If you ask MoFi what their goal in life is, they will answer: “To bring the sound of the studio tapes into the homes of the listeners.” With the two new products, MasterDeck turntables and MasterPhono turntable amplifiers, they believe they are closer to that dream than ever. With innovative engineering and intuitive functionality, mixed with “watchful architecture” and – not least – produced in The U-S-of-A!
If you haven’t heard of MoFi before, know that they have more than four decades of studio experience under their belt. In fact, they’re primarily known for producing remastered vinyl albums with hi-fi sound. Before they started making their own turntables a few years ago. Our first encounter was with UltraDeck, which we rewarded with the maximum six stars.
Turntable: MoFi MasterDeck
So the time has come for a new model on top. With MasterDeck, MoFi wants to dig out all the information in the grooves of the LP records. And reproduce the music accurately according to the intentions of the artists and producers.
The chief engineer on the turntable production side is Allen Perkins, who has over 30 years of experience in turntable production. For MasterDeck, he has developed a unique 25 centimetre tonearm with built-in stabilizer (gimbal), for extra precision, control and tracking capabilities. The rod is made of carbon fibre, while a patented Spiral Groove counterweight and removable pickup fixture (headshell) give good user-friendliness. You can adjust the horizontal angle (azimuth), vertical angle (VTA) and overhang, for the best possible fit between the pickup and the rest of the construction.
MoFi Ultradeck is the best turntable you've never heard of. Until now.
The motor sits on an insulated mount to prevent dust from propagating through the pickup, and we’re promised an “extreme accuracy” of 33,3333 rpm. You can fine-tune the speed for 33, 45 and 78 rpm, via a four-digit display.
The platter is over 4 cm thick, and anti-vibration mounts from HRS are designed to suppress vibrations from the substrate. The frame is in real wood, and the total weight is almost 20 kilos. The wiring harness is produced by Cardas, to ensure that the electrical signal is also protected to the best of its ability.
Turntable amplifier: MoFi MasterPhono
To maintain the good sound of the turntable, MoFi has developed its own phono amplifier. Or RIAA stage, or turntable amplifier, if you will. MasterPhono is the name of the amplifier designed by Peter Madnick, who among other things has created similar products for Audio Alchemy and others.
MasterPhono is designed to get the best out of any pickup. Unmatched flexibility is promised, as well as being “dead silent”. And something that is quite special for this product group, is that MasterPhono comes with remote control!
The turntable amplifier is discretely built and fully balanced, with high bandwidth and FET transistors for both input and output. The internal power supply is fully regulated and shielded, with dedicated supply for left and right channel. Electrical resistance and signal amplification (gain) can be programmed via relays and on the thick aluminium front panel appear a pair of VU meters in addition to calibration points for pickup settings.
“We wanted to make an accessible high-frequency phono amp that could be optimized for any pickup and play with uncompromising potential,” says Madnick.
The goal with MasterPhono, as with MasterDeck, is that it should add no artificial coloration to the original sound. But contribute to it sounding like a true master tape.
Price and availability
MoFi MasterDeck and MasterPhono are priced at $6000 and $5000 respectively. The products should be available around in the third quarter.
Love to hear
What happened to this? Is it Q3 of 2023?