Hifi Pig | 19 December 2018
Just under two years ago we brought you the news that German turntable brand, Dual, were relaunching in the UK. They launched their MTR range of budget turntables in 2017.
Dual Phono GmbH, creator of the original Dual line of turntables, was acquired by Alfred Fehrenbacher GmbH, which has continued to produce them using the same production equipment from the original Dual factory, in the Black Forest town of St. Georgen. These ‘made in Germany’, turntables are identified by their product name prefix, ‘CS’. They are also now back in the UK market.
There are currently ten models in the Dual CS range At the entry-level end of the range, you can get a complete package including tonearm and cartridge, with plug-and-play simplicity and fully automatic functioning. The CS 435-1, for example, offers automatic start and cueing as well as auto stop, returning the tonearm to its rest at the end of play. Move up to the middle of the range and you can opt for semi-automatic functioning, have the flexibility of your own choice of cartridge, and add a built-in phonostage. Here, the CS-505/4 is a classic budget audiophile turntable, now in its fourth generation. The tonearm features a Cardan bearing and precise torsion-spring tracking force control. The headshell is detachable, and the tracking and anti-skating are adjustable.
The top model is the CS-600 (pictured), which features a custom-developed four-point Cardan bearing tonearm. The triple-damped aluminium platter is weighted with two copper damping rings plus an additional internal cast mass damper. The platter rotates on a 10mm-diameter brass and Teflon bearing, driven by a precision flat belt and DC motor with electronic speed control. The Dual CS range has prices ranging from £299 for the entry-level CS 440, to £1,399 for the range-topping CS 600 (incl. VAT). All models include tonearm. All but the top two models (CS 550 & CS 600) include phono cartridge.