Interior

The ballast system is liner-based, meaning it uses compartments within the hull to hold the water. It utilizes pumps to move the water in and out of the chambers. There are two side tanks, which fill to 200 lbs. each, on either side of the boat located approximately midway through the boat. The third tank, which holds 450 lbs., is located in the center of the boat underneath the walk-through area just forward of the driver and passenger seats. The fact that none of the stock ballast was located in the far rear of the boat, means the storage lockers on each side of the engine have a little extra depth than most.

As previously mentioned, the pickle-fork design at the front of the hull gives the boat more width in the front rather than forcing it to a point. This allows a lot more room for passengers and storage in the front of the boat. MasterCraft took advantage of the space and put in seats that allow passengers to face any direction, including the rear. They also allow passengers to recline in the forward-facing seats. They slipped a folding ladder in the area between the two points of the pickle fork so that passengers can get in and out on the front of the boat with ease. A cooler is hidden beneath the rear-facing seat at the very front of the bow.

One drawback on the reclining, forward-facing seats is the way they fit to the boat. There is a big gap between the seat and the fiberglass on which it's supposed to rest, which looked a little strange. Also, when the seats were pulled up to access the storage compartments, the gas shocks didn't seem to have enough strength in them to hold the seats up. One fell down and the other looked to be barely holding.

MasterCraft Comment: The X-Star seats in the test boat had a sample rotocast part from one of our vendors, not a production part. This sample part has since been replaced with a production version in every production model. We revised the dimensions to fit flush with the seat base and have added molded ribs for additional reinforcement. We also changed both the gas shocks on each seat from 50 lb. shocks to 70 lb. shocks.

Each of these reclining seats opens up like a clam-shell to allow access to storage from the front of the boat. Although there is a bit of space available under the driver-side seat, it pales in comparison to what you'll see underneath the passenger-side seat. The compartment on the passenger side extends clear back to the rear storage locker next to the engine. You could probably slide a 14-foot 2x4 in there. However, we didn't get a chance to test that theory.

The driver's seat incorporates a built-in booster seat that can be folded up or down depending on the height at which the driver wants to ride. The rest of the seating wraps from the passenger seat to the left of the driver all the way around the back and ends right behind the driver's seat. You can also get an optional jump seat that goes in the walk-though area to complete the wrap-around.

The fit (except for the aforementioned clam-shell front seat) and finish on the seats and vinyl is excellent. MasterCraft uses 34 oz UV protected and mildew resistant vinyl. The seats were well padded and comfortable with very sturdy-looking UV protected stitching.

The glove box is the biggest I've seen with enough room for the stereo and probably about 50 CD's. Since stereos are one of those subjective matters, we didn't "test" it. The standard system consists of an XMD1 Clarion AM/FM CD stereo, six speakers (6.5-inch with separates), a 10-inch Clarion sub woofer, two Clarion amps (400 watts and four channels each) and a Clarion digital stereo armrest remote. You can also add a transom remote, tower speakers and a 6-disc CD changer.

Although some may be turned off by the bright yellow-faced gauges, the dash is one of the nicest looking that we've seen. The tachometer, speedometer and Perfect Pass gauges sit on top of the dash, rather than the traditional in-dash placement, giving it a unique look. A separate gauge for each ballast tank is great to have, especially with wakesurfing becoming so popular. Everything else is well laid out, organized and comfortable, although a couple of the switches were labeled with pieces of tape. This is one of those things that we don't think you'll see on future production models.

MasterCraft Comment: As with the bow seats, the ballast switches intended for production model X-Stars were unavailable prior to this test. We have since replaced the tape with screened ballast buttons clearly marked for each tank and fill/empty.

We weren't big fans of the latching mechanism on the rear storage lockers. Although they looked good because there is no evidence of a latch when they're closed, they weren't easy to use. In order to open the latch, you have to jam your hand in between the padding on the storage locker hatch and the engine hatch, which is a pretty snug fit. If you guess right and hit the latch on the first try, you simply pull up and the hatch is open. If you don't get a direct hit, you either slide your hand around between the cushions or come back up and take another shot at it. If you have a bad hangnail, you're going to have to have a friend open the latch for you. We don't see the vinyl in that area holding up for very long because of all the hand-jamming activity it will see. We also would have preferred to see some way to lock the rear compartments for security.

MasterCraft Comment: MasterCraft places latches under the sun deck to give a fully padded aft deck. Surface mounted latches are uncomfortable to lay on and not fun to bang your knees on when moving to and from the swim platform. The latches are out of the way and out of sight. Each is located precisely in the middle of the hatch creases so you can open them from the rear seats or the platform. Since this test, we have scalloped the upholstery a little bit more so the openings are easier to find and slightly wider.

Although the boat we tested had no carpet installed, the X-Star does come standard with snap-in carpet to cover the entire floor.

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