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Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab
View on WikipediaMobile Fidelity Sound Lab (MFSL or MoFi) is a record label that specializes in the production of audiophile issues.[1] Globally recognized for sourcing nearly all its releases from the original tapes, for its distinctive strip at the top of its album covers, and for its collectibility, the company reissues seminal albums on numbered-edition vinyl LP records and hybrid Super Audio CDs. It has also released music on other formats. The label's catalog encompasses more than 600 albums, including landmark records by Miles Davis; Allman Brothers Band; Joni Mitchell; Frank Sinatra; Fleetwood Mac; Bob Dylan; Ray Charles; The Beatles; Rolling Stones; Elvis Presley; Dire Straits; Santana; Janis Joplin; Grateful Dead; Carole King; Bruce Springsteen; The Band; Bob Marley; Guns N’ Roses; Run-D.M.C.; Johnny Cash; Simon and Garfunkel; Eric Clapton; The Cars; Elvis Costello; Paul Simon; Whitney Houston; Billy Joel; Bill Withers; James Taylor; Pixies; Lou Reed; Stevie Ray Vaughan; Muddy Waters; Weezer; and more. [1]
Key Information
History
[edit]Recording engineer Brad Miller (1939–1998) released the first recordings on the Mobile Fidelity label in March 1958, a recording of a Southern Pacific steam locomotive.[2] Later LPs included other steam trains, environmental sounds, and orchestral music, and a few pop and orchestral recordings. In 1977, Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab was founded and began releasing its signature Original Master Recording LPs using a half-speed mastering process.[3]
In November 1999, Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab shut down after the bankruptcy of M. S. Distributing.[4] In 2001, MFSL assets were acquired by Jim Davis of Music Direct.[5]
Products
[edit]LPs
[edit]
In 1977, Mobile Fidelity began to produce a line of records known as Original Master Recording vinyl LPs.[6] These albums were previously released by other companies, licensed by Mobile Fidelity, and remastered using half-speed mastering from the original analog master tapes, without compression, and with minimal equalization.[7]
In 2016, Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab launched a new vinyl series called UltraDisc One-Step, releasing titles including Santana's Abraxas and Bill Evans's Sunday at the Village Vanguard.[8] The UltraDisc One-Step process reduces the number of steps between cutting the master lacquer and the final pressing. With One-Step, a single stamper containing a negative image of the record grooves is produced directly from the positive grooves cut into the master lacquer. As a result of stampers wearing out after pressing around 1,000 records, more lacquers have to be cut to create additional stampers. The traditional three step process, on the other hand, allows multiple stampers from a single "mother" intermediate.[9]
Cassettes, CDs, and SACDs
[edit]During the mid-1980s, Mobile Fidelity began to sell CDs and cassettes. In the 2000s, it began to sell SACDs.[10]
MoFi Electronics
[edit]In 2016, a related audio electronics company was launched as MoFi Electronics.[11] MoFi Electronics offices and turntable manufacturing are based in Ann Arbor, Michigan.[12] MoFi Electronics have released turntables, phono cartridges, speakers, and phono stages.
| Name | Stylus | Cantilever | Output voltage |
MSRP (USD) |
Released |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| StudioTracker MM | Eliptical | Aluminium | 3.5 mV | $179 | Jun 2017 |
| UltraTracker MM | Nude Eliptical | Aluminium | 3.5 mV | $349 | Jun 2017 |
| MasterTracker MM | Micro Linear | Aluminium | 3.0 mV | $549 | Jun 2017 |
| StudioSilver MC | Nude Micro Linear | Boron | 0.35 mV | $999 | |
| UltraGold MC | Shibata | Boron | 0.4 mV | $1,495 | Nov 2021 |
Audio sourcing controversy
[edit]On July 14, 2022, Michael Esposito, a record store owner and YouTuber, released a video on his YouTube channel "The 'In' Groove" stating that "pretty reliable sources" informed him that MFSL had been using Direct Stream Digital files created from the original analogue master tapes. John Wood, the label's executive president, saw Esposito's video and then invited him to California for a tour of their business. A second video was produced with Esposito interviewing MFSL staff, where they confirmed that they were using Direct Stream Digital files when creating their vinyl masters for duplication. The staff members stated that at least 60% of all titles used this process by the end of 2011, and that the process was also being used for the label's UltraDisc One-Step releases, which were previously marketed as coming directly from the original master tapes. The revelation generated controversy over not only Mobile Fidelity's integrity but also the extent of analog audio's perceived merits over digital audio.[13][14] A reason why digital masters are created is due to the analog master tapes being fragile to damage, especially on older recordings. Each time a master tape is run, it is undergoes wear. Mobile Fidelity claims that it does not edit the digital transfer from the analog master tape as a DSD file would have to be converted to a high-resolution PCM file so that it could be edited.[15]
In August 2022, Adam Stiles, a longtime customer of Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab, filed a class action fraud lawsuit against the label over the revelations.[16][17]
References
[edit]- ^ a b "Our Story". mofi.com. Retrieved 2025-11-08.
- ^ "Mobile Fidelity Sound Lab Inc.| Audiophile Vinyl, CD, SACD". www.mofi.com. Archived from the original on 2012-06-30.
- ^ "History". Mobile Fidelity Sound Labs.
- ^ "Industry News November 1999". www.enjoythemusic.com. November 25, 1999. Retrieved November 12, 2010.
- ^ "The Return of Mobile Fidelity". SoundStage. Retrieved August 28, 2022.
- ^ "The Return of Mobile Fidelity". SoundStage!. Retrieved August 28, 2022.
- ^ Guttenberg, Steve (April 29, 2010). "MoFi remasters, perfects LP sound". CNET. Retrieved June 23, 2016.
- ^ "Audiophile Jazz Vinyl Pressings". eCoustics. Retrieved August 28, 2022.
- ^ Mound, Josh (August 4, 2022). "The Mobile Fidelity "One-Step" DSD Controversy (And Why the "D," for Digital, in TBVO is Silent)". Audiophile Style. Retrieved January 22, 2026.
- ^ "40th Anniversary Mobile Fidelity One-Step". Analog Planet. Retrieved August 28, 2022.
- ^ "High-end turntable makers Mo-Fi debut 'entry-level' turntable". August 20, 2018.
- ^ "Mobile Fidelity Electronics". Mobile Fidelity Electronics. Retrieved September 30, 2019.
- ^ Edgers, Geoff (2022-08-05). "How a Phoenix record store owner set the audiophile world on fire". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. OCLC 1330888409.
- ^ Sinclair, Paul (6 August 2022). "Saturday Deluxe / 6 August 2022". SuperDeluxeEdition. Archived from the original on 9 August 2022. Retrieved 9 August 2022.
- ^ Bonaccio, Matt (August 3, 2022). "The Needle and the Damage Done: Mobile Fidelity's DSD Scandal". SoundStage! Global. Retrieved January 22, 2026.
- ^ Minsker, Evan (August 23, 2022). "MoFi Faces Fraud Lawsuit for Selling Vinyl Reissues as "Purely Analog" While Using Digital Masters". Pitchfork. Retrieved August 26, 2022.
- ^ Blistein, Jon (August 23, 2022). "MoFi Sued Over Claims Its All-Analog Albums Were Actually Made With Digital Mastering Tech". Rolling Stone. Retrieved August 26, 2022.