MoFi UltraDeck / StudioDeck Owners and those interested

Bohunk said:
Yes; and so will the 2M Black LVB 250. But without the cool silkscreened picture of Ludwig.

I am going to have to decide!
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I forget, what speakers are you running with your system? I was using the JBL L100 MK1s and they loved the 2M Black.
 
I had been running my old Advent Loudspeakers until one of the crossovers gave up the ghost right before we moved cross-country. I now have a very odd-shaped room with quite a few non-parallel walls so I tried the Golden Ear Aon 3 bookshelf speakers. They can handle the relatively low output from the EL84 amp, have a nice tweeter and driver, and two side ‘radiators’. My hope was the side radiators would help fill all the odd angles and spaces in the room, but was prepared to send them back and figure out a way to place a pair of floor-standing speakers. I was, however, blown away. Granted, I do have a chair in the sweet-spot for my optimum listening pleasure, but you can actually sit anywhere in the room and have excellent sound without one channel dominating the other as anywhere you sit or stand you have either the woofers / tweeters themselves or radiators pointed at you from each speaker. I still have them.
 
displayname said:
Figured I'd give a quick update here. I've had my UD since 2018, and it's treated me very well. At the start of the year I did notice a little speed fluctuation, which normally means it's time for some bearing grease that I tend to forget about.

After about a week after the grease was applied, I still noticed a slight speed wobble on certain sustained notes. No biggy, guess it's probably time for a new belt. Can't remember the last time that was replaced anyway. Easily over a year, maybe closer to two.

Another improvement, but not 100%. It's certainly low enough that I really only notice it on long sustained notes at the end of tracks. I think a lot of people would miss it at this point. So the next step, I emailed Mofi to ask what the best process and fluid is to add some oil to the motor. To my frustration, they said you can't really add oil to the motor. However, I sent them a message explaining that, and they had a very satisfying response:

Option 1 - they paid to have the TT sent in for a motor replacement. However I would need to pack it up and get it sent out. Which isn't really a small task.
Option 2 - they send me a new motor for free along with a video for how to replace the motor. All screws, no soldering. It's a clip in situation.

I've watched the video, and I have a new motor on the way. I don't know when I'll get around to it, but once I do I'll report back with how the motor swap went. However, I am pretty impressed that they didn't even ask me to pay shipping. Wish me luck!
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My service experience with my MoFi Ultradeck was similarly pleasant. I have nothing but positive things to say about them.
 
Angsty said:
Very interesting. Hurst is well-known as a turntable motor supplier. U-Turn and VPI are among their customers.
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displayname said:
Yes, that was a pleasant surprise. And it looks to be a $90-100 part. Less in bulk obviously, but nice that they were willing to just ship it out.
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I also had a premature motor failure on my UD, so I wonder if there was a bad batch. The replacement motor was just fine and I assume is still working well for @renpar61.
 
mindhead1 said:
So I take it these parts aren’t hard to replace. Correct?

On another topic, how hard is it to setup a new cartridge on an UltraDeck?
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They sent me an unlisted YouTube video on how to replace it. Basically unscrew the feet and bottom panel, unplug wire harness, and unscrew the motor. Drop in the new one and put everything back. Fingers crossed it’s even half that easy.
 
kvetcha said:
in my case they paid my shipping to send it back and have it repaired. This was earlier on in the UD’s life though.
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Oh, they offered that to me which was also a class act. However I JUST paid a pretty penny to have someone of much higher skill then my own to set up my cartridge. I really wasn't itching to send the table across the country and potentially have that alignment undone. Not to mention packing it up is not a menial task either, so I opted for swapping the motor myself once I confirmed it was no soldering or special tools. Just various size screw sizes.
 
displayname said:
If anyone was ever curious which motor goes into the Ultradeck, here it is. It’ll be interesting to see if it’s the same model that comes out.
View attachment 231206
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Interesting to note that as best as I can tell the Nidec Motor corp is a Japanese company which owns Hurst and I expect the motor is make in Japan . Interesting to see what happens to prices given recent trade events .
 
Static Shock said:
Interesting to note that as best as I can tell the Nidec Motor corp is a Japanese company which owns Hurst and I expect the motor is make in Japan . Interesting to see what happens to prices given recent trade events .
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Copilot says : "Hurst Motors are manufactured in Princeton, Indiana, USA. The company has been a part of the local community since 1950 and is now a strategic component of the Nidec Motor Corporation."
 
Angsty said:
Copilot says : "Hurst Motors are manufactured in Princeton, Indiana, USA. The company has been a part of the local community since 1950 and is now a strategic component of the Nidec Motor Corporation."
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Yes I also saw that when I looked it up , but unsure as no made in info on the part . Assume it is made where you noted .
 
mindhead1 said:
So I take it these parts aren’t hard to replace. Correct?

On another topic, how hard is it to setup a new cartridge on an UltraDeck?
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I just completed two set-ups on mine. First was a Master Tracker that I then replaced with an Ortofon 2M Bronze (see a few pages back for a discussion as to why). My table arrived with no cartridge, and the MoFi and Ortofon are very different form factors, so a lot of adjustments were necessary.

If you know how to align a cartridge, it is relatively easy on the UltraDeck. They provide the two Allen wrenches you will need (VTA at the tone arm base and azimuth at the head shell). There is no numbered scale on the arm for tracking weight, but these were notoriously inaccurate so you were always better served with a scale. I used the GeoDisc for overhang and initial alignment (see post 3674) and then fine-tuned with the Ortofon alignment tool. I have a clear alignment grid for VTA and azimuth. It is made easier with a USB microscope you can park and aim at what you are adjusting. As the 2M Bronze is a fine line stylus, an accurate setup is a bit more important but was not difficult with some patience.

That said, does anyone else have an UltraDeck tone arm with the A to E graduated scale at the counterweight?

IMG_2268.jpeg
 
Bohunk said:
I just completed two set-ups on mine. First was a Master Tracker that I then replaced with an Ortofon 2M Bronze (see a few pages back for a discussion as to why). My table arrived with no cartridge, and the MoFi and Ortofon are very different form factors, so a lot of adjustments were necessary.

If you know how to align a cartridge, it is relatively easy on the UltraDeck. They provide the two Allen wrenches you will need (VTA at the tone arm base and azimuth at the head shell). There is no numbered scale on the arm for tracking weight, but these were notoriously inaccurate so you were always better served with a scale. I used the GeoDisc for overhang and initial alignment (see post 3674) and then fine-tuned with the Ortofon alignment tool. I have a clear alignment grid for VTA and azimuth. It is made easier with a USB microscope you can park and aim at what you are adjusting. As the 2M Bronze is a fine line stylus, an accurate setup is a bit more important but was not difficult with some patience.

That said, does anyone else have an UltraDeck tone arm with the A to E graduated scale at the counterweight?

View attachment 231393
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No ABC on mine . What USB microscope do you use .
 
This is an example. You have to keep in mind that you are looking at a greatly magnified image, and that includes the deviation from ‘perfect’. I had to be realistic as how accurately I could make an adjustment by loosening and tightening a pair of screws or an Allen wrench grub screw.

IMG_2248.jpeg
 
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