Acoustic Sounds
By: Michael Fremer

November 21st, 2023

Category:

Industry News

MoFi Electronics MasterDeck Turntable Announced Today 11/21/2023

"reference grade" Allen Perkins designed turntable manufactured in Ann Arbor MI

Manufactured in Ann Arbor, Michigan in "small batches" to assure "the very highest level of quality control" the new Allen Perkins designed MoFi MasterDeck turntable packs high tech construction concepts and a rich feature set sure to attract vinyl fans desiring more than just a basic platter spinner but who don't want to invest five figures in new turntable.

Design features include a three-phase brushless DC motor housed in an isolated container driven by an optically regulated speed controller, a 1.75 inch tall high mass Aluminum and Delrin platter riding on an ultra-high quality Encapsulated inverted Spiral Groove bearing. 33 1/3, 45 and 78 RPM speeds are available, with fine speed adjustment conveniently settable using a four-digital display.

The new dual pivot carbon fiber 10 inch tonearm features a removable headshell that facilitates setting azimuth and makes easy swapping out pre-mounted cartridges on additional headshells available as an extra-cost option. The arm also features adjustable VTA/SRA, anti-skating and of course overhang. Cardas provides the Internal tonearm wiring, which runs in an unbroken path from cartridge clips to output plugs.

Custom HRS (Harmonic Resolution Systems) designed and manufactured isolation feet are said to effectively "float" the turntable, which resides in a solid wood frame of either Walnut or Black Ash, wrapped around a constrained-layer body of wood and aluminum, designed to eliminate resonances.

MoFi Electronics MasterDeck Significant Design Features:

33.33 / 45 / 78 RPM belt drive turntable

Unique and highly adjustable 10-inch hybrid tonearm design  1.75-inch aluminium and Delrin platter

Four-digit display shows fine speed adjustment

Cardas Audio internal arm wiring

Solid wood frame available in black ash or walnut finish

Custom Anti-Vibration feet designed by HRS

Black constrained layer damped aluminum top

Dimensions (w x d x h): 20 x 14 x 8” / 50.8 x 35.6 x 20.3 cm.

Weight: 43 lbs. / 19.5 Kg.

The MoFi Electronics MasterDeck will be available in November, 2023 with an MSRP of $5,995.00 USD

For those unfamiliar with Mr. Perkins' resume: he began turntable designing at SOTA back in the late 80's, then in the 1990s for his own company, Immedia, he designed a series of RPM turntables and a unique unipivot arm, both of which have been copied— the tech and the industrial design— by manufacturers around the world. Perkins then went on to design and build a series of highly regarded and well-reviewed turntables and arms under his Spiral Groove brand.

Perkins brings decades worth of design and manufacturing experience and expertise to his work here for MoFi Electronics and what's been announced today could very well bigly shake up the under $10,000 turntable market.

MoFi Electronics MasterDeck

Comments

  • 2023-11-21 11:20:37 PM

    Jeff 'Glotz' Glotzer wrote:

    Noice! Not crazy about wood in my plinth anymore, but Alan Perkins is legend. This could be real interesting...

    • 2023-11-22 07:45:16 AM

      oldlistener2222 wrote:

      Why no wood ? Sounds better than acrylic.

  • 2023-11-22 12:52:08 AM

    Jim Shue wrote:

    Allen Perkins is indeed a legend. As a turntable designer he's up there with anyone, Hall of Fame in my books! This MoFi MasterDeck will be STIFF competition to any other choice - for example the Technics 1200/1210G at $4300 (also a kick ass TT)....what a great time for turntables in this price range. Bring It!!! :-)

    • 2023-11-22 12:55:36 AM

      Michael Fremer wrote:

      Agreed!

      • 2023-11-22 11:24:27 AM

        PTG wrote:

        @ $6K + cartridge , competition is very stiff such as a Rega Planar 10 that is has been proven world class performer for years. I wonder where MoFi is in Ann Arbor. I live locally and would LOVE to visit .

        • 2023-11-22 04:15:41 PM

          Michael Fremer wrote:

          Definitely competition but here you have adjustability Rega doesn't offer and doesn't consider critical.

  • 2023-11-22 03:09:58 AM

    Chad Stelly wrote:

    Looks very impressive as I’m sure it will be. At 43 lbs, it’s definitely not of the Lotus school of engineering and will most likely prove to be an audiophile bargain of real value.

  • 2023-11-22 03:07:52 PM

    otaku wrote:

    After the Ultradsic OneStep fiasco I would never give MoFi a dime of my money.

    • 2023-11-22 04:16:11 PM

      Michael Fremer wrote:

      These are really separate entities.

    • 2023-11-22 10:01:29 PM

      Danny Boy wrote:

      MF is on point: MoFi Electronics is separate from Mobile Fidelity Sound Labs; totally different entities.

      • 2023-11-25 10:44:57 PM

        Anton wrote:

        Wait, who owns them?

        Aren’t they both owned by Music Direct, Jim Davis?

  • 2023-11-22 03:18:33 PM

    Danny Boy wrote:

    This is a really beautiful design from Allen Perkins!

    I think the press release has one point that's incorrect; it says that the deck has a "three-phase brushless DC motor", but based on the video with Allen Perkins (https://youtu.be/R305SX_ZBU8), the deck uses an AC synchronous motor, not a DC motor.

    Allen is a devotee of the use of AC synchronous motors in turntables, and the cool thing about this new deck is that it uses a unique frequency generator motor controller that increases (or decreases) the AC frequency until an RPM sensor determines that the platter hits 33.3 (or 45) RPM exactly. Once the target RPM is reached, the motor controller locks in that exact frequency and the RPM sensor is no longer used. This is possible due to the absolute speed stability of an AC synchronous motor when fed a stable AC frequency. Such a cool design! Too bad I can't afford such an awesome turntable.

    • 2023-11-22 04:17:09 PM

      Michael Fremer wrote:

      Thanks Danny Boy. I will clarify this and hope if you are correct, which I hope you are, that MoFi will issue a correction as well.

  • 2023-11-23 12:06:40 PM

    Wilson Hines wrote:

    So, I bought the Ultradeck last week from Music Direct. I noticed this post this morning in my RSS feed. The first thing I noticed is they're using a DC motor. Now, in the few videos (and I do mean single digits below five) and in a podcast interview with Mr. Perkins they bragged about the use of an AC motor and raved about the differences. Now, in this $5k tt, they're using an DC. What's up with that? By the way, I got the new Ultradeck yesterday and have it setup and it's an absolute wonder. I started with a Technics SL-B2 built in the early 90's, so this was my first entry into "new construction."

  • 2023-11-24 12:50:56 AM

    Jim Shue wrote:

    " tonearm features a removable headshell that facilitates setting azimuth and makes easy swapping out pre-mounted cartridges on additional headshells available as an extra-cost option."

    The removable headshell is a significant plus for me (same as with the Technics line up), but we need more details on the design Mikey.

    Not having a removable head shell nor any arm adjustments has always made Rega tables a dead end - even though they can sound very good (from the current Planar 3 to the Planar 10 - the new Naia, a Planar 10 tarted up with some lipstick and rouge at $13K+ US retail = LOL). Also their MM and MC cartridges are dreadful and laughably bad.

    These days having the ability to easily roll cartridges is a MUST HAVE!

    • 2023-11-25 10:46:01 PM

      Anton wrote:

      Agree 100%.

      • 2023-11-25 11:40:33 PM

        Anton wrote:

        Oops, I meant to agree about removable head shells, I do not know enough to say anything about those cartridges!

  • 2023-11-25 06:39:50 PM

    Bob wrote:

    Beautiful deck visually, but why such limited specs? I am missing Wow and flutter, Signal to noise ratio and speed deviation. Not on their website either. Do not want to be old school but these are necessary in my book for a better comparison. Especially since many seventies and eighties turntables have better specs then their modern counterparts. So, I wonder, not paying 6000 USD to find out its specs are worse than my JVC QL-Y55F for which I could never find a better replacement.