Former Apple design chief Jony Ive, since leaving Apple in 2019 to establish LoveFrom, has now unveiled his first hardware project post-Apple, a special edition record player called the Sondek LP12-50.
Designed in collaboration with British audio brand Linn, the LP12-50 commemorates the 50th anniversary of the record player. Ive describes it as a “gentle and modest project” motivated by the team’s admiration for Linn.
While Ive’s designs at Apple, such as iPods and Airpods, revolutionized digital music, Linn’s LP12 holds its own as an analog, high-end turntable catering to audiophiles.
Launched in 1973, the LP12 offers modular components that can be upgraded over time, allowing users to enhance their listening experience by swapping out different parts.
The LP12-50 project began when Linn CEO Gilad Tiefenbrun received a surprising DM on LinkedIn from Ive’s assistant, expressing interest in a collaboration.
Initially dismissing it as spam, Tiefenbrun eventually retrieved the message and connected with Ive, who happened to be in search of a turntable himself and had a long-standing affinity for Linn.
After discussing Linn’s upcoming anniversary, Ive promptly expressed his desire to work on a special edition LP12.
Over the course of nearly a year, engineers from Linn and designers from LoveFrom meticulously assessed each component of the LP12.
While some elements couldn’t be altered due to their impact on audio quality, the teams focused on refining various details to enhance the product.
The LP12-50 retains the same silhouette as its predecessor but introduces smooth-curved corners on the deck, complementing the roundness of the tone arm and platter.
LoveFrom also reimagined two key touch points on the LP12. A new charcoal aluminum circle replaces the plastic rocker power button, while a custom hinge enables the dust cover to float effortlessly at any angle. Both components are machined in-house by Linn.
Perhaps most surprising is that LoveFrom completed the LP12-50 project pro bono, without any financial arrangement with Linn.
The limited edition LP12-50 is priced at a whopping $60,000 and is restricted to just 250 units.
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I guess Pro Vision looks cheap after all..haha
not to mention way more useful
Of course he did. 🙄
Confirming a lot of the Apple Tax we paid went to cover the cost of ego, not hardware.
actually apple tech during his reign cost way less sooo….
looks cool but whats next 80k sewing machine
Am I thinking what everyone else is thinking?
Forward thinking designer Johny Ives has lost his mind. This is what he chooses to dedicate his time towards? Super bizarre.
All I know is things immediately started to improve at Apple as soon as that clown left. I say good ridden.
In what sense?
To begin with, reports were the garbage failed butterfly keyboards were his idea that he wouldn’t let go of and as soon as he’s gone, the keyboard go back to the trusted scissor style keyboards.
He had no mind to lose…
I wouldn’t call that “charcoal circle” much of an improvement. It’s not obvious what its function is.
Ive’s strength is that he is creative and has a lot of ideas – both good and bad. His weakness is that he doesn’t know which ones are which. He needed Jobs to separate the wheat from the chaff – and that’s why there were great designs back then – and after Jobs we got stuff like the butterfly keyboard, removing useful ports from MacBooks, that stupid touch strip replacing function keys etc. We got some good stuff as well – like the Apple Watch and watch straps.But that’s the point – there was no Jobs saying no to the dumb stuff.