Mobile Fidelity Studiodeck Turntable

It’s only natural to use the word “Studio” in the name of one of our turntables, as doing so brings together MoFi’s software and hardware sides. And while it’s our entry-level offering, StudioDeck produces high-caliber sound at a value price. Designed in collaboration with some of the world's finest audio designers, StudioDeck features an incredible amount of ingenuity and technology usually reserved for much more expensive products.

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 StudioDeck. 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 StudioDecks construction starts with aluminium ruling the day with a wide plate of the material bonded to MDF plywood to form the plinth of the table and the appears again in the 10’’ gimballed bearing tone arm. The aluminium provides added mass dampening in the plinth and rigidity in the tonearm and judging by similar choices made in high dollar Spiral Groove tables are a good indication that StudioDeck’s design is coming from a higher plane of existence. The StudioDeck is run by a decoupled 300RPM AC motor and you will find a ¾’’ platter and pulley system 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.

The StudioDeck’s inverted bearing is comprised of a combination of Teflon, steel, and bronze normally associated with more expensive tables that prize silent rotational stability.  Mobile Fidelity rounds out your hard-working turntable expenditure with a set of anti-vibration feet designed by Harmonic Resolution Systems to further separate any unwanted vibrations from your playback. HRS is yet another highly thought of name in the industry that Mobile Fidelity enlisted to go ahead and get the StudioDeck right the first time around. The build quality and feel clearly exceed most anything you are going to find at its price point.

The StudioDeck’s sonic strength seems to be a well illuminated and well rounded mid-range that is able to faithfully deliver an analogue experience that will exceed your expectations given its modest price. The instruments are bursting with detail and the sound spills into your listening room with a presence not expected from a table in this price range. If you are looking for a laid back easy listening presentation look elsewhere. But if your music preferences tend towards faster-paced, higher-energy music of any variety the StudioDeck is right up your alley.The sound produced by the StudioDeck would best be described as up close and personal.

The StudioDeck's general composure is assured, very clean, clear, and it just goes about its business of playing LPs without any hitches. Lesser turntables accentuate LP surface noise clicks and pops, the StudioDeck does not.The platter is made from Delrin, a thermoplastic from DuPont noted for its great stiffness as well as what MoFi calls its “wonderful impedance match to vinyl, effectively grounding unwanted noise and keeping it away from the stylus” certainly is a major contributing factor.

Vinyl is the most tactile of all music formats, so if the turntable feels awkward or cheap, playing music won't be much fun. its credit, MoFi Electronics has eschewed any gimmicks and spent their money on things that matter: a great, sturdy, yet medium-mass tonearm; a smooth drive system; a fabulous platter; a fine cartridge; and outstanding isolation from vibration. Overall, the sound is just so right! 

STUDIO TONEARM

Custom developed and manufactured in the USA, this 10-inch straight aluminum gimbaled bearing tonearm delivers the ideal balanced of rigidity and low tracking error, so all you hear is what is in the grooves. Tweak to your heart's delight with provisions for adjustable tracking force, VTA, azimuth, and anti-skate.

ISOLATED AC SYNCHRONOUS MOTOR

Our 300 RPM stepped-pulley AC motor provides excellent speed stability for pitch accuracy and rhythmic drive. The Delrin® pulley has two positions for 33 1/3 and 45 RPM speed selection. Motor vibrations are kept away from the platter and stylus by using advanced dampening materials that decouple the motor from the rest of the turntable.

CONSTRAINED LAYER DAMPENING

StudioDeck features an aluminum plate carefully bonded to an MDF body to add mass and eliminate tonal coloration, maintaining the true sound found on the record.

ANTI-VIBRATION FEET BY HRS

Any vibration of the stylus that is not created by the grooves in the record is a distortion that will mask musical detail. Developed in conjunction with the engineering team at Harmonic Resolution Systems, the world leader in vibration isolation for audio equipment, the included MoFi anti-vibration feet isolate your turntable from bad vibrations.

3/4-INCH DELRIN® PLATTER

Delrin® is a next-generation polymer developed by Dupont. In the world of audio, Delrin's® highly crystalline structure presents a wonderful impedance match to vinyl records, effectively grounding unwanted noise and keeping it away from the stylus.

STEEL AND TEFLON INVERTED BEARING

Our steel inverted bearing system is designed for smooth, quiet rotational stability. The extremely low tolerance combination of steel, bronze, and teflon—found in much more expensive turntables—will provide you many years of high-performance playback.

 

SPECIFICATIONS:

Motor
300 RPM AC Synchronous

Speeds
33 1/3 RPM, 45.0 RPM

Platter
3.88 lb Delrin®

Wow & Flutter
0.017% – 0.025%

Signal-To-Noise Ratio
72dB

Power Supply Requirements
120V 60Hz, 220-230V 50Hz, 100V 50Hz

Power Consumption
< 5W

Dimensions
19.69" x 5.375" x 14.25"

Weight
19.1 lb

TONEARM SPECIFICATIONS

Type
10" straight aluminum, gimbaled bearing

Overhang
0.71" (18mm)

Offset Angle
22.8è_ (+/- 2è_ adjustable)

Cartridge Weight Range
5g – 10g

 

FEATURES:

• 33-1/3 and 45.0 RPM belt drive turntable

• Custom design and manufactured in the USA

• 10-inch MoFi Studio Tonearm

• 3/4-inch Delrin® platter

• Isolated 300 RPM AC synchronous motor

• Anti-Vibration feet designed by HRS