MasterCraft X23 Demo Review
 

I had the privilege of being invited to the MasterCraft plant on Wednesday, 10/8/14 to check out the new X23 and take a plant tour. I figured I would share my impressions on what I experienced. I'm not here to bash anyone's brands and switch them to MC but just offer my opinion, which is just that, my opinion. I did not take a bunch of wake pictures because I feel it never accurately represents the form, size and feel of the wake. Also I hung out in the bow and I'm sure MasterCraft will have plenty of media available showing the wake. I would like to thank American Boat Center, Terry McNew, Max Tawney, Josh Palma, Zane Schwenk, Parks Bonifay and all the other great people at MasterCraft that made the day possible. It was a great event. I would advise anyone thinking about spending 50+k on a boat to tour a few factories and get an idea about what goes into these boats. You can really see the difference between brands and how labor and material intensive these wakeboats are.

Now onto the boat review. I'll just go ahead and say this is the best wakeboat I have ever been in. I rode the X20 a few weeks ago and this boat out performs that one. The main points that stand out for me is the adjustability of the surf wake and the fact that it still has an incredible wakeboard wake. My biggest problem with these boats is you have to give in one area to gain in another. I thought this boat had a better surf wake than the X30 and a better wakeboard wake than the X25. I was able to wakesurf with a surf style and skim style board and take a wakeboard set as well. I also used my own equipment so I had more of a realistic comparison between other wakes. When we took the boat out it had 11 people in it. The dry weight of the boat is 5500lbs and comes with 3000lbs of ballast. It was powered by the 6.2L Illmor with the 2:1 transmission. The surf wake could go super steep which I liked for surf style. Even at super steep it was longer than a standard surf rope off the tower. Extremely good push all the way through the wave with a great lip and a perfectly shaped face. I had push well behind where the wave started curling and never fell out of the back of the wave. The mellow mode was even longer with power and push throughout. It was obviously not nearly as tall but was perfect for spins, lip slides and other skim style tricks. The mellow mode was my favorite for skim riding. The boat is preprogrammed for the steep and mellow surf waves and then after those are selected it is easy to modify the settings through the computer to dial the wave in for exact personal preferences.

The wakeboard wake reminded me a lot of the X25. It comes with two ballast settings for wakeboarding and then can be adjusted accordingly. The first setting is an intermediate rider setting which fills the rear tanks at around 35% and the front tank to around 55%. This is what I rode. It also has a pro profile that I believe just fills everything up to 100%. I'm not sure about the exact percentages on these profiles but I'm in the ballpark. The wakeboarding wake was very steep like a slammed X25 and really boosted you up. They also designed the wake to stay in more of a V shape from the boat instead of fanning out like a bell. This design feature kept the wake from getting super wide which is sometimes the problem with running so much weight. When I ride a new boat I always start short and slow and adjust things from there. I rode at 60ft and 22.5mph. It was way to short and even though I was getting tons of vertical pop I was having to really hold back to keep from overshooting the landing. My old man knees can't take flat landings. I did not get a chance to play around with line length and speed but I think 70ft and 23mph would have been the perfect settings for me. I spoke to Josh Palma and Zane Schwenk and they agreed that those would have been much better. I just thought with all that weight the wake would get super wide and I don't like hitting the wake like a raging bull to make sure I clear it. I think after an afternoon dialing things in this would easily be my favorite wakeboard wake. The more I think about it, the more I cannot wait to get back and ride it again. Josh Palma of course killed it but I think that guy could throw down behind a kayak.

The boat comes standard with the MC bells an whistles and of course the fit and finish of the current MasterCraft line up. A few of the cool features of the boat are: two ballast pumps for each tank for a total of six ballast puppies, really cool lounge style sets in the transom, a trash can and a surf edition interior and graphic package.

If you get a chance, this boat is really worth your time to check out. It is my new favorite ride of all time but at a MSRP of around $140k it won't be in my reach for quite some time. I know this was a long read but I am very excited about this boat and wanted to pass on a little info. Hope it wasn't too littered with bad grammar and misspellings.

i think there is no question that all the new boats (MC, Bu, Nautique, Supra, Tige..) are great, i just don't like MC design very much.

But next time, we want to see some pictures ;-)

Awesome that you get to test it out. Nice to see MC making a boat to do more than just one thing rather than putting a dress and makeup on a pig and say it surfs. They have to play some catch up but looks like MC is finally bringing something to the table that is just no "ME TOO".

A few pictures of the boats we rode.

Credit where credit is due, glad to see MC has upheld it's proud tradition of having the stupidest naming convention of all wake boats

Any idea on what the target price is on that boat?

$200k all day long

Sure looks listed to me in the pictures. Was that necessary to surf it? I own MC but looking at all options considering a new boat. The appeal of these surf designed boats ( and ordering a new one) to me is no need to list and fast switching sides. Even the promo video on YouTube looks like it is listed.

:D:D:eek: What's scary is that you're probably not all that far off!:(

X23=23 footer

DANG YOU LOGIC!!!



Stupidest naming goes to supra for there "Shock and Awe" SA "Smoke the Competition" SC lol

Props to MC if this review is legit.... Have always liked MC, but seems to be slowly conceding the competition lately in terms of market share. Would love to see them step it back up...

Oh, so that's how it works. Guess I look a little silly now. How long is the the X25 again? Oh, shorter than the X23. Uh huh.

well, maybe some buyers are confused about that.. "hey, i want a X-25, because 25 is bigger then 23, and bigger is better" but i think most of the people that buy a MC are well educated and can read the technical data and see the differences when they check the boats at the dealer ;-)

GenII lists the boat slightly, while under way. Ballast is even though, and at rest, the boat is level. Only lists slightly while moving.

No doubt, MCs numbering system was weird..... Starting with the X20, and X23, they are changing that to a more conventional numbering system.

You know, I was going to buy an X-star, but when I figured out it wasn't actually a star in the sky that I could wakeboard behind, I got a little angry and decided NOPE, GOING TO LOOK LIKE A TARD AND HATE ON MC NOW BECAUSE I CANT FIGURE OUT THEIR NAME SYSTEM.


Since when do numbers have to correspond to anything? If you research and know the boats, then you know what each model is. If you're too incompetent to do that, then you just take the easy way out and buy an A20 or A22.

If the naming system is all you have to hate on about a MC (or the price), then you're not their target buyer anyway.

Hey melton1wake,
Thanks for the review, Ive been monitoring Wakeworld daily waiting to hear from someone that has ridden behind the X23.

Lets discuss the elephant in the room... How does wakeboard wake compare to the G23? There is no debating the G23 wake is by far the best wakboard wake. And just to clarify I am a LONG time MC owner. Ive had every model XStar. I currently own a 2013 XStar with the 7.4 engine. I weigh my boat EXACTLY like Rusty and Steel so I know something about big wakes. But I ride behind a G23 regularly and absolutely love the size and shape of that wake. But the problem for me is I hate the lines on the G and the interior seating is just not as convenient as in my XStar. Ive been anxiously awaiting this new boat from MC. Just wandering if you have ever ridden behind a G23 and can compare it to the X23. Thanks

Which engine did this X23 have in it? 7.4 or 6.2?

Hey tjb1080,
I have not had the pleasure of wakeboarding behind a G23. I have been behind some wakeboats with pro level wakes. I have ridden a 2010 Xstar with about 4500lbs of ballast and some A22's loaded with close to 5000lbs of ballast. I am nowhere near a pro level rider and do not really want to ride the same thing they do. I also believe that maybe 5% of wakeboarders on the water need or are able to ride anything close to what the current pros are riding. I think the X23 is the best surfboat out right now but if you are looking for the best wakeboarding boat there are probably a few that are better. The thing that makes the X23 so good is the fact that it is the best surfboat and I would put it in my top four wakeboats. Add the comfort, styling, fit and finish, warranty and build quality of the X23 and I think it easily gets top spot in my list of boats. All these boats are incredible and I would love any of them but if I had to buy one today, the X23 would be it, especialy if I had to use my own money. Sorry I couldn't be more help but I think the X23 wake that I saw was closest to a fully slammed X25. Just so you know my previous boat was a Nautique.

^^^ THIS is why I love this forum. I needed a good laugh today and this post did it for me.

The X23 is getting closer to something I would buy from MC but I still don't like the new lines. The current Xstar is their best looking boat IMO but still not a great looking boat like the previous gen Xstar.