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

All is not terrible with MoFi. They do seek the original master tape for their own super gear DXD copying. They want to do their own thing with it rather than rely upon Sony, etc.

The MoFi engineers are masters. They’ve forgotten more about mastering vinyl than the vast majority of us ever knew.

Music Direct’s marketing is a mess. But MoFi’s work remains cutting edge, all analog superstition not withstanding.

 

I only own 3 MOFI records. The Pixies Doolittle, Weezer Blue Album, and Abbey Road which I bought years ago and is in a bit rough shape. It looks like the Weezer is definitely DSD since it is from 2016 but I'm really curious about the Doolittle. It's from 2009 so it's likely that it's also DSD since we know it goes back to 2008 and possibly longer. So glad that's all that I have becuase I paid $30 for the pixies and like $35 for the Weezer. Didn't get suckered with and $125 nonsense.

 

That was a very well done video from Fremer about the entire thing. I now get why he did what he did. He's not really the bad guy in this. MoFi are the bad actors in this or at least they weren't as forthcoming as they could have been, to put it kindly. But this was a good one from Michael.
We need more of this Fremer, not the combative one from the last few days.

 

Look, I get that people are very cynical about MoFi now, and justifiably so for their lack of transparency about the DSD step, but there’s a whole lot more to their processes than people seem to realize or are willing to give them credit for. I recommend reading the interview of MoFi’s John K. Wood and Shawn R. Britton by Absolute Sound Music Editor Jeff Wilson in the July/August issue (no. 328) to gain an appreciation and better perspective regarding MoFi’s meticulous source selection, handling, and mastering processes.

 

This entire thread is pitchforks lol

 

I love Pixies. One of my favourite bands. I have the Doolittle and Bossanova. The Bossanova has bad sibilance on 3 tracks and overall sounds much worse than my original German press. Disappointing.

 

I was very close to ordering the $60 Electric Warrior digital cut but ended up scooping the Kevin Gray AAA cut for $20 which sounds absolutely amazing. That's the thing that really makes MOFI scumbags. We can have an amazing sounding AAA press by one of the top guys in the game for only 20 bucks and MOFI is out here charging triple while completely scamming everyone.

It's honestly a shame that so many people in here seem to be giving MOFI a pass. The fact that many of their digital cuts sound great is irrelevant. It's about the principle and I think what they did is disgusting.

 

Micallef is absolutely entitled to his opinion!
He's also a total tool.

 

LOL. I actually was kinda steamed after watching that video. The snark involved. Dayum.

 

Just between you and me the guy is a fu£#ing m#ron

 

I was pretty surprised to see my email from Mofi Customer Service used in his video. (also other places on social media)

For a guy who claims to be some kind of professional, i wonder if he did any research to confirm the source of where it came from.
It was clearly posted here on this forum, the place it came from, and who the source was.
He never reached out to me to confirm it was authentic or unaltered.

 

Yeah I mean life is too short for me to go and give that too much more of my time anymore but I was pretty shocked at how he reacted. Contrast that with Fremer's last two videos.

@DeRosa oh if you listen closely you can tell he's been watching this forum or at least is getting feedback about it.

 

I disagree. Sure, they lied about the process because they feared that using the word "digital " would stop people from giving their efforts a fair evaluation. And that fear would have been correct. However, as I stated in another post, once they started getting extremely positive reviews, that's when they should have been honest and proud of what they achieved, and let the world know it. Going forward, it is my belief that as long as they continue to release pressings that surpass all other pressings, then their records will sell out as they have been. In the end, isn't that what you really want as a vinyl consumer? I could care less how they made it, (but please tell me -don't hide it) as long as it sounds FANTASTIC. True, not all mofi releases have achieved that status, but in my experience, the One Steps have earned my praise. The upcoming Thriller is cut from DSD. Mike Esposito stated he heard test pressings and said "Wow!" Why would someone who is interested in finding the best sounding Thriller NOT consider the One Step? Because it's cut from a DSD file? Because they once kept that under wraps? That's petty and foolish. Continue to put out a high quality product and people will come.

 

I can't win

 

I disagree, decisions like this are made at MoFi.

 

I have indeed watched Mazzys videos and the Wanker thing, it always cracks me up to hear an American say it

 

Well, I guess he’s more of the audioPHILE camp where he wants the best sounding pressing. And frankly some of those MOFIs are the best. I can appreciate that.

BUT-

to defend the business for this sneaky practice is a bridge too far. The deception of it all is what people are angry about.
Is he a mofi apologist at this point? Too much loyalty.

 

Only flaw I see in this analogy is that a 5K watch would be something like a mass produced Omega. A $125 record made in one step from a master tape would be more like a limited 30k Patek Phillipe.

 

So what? Even if true, it’s all basically the same company.

 

The weezer was from 2012, the 2016 was a repress.
It’s a very different sounding recording compared to the CD. It might not be from DSD.

 

The market for Very High Priced Vinyl is not driving the vinyl revival, and what happens in that sphere will have little-to-no effect on the rest of the market. We don't even know if the latest news will have any effect on MoFis sales apart from some knee-jerk cancellations of the Thriller pre-order. And if the potential negative commercial impact of this doesn't affect MoFi *soon*, then it will have no effect on the rest of the industry. A revelation about One Steps in July of 2022 is not going to begin its effect on MoFi purchases in 2024. If it happens at all, it will happen soon.

 

I agree the Blue album sounds very different on CD, which I owned for years before the vinyl. I'd like to know why that is. I'm not complaining. I love the record.

 

Of course.. their system has Ultra in the title!

 

How many did it so well that nobody could tell, though?

 

Call me old school - but it's somewhat crazy to me that stores selling Mofi records haven't even been told how they're actually made.

As a brand manager who has worked in retail as a buyer, and distribution for many years now, we train our sales reps how
to sell products and tell the brand stories. I can't think of another audiophile music brand that we knew less about than Mofi,
despite the catalogs and inserts in all their product. Their website said half-speed mastered until 5 months ago.

Your thought experiment is a great one. Just imagine a watch authorized dealer literally not knowing how the product was made,
and never being to the place where they come from. Literally not being able to answer questions from customers. Crazy that Mofi
got away with this for as long as they did.