Lehman Audio Linear Impressions

It’s been a while since I’ve been around but some of you long time users might remember me. I’m back with another review! This time I had the pleasure of receiving a demo unit of the Lehman Audio Linear.


The Linear is a solid state amp producing 400mw into 60 ohms and 200mw into 200 ohms. If you’re worried about power, it does have adjustable gain settings. It has a small form factor making it ideal for a desktop setup. For the purposes of this review I’ll be using the Sennheiser HD650s and HD800s.


In terms of general tone the amp is a bit of an enigma. It doesn’t sound entirely like I’d expect a solid state amp to. The bass isn’t the most assertive or deep I’ve heard, other than some peakiness around cymbal range in the treble and a bit of sibilance here and there it’s not to hot for my taste (a lot of solid state amps are for me and I tend to use tubes). True to its name nothing in particular stands out in the frequency spectrum. There’s no mid emphasis, nor are they recessed either. If you’re one of the people who hears a veil in the 650s, this amp will take care of it for you.


Where the amp does impress in particular is the soundstage depth and detail. While it doesn’t have the widest stage, it still has plenty of room for various layers of sound to emerge, and you do hear them as you’d expect with an amp of its price tag (600 euros). In addition, it’s got great slam on sections that are percussion heavy which is great for electronic music.


For this review, I’m pairing it with my MisterRogers dual AKM4495 DAC.


Let’s dive into some tunes

1. Heartbreaker - Crazy P
   
   
   1. HD650 - This tune has a lot of panning in the percussion and strings early on which the amp takes full advantage of in addition to a ton of layered melodies. The Lehman does a great job at emphasizing these aspects of the tune. The vocal sample shines through as well. That said, ideally there would be more emphasis on the bassline that drives the tune.
      
      
   2. HD800 - Everything is wonderfully spaced in the HD800s stage and the cymbals crash with a nice bite that comes without harshness. The amp sounds surprisingly smooth with the HD800s.
      
      
   3. Compared to Shortest Way 51 w/HD650 - The SW51 is definitely less detailed than the Lehman with less soundstage depth, less snap on the drums, and less bass definition in favor of more power. It’s got a bit of vocal boost on the sample and a smoother, more musical overall presentation that especially shines with the strings.
      
      
   4. Compared to SW51 w/ HD800 - The SW51 and HD800 balance each other out a lot here. The HD800s huge stage covers up a lot of the SW51s deficiency and the SW51 covers up the HD800s brightness. The result is something I prefer to the Lehman here largely because of the mix of musicality and detail.
      

1. Go Fast Baby - Mura Masa Remix
   
   
   1. HD650 - This song starts with a pitched up vocal intro followed by a synth with wild panning which shines on the Lehman and includes deep bass, synths that sound like speeding cars with tons of texture, and this is exactly the kind of tune that the Lehman shines with.
      
      
   2. HD800 - This amp really shines with the HD800s since it takes full advantage of their soundstage without any harshness. While they lack the punch of the HD650s they are plenty textured for the bass on this tune.
      
      
   3. SW51 w/HD650 - On the SW51 this tune isn’t as good largely because it can’t handle all of the various textures as well with its limited soundstage depth which causes certain elements to get lost.
      
      
   4. SW51 w/HD800 - Here the Lehman wins out just because of the previously mentioned texture difference.
      
2. With Me - DVSN
   
   
   1. HD650 - The main emphasis of this song is a crisp kick, rimshot and soaring vocals from DVSN. With the Lehman the rimshot sounds super snappy although I’d like more slam from the kick. Vocals are very smooth and the lead always pierces through the super lush harmonies.
      
      
   2. HD800 - With this tune the rimshot sounds a little bit hot to the point of being harsh and DVSNs voice fades back a bit although the soundstage of the HD800s gives it plenty of room to operate.
      
      
   3. Compared to SW51 w/HD6550 - Where this amp loses out again is detail. Harmonies are less clear/forward, and some details are glossed over but there’s more punch in the kick and DVSN’s voice sounds more forward and euphoric.
      
      
   4. SW51 w/ HD800 - Much more listenable presentation with more forward vocals and a less harsh rimshot.
      
3. 9 Crimes - Damien Rice
   
   
   1. HD650 - This song is largely piano and string based with Lisa Hanigan and Damien Rice trading vocal lines. This is one song where I wish the Lehman was more vocal forward because the pianos come across as overbearing at times.
      
      
   2. HD800 - With the HD800s the Lehman’s issues with smudging over vocals in the 650s mostly goes away. I think the issue may be the 650s not having enough stage depth for the Lehman to take advantage of. That said I do prefer the more euphoric presentation that the 650s have.
      
      
   3. Compared to SW51 w/HD650 - I feel like the SW51s tonal balance is stronger for this song. The piano takes center stage to a lesser extent allowing the vocals to shine.
      
      
   4. Compared to SW51 with HD800 - At times vocals can be a bit sibilant here which isnt an issue with the Lehman and the recording is warm enough that you don’t gain much from the extra euphoria.
      
4. Wait Until Tomorrow - Jimi Hendrix
   
   
   1. HD650 - For this song I’m listening to the balance between Hendrix’s guitar noodling in the right channel and his vocal in the left. The Lehman gets the balance done well and the drums also sound great.
      
      
   2. HD800 - Not a huge fan of the pairing with this tune. While the guitars do get more space in the stage I find the cymbals to be too harsh.
      
      
   3. Compared to SW51 w/HD650 - Here it’s pretty even. Both amps get the balance down well with the SW51 just being slightly more musical and the Lehman being more detailed.
      
      
   4. Compared to SW51 w/HD800 - A lot more listenable here.
      

Conclusion: It’s overall a great amp with at ton of detail and great soundstage depth that isn’t as harsh/edgy as a lot of solid state amps. With headphones like the HD650 I’d recommend it overall over something like the SW51, however, with the HD800 it still winds up being hot enough that I’d prefer tubes.

 

Great review. Any thoughts on how it compares to some of the other top SS amps under $2k (Headamp, SPL, Violectric, etc.)?

 

I wouldn't know tbh I've actually never been around that price range in genreal. Even when I had some heavy hitters i jumped right from the like <$500 thing to a DNA Stratus and Zana Deux. I've also tended towards tubes instead of solid state in general so my listening experience with SS amps is pretty limited. While I did enjoy having the amp to review I'm not sure it would be my daily driver just cuz in general I kinda fall into the camp that finds SS amps a bit sterile