# MB Quart QSD 215



## suds1228 (Apr 22, 2008)

I have had this QSD 5.25 set installed in deadened Q-form kick panels for about a month now. They are crossed over at 200hz w/ 24db slope (Alpine 9887)above a 6.5 DD midbass. The QSD Passives are being used between the 5.25 & tweeter. The tweeter attenuation is 0 in the passives. 

The EQ & Time alignment are currently flat (ie no EQ or delay has been set) and are being powered by a Sounstream Van Gough w/ 125w to each passive set.

At this point in time, after a month of patient listening and tweeking, I unfortunantely have to say I am dissappointed w the QSD's.

I have been a faithful Quart fan since the 90's. But I have yet to reveal the detail and neutrality in the QSD's that has been the hallmark of thier Premium line. 

No matter what I do I cannot remove the "veil/mask" I hear in the vocals and the airy detail I have come to love is gone. Build quality is still there and the passives are big and heavy. 

Has anyone else found a similar difference between the Premium and QSD lines?

Thank you for your input.


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## minibox (Mar 25, 2009)

yeah, I had the same QSD's a couple of years ago and to tell you the truth I liked the premiums I had better. The Q's were a solid set and had their strengths, some cds and instruments sounded great while others just lacked the sound that the premiums could deliver. I currently have focal 100krs in my doors now but am thinking about buying an old set of premiums to replace them.


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## suds1228 (Apr 22, 2008)

Agreed.I believe the QSD's are smoother overall but at the cost of detail and transparency. I still want to experiment with the x/o settings more but I am not confident this will change anything significantly.


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## tusk (Feb 20, 2008)

In old car I ran a 3-way Premium setup. Thought it sounded pretty dang decent. I have a 2-way Signature 216 QSD in my current car (Active xover at 3.5K). I like the Sigs better, though that doesn't mean squat 

I've always felt that the MBQ Premiums were a hidden gem of sorts. They were an under utilized set of drivers due to the "bad" tweeter. Not sure if this really maters, but I was AMAZED with the out of the box swap I did with a 6.5" DA HEX set with a 6.5" MBQ Premium set. The MBQs stayed and developed into the 3-way. Great set of drivers.


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## minibox (Mar 25, 2009)

tusk said:


> In old car I ran a 3-way Premium setup. Thought it sounded pretty dang decent. I have a 2-way Signature 216 QSD in my current car (Active xover at 3.5K). I like the Sigs better, though that doesn't mean squat
> 
> I've always felt that the MBQ Premiums were a hidden gem of sorts. They were an under utilized set of drivers due to the "bad" tweeter. Not sure if this really maters, but I was AMAZED with the out of the box swap I did with a 6.5" DA HEX set with a 6.5" MBQ Premium set. The MBQs stayed and developed into the 3-way. Great set of drivers.


Correct me if I'm wrong but weren't the premiums MBQ's top of the line before their Q series was introduced? 
I also had the DA Hex's in one of my cars and although I liked the Hex's, I too would take the premiums over the Diamonds any day. I didn't have the premiums in a 3-way setup but I'd love to hear how that sounds. What was "bad" about the tweeters? I remember them being a little too harsh on some songs but overall I was impressed and like them better than my focal tnk tweets. If you mean that the QSD tweeter is superior than I would have to agree. I'd like to hear QSD tweeters with older premium drivers.


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## dplxy (Apr 10, 2009)

anyone have experiences with the newer MB Quart pvi 216?
i been trying to find some review on here, but no luck =(
to op: sry abt the thread jack =)


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## GlasSman (Nov 14, 2006)

minibox said:


> Correct me if I'm wrong but weren't the premiums MBQ's top of the line before their Q series was introduced? If you mean that the QSD tweeter is superior than I would have to agree.


Premium tweeters and QSC/QSD tweeters are the same tweeter except for the aluminum housing on the Q series....everything else the same.

If ECA were still running there were several at-legnth discussions about this....Scott Buwalda even chimmed in.

I love the Premium tweeter and the Q tweeter equally and could swap them with no tweaking neccesary.


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## OSN (Nov 19, 2008)

GlasSman said:


> Premium tweeters and QSC/QSD tweeters are the same tweeter except for the aluminum housing on the Q series....everything else the same.
> 
> If ECA were still running there were several at-legnth discussions about this....Scott Buwalda even chimmed in.
> 
> I love the Premium tweeter and the Q tweeter equally and could swap them with no tweaking neccesary.


This was a useful thread for me. I just put in my old Premium 6 1/2" set and am quite pleased with them. I have a set of QSDs at my disposal and thought about swapping them out, but am thinking I don't want to now. I have ID OEMs for dedicated midbass, so yes I have 2 sets of 6-1/2" drivers to make up my 3 ways, but these phase plug Premium mids are perfect for what I'm trying to do. I have them running active now but will use them passive to make room on the amps for the midbass.


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## soundlevel (Feb 17, 2009)

q's have that signature mb quart crisp tweeter, yet the mid is not up to par, we switched the crossover to a jl audio crossover and the mid came alive and the customer was happy, case closed


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## matdotcom2000 (Aug 16, 2005)

GlasSman said:


> Premium tweeters and QSC/QSD tweeters are the same tweeter except for the aluminum housing on the Q series....everything else the same.
> 
> If ECA were still running there were several at-legnth discussions about this....Scott Buwalda even chimmed in.
> 
> I love the Premium tweeter and the Q tweeter equally and could swap them with no tweaking neccesary.


This almost makes me want to shead a tear, damit I want those ECA posts..... BAck in the day me, Kev, Kenny, and Mike used to play around with sets of QSD and PTE found out that the tweeters are just the same. I even called MBQ and asked and they would tell you that they were, (they wont deny it). Some dont know about the QSD/QSC 4in mids. The key to these sets is placement placement placement. The tweeters are intended to play offaxis and so are the mids. I had those tweeters offaxis in the a pillar with the rake of the windshield and my mids in my kicks off axis I was very happy w/ my set for a long time. You kno Scott won some titles with these things. In the right application they do what they are intended to do. Detail is crazy. I also never touch the eq. Just pure tuning with the h701. Kev had a trick to the tweeters if they were too bright for you.


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