# seas cd18-mds review



## Hillbilly SQ (Jan 26, 2007)

as you all know by now these are the 4 ohm seas drivers madisound has/had for half price. i'll do my normal first impressions and then come back after more listening time. i literally only have about 15-20 mins listening time with them. eq is flat for now and they are crossed at 50hz 24db and 2500hz 12db. cd was the alan parsons project-turn of a friendly card.

build quality-no complaints. i soldered some 20awg pigtails on as always and put them in the doors.

efficiency-they seem to like the 75rms i have going to each of them fairly well. they get loud enough for me but i bet they could easily handle twice that.

midbass-great snare attack and drop down to 50hz NO PROBLEM. these would be an exceptional budget dedicated midbass. i can also feel them in my chest. the seas L18's don't hold a candle to these in midbass. wait...now THAT'S saying something 

midrange-best way i can describe them is "dark and airy". detail is decent. i can live with it. the sound is unrestricted and pretty forward. they're almost agressive and laid back at the same time. i'll get back in a week or 2 with a more indepth review.


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## unpredictableacts (Aug 16, 2006)

Damn you got your set quick. I think I ordered mine the same day.


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## Hillbilly SQ (Jan 26, 2007)

unpredictableacts said:


> Damn you got your set quick. I think I ordered mine the same day.


i think you'll like them. i'd vent your pods into the doors though. you can always plug them back to sealed if needed. or they might work sealed.


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## durwood (Mar 7, 2007)

If you go back into advanced edit mode you can correct your title I believe. 

Thanks for the review. Looks liek a great budget speaker well worth the dough.


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## Hillbilly SQ (Jan 26, 2007)

durwood said:


> If you go back into advanced edit mode you can correct your title I believe.
> 
> Thanks for the review. Looks liek a great budget speaker well worth the dough.


they're the cd18's. my brain is mushy right now. not good.


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## mach999 (Jul 28, 2007)

Mine should arrive tomorrow, I can't wait. Please keep us posted.


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## Hillbilly SQ (Jan 26, 2007)

ok the only gripe i have with them is the vocals can get a little muddy if you aren't bad careful. i think it's an upper midbass issue moreso than anything. or maybe i'm used to having better clarity overall considering the drivers i've run in the past. they're great FOR THE MONEY.


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## mk1982 (Jul 3, 2005)

how are these compared to the the RNX series ?


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## Hillbilly SQ (Jan 26, 2007)

ok with more tuning these mids are sounding a lot better. i had to cut the midbass a little and 800hz by -5db with a q of 3. also had to cut 4khz a little even though i'm crossed below that. these are definately a powerful sounding pair of drivers.


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## Preacher (May 8, 2006)

Have the vocals cleaned up any?


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## Hillbilly SQ (Jan 26, 2007)

they cleaned up nicely when i cut the midbass and 800hz range. and i think the cones are getting limbered up too.


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## RedMed427 (Feb 9, 2007)

Can someone post a link for the lazy people.


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## Ga foo 88 (Dec 18, 2005)

http://www.madisound.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=8188 those and seas neos for about 100 bucks........hmm. 

Did anyone ever like the 8 in seas OEM mids, that were on sale for a while at madisound?


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## Hillbilly SQ (Jan 26, 2007)

oh, i will say that if realestate between the cone and grill are at a premium these mids can belt out A LOT of midbass with just a couple mm of excursion. definately a plus for me since my stock grills get really close to the mid.


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## Babs (Jul 6, 2007)

Preacher said:


> Have the vocals cleaned up any?


I wonder if it would be worth the jump to say the CA18's.. 
$167.40 with alum neos approximately.  
Unless we can get that timbre audio group buy going.. Then I'm stepping up.


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## npdang (Jul 29, 2005)

Great review! However, I wouldn't confuse stronger low end sensitivity (something you can also EQ btw), with more bass output. The L18's IIRC have a clear displacement advantage over the cd18's.


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## Hillbilly SQ (Jan 26, 2007)

npdang said:


> Great review! However, I wouldn't confuse stronger low end sensitivity (something you can also EQ btw), with more bass output. The L18's IIRC have a clear displacement advantage over the cd18's.


yeah i'm thinking the midbass of the cd18's is standing out because it's a lot more in your face than the L18's. the L18's were however a lot more pure driver in the midbass region for sq but the cd18's are so much more forgiving on bad recordings and easier to work with. the L18's were wonderful until i'd pop in a less than perfect recording another thing i like about the cd18's is i can get the desired midbass out of them and only have a few mm of throw accomplishing the task. that means the stock grills on my doors can be pushed all the way onthese are keepers. i'm definately happy with them so far.


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## chuyler1 (Apr 10, 2006)

I'd be interested in hearing a review of these against the CA18RNX...specifically with someone who has 100w or less @ 4ohms to work with. My CA18s sound great but my amp runs out of power sooner than I would like. I'm thinking this might be a sideways step to get more power at a slight sacrifice in midrange detail.


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## Hillbilly SQ (Jan 26, 2007)

chuyler1 said:


> I'd be interested in hearing a review of these against the CA18RNX...specifically with someone who has 100w or less @ 4ohms to work with. My CA18s sound great but my amp runs out of power sooner than I would like. I'm thinking this might be a sideways step to get more power at a slight sacrifice in midrange detail.


never even heard the ca18's but i will say that the 75rms i have going to them is keeping them happy. gotta love being able to feel the midbass rattle your insides. makes heavy metal fun i'm about to put well over 100rms to each. i'm definately liking these mids so far. all around i couldn't have made a better choice especially for the price.


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## jinx8402 (Apr 26, 2006)

I actually just ordered the cd18-mds. I already have ca18rnx's installed. I am ordering new amps as well. As soon as I get a chance to, I'll try to compare the two. I will for-warn you that I don't know a whole lot on tonal qualities and such for comparisons. 

Anyone know of a good way to compare the speakers? Should I leave one ca18rnx installed and install one of the cd18-mds and keep switching left to right? Not sure how I can accomplish a side by side any other way.


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## fearthisskyy (Jun 29, 2007)

lol i wouldn't do that, i would listen to your CA18 try and remember all the qualities it has (write it down to help remember) then place in the CD18 and write down the qualities. (think along the lines of sound stage, imaging, tone, depth, placement of instruments and vocals, details, realism, dynamics)

you have to have both speakers in or else the imaging could be off or just mixed, you wouldn't know what is producing what


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## Hillbilly SQ (Jan 26, 2007)

switching left to right might not be a good idea. location of the mids wouldn't be a very good control. i'd just take notes of the ca18's and then compare the notes to the cd18's. first thing you'll notice is the extremely forward sound the cd18's have. the lower frequency extension will also rattle you with midbass. i actually had to CUT my midbass. you'll also have to make a hefty cut at 800hz with a wide q-factor or cut 600-1200hz with the graphic.


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## chuyler1 (Apr 10, 2006)

How high can they play? Will they meet up with my lpg 25nfa tweets?


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## GlasSman (Nov 14, 2006)

Mine should be arriving today. I can't wait to play with these.

Chuyler...I believe they are a bit erratic up high but with a little EQ you can tame out the irregularities. I'm hoping they work well up high since I'm planning on putting the tweeters in the A-Pillars with mids in the kicks.


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## jinx8402 (Apr 26, 2006)

Yeah, I kinda figured that wasn't going to be a good test lol. And like I said, I don't have much experience as far as comparing a few different speakers to each other. I will also be using LPG's for now in my install, so I will be able to tell you if they blend together well. Though I am using the alum. 26 and not 25nfa.


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## chuyler1 (Apr 10, 2006)

Jinx, what is your xover point and slope right now for reference?


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## jinx8402 (Apr 26, 2006)

I'm not exactly sure...lol...i set that up about a year ago and haven't touched it since...I can go look at it later to see what i used. I have the 880prs...so for a while i just kept changing the points to get to a sweet spot, and eventually liked what I heard and haven't looked at it since.


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## mk1982 (Jul 3, 2005)

have you got the cd18s yet jinx ?


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## jinx8402 (Apr 26, 2006)

I just installed everything in yesterday. Haven't given it a fair listen yet to give my thoughts on both sets.

For reference, my old crossover points were: 
Mid: 63hz/24db slope & 2500hz/12 db slope. 
Tweeter: 3150hz/24db slope. 
On certain songs/CDs I woul actually cross the tweets at 4000hz with a 18db slope.


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## GlasSman (Nov 14, 2006)

These speakers are not the Madisound website anymore. They used to list an item as sold out and keep the picture up. Maybe these are gone for good.


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## Hillbilly SQ (Jan 26, 2007)

GlasSman said:


> These speakers are not the Madisound website anymore. They used to list an item as sold out and keep the picture up. Maybe these are gone for good.


yeah, dejo was considering them too. they definately are worth a lot more than what we all paid for them. they have that clean natural sound to them and vocals will rattle your skull out at times. it's like the singer is in the truck with ya. i love mine and know they would be hard to match quality-wise dollar for dollar. i'm keeping mine alive for as long as possible.


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## BEAVER (May 26, 2007)

I was afraid this might happen so I picked up a set right away. They are still sitting in my garage and I'm not sure I'll ever get around to installing them. I'm thinking about selling my truck, so I may never get to use them. If that happens, I'll see if anyone here wants to buy them before they go anywhere else.


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## GlasSman (Nov 14, 2006)

ZR2003 said:


> I was afraid this might happen so I picked up a set right away. They are still sitting in my garage and I'm not sure I'll ever get around to installing them. I'm thinking about selling my truck, so I may never get to use them. If that happens, I'll see if anyone here wants to buy them before they go anywhere else.



First get them out of the garage and put them in the basement or someplace cool. Keep those things mint. I don't care how clean a garage is....it's no place for expensive audio equipment. Especially if something gets dropped on them or they fall on concrete.


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## GlasSman (Nov 14, 2006)

TEAM SHIMANO/FALCON said:


> yeah, dejo was considering them too. they definately are worth a lot more than what we all paid for them. they have that clean natural sound to them and vocals will rattle your skull out at times. it's like the singer is in the truck with ya. I love mine and know they would be hard to match quality-wise dollar for dollar. I'm keeping mine alive for as long as possible.


Judging from tyroneshoes's review do you think the ER18RNX is comparable?


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## azngotskills (Feb 24, 2006)

GlasSman said:


> Judging from tyroneshoes's review do you think the ER18RNX is comparable?


I really dont understand why everyone is going crazy over this driver? I can understand its appeal due to price, but saying its comparable to any other Seas RNX driver is misleading IMO. Just look at the frequency response comparisons and you can see exactly what im talking about, thats just one point


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## Hillbilly SQ (Jan 26, 2007)

azngotskills said:


> I really dont understand why everyone is going crazy over this driver? I can understand its appeal due to price, but saying its comparable to any other Seas RNX driver is misleading IMO. Just look at the frequency response comparisons and you can see exactly what im talking about, thats just one point


i don't think i ever said it was as good or better than any of the rnx drivers, but it's definately a good flexible driver for cheap bastards like me. maybe mine just like the install they're in  midbass is good and midrange clarity is great too. my next mids will most likely be the lotus performance mids for what it's worth.


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## azngotskills (Feb 24, 2006)

The post wasnt directed at you, just in general  I just dont think it compares to the CA18RNX, L18RNX, ER18RNX, etc I do agree that it is certainly a great budget performer but expecting performance to be like the RNX drivers seems to be misleading.


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## GlasSman (Nov 14, 2006)

Sorry about the enthusiasm. I'm moving from MB Quart to SEAS. I have to do it in baby steps.


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## azngotskills (Feb 24, 2006)

Im sorry if i came off that way, my apologies and it wasnt directed to anyone in particular. I think they are a good performer but i dont want potential buyers to think they are getting a Seas RNX driver for the fraction of the price. They are different and i think made for different applications and price points like many other driver lines of other companies. Please dont let anything members say put you down, its ultimately your decision, money, and your the one listening to them


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## unpredictableacts (Aug 16, 2006)

TEAM SHIMANO/FALCON said:


> yeah, dejo was considering them too. they definately are worth a lot more than what we all paid for them. they have that clean natural sound to them and vocals will rattle your skull out at times. it's like the singer is in the truck with ya. i love mine and know they would be hard to match quality-wise dollar for dollar. i'm keeping mine alive for as long as possible.


If he wants to trade those PRS mids let me know.


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## Hillbilly SQ (Jan 26, 2007)

unpredictableacts said:


> If he wants to trade those PRS mids let me know.


i think he's going to keep the prs set in his silvy and put some cdt hd6 mids i sold him cheap last year on his type-x passives and tweets in the camino. you could always ask though


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## JAX (Jun 2, 2006)

glad I got mine before they sold out...


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## GlasSman (Nov 14, 2006)

I have to get off my lazy ass and build some new kicks for these drivers.


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## GlasSman (Nov 14, 2006)

azngotskills said:


> Im sorry if i came off that way, my apologies and it wasnt directed to anyone in particular. I think they are a good performer but i dont want potential buyers to think they are getting a Seas RNX driver for the fraction of the price. They are different and i think made for different applications and price points like many other driver lines of other companies. Please dont let anything members say put you down, its ultimately your decision, money, and your the one listening to them



No offense taken. From the reviews it was between these and the ER Reed cone woofers. Obviously considering the price this is where I started. At the same price I could have went either way.


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