"We've known Scott for many years as an aggressive competitor and a true expert in autosound technology," states Keith Lehmann, president of MB QUART USA. "His audio talents are coupled with his deep knowledge of product application and materials, making him one of the most credible individuals in our industry. But our main attraction to Scott is his ability to connect with people and share his passion with others. He's a well-balanced person with extreme dedication; the type who can demonstrate his knowledge and capabilities to everyone's benefit."

This year, Scott will compete with his 1995 Nissan 240SX Special Edition in the Expert 601+ category. In addition to his competition schedule, Scott will be a fixture at selected MB QUART participating events in a system tuning and advisory role for MB QUART competitors and enthusiasts. With almost a decade of MB QUART experience, Scott possesses intimate knowledge of the performance, application and creative usage of MB QUART products for maximum effect. "What separates Scott from other industry-supported competitors is his willingness to share his knowledge and experience," explains Keith Lehmann. "We share a common desire to educate others and spread a positive message about mobile electronics."

In other news, MB QUART has more than words for its dealers regarding its commitment to participation in industry associations. Dealer membership fees to two key associations are being rebated back to authorized dealers in an effort to have them take advantage of the respective benefits provided by both associations.

Explaining the rationale behind this program, MB QUART USA president Keith Lehmann says "Our dealers have given us incredible market presence and business growth over the years, so now it’s our obligation to place significant promotional and developmental resources at their doors. We believe that IASCA and MERA represent a solid bilateral collection of benefits and resources that are critical for continued success in a tough marketplace."

Each association was chosen based upon its industry longevity and support. IASCA is the industry’s oldest and most proven worldwide sanctioning body with the tools for a dealer to gain exposure, credibility and excitement within it’s immediate market. MB QUART is a founding member of IASCA and has supported the association in multiple ways over the past 13 years.

MERA (Mobile Electronics Retailers Association) can be credited with bringing a heightened level of professionalism and skill to the independent specialty retail network. From a pure business standpoint, MERA has instructed dealers on the sophisticated nature of business planning and merchandising. The results here are evident. MB QUART is a charter member of MERA since its inception in 1997.

Authorized MB QUART retailers can receive a credit simply by submitting a proof-of-payment claim and a copy of their membership application to their MB QUART sales representative. Membership information can be obtained by contacting MB QUART.

MB QUART has also placed a significant emphasis on the marine audio market in 2001 with the introduction of three new models of Nautic Line loudspeakers.

"The opportunity to a offer high-end alternative to conventional marine loudspeakers was something MB QUART identified eight years ago," states Keith Lehmann. "The customer for this level of product has been somewhat disillusioned by the mainstream product offerings and demands a better product that is more in tune with their overall need for high performance accessories. This year’s Nautic Line is perfectly suited for this customer."

New for 2001 is the NKD 116 6-inch (160mm) 2-way coaxial marine loudspeaker, handling 130 watts of peak power and incorporating a corrosion- and UV-resistant ABS composite basket and grille, polypropylene cone, butyl rubber surround, integrated 12dB/octave passive crossover and 19mm pure titanium/neodymium tweeter. The NKA 116 6-inch (160mm) 2-way coaxial marine loudspeaker uses a powder coated sealed metal basket, ABS composite grille and magnet cover, integrated 12 dB/octave passive crossover and 13mm pure titanium tweeter. To address the need for bass (the frequency, not the fish), MB QUART introduces the NWD 254 10-inch (250mm) marine subwoofer. This woofer also uses an ABS composite basket and grille, polypropylene cone, butyl rubber surround and corrosion-resistant input terminals. Rounding out the Nautic Line, MB QUART will continue to offer the QM218.19 Nautic 6-inch (160mm) 2-way marine component loudspeaker system with ABS composite basket, 19mm tweeter and external 12 dB/octave crossover.

In even more MB QUART news, the company continues in its tradition of providing the highest degree of support and instruction to IASCA competitors and autosound enthusiasts by holding another competitor’s support clinic at the 15th Annual Spring Break Nationals Soundoff and Exposition, which took place March 23-25 in Daytona Beach, Florida.

The MB QUART Competition Support Team conducted a series of tuning, repair and product replacement services for MB QUART competitors on a priority basis, but the clinic was open to all competitors regardless of whether or not they were using MB QUART products. "Opening the clinic up to everyone is our way of showing respect to all competitors," explains Keith Lehmann. "We also learned a lot about how competitors use other branded products simply by offering our services to them. The goal here is not to convert competitors to MB QUART but to extract the best possible performance from their systems."

The MB QUART Competition Support Team is headed by Brian Sherman, technical marketing manager of MB QUART USA. Brian is joined by Darren Grebe of MB QUART, along with Gregg Schwartz and David Lee of Abt Electronics, Morton Grove IL. A key addition in 2001 is Scott Buwalda, a veteran autosound competitor and respected authority on installation, fabrication and system tuning. Scott was available to advise SBN competitors and to share his substantial knowledge of product, materials, acoustics and (for the rock hounds) geology.

Finally, MB QUART, proving once again that creative thinking and industry partnership can produce impressive results, has completed yet another unique demonstration vehicle that was presented at the 2001 Spring Break Nationals Soundoff.

Explaining the philosophy behind this new venture, MB QUART president Keith Lehmann says "When MB QUART unveiled the MB Ski at the 2000 Spring Break Nationals, we realized that an attention-getting tradition could be started if we made a genuine creative commitment and got more people involved at the beginning. We intend to use this vehicle to promote the creative side of mobile electronics by showing off new installation techniques and cutting-edge products used in a vehicle that people would expect to see in a James Bond movie."

The MBC-1 began life as a German BMW C1 scooter, but the term "scooter" does not accurately describe the vehicle. The C1 is a two-wheeled personal commuter vehicle currently available only in Europe with the capability of traveling 60 miles per hour. "If this is a scooter, it’s the first one I’ve seen with windshield wipers, seatbelts and a sunroof," observes Lehmann.

The MBC-1 partnership began between MB QUART and David "Fishman" Rivera of Fishman Audio in Miramar, Florida, immediately following last year’s Spring Break Nationals. It was decided early on that the audio equipment should strictly complement the chosen vehicle, thus an Alpine audio/video system was incorporated using the CVA-1005 mutimedia system controller, DVA-5205 DVD player, PHA-H510 Dolby Digital 5.1 digital sound processor, MRD-F572 five-channel amplifier and MRP-F306 two-channel amplifier. The MB QUART products used in the system are the RKC116 6-inch coaxial loudspeakers, RKC110 4-inch coaxial loudspeakers and PWD254 10-inch subwoofer. Stinger provided the interconnections and installation materials.

The Fishman installation began by completely rebuilding the front and back body panels of the C1, using Fiberglas, gelcoat and steel. The original side lighting was integrated into the front speaker pods, and a center channel loudspeaker pod was constructed. A unique rear surround module was built to house the 4-inch coaxials, and the challenge of locating two amplifiers and a 10-inch subwoofer with enclosure was met through careful planning, countless labor hours and perhaps more than a few Heinekens. The video screen, DVD player and DSP module needed to be user accessible when seated in the driving position, not an easy task when confronted with limited space. Delivering the MBC-1 to Daytona Beach in time for Spring Break Nationals was a major challenge for Rivera, who explains "I’ve never done anything like this before, and the small spaces I had to work with forced me to be more creative than ever. Plus it’s a BMW with incredible quality, so I needed to build it like BMW would build it. But I’m satisfied with the result, and it’s just like something James Bond would drive. Maybe we’ll install a machine gun and smoke cannon, but I gotta talk to Keith about it."

The MBC-1 will tour selected MB QUART dealers and appear at a few major events throughout 2001.

For more information, contact MB QUART at 800-962-7757.

Link for more info: www.mbquart.com