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Dual 1219 or Pioneer PL-50?

C

Cheetahman

New Member
OK, I'm ready to take the plunge back into the wonderful world of vinyl and really dig vintage TTs. Both of these tables are for sale by different sellers on my local Craigslist. From what I understand, both decks are highly regarded by audiophiles. Can anyone offer me some insight into the pros and cons of idler and belt drive tables? In your opinion, which deck sounds better and would be less likely to give me problems in the future?
 
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Never had either deck but i have had a few pioneers and many duals. The dual will be more difficult to get right but the 1219 is one of the best sounding auto decks i have ever heard. I have a 1229 or i would be hunting a 1219. The pioneers i had werent as high end ast the 50 but they sounded good with the right cart and were trouble free. I had a pl12d and a pl115. I preferred the 115 because of the auto return. Really a very nice deck for not much money. I bet the 50 is way better.
 
They are two different beasts for sure. If the 1219 has a nice cartridge, especially something like a Shure v15 type iii, it is probably one of the best sounding Dual TTs. I've had one with that cartridge for years and I love the combination.

Duals can be tricky to repair, as they are more complex than a belt drive. Once they are set up right however, they tend to stay that way for a long time. People tend to either love or hate idler drive turntables. I belong to the former camp.

Best of luck, and have fun whichever way you decide to go.

Cheers
 
The turntable itself doesn't make too much of a difference if they're both in good shape. If the Dual is working and you fancy the idea of starting records with the push of a switch or playing records on a changer, that's the way to go. If you just want something dead reliable or easy to fix, the Pioneer is the way to go.

I personally own a Dual 1229 (the 1219's younger brother), but have had a few of the PL12/PL15 Pioneers, and certainly wouldn't mind taking a PL50 for a spin.
 
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