Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab has been cutting vinyl from digital since a long, long time ago...

Ingenieur · Aug 5, 2022

Re: WP comments
15 this afternoon
1300 now
Lol

Many disparaging audiophiles, compared to Alex Jones followers. Brutal

Jam757 · Aug 5, 2022

Pali Gap said: ↑

I was just joking of course. On a side note, those 5 Classics you mentioned came to my house (including a sealed copy of S/T)
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How many people immediately frantically checked the classified vinyl section, lol

DaleClark · Aug 5, 2022

Bill Hart said: ↑

I had remarked on the deathly quiet from the "mainstream" audio press- there was a decent article in Dagogo which I linked to-- easier to just go to Dagogo to find it at this point. Fremer would be the obvious candidate but relations look a little chilly right now with MoFi. Perhaps they are waiting to see what direction this takes. I speculated previously that MoFi might work with one of the big audio magazines to do a whole photo spread and their preferred "narrative" (I'm beginning to get tired of that word), with a little more control over same with a compliant journal that would work with them to help their image. Pure speculation on my part, though.
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I will go look that up. I have not been on that site for quite a while Thanks for reminding me

Melele · Aug 5, 2022

Denon Destroyer said: ↑

This Year's Model is one of the few (maybe the only) new MoFi's I bought. UK copies of all EC's records are not pricey and sound great. They've been one of the great bargains in collector-dom--but I guess you have to like the music. And the US copies don't sound bad either, and are really easy to find.

Record collecting is pretty simple: just buy an original from the original country of issue. It's nearly always going to be the best-sounding pressing, and it's always going to hold its value.

I doubt I could detect a digital step when listening to an album. But part of the problem is 20 or more years of "Vinyl Revival" afficionados marketing crappy reissues with dodgy or deceptive claims (180 grams, etc.), which often sounded terrible and showed companies preying on customers with the most cynical consumer strategies. Over and over again, the reissues sounded worse than the originals, in spite of the hype.
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I’m going off-topic a little, but a question about that MoFi This Year’s Model: did you find it an interesting alternate presentation compared to the original or did it just not sound good to you? I ask because I have nice originals and the recent reissue and very happy with them, but (and this applies to the other Costello MoFis, so @Stone Turntable or anyone who has them and done a listening test, feel free to chime in) I would consider shelling out for these if they sound good even if not true to the original mastering, just to get a different appreciation, if that makes sense.

Pali Gap · Aug 5, 2022

Strat-Mangler said: ↑

There's a II for $500 and it hasn't sold.

Take Iron Butterfly off the turntable and post again once the weed has cleared.
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The gin clears things up nicely.

signothetimes53 · Aug 5, 2022

Tommyboy said: ↑

It was not a well thought out plan?

This is on Jim Davis. All of it. He has no one to blame but himself. He messed around and now he’s finding out.
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This entire fiasco will make a world-class business school study.

Issues like brand image, premium pricing based on a flawed business model, flawed or deceptive unique selling proposition, inadequate crisis management and preparation for potential crises...those are just a few of the ingredients in this biz school study, there are others someone more learned than I could name.

NettleBed · Aug 5, 2022

Tommyboy said: ↑

It was not a well thought out plan?

This is on Jim Davis. All of it. He has no one to blame but himself. He messed around and now he’s finding out.
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Agreed. I do wonder if the whole line at the rental car line thing is real, though. I mean, nobody's cell phone worked either? I don't know - it sounds too comedic. But if true it also speaks to the realities of very small businesses - without many layers through which significant decisions can be made, sometimes people just do sh!t, and nobody finds out until it's been stepped in.

Mazzy · Aug 5, 2022

action pact said: ↑

How a Phoenix record store owner set the audiophile world on fire
MoFi Records claimed its expensive reissues were purely analog reproductions. It had been deceiving its customer base for years.

By Geoff Edgers
August 5, 2022 at 6:00 a.m. EDT
Mike Esposito works at his record store, the ‘In’ Groove, in Phoenix. (Caitlin O'Hara for The Washington Post)
Comment
Mike Esposito still won’t say who gave him the tip about the records. But on July 14, he went public with an explosive claim.

In a sometimes halting video posted to the YouTube channel of his Phoenix record shop, the ‘In’ Groove, Esposito said that “pretty reliable sources” told him that MoFi (Mobile Fidelity), the Sebastopol, Calif., company that has prided itself on using original master tapes for its pricey reissues, had actually been using digital files in its production chain. In the world of audiophiles — where provenance is everything and the quest is to get as close to the sound of an album’s original recording as possible — digital is considered almost unholy. And using digital while claiming not to is the gravest sin a manufacturer can commit.

There was immediate pushback to Esposito’s video, including from some of the bigger names in the passionate audio community.

Shane Buettner, owner of Intervention Records, another company in the reissue business, defended MoFi on the popular message board moderated by mastering engineer Steve Hoffman. He remembered running into one of the company’s engineers at a recording studio working with a master tape. “I know their process and it’s legit,” he wrote. Michael Fremer, the dean of audiophile writing, was less measured. He slammed Esposito for irresponsibly spreading rumors and said his own unnamed source told him the record store owner was wrong. “Will speculative click bait YouTube videos claiming otherwise be taken down after reading this?” he tweeted.

But at MoFi’s headquarters in Sebastopol, John Wood knew the truth. The company’s executive vice president of product development felt crushed as he watched Esposito’s video. He has worked at the company for more than 26 years and, like most of his colleagues, championed its much lauded direct-from-master chain. Wood could hear the disappointment as Esposito, while delivering his report, also said that some of MoFi’s albums were among his favorites. So Wood picked up the phone, called Esposito and suggested he fly to California for a tour. It’s an invite he would later regret.

That visit resulted in a second video, published July 20, in which MoFi’s engineers confirmed, with a kind of awkward casualness, that Esposito was correct with his claims. The company that made its name on authenticity had been deceptive about its practices. The episode is part of a crisis MoFi now concedes was mishandled.

“It’s the biggest debacle I’ve ever seen in the vinyl realm,” says Kevin Gray, a mastering engineer who has not worked with MoFi but has produced reissues of everyone from John Coltrane to Marvin Gaye.

“They were completely deceitful,” says Richard Drutman, 50, a New York City filmmaker who has purchased more than 50 of MoFi’s albums over the years. “I never would have ordered a single Mobile Fidelity product if I had known it was sourced from a digital master.”

Record labels use digital files to make albums all the time: It’s been the industry norm for more than a decade. But a few specialty houses — the Kansas-based Analogue Productions, London’s Electric Recording Co. and MoFi among them — have long advocated for the warmth of analog.

“Not that you can’t make good records with digital, but it just isn’t as natural as when you use the original tape,” says Bernie Grundman, 78, the mastering engineer who worked on the original recordings of Steely Dan’s “Aja,” Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” and Dr. Dre’s “The Chronic.”

Mobile Fidelity and its parent company, Music Direct, were slow to respond to the revelation. But last week, the company began updating the sourcing information on its website and also agreed to its first interview, with The Washington Post. The company says it first used DSD, or Direct Stream Digital technology, on a 2011 reissue of Tony Bennett’s “I Left My Heart in San Francisco.” By the end of 2011, 60 percent of its vinyl releases incorporated DSD. All but one of the reissues as part of its One-Step series, which include $125 box set editions of Santana, Carole King and the Eagles, have used that technology. Going forward, all MoFi cutting will incorporate DSD.

Syd Schwartz, Mobile Fidelity’s chief marketing officer, made an apology.

“Mobile Fidelity makes great records, the best-sounding records that you can buy,” he said. “There had been choices made over the years and choices in marketing that have led to confusion and anger and a lot of questions, and there were narratives that had been propagating for a while that were untrue or false or myths. We were wrong not to have addressed this sooner.”

Mastering engineer Brad Miller founded MoFi in 1977 to cater largely to audiophiles. The company boomed during the 1980s, but by 1999, with vinyl sales plummeting, the company declared bankruptcy. Jim Davis, owner of the Chicago-based Music Direct, a company that specializes in audio equipment, purchased the label and revived MoFi. During the recent vinyl resurgence (vinyl sales in 2021 hit their highest mark in 30 years), MoFi’s specialty releases sell out quickly and can be found on secondary markets at much higher prices.

Marketing has been a key element of the MoFi model. Most releases include a banner on the album cover proclaiming it the “Original Master Recording.” And every One-Step, which cut out parts of the production process to supposedly get closer to the original tape, includes a thick explainer sheet in which the company outlines in exacting detail how it creates its records. But there has been one very important item missing: any mention of a digital step.

The company has obscured the truth in other ways. MoFi employees have done interviews for years without mentioning digital. In 2020, Grant McLean, a Canadian customer, got into a debate with a friend about MoFi’s sourcing. McLean believed in the company and wrote to confirm that he was right. In a response he provided to The Post, a customer service representative wrote McLean that “there is no analog to digital conversion in our vinyl cutting process.”

Earlier this year, MoFi announced an upcoming reissue of Jackson’s 1982 smash “Thriller” as a One-Step. The news release said the original master tape would be used for the repressing, which would have a run of 40,000 copies. That’s a substantially bigger number than the usual for a One-Step, which is typically limited to between 3,500 and 7,500 copies.

Michael Ludwigs, a German record enthusiast with a YouTube channel, 45 RPM Audiophile, questioned how this could be possible. Because of the One-Step process, an original master tape would need to be run dozens of times to make that many records. Why would Sony Music Entertainment allow that?

“That’s the kind of thing that deteriorates tape,” says Grundman.

“That’s the one where I think everyone started going, ‘Huh?’” says Ryan K. Smith, a mastering engineer at Sterling Sound in Nashville.

Until now, Mobile Fidelity inserted a sheet inside each Ultradisc One-Step explaining the process without mentioning a digital step. (Mobile Fidelity)
The new explainer sheet, which will be included in all upcoming One-Step records, will show the digital step in the recording chain. (Mobile Fidelity)
The MoFi controversy has not just exposed tensions between rival record makers. It’s heightened a rift between Fremer and Esposito.

For decades, as LPs were replaced by CDs and iPods, Fremer, now 75, was a lonely voice pushing to keep them alive.

“Michael’s considered the guy, like the guru, so to speak,” says Dale Clark, 54, a photographer and longtime record collector in Ohio.

But Fremer, now a writer for the online magazine the Tracking Angle, has been bickering with Esposito for months. He was furious that MoFi invited Esposito to Sebastopol and wrote an email to Jim Davis on July 17 to protest.

“You have lost your minds,” Fremer wrote. “Mistakes happen that can be corrected. In this case you have chosen to elevate [an inexperienced non-journalist] to work your way out of a predicament instead of a seasoned journalist and I’m not referring necessarily to me. I could name a half dozen others.”

Esposito never claimed to be a journalist.

He’s a record geek who grew up in foster homes after his father was murdered when he was 11. (His mother, he says, has had drug and alcohol problems.) Over the years, Esposito, who didn’t finish high school, has sold sports collectibles and started a chain of mattress stores. In 2015, he opened the ‘In’ Groove in Phoenix. His regular videos, in which he unboxes reissues and ranks different pressings, have made him a popular YouTube presence with almost 40,000 subscribers. He says he felt he owed it to his customers to pursue the MoFi tip.

“I sell to the people I sell to because they trust me,” Esposito, 38, told The Post. “And if they don’t trust me, they can go anywhere else and buy those records.”

Esposito wants record companies to do a better job labeling recording sources. Some already do. Intervention and Analogue Productions provide details on records or their websites; so does Neil Young.

“The problem is ‘analog’ has become a hype word, and most people don’t know how records are made,” says Esposito. “And you can very factually say this record was sourced from the original analog master tape and you’re not lying. But that doesn’t disclose to the consumer what’s going on between the beginning of it and the final product.”

There were no ground rules laid out for Esposito’s July 19 visit. He paid his airfare, and Wood met him at the airport. In the car, Wood confirmed what Esposito had reported in his video.

“They didn’t come off to me as if they were trying to hide anything,” Esposito said.

At MoFi’s headquarters, Esposito looked at tapes and machinery the company uses to master its records. He also saw vintage packaging and advertising materials for past releases, including mock-ups for Beatles reissues. Then he took out his Panasonic camcorder and asked Wood if it was okay for him to set up and do an interview with the three mastering engineers he had met. No problem, they said.

The result is an hour-long conversation that is equally fascinating and confusing. Esposito is not a trained interviewer, and engineers Shawn Britton, Krieg Wunderlich and Rob LoVerde are not trained interviewees. At times, the conversation is stilted and meandering. There are also occasional moments of charm as they connect about their shared passion for music.

Whatever Esposito’s approach, there is no doubt that without him, MoFi’s process would have remained a secret. The engineers, who had stressed the use of tape and working “all analog” in the past, didn’t hesitate to reference the company’s embrace of Direct Stream Digital technology.

Davis, the owner, not only didn’t invite Esposito but also didn’t learn about the visit until after Wood had extended the invitation. He tried to get to Sebastopol for the tour but said that a long line at a rental car check-in left him arriving at MoFi headquarters only after Esposito was finished.

By then, the damage was done. Last week, Wood was asked whether he regretted the interview with the engineers. He broke down.

“I regret everything, man,” he said.

Davis also did not appreciate the interview. Music Direct’s stereo equipment business brings in revenue of more than $40 million a year, and MoFi earned about $9 million last year. But the record company has just a handful of full-time staffers and no crisis-management plan. He doesn’t blame the engineers for what happened

“I mean, it was not a well-thought-out plan,” says Davis. “Let’s put it that way.”

Carole King's classic album “Tapestry” was rereleased by Mobile Fidelity in 2022. (Mobile Fidelity)
Mobile Fidelity-made boxed sets are among records for sale at the ‘In’ Groove in Phoenix. (Caitlin O'Hara for The Washington Post)
The fallout of the MoFi revelation has thrown the audiophile community into something of an existential crisis. The quality of digitized music has long been criticized because of how much data was stripped out of files so MP3s could fit on mobile devices. But these days, with the right equipment, digital recordings can be so good they can fool even the best ears. Many of MoFi’s now-exposed records were on Fremer and Esposito’s own lists of the best sounding analog albums.

Jamie Howarth, whose Plangent Processes uses digital technology to restore sound and whose work has earned praise for Neil Young and Bruce Springsteen reissues, wishes MoFi had come clean years ago and proudly told its customers that their prized records sounded best because of the digital step. He understands why it didn’t. It was terrified of being attacked by analog-or-bust audiophiles.

“One of the reasons they want to excoriate MoFi is for lying,” says Howarth. “The other part that bothers them is that they’ve been listening to digital all along and they’re highly invested in believing that any digital step will destroy their experience. And they’re wrong.”

Wood says that MoFi decided to add DSD not for convenience but because its engineers felt they could help improve their records. He remembers hearing MoFi’s reissue of Santana’s “Abraxas” in 2016. “My mind was blown when we got the test pressings back,” he said.

Wood says MoFi takes great care in capturing the digital file. It won’t simply accept a link from a record company. If a master tape can’t be couriered to Sebastopol, MoFi will send engineers with their equipment to capture it. Having a file allows them to tinker with the recordings if they’re not pleased with a test pressing and make another. He says he is disappointed in himself for not being upfront but that, from here on out, MoFi will properly label its recordings. A revised One-Step card has already been crafted for upcoming releases featuring Van Halen, Cannonball Adderley and the Eagles.

And Randy Braun, a music lover, Hoffman message board member and lawyer in New York, hopes that, in the end, the MoFi revelation will prove what he’s been saying for years, that the anti-digital crowd has been lying to itself: “These people who claim they have golden ears and can hear the difference between analog and digital, well, it turns out you couldn’t.”

Alice Crites contributed to this report.
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Are you new here ?

DaleClark · Aug 5, 2022

trd said: ↑

Well Fremer already completely showed his a** on this one so thankfully he’s taken a step back. I’m genuinely pro Fremer but I hope he’s apologized for his behavior at the start of this saga.

As to the others, maybe someone’s working on it but I’m hardly surprised it was an outside writer and actual journalist who came at this. Most of the people we read are trade magazine writers, not really journalists in the traditional sense so I’m not surprised if they are gun shy.

Also, that’s not an insult - many of them are talented writers that I enjoy reading.
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I'm a big Fremer fan, however, I was really disappointed with his attitude toward Esposito starting with the whole Lacquer thing. One thing I cannot stand is any"elitist" attitude toward regular people. I actually despise it. At least Esposito is not working for "the man" and has paved his own way.

John D. · Aug 5, 2022

How long before Mofi becomes truly transparent? will they remove Original Master Recording banner or just add copied to Digital File?

NettleBed · Aug 5, 2022

John D. said: ↑

How long before Mofi becomes truly transparent? will they remove Original Master Recording banner or just add copied to Digital File?
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"Original Primary Recording?"

Pali Gap · Aug 5, 2022

Mazzy said: ↑

Are you new here ?
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He was asked to copy n paste the article.

DaleClark · Aug 5, 2022

John D. said: ↑

How long before Mofi becomes truly transparent? will they remove Original Master Recording banner or just add copied to Digital File?
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So technically Waxtime could say "Original Master Recording"

Pali Gap · Aug 5, 2022

John D. said: ↑

How long before Mofi becomes truly transparent? will they remove Original Master Recording banner or just add copied to Digital File?
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They all (most?) came from the 'Original Master Recording'- you just have to change your mindset!

weirdo12 · Aug 5, 2022

John D. said: ↑

How long before Mofi becomes truly transparent? will they remove Original Master Recording banner or just add copied to Digital File?
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I believe their policy is to search out the original master and when they can, they use the Original Master Recording banner. When they can't, they use the Mobile Fidelity Sound Labs banner.

4-2-7 · Aug 5, 2022

Experiencereunited said: ↑

Whats with the Fremer obsession on this thread?
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It's a noob thing.....

mpayan · Aug 5, 2022

Jam757 said: ↑

How many people immediately frantically checked the classified vinyl section, lol
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ME. And I dont even like the CR Zeppelins that much.

Vinyl fever. I cant help it

brimuchmuze · Aug 5, 2022

John D. said: ↑

How long before Mofi becomes truly transparent? will they remove Original Master Recording banner or just add copied to Digital File?
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They do use the Original Master Recording. It's what follows that is the "problem"

weirdo12 · Aug 5, 2022

I had a second thought today: can somebody convince Barry Diament to weigh in on this topic?

Tommyboy · Aug 5, 2022

signothetimes53 said: ↑

This entire fiasco will make a world-class business school study.

Issues like brand image, premium pricing based on a flawed business model, flawed or deceptive unique selling proposition, inadequate crisis management and preparation for potential crises...those are just a few of the ingredients in this biz school study, there are others someone more learned than I could name.
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That would be a fun class for 3 or so hours

Tommyboy · Aug 5, 2022

weirdo12 said: ↑

I had a second thought today: can somebody convince Barry Diament to weigh in on this topic?
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He’s long gone

brimuchmuze · Aug 5, 2022

DaleClark said: ↑

So technically Waxtime could say "Original Master Recording"
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Not the same. Waxtime does not start with a tape.

Budley · Aug 5, 2022

Technically all provenance leads back to the "Original Master Recording"...including digitally recorded material. It's just a common (mis)conception that the statement implies "all analog". A conception perpetrated by MOFI's description of their mastering process, (sans digital transfer information).

I know I'm arguing semantics, but I got a notice when I logged in that every member here is required to post in this thread at least once. So this is my contribution.

DaleClark · Aug 5, 2022

brimuchmuze said: ↑

Not the same. Waxtime does not start with a tape.
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Oh you are right

Tommyboy · Aug 5, 2022

NettleBed said: ↑

The marketing campaign could consist solely of the praises to the rafters of the people who were stunned at the analog perfection of many of their products... back when they thought they were analog, lol.
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