Mobile Fidelity Ultradeck Turntable + MasterTracker Cartridge

Mobile Fidelity Ultradeck Turntable + MasterTracker Cartridge

Mobile Fidelity is the company from the 1970's and 1980's responsible for the Half Speed Mastered vinyl recordings which have become folklore. They still produce what is considered to be the best vinyl recordings available.

Drawing on 5 decades of making the world's best sounding records,Mobile Fidelity has designed a range of turntables, cartridges and phono that continue the Mobile Fidelity tradition of getting you closer to what the original artist intended. Designed in collaboration with some of the world's finest audio designers, UltraDeck features an incredible amount of ingenuity and technology usually reserved for much more expensive products.

MASTERTRACKER

MoFi cartridges are designed by looking at where a record starts: On a cutting lathe like the model used at Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab. MasterTracker features a V-Twin dual-magnet generator that mirrors the layout of the cutting head that originally makes a record’s grooves. Employing two low-mass, powerful magnets aligned in a V formation parallel with the record grooves, MasterTracker accurately extracts music from your LPs and features stellar tracking ability.

WELL-DAMPED BILLET ALUMINUM BODY

The well-damped billet aluminum body controls resonances for tight, accurate bass reproduction. MasterTracker has the lightest-weight magnets in the Tracker Series, delivering the kind of detailed, open performance normally attributed to high-end moving-coil cartridges.

MICRO-LINE DIAMOND STYLUS

By using a Micro-Line diamond stylus shaped like the cutting head of a record lathe, MasterTracker traces vinyl groove walls with microscopic precision.

FEATURES

• V-Twin dual-magnet generator

• Micro-Line stylus with tapered cantilever

• Well-damped billet aluminum body

• Ohno continuous cast copper coils

• 3mV output

SPECIFICATIONS

Type
Dual Magnet (MM) Stereo

Weight
9.7g

Tracking Force
1.8–2.2g

Impedance
47kOhm

Capacitance
100pF

Frequency Response
20–25,000Hz

Stylus
Micro-Line

Output Voltage
3mV

The word “Ultra” is synonymous with Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab's philosophy. It represents our extreme pursuit of the highest level of reproduction of recorded sound—beyond the status quo—to provide music lovers with the experience of hearing the Original Master Recording in their home. Whether you're enjoying a standard LP or one of our UltraDisc One-Step limited-edition records, UltraDeck will deliver faithful playback of what's in the grooves.

Mobile Fidelity adroitly enlisted Allen Perkins of Spiral Groove fame, who is said to have designed and overseen all aspects of production with Mobile Fidelity UltraDeck. Allen Perkins is a San Francisco turntable guru, whose own Spiral Groove turntables start at $18,000. Spiral Groove’s well reviewed and fabulous looking turntables routinely soar into the tens of thousands and legitimately have staked out their own corner of the ultra high-end echelon.

One can see why Mobile Fidelity felt they had landed big fish, so to speak, when they empowered Mr. Perkins to see what can be accomplished using his wits on their new decks.

The base of the UltraDeck features Constrained Layer Dampening: Sitting atop the MDF bottom layer are three pieces of aluminium. Each piece of aluminium isolates the three major components from each other- the motor, the platter/bearing assembly, and the arm each have their own aluminium plate.

The motor is further isolated from the base as well. Both aspects of the design help block vibration reaching the platter from moving parts inside the turntable or from outside influence. The platter and pulley system are made from Delrin™ material. Delrin™ is a proprietary polymer material developed by the DuPont Corporation, the crystalline structure of which is thought by Mobile Fidelity to be ideal in effectively shielding the stylus from unwanted motor noise or vibration.Although both the MoFi decks come with Delrin platters, the UltraDeck’s is 1.3" thick and weighs almost twice as much as the StudioDeck’s (6.8 lbs. versus 3.8 lbs. and ¾" thick).

The UltraDeck’s tonearm contains upgraded bespoke Cardas Audio wiring from the head-shell through the gold-plated RCA connectors. George Cardas is very well respected in the industry and his products are quite popular. The 10" aluminium arms on both models use high-quality ball bearings in a gimballed design for lower friction and  operation.

The arm has an effective length of 10 inches. Most models in this price range are 9 inches. The extra inch is important. All pivoting arms have tracking error. The longer the arm, the more gentle the arc as the arm travels the playing surface. The more gentle the arc, the lower the tracking error. One last detail is that there’s an O ring between the arm tube and the head-shell to assist in isolating the stylus from unwanted vibration.

The first thing that’s striking about the Ultradeck is the ease that it produces music, almost like open reel tape. It’s nearly impossible to describe to those who haven’t experienced it, but the difference isn’t subtle. The music just flows, it sounds far more real and lifelike via the Ultradeck. This is potentially due to excellent speed stability and the heavy Delrin platter, but it’s probably the sum of all the parts that make the Ultradeck well, ultra.

The second thing that’s noticeable is that the Ultradeck is an exceptionally quiet turntable . By that, we mean no hum, no hiss, nothing.  What the silent background gives you are huge dynamic swings. Quiet recorded passages aren’t mixed with noise, which in turn makes the loud parts seem louder. 

The third thing that became immediately apparent was that the 10” arm and UltraTracker are tracking champs. No matter what you play, the UltraTracker will sail through effortlessly. Inner groove distortion is non existent. MoFi designed the arm and the cartridge to work together. Speaking of the UltraTracker, it’s one of the best (if not the best) cartridges as far as suppressing surface noise. 

Tonally, the Ultradeck is about as neutral as you will hear. You’ll get pounding bass if it’s on the record to begin with, but the Ultradeck doesn’t “warm” or “sweeten” anything. Through the midrange, it’s clean and clear, and the highs are crisp and sparkling.

With the Ultradeck, MoFi has produced an American made turntable that’s well engineered and built, looks great, and sounds sublime- and they brought it to market at a very reasonable price.