Question about component speakers and matching crossovers

[Latina33 10+ year member]

I've got a set of MB Quart midbass speakers, and the right front midbass driver seems to rattle like it is blown. I'll be replacing the Quart midbass drivers with a pair of Focal midbass drivers soon, and I will keep the MB Quart tweeters in to run with the Focal drivers.

With that being said, do I need to take the crossover out when I get the Quart midbass uninstalled, and put in the Focal crossover to run with the Focal midbass drivers? Or does the crossover module in a component set have a more direct affect on the performance of the tweeters?

I was told by one installer that if I swap out the Quart drivers for the Focals, I'd need to install the Focal crossovers, also.....even if I'm going to be using MB Quart tweets.

Any experience or advice would be appreciated!

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[Beat_Dominator 5,000+ posts]

Well, a passive x-over usually does some impedence and level matching for the tweeter.... I would say it's safest to use the x-over that matches the tweeter more than the other way around. Either way it's going to be hit-or-miss whether it sounds right or not, especially with Focals, as they often have very odd impedences in their drivers.

We sometimes forget that these companies pay engineers a ton of money to properly design passive x-overs to match the drivers being used.

 

[yacob.naif 10+ year member]

stay above the resonance, and below the -10db high rolloff

and you want to high pass the tweet steep, and rolloff the woofer slower

if you play a tweeter at it's resonance, it will honk, and much below it, you'll destroy it

i wouldn't just 'guess' if that's what you're asking

 

[Notwerk 10+ year member]

Well, if you're keeping the Quart tweets, and want to stay passive, use the Quart passives. It's very unlikely you'll blow the mid. Theorically, you'd probably be OK to run the mid without a passive at all, it'll just be muddy in the high notes.

The tweeter, on the other hand, is much more sensitive. Using the Focal crossover could be dangerous to the tweet.

It's not ideal, but I'd just put the Focal mids on the Quart crossovers.

Going active would be a better solution, if you don't mind the pain in the butt/hardware.

 

[Latina33 10+ year member]

Well, if you're keeping the Quart tweets, and want to stay passive, use the Quart passives. It's very unlikely you'll blow the mid. Theorically, you'd probably be OK to run the mid without a passive at all, it'll just be muddy in the high notes.
The tweeter, on the other hand, is much more sensitive. Using the Focal crossover could be dangerous to the tweet.

It's not ideal, but I'd just put the Focal mids on the Quart crossovers.

Going active would be a better solution, if you don't mind the pain in the butt/hardware.

Thanks again for your helpful input, Notwerk. I guess I need to read up more on the differenses and pros/cons of having either a passive versus an active setup.

But for now, if I decide to swap the Quart mids out with the Focals, and keep the Quart crossovers, do you think there will be much of a sound quality/clarity difference?

 

[computerparts 10+ year member]

MB Quart and Focal.... I wouldn't recommend mismatching pieces like that at all.

 

[Notwerk 10+ year member]

There's too many variables to tell. It may sound fine, it may not. You can try it, as I'm pretty sure it won't hurt the mids, but no telling whether it'll sound as good as it did. Passives are made for the specific gear they work with, it's a gamble as to whether it'll work with anything else.