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ELAC MRC801
ELAC Miracord 80 Turntable
In an ever-changing world, vinyl remains the constant. The Miracord 80 demonstrates yet again ELAC’s long-standing association with vinyl.
Stylish Design
Focusing on an all-embracing experience: The stylish design combines a plinth milled from solid wood, with high- gloss or veneered finishes, and brushed anodized aluminum panels. An optional cover can be added to protect the delicate mechanism from unwanted dust.
Perfect Music Reproduction
The long list of features paves the way for perfect music reproduction. The high-mass turntable with its 5.6-kg platter provides the necessary inertia in the system while the PID-controlled DC motor ensures the correct number of revolutions per minute. This excellent speed stability is augmented by the 10“ carbon fiber tonearm, whose geometry reduces the inherent tracking angle error.
Miracord
History
10“ Carbon-fiber
Tone Arm
High-mass
Turntable
Attention to detail
Miracord 80
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Professional Reviews 90/100
Deliciously Crispy
Sound Quality
92/100
Build Quality
92/100
Features Usability
89/100
Value for Money
84/100
The carbon-fiber tonearm, heavy platter, and optical speed control give this deck a remarkably poised, rhythmically assured presentation. Fidelity Magazine praised its wide imaging, taut bass, and effortless timing, while Audiophilepure noted cartridge matching can unlock smoother highs, making the MRC801 a refined, highly tunable turntable for serious vinyl listeners.
What Reviewers Are Saying
Pros
Impressive speed stability and timing, with the platter reaching speed quickly and holding it cleanly.
Wide, spacious imaging with strong bass authority and an engaging, lively sound.
Flexible, finely made carbon-fiber tonearm with easy cartridge swapping and adjustment.
A better cartridge can smooth out the top end, showing clear upgrade potential.
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Cons
The supplied cartridge can sound brittle or coarse in the treble and upper mids.
The short power-supply cable can make placement and setup less convenient.
SOUND QUALITY PERFORMANCE 92/100
Reviewers describe a lively, engaging presentation with strong timing, punchy bass, and a spacious, emotionally compelling sound. One review calls out some upper-frequency coarseness with the bundled cartridge, but the better cartridge pairing is said to remove that brittleness and let the deck show its strengths more fully.
Overall Sound
92/100
The Miracord is praised for bass that is “dust-dry” and forceful, plus a presentation that “explodes” with dynamics and handles orchestral scale with “fantastic” imaging. The sound is described as buoyant, rhythmic, and especially convincing on live recordings, though one reviewer did note treble and upper-mid coarseness with the supplied cartridge.
Speed Stability
94/100
The deck is described as making its rounds “cleanly and stoically,” reaching speed quickly, and being monitored by an optical encoder that adjusts rotation inaudibly. That points to very strong pitch behavior and steady rotation, even if the supplied evidence stops short of repeated across-the-board superlatives from multiple reviewers.
Tonearm Performance
93/100
The carbon-fiber arm is repeatedly praised as a thoughtful redesign, with a bayonet headshell, easy cartridge swapping, and adjustable azimuth and VTA. Reviewers present it as a genuinely flexible and finely made arm rather than a merely functional one, which supports careful cartridge matching and setup.
Noise Isolation
89/100
One review specifically says the drive sits on rubber dampers that are effective at keeping vibrations at bay, and the heavy platter/bearing combination is presented as part of a stable, well-controlled system. The reviews do not dwell on motor hum or rumble, so the case for exceptional isolation is present but not exhaustive.
Assessments of Build Quality, Usability, and Overall Propositions.
Build Quality
92/100
Reviewers highlight the elegant lacquer finish, the substantial 5.5 kg platter, the refined carbon arm, and the use of rubber dampers under the drive. The comments suggest a carefully engineered, well-finished deck that feels more elaborate than a typical mass-market design, though long-term durability is not discussed in detail.
Features Usability
89/100
The arm’s quick cartridge swapping via bayonet headshell, plus easy azimuth and VTA adjustment, make setup and experimentation notably friendly. Beyond that, the deck is fairly purist, so the reviews focus more on ease of tuning and cartridge flexibility than on extra conveniences like phono stages or automation.
Value for Money
84/100
The reviews do not frame it as a bargain, and at roughly €2200 to €2500 depending on cartridge, it sits in a serious premium bracket. Still, the strong performance and clear upgrade path help it avoid sounding like a purely indulgent purchase, even if the commentary stops short of calling it especially good value.
Reviews
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Verified Dealers
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Authorized dealers for ELAC MRC801
- The Music Room — online and in-store — Erie, Colorado, United States (website)
- A Tube High Fidelity — in-store — Almere, Flevoland, Netherlands (website)
- Accessories 4 less — online and in-store — Apopka, Florida, United States (website)
- Acoustic Sound Design — in-store — Las Vegas, Nevada, United States (website)
- Acoustic Sounds — online and in-store — Salina, Kansas, United States (website)
- Acoustica — online and in-store — Chester, England, United Kingdom (website)
- Addicted to Audio — online and in-store — Epping, Victoria, Australia (website)
- Adorama — in-store — New York, New York, United States (website)
- Alpha High End — online and in-store — Brasschaat, Vlaams Gewest, Belgium (website)
- Alta Fedelta — online and in-store — Lombardia, Italy (website)
and 122 more verified dealers