Michael Fremer discusses RECORD LABEL MASTERING TRANSPARENCY+his take on the MOFI MASTERING RUMORS! 

"I've only been stumped once" - Famous last words of Michael Fremer's credibility.

Mike from In-Groove > Michael Fremer

"I work in the industry! I am entitled!" also "I'm a journalist"

Love how Fremer gets all bent out of shape by his detractors, yet he has no problem disparaging others that don't necessarily share his views. I have a great deal of respect and appreciation for much of what Mr. Fremer has done for the VC over the years, but not a fan of his attitude toward folks who don't "bend the knee".

If Michael says he can tell 100% if there's digital anywhere in the chain, why wouldn't you just ask him which MOFI releases he has listened to and reviewed have a digital step and which ones don't? He should be able to clear all this up, right?

You've been putting out some great interviews lately. Great stuff! I'm getting my popcorn.

It’s always great to see Michael Fremer. Thank you.

Excellent discussion Steve!!! I very much enjoyed the entire thing. Can't wait for the follow up chat.

Thanks for putting this together, it is very much appreciated. A very nice talk!

It was because of Fremer that I bought my '85 German white vinyl White Album, possibly the best record in my collection.

Great video Steven!! Enjoyed Mr Fremer mad respect for him and what he's done!! Your channel is really blowing up Steve I'm glad to see it ✌️🎸

Damn, you are always bringing on the best guests. Keep it going

Another great interview Steve! Good info too.

Well done Steve. I'm a Fremer fan for sure. Your channel is red hot right now. Keep up the great work. 🥰

Amazing video as always Steve! Let’s hope they come clean soon!

Tell Fremer Mazzy sent me ✌🏻

Fremer is one of the best! Excellent interview.

Nice talk guys! I finally feel like the fire about MoFi is going down and we can soon expect to talk about music again. At least they started to label their issues on the website and I do hope that it will put a full-stop to the hype. However, they got a lot of (bad) publicity, but now have their chance to get the things right after all. Thank You for this initiative to talk with Mr. Fremer (with one m). It was pleasure to watch it. Best, Petar

Over $100,000 spent on his Hifi system, but I think Michael needs to upgrade the $35 he's spending on his internet connection?......

Another great interview. Thanks a lot.

There's a lot of not well-adjusted people out there in the various comment sections of the world, seeing the success of your channel I have no doubt that you will encounter them. My personal philosophy is that I always listen to reasonable criticism, but wacky, creepy, or belligerent comments, I just block and move on with my day. Treat them like you would treat a random crazy person shouting at you on the street corner.

Steve you killed it again, brother. Keep them coming.

Mike from the In Groove Is going to the source he is travelling to MoFi on Tuesday to get this cleared up. As usual Mr F is clear as mud.

I loved this interview. Michael is very funny and I'm now inspired to go to the gym. 🤗 Mobile Fidelity should probably be like Michael and start defending themselves. Their lack of communication makes them look guilty as charged. Mobile Fidelity (along with AP) has made some of the best sounding records in my collection and I would hate to see them go down if these rumours aren't true. Another great interview Steve! Congrats on all of your success.

Nice one. Interesting and educational.

Well done interview trying to wrangle the og master, who never lacks for verbiage and is always fascinating.

My whole thing on this, if there are digital files in the chain I'd rather stick to SACD for lower cost. If it's just a tape copy of the master, that's fine for me as it retains the analogue chain. Some digital records are unavoidable, because the source files are digital themselves, I'm fine with that as you can't change that.

This was a Totally Awesome video Thank You

The og uk revolver both mono and stereo are fantastic better than anything else 😎

everything is or will be DSD unless some rare copy comes along in analog-Thank the heaven that analog is finished no more loss of clarity over dublications

I'm glad I'm watching this video I like how he's explaining it!! I'm not as pissed off now..lol you know if someone in your neighborhood beats you go back to them and try to get your money, if they won't square the deal you come back in a week or two and steal their lawn mower...lol what do you do if you think you've been beat by a major company?

Hahaha, I am usually anti-schadenfreude, but Mikey Fremer is the GOAT for me enjoying him getting his just dessert. And he just won't shut up! Which is so great. It just gets more and more delicious.

I love that diffuser

I love Mobile Fidelity and the Eagles On-Steps are by far the best pressings I've ever heard. That said I have always questioned the Original Master Recording thing. I know for sure that the Moody Blues debut was not cut from the original master because the original master was damaged more than a decade before they released it. There was one or two more of their 80s releases that were the same, though I cannot remember which.

I love Michael, I like his "tell-it-like-it-is" attitude! In a world where everyone is made of glass , and get butt hurt over truth! I don't think he likes me or even knows who I am but I like him!

Great interviews man, but wish you could do a bit more research before your guests arrive. For example calling Ryan K Smith upcoming is mis step; he is long established and has a long list of audiophile accomplishments. Same with your comments on half speed mastering.

congrats on the interview! maybe i can have you on with me one day

All this talk of prestige boutique pressings makes me think,are standard original pressings in some actually better,despite being massively cheaper,but obviously don't have the one-upmanship that many Audiophiles crave.

I really like Fremer and his expertise - I just cannot understand his attitude towards “digitally recorded” and so on. I am not sure whether he really did a lot of A-B comparisons to find out whether he really can tell “digital” from “analog” (if done correctly) because he always seems to forget to stress that he also wrongfully accused Apple of having made the Beatles singles box (2019) from digital files - something he had excused for before but, however, still likes to stress that he always can directly tell whether something was cut from “digital” or not.

I think that the early Tech limitations that created the very discreet panning in early stereo albums, such as the Beatles, actually trained the ears of a generation or two to expect that kind of directionality and unique mixing. It's not surprising that we went quad after that. Now today, much as a highly resolved flat picture is more desired amongst the population than say a 3D image, more cohesive multi-channel mixes have taken Center Stage. But for some of us, discrete directionality will always be the version I go back to. So the Beatles stereo remixes will never replace the OG stereo mix for me.

Great interview Steve. I see some detractors as always making comments about Framer. But yet, whenever I go pick up Framer’s Top 100 selection, they sound great. That’s proof in the pudding. The guy knows his stuff. Nuff said.

YOU FAILED to detect with your ears which vinyl is digital and which analog.....for YEARS

I’m curious about your statement at the end that the Steely Dan catalog wasn’t actually lost in the UMG fire. Where’d you hear that?

Steve, thanks for this interview with the always interesting, Michael Fremer. He’s not only extremely knowledgeable, but he’s also always such an entertaining person as well as coming off as a straight shooter. It’d be nice if his comedy album, “I Can Take A Joke” from ‘76 was reissued. It’s really damn funny. I hope his new channel “Tracking Angle” does as well as it should. Thanks, Steve and Michael for this fantastic interview.

Just make the damn mono box again. My statement on MoFi will have to be adjusted.

Im wondering why since Michael Fremer can hear the difference between digital and analogue pretty much everytime that he couldn't clear all of this up from the get go by telling us which of the Mofi's since 2015 are digital or analogue? That would have been conclusive and cleared all of this up, yes?

Any word on where the Van Halen content will be sourced for the MoFi upcoming release ?

I think the original issue 45s from Parlophone in the sixties sound better than the boxed set. They sound huge

where did you get that diffraction piece in-between your speakers?

But is it a 1st degree analog master of Michael Fremer, or just a digital file?

The following comments are from the Steve Hoffman Forums and I partially quote excerpts. "...before the Beatles box set MOFI had already released 3 Beatles albums...Abbey Road 1980, Magical Mystery Tour and The White album". Long before the Sony F1 portable pcm recorder was released. "The master tape used for Abbey Road was actually the Capital sub-masters and not the original from Abbey Road". "...The Magical Mystery Tour the master used for this project was actually from EMI but this version originated from Capital and was used by EMI for the 1970's reissue. "The White Album...The master tapes used for this project were also sub-masters from Capital". So yet another voice on the topic...

Yes, sound quality matters to most of us! But it not all about that alone! A few commenter say "why buy the records, when you can get a file cheaper? "! If you don't care anything about the "art" side of music, go ahead! Why trust our precious music to a server ? They can edit, even delete titles they deem offensive, they already talk about it with books! There's a sense of history and art with physical product, and no one can edit it or take it from you! If you don't like records buy the sacds! Don't let them control our history!

NightFly and Brothers in Arms are some of the best sounding records…

Neat looking turntable in the background, what is it please?

always a pleasure to listen to mr fremer honestly it is the person that I appreciate the most, sure videos and various sites. you are the best person for the interview.

Michael does a recognizable John Lennon impression! Not just a Liverpool accent. It was JOHN! :)

So, given today's announcement, I guess Fremer was lied to about the Thriller one-step. Or he was deceived like everyone else. "They are using a copy of the master tape." Turns out that means they used the tape to make a DSD file, not cut the lacquer.

Is that direct drive TT happen to be that Technics SL-1200G? 😎

Did your "Breaking: MOFI: ... Predictioins" video get taken down??

There’s no crying in baseball!

This is interesting info...very eye opening for certain. Hey, this is my 1st time here, wondering if you are always so enthusiastic. You appear to be very underwhelmed by Michael.

Roxy Music's 'Avalon' is not a digital recording - the multitrack was analogue and copied to 16-bit digital in the early '90s. I think the mixdown tape was digital though. I have the Ludwig cut - might have a punt on this new half-speed master

So it's a COPY of the master tape for the one-step. OK. So, which is better for audiophile pedants: an analog source (but a copy) or a digital source of the original master?

Here's the name I call Michael Fremer: National treasure!

it is clear Mr Fremer has made many positive contributions to advancing High fidelity. But one has to wonder if some criticism is earned. In my case, a review where he spoke of some kind of amplifier as magic, and nobody knows how they do it, caused me to doubt his absolute sincerity. Nobody is perfect, I would be a hypocrite to not accept that. I chalked it up to just a stylistic choice I disagreed with, in a review that had no measurements, since obviously someone must know how to build the thing back at the factory . they can't just luck out every time they build or design a product. I stopped following his work. later, attracted by a magazine cover, I saw where he was recommending buying a vinyl demagnetizer , for a not insignificant price. I feel this kind of abuse of public trust does not advance the hobby nor illustrate the critical thinking skills needed for good buying outcomes in a market famous for the occasional deceptive product. I have to admit I slightly enjoyed being one up on a famous expert, and set a grudge against him from such stuff. It might just have been the testosterone talking , a man has to accept and account for such unconscious thinking, because honestly, such actions never effected me one way or another. What did effect me, and caused me to snap out of it, was his solid help in advancing my understanding of a tip cleaner I was using, an attractively packaged fifty dollar clear adhesive blob that seemed a very advanced answer to stylus tip maintenance, but was actually contaminating the diamond with residue if it touched a clean surface.

Some research and preparation would do these interviews wonders.

I did call out Fremers BS years ago when he did digital recordings to show how 100.000$ turntables sound different to 5.000$ ones :P That guy is the worst analog world salesman ever.

Octave Records remaster their Original 4X DSD recordings on LP, can you still hear the difference?

Why is Fremer's audio and video so bad? He changed his AC service to give better sound and video, he made a you tube all about the nonsense. His video on dial up?

Mikey bro we love you but stop being so defensive:)

for all those years i thought analog planet was fremer's website!

The last time I talked to MOFI about sourcing, they told me in no uncertain terms that all their records are sourced from tape, at least for albums that were originally RECORDED on analog tape. That would include the Silver Series and the One Step releases. Another thing funny to me is that some of the guys making these videos may not be familiar with the concept of multiple lathes running off one tape machine. Both Doug Sax and RVG famously did this. Running say three lathes at one time is nothing new. It is also possible to make multiple 1:1 copy tapes from an original master, and carefully run those copy tapes as many times as is necessary to cut the required number of lacquers. Really not a fan of rumors based on zero facts.

Michael Fremer is probably the single most respected voice in analog audio, and has been for decades. I have always appreciated his knowledge and thoughts, even on the rare occasions when I didn't see things the same way. As an analog enthusiast, I'm delighted and reassured to have him watching over this important audio aspect. Thanks for all the work these many years!

I don't think a copy of the tape is a big deal? But that's just my humble little opinion

So Michael Fremer is now telling us that the one steps are part of the MFSL silver series releases!

Conveying an inconvenient truth is tough, indeed.

So defensive about EVERYTHING ALL THE TIME

Yeah, I can't get too interested in a MJ release due to his sketchy history. The music is great I wholeheartedly agree.

So to make a record with one less analogue stage you have to cut it from a tape with one extra analogue stage! That equals stupid! Also suggests the company hides lots of information from its customers Their silence is deafening!

Michael - you're the best - Ignore the younger ones who think they are. They've seen too many TV commercials that make them think kids know better than their parents.

Very entertaining but still does not solve the mystery. I guess we have to wait for the answers but for the life of me I don't know why MOFI is waiting to answer this simple question. I like how Chad at Analog Productions does business more so than MOFI. He is transparent while MOFI is as opaque as a carbon based black vinyl record

So you jumped 45? So soon

Might need a better AC line cord, for his router, what year is he in?

You should have discussed the possibility of Chad pressing the Led Zeppelin AAA from the Classic Records metal parts which everyone is dying for!

Jeez. Is there anybody who likes to hear themselves speak more than Fremer.

I think In-Groove has this covered already. It’s all good either way.

Does anyone seriously think that if Mofi were using a digital step in any of the process that they would have to admit it? Just because they may or may not use it during one stage doesnt mean somewhere in the chain some sort of digitalization can occur. What, is Mike or whomever Mofi meets with going to dig and tear apart all of their equipment to see? lol This entire thing could have EASILY been rectified if Mofi had simply came out with a statement immediately when all of this started in the first place. That they didnt is very telling. They know that their customer base has thought that the Mofi product is all analogue cut and that is the reason why many if not most purchase these high priced lps. And now all the sudden its ok for them to be using a copytape? Do you not see the hypocrisy in the later? The entire thing is silly.

Sad that analog planet can be so petty. Michael Fremer is one of the most recognizable people in the vinyl resurgence and he's an invaluable wealth of knowledge.

So what did I learn? That Fremer thinks it's OK for the audiophile labels to use deceptive advertising and infer the false assertion that their records are cut directly from original master tapes so long as he thinks they sound good.

It would be great if bald guy stopped interrupting. Especially with the already awkward delay. Fremer talks enough as it it. Just sit and let him go.

MOFI doesn't like Michael...he must be on to something. Thanks for your work Mr. Fremer.

I don't trust what MOFi says anymore, the damage has been done, but I will continue to trust what reviewers say about sound quality.

maybe he will learn that being as relentlessly unpleasant as he is does not make for a good RU-vid personality

Better go for DOL reissues, all great jazz records at £12 each album. At least you know where it comes from, a lousy CD recording! 😂

Yawn. This whole "MOFI situation" is nothing more than Sony getting in front of the story early by...ahem...clarifying that the soon-to-be-released Thriller album is cut from a "master" digital file. Confronting this revelation now gives their "audiophile" talking heads time to mitigate their labeling obfuscation by downplaying the sonic superiority of an all analog cut. When the vinyl community influencers are through with you, the mid-November Thriller release will be hailed as some digital copy, technological masterpiece. DCTM for short. So with respect to the question of analog vs digital...who cares as it is not the point! The one and only point is TRANSPARENCY. Truth-in-labeling is the point. The label is the contract between the producer and consumer. If the album is from an analog or digital source, say it. If it is not, say it. It's that simple. As I've said before, there's going to have to be some form of audio standardization. It's inevitable but hopefully it's voluntary. The companies that truly value their customers will provide a truth-in-pressing decal/certificate in or on every box. Hmmm... Could a MOFI DCTM hype sticker be coming soon??

Mofi must have not paid Fremer off this year

32:03 🤣🤣🤣🤣 33:45 😁😁😁😁

MoFi = NoBuy

Can't. Stand. Fremer.

The world is full of liars. I never trusted the MoFi marketing text on their LP's. And I don't trust Fremer too. Analog is his business model - and it's dead.