I found this today at a yard sale (it was $10). I normally don't buy turntables since I don't know anything about them, but this one was new-in-the-box and I went ahead and bought it. It is a "Dual" (Made in Germany) Mod. 1229 turntable with paperwork, etc. Does anyone know if this unit was of particularly high quality (any other info. would be helpful including when it was made, etc). Thanks.

It's a great turntable. I have one I've been using for years. Some people think Dual peaked with the 1219 but I have no complaints on my 1229.

There are higher quality turntables out there of this vintage but I think you will find few people who will complain about this Dual.

Great score, in the box and everything. I think you could make a real killing if you wanted to sell it.

That's a heck of a find for $10. The Dual 1229 is a high quality turntable made from 1972 to 1974. It's a step below most Thorens but not by very much. Dual is a very well known name in the audio field and the 1229 is an excellent first "serious" turntable. Many people end up buying a 1229 and finding it more than adequate as they sometimes find that the return on investment from purchasing anything higher up the food chain isn't as good as they thought it would be!

Finding one new in the box is quite a find but with that comes a few challenges. First, the player has been sitting all of it's life and therefore it will need a full lubrication service. This is detailed in the manual and you should use the correct oil specified. Do *not* use household "three in one" oil as the lubrication and viscosity properties are not correct!

Secondly, I'm not sure if they came from the factory with needles. If it does not have a needle let me know and I can tell you of some good sources. If it does come with a needle then be sure to properly set up the turntable *before* you play a record. Properly setting up the record player arm, needle and cartridge will ensure excellent sonic quality and long life of your records. A good guide to doing so can be found here: http://www.audiophilia.com/features/cartridge_setup.htm

I hope you enjoy your Dual 1229. Be sure to use it with a high quality phono preamp, amplifier and speaker setup so that it's able to show you exactly how good it is. I have one and I really think it's a fantastic player. I remember being very impressed with how long it took for the platter to slow to a stop when power was removed from the motor. Heavy platter and great bearings!

The 1229 was one of the top of the line in our stereo lineup back then. It looks NIB. With the anti-scate
weight it should be able to track 1/4 gram, and ruin an expensive CD4 stylus if some oaf bumps it.

Hope it hasn't gummed up. Also test the pickup tone arm wires and head shell to see they haven't corroded.
open.

Very nice find, it would take a baseball bat to wipe the smile off my face if it were me

Yes. you did very nicely. I would caution you to connect with a pro because the grease and rubber parts have proobably degraded. You could do more harm than good if you tri to play it first.

If you want to play records this will be a very fine set once you make it right, and it is quite probable you can do so. I not, you can certainly at least quadruple your investment from somebody here. No, not me,..

In a 40 year old Dual 1229, the scariest thing to do is run it without having it overhaulled FIRST.
One particular issue I've encountered often, is the auto-manual tonearm elevation system - the control is located at the base of the arm pivot assembly, and consists of a lever that raises/lowers the gimbal pivot assembly according to what mode is being used.
This assmbly is NOT available now, and the rotating ring is plastic - if it breaks due to FORCING the lever (due to hardened grease) you'll be up the creek without a paddle.

I've repaired them successfully, but I'd charge an arm & a leg to do it!
It requires MAJOR dissasembly of the whole tonearm pivot from the mechanism.

Anyone who attempts to force this lever is a fool to do so, because once they hear that "SNAP" sound of the ring breaking, they better dig deep into their wallet.

I completely agree with Repair Tech.

The weak point, if you want to call it that, of the 1219 and 1229 designs is the elevator for the arm. The part he's referring to that breaks (and if it does, it creates a horror story!) is called "the ring." This part incorporates two plastic pins that slide up and down in two diagonal tracks in the elevator mechanism. As the ring ages, the pins -- which are made of plastic -- get brittle. As the elevator ages, it gets sticky. Put these results together, and you have a recipe for disaster. (The disaster is that the pins break off, and the whole gimbal assembly pops up about 3/4".)

Unfortunately, as the elevator ages, an indeterminacy develops in elevator height, that often causes the arm to bind horizontally, damaging records.

The "fix" for this indeterminacy is complex, and should only be attempted by someone with superior mechanical skills. I've done this repair about 200 times, and it is always a pain in the fanny to do.

Fred
owner
Classic Audio Repair

Thanks for all of the good information. With something new-in-the-box like this, you almost hate to take it apart - I can't imagine that there are too many NOS ones of these still around. Sounds like it is a pretty good quality turntable, though.

Fred, I've seen the actual "ring" itself crack open at times.
The spiral slots broken..

Yes indeedy, it's a big messy job.

That's unusual, and scary!

Someone must've been flipping the single-multi lever back and forth like a windshield wiper.

I have a 1216 that I'll be restoring this coming week (time permitting) for resale. I get lots of receivers in that people want to sell me that are fully and straightforwardly restorable, but it seems like most of the turntables people want to sell me have bad motors or injured tonearms.

Fred
owner
Classic Audio Repair

Yes, the Dual with the cracked ring - the customer forced the lever - apparently the up/down motion of the arm shaft was inhibited by old grease and was binding.

Is that TT a belt or idler drive???

Idler.

Don't touch it. Throw it on the bay as it is, add NIB in the title....collect the wad of dough and go get another turntable. There is a spike in Dual and Elac turntables. I would take the cash and run before the fad is over. Once the thing is removed, cleaned and in use its no longer NIB....They are nice, but there is better and less complicated to get going tables.

It's not exactly NIB - They never shipped a Dual 1229 with the heavy counterweight IN PLACE on the arm. (to prevent damage to the tonearm gimbal bearings in transit)
Someone installed it.
I would know - I sold and owned them.
The counterweight was packed in the styrofoam.

I used to service these Dual turntables (the 12xx series), but for my sanity and mental health, I don't anymore.

The issues with disintegrated and brittle plastic, rubber and other "soft parts" are a continuing nightmare with these. I've seen these elevator rings completely disintegrate, and the rubber friction "pucks" that move the arm back and forth when the cycling lever assembly cycles completely disintegrate and fall off. Not to mention cartridge lead wires corrode in two, cartridge holder tabs breaking off with age, and such. Then there's the #*^%*#&$ variable-speed mechanisms, and idler wheels that frequently have flat-spots and noisy/bad bearings... then, the mis-aligned/bent mechanisms due to someone trying to force something stuck, to move anyway...

IME, it's just not worth what I'd have to charge to make it worth my while, in terms of what I know will probably generate several come-back visits before EVERYTHING is fixed. Even doing comprehensive repairs up-front, doesn't completely negate the chance of some part just disintegrating afterward...

IMHO, this looks like a 'museum piece'- untouched, and unmolested. I'd sell it as-is. I wouldn't touch a THING, other than remove (from the tonearm) and put that arm counterweight back into whatever "cubbyhole" in the packing material it was in before, as originally packed. It's great as a display piece, but not as a functional turntable anymore, IMHO...

I still gladly work on stuff like Miracords and Garrards- those have mostly METAL parts, and tend to be simpler mechanisms, not nearly as subject to the complex multiple failure modes of Dual units (and to a lesser degree, their "cousin" Perpetuum Ebner units). But, Duals? Never again, if I can help it...

Regards,
Gordon.

I own a clean, spiffy, working 1219 that does all its automatic things, and the gimble shift does work. I took a deep breath and checked it when I got it, and threw a little lube in there just for peace of mind. I haven't touched it since. It is a great turntable, and I am happy I have it.

However, there is a LOT of wisdom in the advice to sell. They are worth more now than ever, and there are guys who dream of scoring one with the box like this. If you just want a really nice turntable, there are plenty you could get with the money you would make on this, and have enough left over to buy some nice lps to play! I bet you could get a clean old Thorens and have extra. A side bonus is that the hardest thing for most people is to ship these things without destroying them - you have the factory box and packing. That puts you ahead of the game.

Or pay to have it gone over. You will make your money back. Either way, you win big time. Congratulations!!

Why doesn't someone take a good example of this turntable and reproduce all the failure prone plastic parts maybe using metal or if that isn't feasible using good quality plastic?

Good question. The answer is probably economics- not enough demand to support the up-front capital it would take to do the set up to make the stuff. That sort of reverse-engineering sometimes isn't cheap.

Though, if someone were to make replacement plastic parts out of something like Delrin... it could be a very interesting thing. Might just make them reasonably restore-able again...

Regards,
Gordon.