Dual 1218/1219/1228/1229 Appreciation thread
- Thread starter mackat
- Start date
FloridaSam
I like tacos
Here's a pic of my 1219 spinning right now. I also have a 1019 that I am very fond of too, I use them both regularly. Old Duals are like potato chips, I dare you to have just one! I'm running an old (80's vintage) Stanton 890AL on it and it sounds great, could probably go through an earthquake without skipping or mistracking, great cart.
chicks
Lunatic Member
Four Duals here. One currently languishing on BarterTown. Here are two of them, a perfectly working 1019 and a 1219 undergoing rehab:
leicamaster
Active Member
The famed Dual hum. It is not that horrible though.
illinoisteve
Super Member
I properly serviced Dual isn't going to cause a hum. There are some carts notorious for hum problems. And ground-loop hum problems are not necessarily the cause of a turntable that is in good working order.
Kyluckyman
Well-Known Member
Please be sure to post pictures and your thoughts on the table once you have run it thorough its paces! I think you're going to like it-a lot!
Kyluckyman
Well-Known Member
I just got a M91E and put a $12.00 EPAY needle on it. It sounds okay but skips on a few tracks at 1.5 grams and some songs don't sound right. Example the opening track on ELO's Eldorado where the "movie voice" talks....that doesnt come out as well with the M91 but is much more pronounced with the other Shure. Swapped and readjusted the weight on the tonearm w/the M97xe and the M97xe wins. No skipping and better audio clarity! I think it may be the cheeeeep stylus. Before I give up on the M91, I will try a better stylus. But can I just swap stylus between these two Shures? Anyone know offhand? Oh yeah, I set the weight on the needle with a digital force gage...
Kyluckyman
Well-Known Member
I did some tests on the M91E last night. It has something wrong with it. Output into the left channel is not all there. I have yet to determine if its the cart or possibly the Dual headshell its in.Anybody try replacing those little wires in the headshell? It looks like a delicate soldering job with a steady hand.
Kyluckyman
Well-Known Member
I put another cart I had that was new and known good on the questionable headshell. Output through the left channel was missing.
DaveyW
Well-Known Member
Those have caused problems here too :yes:
Does yours have sprung metal contacts? - I believe later ones were spring & plungers.
If so, not only do both the arm and shell contacts need to be clean, there needs to be enough "springiness" in the headshell contacts.
I've had to prize them out a little to make appropriate contact against the arm board.
Might be worth checking this.
Cheers,
Dave
Kyluckyman
Well-Known Member
Yeah, I wasn't thinking before I took the cart off the headshell. I should have switched the wires going into the cart (reverse both sides-move the left side to the right and vise versa). If the problem moved channels, it would be the wires. If the output on the left channel remained quieter, then it would be the contacts. I think that makes sense....anyway on a new production headshell with a new Shure M97xe, the stereo sounds great and is evenly balanced. I just hate installing those little screws on these headshells.
With the cartridge fitted, check the resistance of each channel
before the muting switch. For the M91, you should see about
630ohms. Else you need to check and clean all contacts.
Cleaning the contacts fixed the issues I had with hum and low
volume on one channel.
To do it right, you need to clean all the contacts in the
path -
* Muting switch
* Cartridge pins
* The little connectors on the headshell wires
* The pins on the headshell
* The tracks on the tiny PCB on the tonearm.
before the muting switch. For the M91, you should see about
630ohms. Else you need to check and clean all contacts.
Cleaning the contacts fixed the issues I had with hum and low
volume on one channel.
To do it right, you need to clean all the contacts in the
path -
* Muting switch
* Cartridge pins
* The little connectors on the headshell wires
* The pins on the headshell
* The tracks on the tiny PCB on the tonearm.
perryinva
IS it vintage????
I have 2 1219s, and a few heads, both rod & spring, and pressure contacts. I usde a bit of Deoxit after I cleaned off all the oxide. I think they are all silver plated, as the oxide is pretty black. Had one new in '73 that I sold in college when money got tight, always had a hum, but neither of these do. Only paid $10 for one, with V15-II and $50 for the other with 2 Empire 888s, one with the nice flip down front base. Both needed a little work but well worth it. Classic sound, but not that crazy about the Empires. Love the look, operation and feel of them. Need to try NoT's advice of polishing the inner rims.
grooveman
Super Member
As a new owner of a 1229, I thought I'd revive this thread. I've had mine a little over a week, purchased off of Ebay. The turntable arrived with the rear corners on the base seperated, due to possible shifting in the shipping carton. I re-glued and reinforced the corners, adding some additional bracing for better overall support.
I cleaned and re-lubricated the moving parts, in addition to replacing the pimpel, rubber collar and glued the anti skate cam which was split. It now is operating perfectly in both automatic and manual modes. But it still won't shut off when the tonearm returns to it's rest position. I have to move the speed selector switch a half inch to the right to disengage the idler, which then shuts off the motor.
I've checked and cleaned the linkages between the idler arm and the contacts inside the black electrical box, but it still won't shut off on it's own. I might try replacing the cap that's inside the box, to see if that's the culprit.
Other than the auto shut off problem. The 1229 is playing and sounding very nice, with a new Shure M97xe installed. I might upgrade to a Jico SAS stylus replacement in the future.....but for now the stock stylus is doing a decent job.
I cleaned and re-lubricated the moving parts, in addition to replacing the pimpel, rubber collar and glued the anti skate cam which was split. It now is operating perfectly in both automatic and manual modes. But it still won't shut off when the tonearm returns to it's rest position. I have to move the speed selector switch a half inch to the right to disengage the idler, which then shuts off the motor.
I've checked and cleaned the linkages between the idler arm and the contacts inside the black electrical box, but it still won't shut off on it's own. I might try replacing the cap that's inside the box, to see if that's the culprit.
Other than the auto shut off problem. The 1229 is playing and sounding very nice, with a new Shure M97xe installed. I might upgrade to a Jico SAS stylus replacement in the future.....but for now the stock stylus is doing a decent job.
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