Dual 721 Cartridge

[BCPneumatics]

I finally dug my father's old 721 out of the garage, along with all the old LP's. I am trying to get this thing up and running, but it needs a new cartridge, and I'm not sure what one to get. I read in a thread here that Sumiko's are pretty good (Well, considering my budget), and I wanted to know if the Sumiko Oyster would be acceptable. I also heard good things about Grado's but I didn't see any that were 1/2" mounts.

Thank you,
Brian B.

[royphil345]

I've never tried an Oyster, but in all my years of reading these boards, I don't think I've read one good comment about them. If you want to stay in the $50.00 price-range, I'd recommend the Audio Technica AT95E http://www.lpgear.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=LG&Product_Code=ATC95E or the Grado Black or Green. http://www.lpgear.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=PROD&Store_Code=LG&Product_Code=GRADBLKSTD The Grados are available in P-mount, but the standard mount are most popular and available just about anywhere that sells Grado. Garage A' Records has the AT95E for even less, but they have less info listed and their web site is a little more confusing to navigate http://www.garage-a-records.com/index.php

I'm not sure what type of drive that table has. There were actually two Duals called the 721 believe it or not... The newer one was a direct drive which would require little maintenance. The older one was either belt or idler wheel drive. A new belt or very light sanding around the edge of the rubber idler wheel will probably be necessary for best speed stability. Clean the drive rim of the platter and motor pulley / shaft with alcohol.

[BCPneumatics]

I didn't have a whole lot of time to look around this morning, so my claim that seeing they were good was based on a single post...

I was taking a quick survey of needle doctor and hadn't seen any 1/2" Grado's (though I very easily could ha missed them), and yeah, I am looking to stay in the $50 range.

Thanks for the input... does anyone have any more comments on the Grado, or anything else to add? (Perhaps some preferences to either the green or the black?)

Thanks for the help thus far, and sorry if I sound overly anxious, but I honestly am. This is a very nice hobby that I seemed to have stumbled upon :)

Oh, and mine is the direct drive model.

[JohnMichael]

The Dual tonearms are very low in mass and work well with high compliance cartridges. Dual and Ortofon worked together and came up with the OM series. You might want to try an OM 10 which should be a good match for your table. Years ago when I owned a Dual it came with an OM cartridge. You can even remove the weight plate and have a cartridge that weighs 2 1/2 grams which if memory serves is what was recommended for the Duals'.

[royphil345]

The grados seem to hum in some systems. They have a nice, balanced sound. The Green is supposedly a Grado Black that tested especially well. Probably worth the extra money if you have it to spend... Many people like the Black just fine...

Because of the possible hum problems, I've been mostly recommending the AT95E in the low price-range. This model gained popularity in Europe for sounding especially good for the price. Due to the "buzz", a few places have recently started importing them. Sounds great for the price, no hum problems, might even track a little better than the Grado black / green.

The Ortofon OM 10 Super is also an excellent suggestion if you can stretch your budget a bit. When it's time for a stylus replacement, you could upgrade to an OM 20 stylus (Ortofon says the cartridge bodies are all the same in that line) and have a top-notch rig.

[BCPneumatics]

For an extra $20, I think I will go with the OW 10 if it is a better quality cartridge.
Is there anything else I should know before I order?

Thanks for the advice so far guys, it is a great help.

[royphil345]

I think you should be all set. Just be careful with the little wires...

Alignment protractor if you need one. Have to make sure it prints exactly the right size...


http://www.vinylengine.com/manuals_tonearm_protractors.shtml