Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab, long known among record collectors for its extremely high fidelity analog remastering and limited-edition reissues, will now offer its own line of turntables, cartridges, and phono preamps with which to spin its records, giving those with a solid midtier deck something new to pine over.
The company’s Mobile Fidelity Electronics line features a set of two turntables, three cartridges, and two phono preamps that should compete with some of the best products on the market in their price bracket.
The two turntables, called the StudioDeck and UltraDeck, both feature extremely high quality components in collaboration with multiple legendary analog hardware designers, including Delrin platters, isolated motors, anti-vibration feet from Harmonic Resolution Systems, and custom-designed tonearms from Allen Perkins of Spiral Groove.
Each turntable can be equipped with a custom designed StudioTracker, UltraTracker, or MasterTracker cartridge, each of which was also designed in partnership with Allen Perkins. Each line of Japan-built cartridge follows the same twin-magnet layout as the cutting head in a record lathe, allowing near-perfect accuracy in playback from what would have been heard in the mastering studio. The dual magnets also mean that stereo separation should be extremely good when listening via any of the cartridges.
In terms of phono preamps, the company’s USA-made StudioPhono and UltraPhono phono stages were designed by engineer Tim De Paravicini, and feature selectable gain, switchable mono mode, and a subsonic filter. The UltraPhono also features a built-in class A headphone amplifier, for those who like to listen through high-end headsets.
Each member of the MoFi lineup is in what the company calls a “moderately affordable” price range. The StudioDeck and UltraDeck will retail between $1,000 and $2,000 depending on model and cartridge selection. Cartridges run between $200 and $700, and the phono preamps retail for $250 and $500, respectively.
Given the company’s long history of remastering and manufacturing excellent fidelity vinyl and our continued interest in the vinyl revolution, we look forward to getting some ears-on time with the new lineup as soon as we get the chance. With so many high-quality components and audio names involved, we can’t imagine that they sound anything other than excellent. Those interested in learning more about the Mobile Fidelity Electronics line are encouraged to visit the company’s website.
