Musical Fidelity M8xTT Turntable

Musical Fidelity M8xTT Turntable

Antony Michaelson's idea of music was big, warm, and mighty with detail in colour, an expression carried through his amplifier designs. In 2002, Antony asked Heinz Lichtenegger to help design a turntable with the same attributes, resulting in the Musical Fidelity M1 — combining the inert mass of metal alloys with zero-resonating acrylic, and decoupling the motor from the tonearm and platter with a dual-chassis construction. M8xTT follows the same design philosophy with even more expressive technical features, positioned as the flagship above the M6xTT. As an authorized Musical Fidelity dealer in Toronto, Canada, Vinyl Sound can help you match this turntable to your phono stage and system.

Key Features

• Mass-loaded belt drive design with electronic 33/45 RPM speed change
• New 10" Musical Fidelity tonearm, fully adjustable VTA and azimuth
• Ultra-low-resonance tonearm design with transparent acrylic bearing ring and conical aluminium tube
• Two TPE-damped counterweights, accommodating cartridges from 6g to 20g
• Both RCA and balanced XLR phono outputs
• Heavyweight sandwich aluminium platter with additional inserts, 10kg, improving flywheel effect
• Silicon belt connecting motor and platter
• Four height-adjustable, TPE-damped aluminium feet with magnetic support
• Non-resonant acrylic plinths with effective decoupling
• Heavy multi-alloy record puck included
• Leather turntable mat included
• Semi-balanced phono interconnect cable with gold-plated connectors included
• Handmade in Europe

New 10" Tonearm

M8xTT ships with a completely new, ultra-low-resonance 10" Musical Fidelity tonearm, using a transparent acrylic bearing ring and conical aluminium tonearm tube. It's fully adjustable for VTA and azimuth, and comes with two TPE-damped counterweights to work with cartridges from 6g to 20g. The back of the plinth offers both standard RCA and balanced XLR phono outputs, giving you flexibility in which phono preamplifier you connect it to.

Motor and Platter

The motor sits on special foam within the lower acrylic plinth, decoupling it from the platter and tonearm, with electronic speed control switching between 33 and 45 RPM. A silicon belt connects the motor to the aluminium sandwich platter, which uses additional inserts to improve its flywheel effect, and both plinth levels use TPE damping.

Feet and Plinth

Four heavyweight, TPE-damped aluminium feet with magnetic support connect the two acrylic plinths, separated by Teflon spacers. Each foot's height can be adjusted by turning its riffled middle section, letting you level the turntable precisely.

Reviews

"The M8xTT is a muscular-sounding turntable exhibiting a solid grip on the music. The result was perfect image definition, combined with realistic placement and substantial depth. The M8xTT was notable here for the lushness that it imparted to the top end." — Jason Thorpe, Soundstage! Ultra, April 2024

"The Musical Fidelity M8xTT with its 10-inch arm and play-free bearing is a true joy-maker. This listening pleasure is not cheap, but well worth the money." — Alexander Rose-Fehling, Audio/Stereoplay, January 2024

"A structurally uncompromising perfectionism results here in truly excellent sound, which we only know from a few turntables in the industry. A dream of a record player." — Alex Röser, Audio Test, March 2024

"A masterclass in taking a classic design and bringing it right up to date. Superbly built and very fine sounding." — Adam Smith, Hi-Fi News, November 2023

Technical Specifications

Frequently Asked Questions

Does this come with a cartridge?
The source data doesn't specify a pre-mounted cartridge — confirm with Vinyl Sound whether M8xTT ships cartridge-ready or requires one to be added separately.

Can I use a balanced phono preamp?
Yes, M8xTT offers both standard RCA and balanced XLR phono outputs, giving you flexibility in your phono preamplifier connection.

How does this compare to the M6xTT?
M6xTT uses a 9" tonearm with a 5P DIN output and a 6.6kg platter. M8xTT steps up to a new 10" tonearm with both RCA and balanced XLR outputs, and a heavier 10kg sandwich aluminium platter with additional flywheel inserts.