# Stevens MB-6



## oabeieo

Been slow at the shop lately (it’s a slow time in car audio back to school)
Haven’t done a big system in a few weeks now so decided to order up 
2sets of mb-6 6.5” Stevens midbass in 4ohm (they also come in 2ohm)


My set of 6ND430s and I absolutely loved those midbass, After installing sets of the Stevens in customer cars I liked how they played compared to the 6ND430.

Got them installed today and have to say one set up front and one set in back doors crossed at 80 with 1400w going to all four (2-alpine XA70F bridged) these small (big small there not tiny) 6.5” midbass put out a ton of sound and play like a boss to 70hz.


Here’s the part that made me make this post. Even with 350w per driver it keeps its composure. I can crank them up as loud as I want with no eq cuts at 70 or 80 and it dosent bottom or pop. The suspension seems to handle IB door install extremely well. I’m not speaker builder expert I know nothing on speaker design, I can tell this one has what one would want if high output midbass performance was needed on a 6.5” 

To be completely honest two pairs of 6.5s in all the doors out performances a pair of 8s and keeps up with a pair of b&c 10s sealed in .6 ea. No joke it keeps up no problem. And being IB sounds better as there’s no resonance.

And another thing about this MB6 is the cone seems a little thick but still light weight, it’s thick paper pulp (correct me if that’s not right) seems to tame and damp any cone resonances that would normally be heard from a typical pro audio of the same size. I would guess about 90-91db or so 1w/1m


These play flat down to 51hz IB close mic than a very low order rolloff all the way to 26hz! My goodness these have excellent roll off for a car midbass. 
That means when you cross them at 80 you’ll actually hear the blending with the sub. Instead of dropping off like the edge of a cliff at 125hz these play down into the bass smoothly. 

In car response it was super strong to 400 than wanted to drop off just a tiny bit and played easy to 4K it wants a house curve, you won’t have to fight for the tilt in the bottom end with these and have good top end as well. 

The only thing that I could find wrong was it’s big and that’s not really anything wrong. It’s a big deep 6.5 and almost a 7” like the beyma 6g40nd and 6ND430 
So you get every inch you pay for in surface area. 

They probably won’t fit in a early pre 2006 Subaru front doors but should fit in everything else that I can think of with making a plate adapter. 
If your car requires slim speakers forget it, but it should go in most doors with a plate. 

For the price coming in around 200$ a set it’s a bargain for the performance you get from these. And you can get them in 2ohm. 

Hope this helps someone, these are great sounding midbass!


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## dcfis

Agree, love these unique speakers I cross over at 74 with 300 watts and the snap and punch is really good. The 4.5mm one way is comparable to many high end 6.5s though I do toy with going GB60s for even higher but then I get in and listen and always talk myself out of it. They are extremely good/ sensitive through the mid range for that Live sound. I got the 2 ohm and you are right they push to the limit the dimensions of a6.5. Another Stevens Gem


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## oabeieo

dcfis said:


> Agree, love these unique speakers I cross over at 74 with 300 watts and the snap and punch is really good. The 4.5mm one way is comparable to many high end 6.5s though I do toy with going GB60s for even higher but then I get in and listen and always talk myself out of it. They are extremely good/ sensitive through the mid range for that Live sound. I got the 2 ohm and you are right they push to the limit the dimensions of a6.5. Another Stevens Gem



So here’s something that maybe Eric can explain I have no idea but have noticed 
Between different speakers lower xmax dosent necessarily mean inferior or can’t play lower. I think the suspension has something to do with linearity as well as the xmax or linear travel.

The GB60 may have 9mm of linear excursion, but that must be heavy and can’t see how it plays into the vibrating 100s 200s 300s 400s without having some resistance to the suspension or a tiny bit less compliance.

For example my 2118h has low compliance to about 1mm than it’s stiffer. 
Or better yet my celestion 10s have 3mm linear and have a much tighter punch than the b&c with 6mm linear, and again it’s less compliant (and im talking about the old fingers compliance test, how it feels to my hands). And both 10s seem to play equally low, except the 10” with less xmax has noticeably more punch and more snappy. So it depends, I just can’t tell you how I don’t know. 

The PR170MO dosent even have a suspension as far as the surround goes it has a felt strip and the cone is stiff and it plays the midrange like a boss. 

If I have 10s with 3mm and this 6.5 has 4mm that seems plenty good to me, I don’t know how the compliance plays into it but I’m certain it plays a huge roll (no pun intended) lol



I think what I’m trying to say is , too long xmax seems maybe it dosent play in the 125hz-on up range as good (and to me I would rather have better performance through several octaves vs better performance in a 20hz bandwith.

TLDR : If you need 9mm of xmax on a 6.5 I would suggest get the phase issue fixed that makes you think you need 9mm of xmax


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## dcfis

I don't need it just want it. Like a v8


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## WhereAmEye?

Are you going to try some of the 8’s too? I doubt they fit in your doors but I’d like to see if it would be worth the TEN EXTRA DOLLARS to go bigger. Probably a no brainer for kicks anyway if you could fit them.


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## oabeieo

WhereAmEye? said:


> Are you going to try some of the 8’s too? I doubt they fit in your doors but I’d like to see if it would be worth the TEN EXTRA DOLLARS to go bigger. Probably a no brainer for kicks anyway if you could fit them.
> 
> 
> Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk



I have a set of mb8s 

I’ve installed a handful of sets for customers, built around the same speaker philosophy it seems, they are very similar 

If you can fit them yeah do it! The 8s play down into the 60s if asked 
IB rolloff in these kicks I did recently were 15hz.

The mb8 is a badass. Both definitely want to play lower more than higher 
But still play high very unique speakers. I can’t think of a speaker quite like these. The 8s are just mean 

But this six.5 I just got to say, it keeps its own quite well. If someone had 6” locations in front and rear and didn’t want the noticeable mods or wanted a more drop on , a pair of these is pretty amazing.

I was able to turn up my 8” midrange and horn to matching gains after installing the two pair of the 6.5s as I now have enough midbass to keep up, where the 10s sealed I had a bad resonance at 110 and not enough at 80 I had to turn down everything else to match up right .


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## fish

"My set of 6ND430s and I absolutely loved those midbass, After installing sets of the Stevens in customer cars I liked how they played compared to the 6ND430."


Are you saying you prefer the MB-6 over the 6ND430? If so, can you please elaborate what you favor about them? I suspect it's the output under 100hz.


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## oabeieo

fish said:


> "My set of 6ND430s and I absolutely loved those midbass, After installing sets of the Stevens in customer cars I liked how they played compared to the 6ND430."
> 
> 
> Are you saying you prefer the MB-6 over the 6ND430? If so, can you please elaborate what you favor about them? I suspect it's the output under 100hz.



Oh man, I can’t go as far as to say I like them better , I like them different.

The 6ND is such an amazing 6.5. There’s qualities I like about both equally.


The 6ND has better midrange (end of story no comparison) and I’m talking >500hz + under 500hz the 6ND and the MB6 are close but have different qualities. 

When I had the 6ND in small sealed or small ported pods it’s output was hard to rival, it could just take power like no 6.5 I’ve ever used or installed. The sound is punchy and transient and just on point. 

The MB6 however in IB configuration definitely has a edge over the 6ND in the low end. The 6ND I could play to 70hz IB and the MB6 plays IB , the MB6 plays better IB. Especially under 110hz. The MB6 keeps it together and the detail comes out very good and the detail isn’t lost in resonances. The MB6 clearly has much less resonance and picks up sharp detail in the midbass. The midrange on the MB6 is good though, nothing to complain about at all, still clearer and get louder than any other car drivers I know of. No power compression issues (stays loud for more than 10sec vs like a focal or something) 

The MB6 probably wouldn’t be the absolute best if you wanted it to play to 3k however it will do it, you just have to make some big cuts in the 120-400hz range and add power.

For what I’m using them for they are perfect, IB door mounted, midbass that doesn’t need to go past 1k. I’m using them from 70-300, and they work killer. It’s the frequencies they want to play. 

The 6ND wants to play 100-5k, it dosent want to go below 100 without an enclosure, which it’s über low qts suggests as well. 

I think getting a IB 6.5 to play that last little bit under 100hz losses efficiency and it’s seems it’s a law of physics that dictates that. 

The MB6 is masterfully designed for just this, it’s the perfect balance of efficiency and low response and low resonance. It’s quite good.


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## fish

Very well put... thank you for taking the time!


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## dcfis

I like mine in a 2 way to 23/2400. There is a cut at 400


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## oabeieo

dcfis said:


> I like mine in a 2 way to 23/2400. There is a cut at 400



Yep , just what I would have guessed. 
Yeah they play up high just fine. Just a little bit more midbass 
Than midrange with no eq. 

Butyour rigt yeah a little eq and it’s there no problem. 



I hope Eric can chime in about the xmax and how it relates to suspension and diffrent frequency requirements vs only worrying about what it does under 100hz


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## Eric Stevens

Explaining driver performance especially related to wide bandwidth and over all power ranges is a very deep rabbit hole.

Xmax is important, but just as important is Xsus but this is primarily related to output within the piston range of output. You can have a motor dominated design and you can have suspension dominated design. I prefer motor dominated drivers typically.

The 6ND430 has inductance control features and a neodymium motor both of which will reduce distortion and I believe thats the difference.

Suspension compliance can induce or change cone breakup modes, this can be used improve FR but can also cause worse response.


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## oabeieo

That’s so awesome! 
You heard it gang
No joke all motor 6.5. This thing gets with it. 
Super impressive mid-bass. Just amazing SQ and high output


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## Hillbilly SQ

What would be the minimum power needed to get the mb6 moving good?


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## Blu

From Spec sheet:

Power recommendation: 50 to 300 watts per channel amplifier with
minimal clipping and proper high-pass crossover.

Sensitivity @ 4 ohm is 95dB @ 2.83 volts/1M or 92dB @ 1W/1M

(Edited for clarity on sensitivity ratings)


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## WhereAmEye?

Up to 300 watts at 95dB? My goodness.


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## DaveG

I have a pair MB8-2 that I’m going to put in the doors of my Mazda 6 on 160 watts each. These things are pretty large and don’t think I could have gotten any bigger to fit! Can’t wait to hear them. Went with the 8s over the 6s based on these screenshots:


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## ajt976

Yea, the MB-8's look like beasts for sure and a good value to boot, altho I don't know that they'd fit in my doors without some trimming.

Are there still plans for a 3" mid at some point?


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## Hillbilly SQ

I think the mb6 will fit my install and listening tastes great. My truck cab bloats the upper bass like too much Taco Bell so shouldn't have any problem keeping up with an 80hz cross point. Effortless sound and fast transients is what I'm after and should be a great replacement for the Scan midbass in my doors that aren't really made for a sweaty install in the humid south. Come Spring I should be a buyer.

Isn't there a 3" mid already making the rounds in team members cars in prototype form?


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## WhereAmEye?

Hillbilly SQ said:


> I think the mb6 will fit my install and listening tastes great. My truck cab bloats the upper bass like too much Taco Bell so shouldn't have any problem keeping up with an 80hz cross point. Effortless sound and fast transients is what I'm after and should be a great replacement for the Scan midbass in my doors that aren't really made for a sweaty install in the humid south. Come Spring I should be a buyer.
> 
> 
> 
> Isn't there a 3" mid already making the rounds in team members cars in prototype form?




I asked Mr. Eric for a couple of his midranges and he said there were no extras, they were all in use. So yes, they’re out there. I know I heard a set in Mic’s car last year.


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## ajt976

Suppose we'll have to be patient...


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## oabeieo

Hillbilly SQ said:


> I think the mb6 will fit my install and listening tastes great. My truck cab bloats the upper bass like too much Taco Bell so shouldn't have any problem keeping up with an 80hz cross point. Effortless sound and fast transients is what I'm after and should be a great replacement for the Scan midbass in my doors that aren't really made for a sweaty install in the humid south. Come Spring I should be a buyer.
> 
> Isn't there a 3" mid already making the rounds in team members cars in prototype form?




You would like this one quite a bit I’m pretty sure.
Although I thought the 3” was a companion to the SA line...(idk) either way it would work regardless with eq no matter what speaker line it’s from. 


If you like the scans you’ll love these. They do not look like a high end speaker at first glance. They look like something that was pulled out of a console television from the 80s at 1st glance. Once you study it tho and see the basket and motor up close and look at the actual quality of the driver it sorta sinks in how it wants to perform, beastly. 

Your truck is sick, yeah I think you would love it


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## zacjones99

MB-6 vs SA-6:

At what frequencies will the MB-6 outperform the SA-6 in a 3-way, and vice-versa? 

Fitment for the MB-6 is a little more challenging for me depth-wise (I'd have to mount outside the door card). I just picked up a set of the SA-6's anyway, just curious as I wasn't really able to find much information on a direct comparison between the two drivers. 

I'm completely revamping my installation with all new drivers, amps, and processors. In the midbass location I'll be testing the Carbon C6 against the TM65 mkiii and this SA6, off single channels of a Z-150.6AP and Dirac Live 
processing. It'll have to blend with the winners of the drivers below:

I'll be testing my current Morel CDM-54's against Hybrid X-3's and GZ Reference 80's in the crappy stock door location under the grab handle. I'll probably build some A-pillars someday, but I like the semi-stealth I have going right now, with the stock HU still in place, and the only thing out of place being the on-axis sails with bare tweeters.

And I'll be testing IB subs. First my current AE IB15AU firing directly through the skipass against a pair of SBP15's dual opposed in a manifold home theater style. The winner may get a chance against an IDMAX15, just depends on how much energy I have left for this at that point.

So I may well end up the SA6 component set and the GZ Reference 80, all in black and silver would look pretty slick.

I'm really interested to see the results.


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## Eric Stevens

The Differences would be small but are as follows:

MBB6 slightly higher sensitivity ~ 1dB
SA6 longer linear excursion ~ 3mm p-p
SA6 lower Fs
SA6 has copper pole sleeve and aluminum shorting ring.
SA6 neodymium which has lower power compression and lower distortion

SA6 is going to dig a little deeper 
SA6 will have improved clarity through the upper midrange due to improved motor design

MB6 is the better value when comparing cost vs performance.


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## zacjones99

Eric Stevens said:


> The Differences would be small but are as follows:
> 
> MBB6 slightly higher sensitivity ~ 1dB
> SA6 longer linear excursion ~ 3mm p-p
> SA6 lower Fs
> SA6 has copper pole sleeve and aluminum shorting ring.
> SA6 neodymium which has lower power compression and lower distortion
> 
> SA6 is going to dig a little deeper
> SA6 will have improved clarity through the upper midrange due to improved motor design
> 
> MB6 is the better value when comparing cost vs performance.


Thanks for clarifying that for me. Sounds like the SA6 is what I'm looking for, I might be sacrificing a little bit of upper midbass and getting a little extra low end, in a form factor that is more workable for me. 

So if I'm correct the cutout diameter is 145mm, I think you posted that on the facebook page. What is the overall diameter, of the SA6, and is there any way you could provide a mechanical drawing? I'm going to make some acrylic rings with a laser cutter as this driver is just a little bigger than my current Carbon C6.


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## Eric Stevens

zacjones99 said:


> Thanks for clarifying that for me. Sounds like the SA6 is what I'm looking for, I might be sacrificing a little bit of upper midbass and getting a little extra low end, in a form factor that is more workable for me.
> 
> So if I'm correct the cutout diameter is 145mm, I think you posted that on the facebook page. What is the overall diameter, of the SA6, and is there any way you could provide a mechanical drawing? I'm going to make some acrylic rings with a laser cutter as this driver is just a little bigger than my current Carbon C6.


I sent basket drawing and dimensions to you on Facebook


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## zacjones99

Thanks Eric!


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## dcfis

zacjones99 said:


> Thanks Eric!


Can you post them here for those of us who refuse Facebook?


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## Eric Stevens

Here they are as attachments


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## veleno

Wow I can't believe I missed this thread. I currently have ES mini horns paired with the 6nd430 and always wondered how it would compare to the mb6. Thanks for the write up and feedback oabeieo.

6 months later, how is the mb6 holding up?
Did you change it for anything else, if yes, what?


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## The Italian

Any pictures of these installed in doors? Thanks!


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## dcfis

Mine are still part of my 2 way


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## oabeieo

Mb6 is good. 

6nd430 has better midrange. I would keep the 430s or give them to me


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## ebrahim

Is the MBB6 still available for sale?
Thank you.

\


Eric Stevens said:


> The Differences would be small but are as follows:
> 
> MBB6 slightly higher sensitivity ~ 1dB
> SA6 longer linear excursion ~ 3mm p-p
> SA6 lower Fs
> SA6 has copper pole sleeve and aluminum shorting ring.
> SA6 neodymium which has lower power compression and lower distortion
> 
> SA6 is going to dig a little deeper
> SA6 will have improved clarity through the upper midrange due to improved motor design
> 
> MB6 is the better value when comparing cost vs performance.


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## Eric Stevens

ebrahim said:


> Is the MBB6 still available for sale?
> Thank you.
> 
> \


Yes the MB6 are still available. 2 ohm are on BO until 1st or second week of May and 4 ohm are low stock


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