Hello - considering purchasing either a set of MB Quart DSH 216 splits or Alpine SPR-17Ssplits. Both are
in a similar price bracket $200-250. They will be powered via an external 4 ch amp.

I've listened to the Alpine's and they seemed OK. Anyone on the forums have any experience with the MB's?
I know while they are 'engineered in Germany' they are now in fact made in China! (not surprising really) Nonetheless, online reviews rate them favourably.

Thoughts / comments appreciated.

Buy the MB Quarts and be done with it.

Much smoother response, and sounds like a German speaker.

I agree i dont really hear any good things about the Type S series, but i dont think i've heard anything bad about MB Quart. Also those are terrific entry level speakers.

i would not buy anything less the type-r with alpine

I wouldn't take the Type-S. I don't mind Type-R but not for the price... but i also don't like MB Quartz cheap stuff. Or any of their stuff to be blunt.

I've never heard a really good clinical install using BMQ, sharp yet forgiving, accurate, smooth and soothing. They are some of the things I'm listening for when I judge a speaker and MBQ haven't cut the cheese yet.

Unfortunately I don't know a hell of a lot about the speakers on the market atm in the $250 range so I'm really not much help past my last comments!

Boston Type S and Cresendo Opus 1 might be worth a look.

Thanks for the replies... yes, I was looking at the S60 Boston's as another contender in the price bracket, and some others as well. I mainly narrowed it down to these two on the basis of availability and some +'ve reviews.

Woob - thanks for the comments too. I suspect most of the speakers I'm looking at will deliver an improvement over the stock splits I'm currently running.

On the whole sounds like the Alpine's get the thumbs down.

Yes Alpine do get thumbs down from anyone who knows enough about car audio. Even their type R's arent great because for the money you are paying for their brand name you can get much better. Alpine are good for their headunits, processors and amps however.

havent heard the S60's but the SL60 and FS60's (next step up) are some of the best bang for your buck speakers on the market imo. I regard Boston very very highly

They have changed their range a little while ago.

I have had both the FS60 and SL60's. The range now goes:
S60, 55WRMS, S3 Soft Dome tweeter, high sens, replacement for FS60
SC60, 65WRMS, S2 Kortec Dome Tweeter
SR60, 85WRMS, S1 Kortec Dome Tweeter, Dual Heatsink for woofer, replacement for SL60

I can say that the SL-60's where a huge improvement over the entry level splits. Have had them for a few years and love the kick they give time after time. Tweeter was a massive improvement as well, slightly smoother without losing it's harsh edge that I like. :D

I have never been an Alpine fan, they seem to get more hype then what they are really worth.

MB Quarts have a nice sound to them although not the most cosmetically appealing speaker, behind stock grills no one is going to know..

I would also have to recommend the Bostons... They have the Sound to match their reputation.

If we are expanding past the original spec I would suggest you try and find a set of Hertz splits to listen to. Good value, the tweeter maybe isn't as as smooth as the MB or Bostons, but still a pleasant sound with more mid-range presence. It comes down to your preference at the end of the day. Listen to as many as you can!

Well I've gone with the MBs... mainly on the strength of their reviews and reputation. Installation will have to wait a couple of weeks funds permitting, as I will also require dynamat for the doors plus a suitable amp wiring kit. I'll post a review once it's all done for the benefit of the audio fans on this site.

I found it funny everyone was commenting on Alpine Type S splits, when you were actually talking about Type R's lol

Agree with Munky, the Hertz are very nice. But imo can't go past Focal's even their entry(Access Series) models.

Out of the 2 on offer I think you made the right choice.

I am glad to see you are ticking all the boxes and looking to get the maximum out of your new speakers.

May I suggest some diffuser pads for behind your mid woofers. Dynazorb, Focal Chant, Cresendo all make decent pads.

May I suggest some diffuser pads for behind your mid woofers. Dynazorb, Focal Chant, Cresendo all make decent pads.
I've always used the Jaycar ones, almost sharted when I saw they have doubled in price! But still @ $30 they are just as good.

Yeah my first car had them but since they are $30, I get the Dynazorb because they are only $40 now. :D

Oh really? wow, thought they'd be like $100 lol
I know the Focal ones were rrp around $70

Yeah Dynazorb are RRP$49 for a pair, Focal Chant is RRP$99 for a pair, Cresendo pads are RRP$39 each.

I was going to get the Jaycars again for this install, might give the Dynazorb a shot.

Before looking into DynaXorb and anything like that i would recommend a door kit of Dynamat. The way i think about them is, they are adding mass behind the speaker to stop resonance where as dynamat will really do the same thing and you can cover more area. Im not saying not to get Dynaxorbs but i would suggest using it as a last resort if you dont have the sound you want from $250 (not saying to expect K2 Power sounds with Deadner). Also something else to look into is sealing of the service holes to prevent air leaking from the cavity, this can be done with 3mm MDF covered in Paint (to protect from Moisture) or Sound Deadner. Or for smaller holes small bits of deadner will do.

You will be surprise what you can get from a good door install. Below is a pic of mine and i would probally do the same thing even if my speakers were only $250

http://img338.imageshack.us/img338/1084/sany0870.jpg
By peaandham (http://profile.imageshack.us/user/peaandham) at 2010-06-28

He already mentioned he is going to Dynamat the doors ;)

This is my Lancer door, sorry didn't take a finished shot but you get the idea...

http://img5.imageshack.us/img5/1985/p6130061e.jpg

May I suggest some diffuser pads for behind your mid woofers. Dynazorb, Focal Chant, Cresendo all make decent pads.

Thanks for the comments. I spoke to someone from a fairly reputable local store about Dynaxorb and his suggestion was not to bother unless I was spending significantly more on the speakers - ie. at the lower end of the market, this kind of product won't do much for the overall sound quality.

Thanks for the comments. I spoke to someone from a fairly reputable local store about Dynaxorb and his suggestion was not to bother unless I was spending significantly more on the speakers - ie. at the lower end of the market, this kind of product won't do much for the overall sound quality.

No offence to him, but even $20 coax's will benefit from it, what they do is stop the soundwaves/air bouncing around inside your doors, these cancel each other out, losing midbass.
These absorb it and stop the cancellation resulting in more output for the same amount of power. :)

No offence to him, but even $20 coax's will benefit from it, what they do is stop the soundwaves/air bouncing around inside your doors, these cancel each other out, losing midbass.
These absorb it and stop the cancellation resulting in more output for the same amount of power. :)

+1 to that.

I've also got some MB Quarts discus series splits & 6x9's. They've sounded so much clearer and cripser at higher (most) volumes than the Type-R's and Hertz I've listened too. Even a full-on DLS install. Perhaps they just have better axis placement (by fluke mind you), mind you I do like crisp and probably on the sharp side high's & my mid range is pretty much non-existant (not amped and no deadening).

If I were to buy a new set I'd probably go Morel or Focal. I could only wish for Rainbow's! Oooooooooooh

A bit late i know, but to the OP, did you check out German Maestro's? They are made in the same factory in which the German made MB's used to be made so the are pretty much the replacement for the original MB's. I myslef have got a pair of coaxials for the fronts and they sound the goods!!! very pleased with them!

I was running a pair of Focal 165 V2 Polyglass splits, custon MDF baffles, dynamat. Off a Audison 130rms x4 amp running active from a Alpine CDA-7998R, it sounded fantastic, added a set of (at the time, $15) Jaycar acoustic tiles, and it was astounding on the kick the mids gave off. It felt like someone was slapping me on the side of my leg.

So I always do it since.

No offence to people that go straight for Dyanxorb's, but we all know Dynaxorbs reaslisticly sit ontop of the matt inside the door cavity, but for the OP if he does the matting correctly with something like a door pack of Dynamat then there should be no need for an Deadner Tile. I have seen and studied alot of the work FHRX in Sydney does on High End Audio Gear and they really only use it on install that they go all out on. I run a a set of Focal Polyglass splits and i see no need for Acoustic Tiles, you will benefit more from sealing the service holes with 3mm MDF and Dynamat, and using 12mm+ MDF for a speaker baffle and then Acoustic/Deadner Tiles can be sought after but i wouldnt even bother with anything less that $500 splits.

This has been an interesting read, thanks for all the posts. In reality, Dynaxorb (& I only use this as it is the example I'm familiar with) isn't expensive, so I could add it to the list on top of the Dynamat. The person I spoke to a number of weeks back presented a view similar to 'peaandham' - only high end installations really warrant using the stuff as to the average ear it won't make much difference to a lower end set of speakers. But I'm no expert on this stuff (far from it), hence I've been attempting to read up and find out as much as I can.

This has been an interesting read, thanks for all the posts. In reality, Dynaxorb (& I only use this as it is the example I'm familiar with) isn't expensive, so I could add it to the list on top of the Dynamat. The person I spoke to a number of weeks back presented a view similar to 'peaandham' - only high end installations really warrant using the stuff as to the average ear it won't make much difference to a lower end set of speakers. But I'm no expert on this stuff (far from it), hence I've been attempting to read up and find out as much as I can.

Thats why I personally love forums, you have so much info from so many different people. You take what you find useful and relative to your situation and tastes.
Big source of learning for me over the years.

No offence to people that go straight for Dyanxorb's, but we all know Dynaxorbs reaslisticly sit ontop of the matt inside the door cavity, but for the OP if he does the matting correctly with something like a door pack of Dynamat then there should be no need for an Deadner Tile. I have seen and studied alot of the work FHRX in Sydney does on High End Audio Gear and they really only use it on install that they go all out on. I run a a set of Focal Polyglass splits and i see no need for Acoustic Tiles, you will benefit more from sealing the service holes with 3mm MDF and Dynamat, and using 12mm+ MDF for a speaker baffle and then Acoustic/Deadner Tiles can be sought after but i wouldnt even bother with anything less that $500 splits.

You are not going to offend anyone.

I got my 2nd and 3rd cars front stage installed there, $250 and $500 splits respectively and both had diffuser pads :D

Like deadening, it is a personal choice on how far you want to go with your doors.

If you see a seriously prepared door, all service holes will be covered, 2x layers of Dyanamat Xtreme, 1x layer of Dynaliner, Multiple Acoustic Tiles. Not many people do that though :P

You are not going to offend anyone.
Like deadening, it is a personal choice on how far you want to go with your doors.


And that is the key here.

I just think that $40 could be better spent on MDF, Deadner, Sealant until he upgrades from Entry Level Splits.

Heres a good example of Seriously Prepared.

Dynaliner on the door trim
http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/1125/97359722.jpg
By peaandham (http://profile.imageshack.us/user/peaandham) at 2010-07-16
Doors and service holes Matted, only gap is for lock rods and atleast one Dynaxorb
http://img155.imageshack.us/img155/1566/47509792.jpg
By peaandham (http://profile.imageshack.us/user/peaandham) at 2010-07-16

So... long time between posts, I'm now half way through my installation and have a question. The stock front cones have a plug with four wires going into it... I've now installed the left channel (mids & tweeters with crossover) w/out dramas into the front door. However, I'm curious as to what the extra two wires going into the stock speaker are for... they are white and black but thinner than the main speaker wires. (My stock system has the separate woofer and tweeter - the wires I refer to are not the tweeter wires) Anyone have any thoughts?