Mobile Fidelity - Interview on Mastering With Shawn Britton, Krieg Wunderlich & Rob LoVerde 

To get out of this mess I think MOFI now need to be 100% transparent and present a list of all pressing that are AAA and all those that have a digital step in the process. The consumer deserves to know what they bought.

Mastering engineers are usually the final QC on a record - they're the "golden ears" with the best reference speaker setup. And it sure seems like these guys really care about the quality of what they're putting out, and using the appropriate tools to do justice to the recordings.

The only other questions I would have asked are: 1. Why did you or your marketing people, continue to allude that these Original Master Recordings and were pure all analog? 2. Do you feel that you were disingenuous to your customers? Do you understand some of the outrage now and are you sorry? 3. Why do you continue to call them One Steps? 4. Why do you need those big wasteful boxes for the One Steps? 5. When will you fix the split seam issue? 6. Can we go wine tasting in Sonoma now?

Kreig's whole demeanour during this entire video still tells the entire tale.

What they should have said: "We apologize. We recognize that further transparency was necessary regarding the term "Original Master Recording" and when that is an all analog chain and when that is transferred to the digital domain. There are no excuses. We let down some of our loyal customers, and we will be 100% transparent about the process starting this minute." They didn't say that so... glaring at Mike for stating the truth won't gain back trust.

They seem 3 very nice gentleman with a uniquely extraordinary knowledge of the process, very few people will understand the process or practice as these gentleman do. They are craftsmen and it’s nice to hear what they have to say, thank you for the great interview.

When MoFi is marketing Hybrid SACD and 24K Gold CD they say: ” Our most advanced digital products utilize Direct Stream Digital (DSD) technology. DSD offers much greater resolution and frequency response of DC to 100kHz, allowing our engineers to transfer more information from the source.” What bothers me is why DSD has not been mentioned on the LP record marketing but in their CD products it is said. When Mofi is marketing basic Original Master Recording LP’s and One-Steps they say: ”Our Original Master Recordings only utilize actual original masters as source material. The master is played back through our custom electronics to extract the maximum amount of information.” There is also used following text in the back sleeve: ” The Gain 2 Ultra Analog System”. These words creates an image for the consumer that he or she is buying AAA! Mofi must have known that almost all buyers think so, because they say that… ”Audiophiles and serious music collectors the world over have enermous respect for our contributions to the analog disc”.

I always bought MFSL and MOV pressing simply because I always knew what quality I was going to be getting. The digital/analog piece doesn't bother me. The fact that, and their initial responses and looking at each other so strangely, told me that the knew they were being deceptive in how they presented it. Being lied to intentionally is just never something that sits right. I think one great way to earn that back is don't put the info "on the website" as you KNOW everyone doesn't go read the website. Especially if they don't order from the website. 90% of my over 100 mofi pressings came from stores or secondary market. Simply put it clear as day in the packaging...an not HIDDEN! Show us that clear honesty and we can continue to show you our support as consumers.

I’m not upset at their mastering process, I’m upset that they let retailers, advertisers, the press, and the public think these releases were AAA for the last 10 years and never thought to correct the record once. To be fair that’s not their job, that’s Music Direct’s job, so they’re the one that really dropped the ball here.

This definitely will influence my future MOFI purchases! I'm not completely bent out of shape that there may be a digital step involved, as long as it is as clean and true to the source as possible, just stamp that on the bottom of the back cover, or disclose the process within the package!! Just simply be honest!

Great job Mike, you accomplished something big that the industry journalists never did.

I'm an old pro engineer in the biz and I've actually made transfers using the Pyramix System @4x DSD and I've also witnessed many disc cutting sessions. Although MoFi should have been a little bit more forthcoming, as a consumer who has been a collector of their discs for over 40 years, I personally wouldn't worry because DSD as an intermediary can be virtually indistinguishable from an original master tape. Yes everything in the chain can change the sound and does. If you've ever heard the difference between an original all analog master tape and it's cut Lacquer you would probably not complain at all about the sound of DSD.. In my opinion DSD at a high rate retains all the depth, three dimensionality and bass weight of the original. Cut Lacquer on the other hand does more to change the sound.

The thing that bugs me is I find it hard to believe not one person at MOFI has seen or read any of the 1000's of retailer or audiophile videos/reviews stating the albums are "all analog", and didn't find it necessary to correct them. That would have been a great question for these guys, "Does anyone at MOFI ever watch reviews of your albums? Have you every heard anyone, retailers or fans, saying your albums are "all analog"?" Of course the albums sound amazing, so here's my question.. You are buying an all original 1959 Cadillac only to find out later it's not all original..maybe it has modern brakes or a modern engine or transmission, and yes it is probably now way better than when it was new, but does the fact it's not all original (analog) affect the value or collectibility? Did we get Milli Vanilli’ed?

Thanks for posting! You've done a great service for the vinyl community here. Just the facts, from the engineers themselves. 👍👍

1) If the DSD process wins out in sound tests then why did you deny its existence? 2) Why are you making bogus scarcity with 2,500 or even 40k copies when this is a digital file that can be reproduced ad infinitum with no loss in quality?

Mike, you are a legend for getting this interview! Holy crap. Thanks times a million.

Wow. I have not seen that much dancing since Singin' in the Rain.

I appreciate that MoFi agreed to explain the process. Going forward, fulfill the pledge to include the gear used in the remastering, either on the product or website. I always assumed DSD was part of the chain and accept that the original mater tapes get digitized due to their delicate nature. But consumers deserve to know what they’re getting.

Nice work - no-one else got them to this point to discuss their process - props for that.

Here we go! I’ve been waiting for this.

The first 2 minutes said it all. Thanks for digging into this.

OMG You should hear the bashing being done by Fremer on 45 RPM channel. I think there is a lot jealousy as he didn’t get the scoop. I fear there may be a slow down in MOFI sale for awhile but we shall see. God on ya Mike for being able to get MOFI to talk.

They seem to be very intent at jokin' around and "not going into very much detail." My take is that they were initially vague on message for years and awful from a promotional standpoint. Why should it take a guy like Mike to bring all this to light? Why couldn't they make a video themselves? It's all pretty ridiculous. For the record, I am not a audiophile vinyl reissue buyer but have been very pleased with the quality of their SACDs.

They are still not taking this seriously! Amazing.

Incredible work, Mike! I have no problem whatsoever with their processing. But they should definitely take this opportunity to raise the bar on transparency. Well done everybody!

Mike Thank you for an insightful and also cordial interview You did a great service to all us record collectors Please AVOID all the naysayers, those who attacked you etc Step back, you don’t need to defend yourself from those less civil Again thank you

Im starting to think most are mad because they have been telling everyone how much better their all analog MOFI version is and are now realizing they didn't have ears good enough to decipher a digital step. Instead of all the hurt egos, I say thats a testament to how well they apply that step in the chain when they do. Even with this conversion step, I feel like im getting a superior analog experience on playback through and analog system.

Really nice of them to explain the process amd why they really love what they do

Great video. I think it's rally great that they master in dsd 4x. Its the absolute best. And much beter for archival use than analog

Thank you Michael for getting to the bottom of this. Consumers can now make an informed decision about their purchase going forward.

Do these guys realize how serious this issue is to their company? I don't think they do

Absolutely surreal hearing Stan's name brought up. I knew the man well. In fact, I spent a number of years living under his roof where he had his home mastering studio in the garage. He was a kind soul and had a passion for music, actively playing bass in the local community orchestra with his daughter. I remember him in the garage for hours on the lathe cutting laquers up until his last days. I only recently realized what an impact he had on the vinyl world with this recent MoFi controversy.

Mike, I want to hear your opinion on this interview. Follow up video is a must.

“Trust us, we’re professionals of digital pressings.”

On a separate note - I could listen to these guys talk about this stuff all day long . . . it's fascinating 👍

I never shelled out the dough for Mobile Fidelity, but this video makes me want to buy some, These guys are genuine and I can respect their company.

This is completely off topic, but... right after I got the notification that this video dropped, the mail lady dropped my first order from the in grove in which I took advantage of the ultrasonic cleaning service. It's such a good feeling to get 4 discs (from the Ennio Morricone Themes collection) that I don't have to clean myself. And the packaging was second to none. Mike making this video happen AND offering kickass service...totally fking rad. Thanks, Mike!

Excellent interview. Thanks for asking the tough questions. It was definitely enlightening and I have a better appreciation for what these companies do. I look forward to more transparency in describing their process. It should have been that way from the beginning.

Thanks for this Mike. At the end of the day. the quality of the record is what matters to me. This doesn’t change my mind at all. I’ll still support them as they continue to deliver stellar products.

A lot of the comments seem like the teenagers who are embarrassed that they acted drunk at a party and latter found out the keg was N.A.

The hemming and hawwing with plenty of caveats before answering if the process is all analogue. That told me all I needed to know without having to watch the whole hour long interview. I don’t mind if there is digital in the process. Some of my old JVC and Denon digital mastered records sound fantastic. Just wish MOFI had been upfront about it.

This a collector issue not a sound issue. I think the value of these records will drop slowly over time as original pressings rise.

Thanks Mike!

Thanks for the interview, Mike. My takeaway? MoFi = NoBuy.

Thanks for this contribution and effort Mike! The interview was maybe not the best interview possible, but listening between the lines we get a lot of interesting information. Yes, they should definitely up their game and start issuing information how a certain record pressing came to be. I would almost argue including an additional insert for that specific record (including the cataloguemumber, etc so that you can always refernce it against the sleeve and LP itself (so no generic information) that gives us the information we like to see. For that matter: any re-issue label that releases audiophile records should do this. So in the end 2 things matter: a) being transparent about the whole production chain and b) experiencing a record that blows you away and leaves you in awe! But the fact you and Mofi made the effort and got information from the source (although they sometimes love to dodge the direct information) made for a very nice insight into the inner workings at Mofi. As Rob put it....'try to get a master as accurately possible compared to the original master', is where it's at. So if thats includes 4X DSD that's fine by me.....the pressings have proven themselves. Remember; original tapes can't run forever; at one point they deteriorate and will be useless, so better preserve them! So in the end 2 things matter: a) being transparent about the whole production chain and b) experiencing a record that blows you away and leaves you in awe! Thanks again Mike !! Regards from The Netherlands

Now that things are put to bed. Mike keep giving us your recommendations of great sounding music, no matter how it came to market. Thank you because this video has caused MoFi to at least rethink the way they do business (transparency) and understanding the expectations of it’s consumers. In the end, their overall mantra is to produce the best sounding album and that they have been doing across their product lines.

This is a conversation between vinyl/music enthusiasts. A journalist would have held Mofi’s feet to the fire and asked the tough questions like how is transferring to digital not a production step in the one step process? And surely they were aware that consumers thought their product was all analogue so why didn’t they address this misconception about their product?

First comment by mofi "Is this under oath?" THIS SAYS IT ALL.

No surprises really. Whilst I do feel a little lied to...at the end of the day it's all about the mastering and the sound. Am glad they were honest. Thank you Mike for making it happen 🙏

I can’t wait for the analog purest to go nuts so I can finally afford these records

I only trust Bernie Grundman and Kevin Gray for true analog audiophile masters. From here on, Mofi needs to come clean what they are selling consumers.

Bear in mind if there had been digital copies of master tapes backed up on the cloud we would not have lost so many masters in the Universal fire from years back. Its just a good idea to have digital copies of some things.

THANK YOU Mike Esposito for all that you do! Great video as always!

Thank you for this interview, Mike. Nice to have the clarity as a consumer but like you, it’s always been about “how good does this sound”.

“Original Digital Copy Recording”

Mike you are awesome for getting this interview and having the “brain trust” at MOFI explain their process. I do understand their thought process behind the HiRes transfers, but it looks like I’ll be investing more in MoFi SACDs

Nice BBQ party. 🥩 🍗 🍖

Also, while I agree that the A-to-D conversion is paramount, I can't understand why the question wasn't asked: What A-to-D are you using? Kind of important as well. Doug Schneider / SoundStage!

This is the way all those old albums are going to eventually have to be done. Analog tape won't last forever. I'm just glad the digital technology is advanced enough to transfer these analog recordings as the tapes truly sound. Those digital transfers are going to be the source for hundreds/thousands of years. The original tape lose a little bit every day they are stored, and even more when they're played. Those transfers will never lose anything. These guys are preserving the sound of these tapes.

Thanks Mike! Always thought Analogue Productions sound was head and shoulders above MOFI and now I know why.

If I wanted DSD, I would have F'ing bought the SACD for $100 less! Shame on you MoFi! We want cut from analog for that kind of dough.

Thank you Mike!

Thank you for this very interesting interview and video series. What amused (but didn't bother) me was the slightly warbly-ness of the audio. Now I feel like building up a little vinyl collection, especially the vinyls that were mentioned highly here. Thank you!

What a great job Mike ! And thanks also Mofi team for explanations!

So much to unpick here, the big take for me from this is how much of the Emporers New Clothes mentality has existed around these super expensive re-issues. In the end you have use your own ears and not be distracted by price or production technique. It puts into perspective some of the stuff Miles Showell is doing at Abbey Road which has come in for a bit of criticism lately, too me they sound great despite all the flack concerning hte digital transfer process. To quote Talking Heads "Same as it Everv Was" use your own ears and be aware.

Intriguing dialogue. Thanks Mike

We were misled , and thats not ok. Regardless how great the records sound, buyers were led to believe they were cut from analog tape in an all analog process.

I trust that these guys knows what they're doing, whatever comes out of this studio will be as accurate as it can be. It's great to hear in this interview how they are doing it. I do not care that there is a digital stage in there. It's there for good reasons. Keep up the good work, and gimme that one step Bitches Brew soon.

This begs the question. Why bother playing them on a vinyl transfer? Can we buy the DSD files please?

Over the last few years, Mike has been the ultimate champion for record buyers. He’s out here doing the audio god’s work and should be treated as such.

Amazing interview Mike. You have done the record-buying community a great service. The engineers were tremendously generous with lifting the veil, and I suspect that is because a) you are a sincere, no BS guy and b) your store buys a helluva lot of MoFi records! TBH, the only thing that surprised me is that all of their current issues are DSD. I thought occasionally there would be a full analog release. The reality is that the master tapes of epic albums have significant historical and monetary value. They are also fragile. They don’t own the music. They borrow it. If I was the owner, of, say, the KOB masters, I would be very reluctant to let them out of my sight. That said, now I understand the “Mobile” in Mobile Fidelity.. When I got back into this hobby about six years ago, I purchased a few of the lower-priced MoFi offerings of a few of my favourite rock albums but I haven’t bought any since I learned from another collector that “some” were digital transfers. Instead, I buy AAA from labels like Blue Note and Analogue Productions. But this is only for reissues of “unobtanium”. If I can get an OG or analog reissue from a few years after the album’s release, I tend to enjoy those more.

An excellent discussion! Lots of valuable information shared. Well done, Mike!!!

Just wanted to say Thanks Mike, you set out to find out if their is a Digital Step in the process - and you did. Job Done! Lack of transparency, apologies, and consumers still being consumers in the future is now up to MoFi and us.

This video has aged amazingly...these guys love what they do and made some of the best sounding vinyl versions of miles and abraxas..And Mike was the perfect guy to address the matter

40yr old digital! Donald Fagan's Nightfly is a great example... attention to every signal detail, a proper well executed process is what's vital. Much effort was put forth deciding the capture platform to use; new 3M digital, or the best Studer analog. They went to great lengths A/B testing perfect tape formulations, freshly calibrated machines, they compared the direct signal, vs the Studer, vs 3M. The new 3M rig clearly was superior and that's the chosen platform. Point being, attention to detail, and a "well executed" recording... proper gain staging, etc. is amazingly capable. 40yrs of digital development since, even back then in a controlled A/B it bested the analog platform for that element of the process. It's remarkable what that production achieved. That said, the dubious sleight of hand bullshit ... is a bad look.

When I used to listen to vinyl when young (pre digital era) it was great to sit and read the info in the huge gatefold cover about the recording process and some of the equipment used and the people involved. I think this info actually ADDS to the appreciation of what’s been achieved. It shouldn’t be looked at as a chore. Having said that if 4x DSD is virtually transparent then buying that file makes more sense than buying vinyl, although I understand the whole vinyl lifestyle choice which is almost a fetish. ! Whatever you do, enjoy the music. R

What a great group of professional engineers/magicians. That was awesome. Audio ain't easy.

I’m wondering if Fremer will need to remove any titles from his 100 All Analog list. :)

Vintage pressings just got even more expensive.

Still great works and efforts. Thank you Mofi! 🙏💕 Respect.

Now that they confirmed there is a digital component of the original tape, there should be no reason to not seek additional licenses to repress Nirvana Nevermind (or insert any out-of-print album you want). Am I right?

Excellent job Mike.

Does the source matter if it’s a great-sounding product? IMO, no, but transparency does. I appreciate their honesty. Thanks, Mike, for bringing this to light.

Look at it on the bright side. You can unwrap your treasured records and finally get to listen to them and hear how beautiful they sound without being worried of them loosing (more) value. Music instruments are made to be played, so are records, especially ones that sound as good as these...

This was way too deferential. It started out okay, but quickly went off the rails when Mike just turned into a fanboy. @ 2.46 Mike asks about the mastering process for the Abraxas one step, and is told they use an analog machine and a DXD recorder to copy the tape, but never give us the answer as to which of those was used! In either case, the record was therefore cut from a copy, and not the "Original Master Recording" itself. At best, MoFi has been deceiving their customers for years. The diagram supplied with every record shows nothing between the master tape and the lacquer, and when people in the press and elsewhere described the releases as all analog, MoFi never stepped up to set the record straight. That's deceptive. It doesn't matter that they believe their method is the best way to make a record, they continually obfuscated about the fact that there's a digital step in the process. Shame on them.

Man, these guys are about to make SACDs become popular. With their process, SACD is closer to the original source than vinyl.

“adhering to the purist aesthetic” Orwellian Audiophile Masterclass

You have ONE opportunity to be honest. The fact that they’ve not been transparent is the issue!

This video reminds me of those crime documentaries where the killer confesses.

Thanks Mike for spending your valuable time to do this man

I listened to my MoFi version of Miles in the Sky after watching and thought damn this still slaps. I’m just shocked they didn’t share the digital step earlier

Just solid dude and I can't believe you pulled this off! Looking forward to follow up/fallout videos from you. Thanks

The title Original Master Recording was definitely very misleading, no doubt! They are only talking about it now because they got caught, they only make a transfer from the original tapes, after that it's whatever they have to do to make it sound the best, which is fine but they should have been honest, they knew what they were doing. Makes me wonder about Analog Productions, I'd like the get Chads take on this, are the sneaking in DSD also!???

It's that modern day obsession with transparency, but the secret is still in the pudding. However, this was pretty straight forward and I certainly appreciate it. Thanks.

Paul from PS audio has been trumpeting DSD for years. He claims it as close to analog as you can get, without the downside of analog tape hiss. You also have the full dynamic range of the original masters. My CD of The Wall has a “warning” about being able to hear defects in the original source (tape hiss?) although I don’t hear any.

This is why I just enjoy the music and don't worry about what type of pressing I am listening too

Mike, thanks for having our back and getting some revealing information about the DSD step in the process. You are truly a passionate music lover and are willing to put yourself out there to get us some answers. What is disappointing is the name calling and criticizing the interview that I wasted my time reading. Keep rocking Mike I am proud to be one of many customers. When Mobile Fidelity puts those stickers on the LPs revealing source we know where it came from.

I want to know WHY THEY FLAT OUT LIED to Fremer. He claims he has an email where they stated Thriller was cut from an analog tape copy. They told him they would follow up and never did.

With analog tapes degrading year by year, DSD would be the best format available today and won’t damage any original masters in the process. And the end of the day, it’s all about the final product and I don’t care how they (MoFi) gets there, as long as it sounds awesome and is true as possible to what the original artist/producers and engineers created when the original record was cut and mastered. This news has no impact on whether or not I will purchase new releases, I have mofi vinyl releases, they all sound amazing and I will continue to support mofi and other reissue companies as long as they put out superior products.

I saw these guys in Walmart the other day buying CD’s to transfer for their 2023 titles