When the concrete sewer pipe falls off the trailer and rolls down the street, the rumble of the pipe against the ground didn’t fill the room with boom, it caused a wave of low frequencies to move through the floor and up through the couch. The bass was dry, tight, and very powerful.

Transient impact with the Linn Sizmik was also impressive. The gunshots and explosions in the underrated We Were Soldiers were reproduced with such ferocity and impact that my body reacted as if the enemy was right outside my door. The napalm strikes in chapter 15 were equally breathtaking as the devastation on-screen was punctuated by rolling low-frequency energy.

The quality of bass that the Sizmik 12.45 produced was always under control and never plump or warm. There were many instances when I gazed at the Linn in disbelief at what I was hearing. The helicopter chase that ensues after Mulder and Scully exit the Bee Dome (chapter 11, The X-Files: Fight the Future) had a powerful presence. The bass from the Sizmik effectively caused the boundaries of my living room to open up. Coupled with my Canton speakers’ airy high frequencies, the cornfield came alive around me as the FBI agents struggled to lose their pursuer.

The Linn conveyed subtleties that made soundtracks sound more credible. Little things like the "thunk" of Scully and Mulder’s car door, or the weight of their footsteps within the Bee Dome had more presence. This quality made scary scenes more frightening. The ambient cues that welcomed Cole Sear’s apparitions in The Sixth Sense felt as if they were rising up from my home’s sub-floor. Good bass should affect the basic fabric of a person’s constitution without charging the room with fuzzy harmonics. The Sizmik never sounded fuzzy.

The waves of low frequencies on Peter Gabriel’s "Rhythm of the Heat" from the CD Security [Universal 493280] require well-damped bass to resolve the sound properly. And resolve the Linn does. The collection of drums on this track was punchy and detailed, while the harmonics that followed every drum hit passed through my living room clearly.

I listened to a lot of multichannel DVD-A and DTS audio recordings with the Linn. The beautifully rendered DTS version of Sting’s Brand New Day [DTS 91061] has spoiled me to the point where the two-channel CD sounds as though it came from a tenth-generation cassette tape. My favorite track, "The End of the Game," isn’t even available on the CD. The Linn again impressed me and made the ambient details of this song extend beyond my room’s boundaries. Drum hits and vocals sounded natural and displayed good weight with the Linn at the helm.

The drums on Disney’s Fantasia 2000 DVD were also powerful. The drum hits during the concluding crescendo in chapter 16, "The Firebird Suite," genuinely surprised me with their power and resolution.

The Linn’s claimed low-frequency extension prompted me to pull out some organ music. Subs I’ve auditioned in the past have done an adequate job reproducing the organ that comes in at the ten-minute mark on Telarc’s recording of Saint-Saens: Symphony No. 3 [Telarc 80274], and surprisingly, the Linn didn’t seem that much better than the others. It did an OK job, but the weight I had expected to hear wasn’t there. However, a difference was immediately apparent when I lowered the high-pass frequency control from 16Hz to 2Hz. While I didn’t hear anything more, I did feel low-frequency energy moving across my skin and throughout the room. It was very impressive.

Box times two

I have had the good fortune of listening to quite a few excellent subwoofers over the last couple of years. Most recently, Canton’s $1500 Ergo AS 2 SC paid a visit. After living with this large sub for a few months I found it to be a powerful and beautifully finished subwoofer that does not color or distort the bass. While it was musically satisfying, I didn’t feel it reached deep enough for some material.

The Canton and Linn share the same basic bass quality: dry, musical, natural, and with no boom in sight. What the Linn brings to the table at twice the Canton’s price is more low-frequency extension in a smaller, more manageable size. The Canton is able to run side by side with the Linn for the majority of what I played, but is unable to plumb the depths as the Linn can. The AS 2 SC cannot reproduce the lowest organ frequencies from Saint-Saens: Symphony No. 3, or the sound effects of the train in chapter 1 of Unbreakable with the same weight or room-filling energy as the Linn.

Aesthetically, the Canton has a much higher wife-acceptance factor. My wife may not have liked the Canton’s size, but she did appreciate its rich and warm furniture-grade cherry finish. By comparison, the Linn, despite being beautifully constructed, looks a little too austere for our taste. I also preferred the rounded wood corners of the Canton. The Linn’s dangerously pointed exterior edges had us concerned for the safety of our three-year-old energizer bunny. I did use some readily available rubber corner protectors, but they made the Linn’s already stark exterior stick out even more.

Out of the box

The Linn Sizmik 12.45 Bass Reinforcement Speaker accomplishes a lot. While it does have its share of stiff competition in today’s densely populated subwoofer market, it competes quite well. There were a few quibbles -- awkward controls and sharp exterior edges -- but overall these are minor reservations. The bass it produces is natural, powerful, and extremely extended. Rest assured, the Linn Sizmik 12.45 Bass Reinforcement Speaker is a subwoofer that will shake your home theater and knock your socks off.

Manufacturer contact information:

Linn Products Limited
Floors Road
Waterfoot
Glasgow
G76 0EP
Scotland, UK
Phone: +44 (0) 141 307 7777 or 0500 888909
Fax: +44 (0) 141 644 4262

Website: www.linn.co.uk

US distributor:
Linn Products Inc.
8787 Perimeter Park Boulevard
Jacksonville, FL 32216
Phone: (904) 645-5242 or (888) 671-LINN
Fax: (904) 645-7275

Website: www.linninc.com

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