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Dual 1229 upgrades???

Thought I would throw this out to anyone who has upgraded a Dual 1229. My table is original (serviced twice) and has a Shure Type Vmr mounted. Has anyone swapped out a motor or rewired the arm? Are there any tweeks I can perform?
Some LP's sound good to excellent and some have poor frequency response (bass in particular). Swapping in a pair of Audioquest King Cobra interconnects opened up the sound a bit.
Do you think any upgrades are possible for this old war horse? I'm debating on a new table but hate to loose the automatic feature. When was the last time you got off the sofa to turn off your TV?
Regards, Bill
wec56
jaybo
4,478 posts
 
auto rules...the cartridge can be bettered.
normansizemore
601 posts
 
Wow. I have completely rebuilt my Dual, much to must to list and discuss here. Rebuilding the motor, relubing and changing the platter bearing are among a few musts. Also, I use a Grace 747 tone arm on mine. The results were so good, that I sold my Linn LP 12 which had every upgrade known to man. The Dual is last table I will own. I use it every day... amazingly reliable, dead silent in operation, and flawess, stunning, big open sound stage. Don't waste your money on another table. The idler driven Duals, Thorens, and Garrards, were just the best. Email with any questions.
wec56 OP
14 posts
 
Questions by the truck load including......
Never heard of Grace but I'm showing my neophyte status, so, who has this wonderful arm and most importantly does the auto function still, er, function?
I would be in no position to rebuild the motor or bearing so would need a suitable mechanic. Who do you recommend?
Also, what phono cartridge and phono pre-amp are you using to get those big open soundstages?
I'm interested!
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