Boats

MasterCraft Boats X-Star 2008

By Wakeboarding Magazine

Updated: January 1, 2008

Wakeboard Boat Review

What else can we say about the MasterCraft X-Star that we haven’t said since its debut five years ago? It was ahead of its time then in producing wake shapes that literally took the sport of wakeboarding to a new level. For 2008, it’s still just as revolutionary. People buy the MasterCraft X-Star if they’re aspiring pros or if they just want the thrill of owning a top-of-the-line wake machine.

Hull: Anyone can take a look under the MasterCraft X-Star and see at least a few secrets to its success. There’s a step-in at the transom, four terraced chines and a 28-inch draft that’s deeper than some comparably sized wakeboard boats’. The hull gives height and shape to the wake without making it too wide. It’s all done on the passenger-friendly dimensions of a more-than-22-foot length and a beam just 2 inches shy of the maximum trailerable width.

Ballast: The stock ballast is 1,000 pounds — 250 in each rear tank and 500 in the center. Recreational wakeboarders will be comfortable with the mellow, rounded wake at this setting. To really serve up “the meat,” it’s essential to have the 14×14.25 OJ propeller and biggest engine upgrade (8-liter). We also notice a lot more weight added when we’re in the boat judging the Pro Wakeboard Tour, or out riding with Rusty Malinoski. Then the MasterCraft X-Star delivers what many riders agree as the best wakeboarding wake and double up in the world. It’s a very mellow, yet meaty ramp that makes you wait on all of your moves, delivering a very consistent and comfortable pop. The MasterCraft X-Star is also the flagship for the most progressive double up contest in the history of wakeboarding, Parks Bonifay’s Double Or Nothing.

Tower: You’re already at the point where you’re springing for this flagship wakeboarding boat. You’re getting the ZeroFlex tower with the cool design and the great wakeboard racks standard. Why wouldn’t you go all the way and opt for the tower sound system of four speakers and an amp? We would.

Highlight feature: VDIG, the video dash gauge. It could do for dashes what the MasterCraft X-Star did for wakeboarding — really. The LCD screen plays riding video clips and shows you the ballast status, the lake depth and a lot more. There’s a lot of potential here.

The wake: At factory ballast, these wakes just scratch the surface of what they can become, which is good for riders who aren’t ready for the tour. With a tournament-level setup, the wakes come into their own. Long ramps are not too mellow or too steep. Peaks with superb pop. Big, soft landing zones riders can’t miss.