"are high maintenance due to their suspension"

High maintenance?  My early-70s Thorens TD160 is a suspended-sub TT, it is older than a number of regular contributors to this board, and all that it's ever needed in all that time in terms of maintenance is an infrequent change of bearing-oil and three belts.  It still works absolutely fine. If it had an odometer like a car, then goodness knows how many miles would be on it, but it would be intersellar.

I should probably have said "higher maintenance," but given the age of the LP12, wanted to get my point across.

Here is a thread dealing with this issue on the Linn Forum. As with all these things, some take it to greater lengths than others:
http://forums.linn.co.uk/bb/showthread.php?tid=6067

Here is another view point: http://www.cymbiosis.com/lp12.html

Thanks for the clarification and the links; they make interesting reading.

No probem.

It does make me wonder why LP12's seem to need a service every 12 months (although that is a recommendation), but Gyrodecs have been around for 30 years and there's never been any recommendation by the manufacturer to have them replaced regularly.

I never felt my one did.

It also raises the question of just what a 'service' would entail every 12 months. I would look at it more like an inspection rather than service - check the platter moves freely, or do you need an oil change? Is the belt too stretched, or do you need a new one? Is the platter still level, or do the suspension springs need slight adjustment? Are the tonearm settings still accurate etc etc.

I don't think there is anything you couldn't do DIY on a LP12 or any other similar suspension deck (Thorens etc.), but then I suspect that the Linn recommendation had more to do with keeping dealers sweet and boosting their aftersales. Certainly I don't think that suspension decks are inherantly 'high maintainance' as aside from occasional adjustments of the springs to re-level (which is hardly rocket science) there is no more effort in maintaining them than a 'solid' design like a Rega in my view, although I recognise that some decks have far more 'tweek room'!