Vintage

Based on Leak’s first silicon transistor ‘Plus’ version of the classic Stereo 30 amplifier [HFN Sep ’20], and the Delta 30 refresh, Wharfedale’s Linton integrated was rated at the same 15W/8ohm. As we saw in the Stereo 30 Plus, this promise was exceeded in the Linton to the tune of 2x19W/8ohm and 2x24W/4ohm with a little extra – 24W and 34W – into 8 and 4ohm under dynamic conditions. The Linton was slightly less capable into low impedance loads, however, delivering 24W/2ohm and 15W/1ohm [see Graph 1] rather than the 43W and 31W, respectively, of the Stereo 30 Plus. The overall gain (Low, +29.8dB and High, 42.4dB) is unchanged just as the A-wtd S/N ratio remains wide (for the day) at 87.9dB (re. 0dBW).

Distortion is lower than we saw in the Leak Stereo 30 Plus but still highest at very low frequencies where the response also rolls away to –2.6dB/20Hz and –30dB/7Hz, amounting to 0.12%/20Hz at 1W/8ohm all the way up to 0.95% at 10W/20Hz [Graph 2]. The lowest distortion is just 0.006% at 1W, 0.011% at 5W and 0.035% at 10W (all at ~100Hz/8ohm). Leak’s subsonic filter never made it to the Linton but the high-cut filter remains, operating at 6kHz (–3dB), after a +1.1dB boost at 3.3kHz, and falling away to –25dB/20kHz. The default response – with tone controls at 12 o’clock – is flat to within ±1dB from 22Hz-18kHz and ±3dB from19Hz-25kHz. The moderate ~0.5ohm output impedance may also bring further slight changes to the amp/speaker system response, depending on the latter’s impedance trend. Stereo separation was slightly poorer than we saw in the Stereo 30 Plus, but is still adequate for the tape, FM tuner and phono sources of the day at 40dB/1kHz and 30dB/20kHz. PM