I don't know if it's the best, but I've pretty much only been going to Perth RC on Stirling street for the last couple of years. They used to have more maxx related stuff than some other places, and I've raced in the e-maxx class with 3 of the people that have worked there. (only one guy is still there though - Aari).

Hi guys,

Yes, I know Perth RC. They're pretty helpful. they sell a lot of plane & heli stuff too. Bought my Futaba 9CHP & an OS Vspec from them on a whim last year when I was visiting. Went to the one in Murray street but got no service from them.

Regards,
Joe Ling

Has anyone heard anything on these controllers recently?

I see Horizon has them listed as preorder, $258 for the MK03. I saw the MK03 in stock in Aus, @$339.

Wow!!!
 

Well now I am feeling even luckier knowing that we are moving to Seoul, Korea in August:yipi:. We were stationed there in 2004, but transfered to Brussels, Belgium in 2005. I am resuming custody of my three kids and moving to Korea in just a few months for a 3 to 4 year posting. My 2 boys (11 & 12) are very excited about the premise of getting into the RC hobby with me. I have 4 versions of the EMaxx already built up ready for new electronics. I conducted these projects knowing how rough kids can be on RC vehicles. All metal construction through and through. The boys will each get one and learn from there. The other two Maxx's are pretty expensive $$$$ and will remain under my control, but I am sure that they will have a blast racing/bashing with me. I am feeling pretty lucky knowing that I will have the best of both worlds at hand. I will have easy access to Quark products up front, and still have a hand in the US market using the internet and the APO system. This really is my year:party:.:lol::lol::lol:

It sounds like we may need a few of the SSB MK-III's to outfit our trucks. I look forward to getting settled in there in the fall.:whistle:

Hmmm. $258 but not until mid June. Looks like it will be a race between this and the MMM. First one across the finish line will get my $.

Game on CC. :na:

Game on indeed, that great news. I like the fact it will run sensored and sensorless, with or with the cable plugged in. I wonder how the 6.5motor will deal with 6s and 70,000rpms.....

lol... Wear your flack jacket when you try it. Can you say GRENADE:oh:

I was thinking 'atomic pepper-grinder' myself....:mdr:

It'll be nice though, being able to experiment with lots of different motors and voltages upto 6s- bound to find something that makes me happy.

Maybe.
 

Or maybe something that will just crack you up for an hour after watching it explode into a million pieces:rofl: It is nice to see guys who really enjoy laying it on the line and going for broke. It is videos like that, that keep us comming back again and again and again.:lol:

My friends, any more experiences with MK3? No one says anything about one, very important in Monsters thing - is Quark waterproof? CC claims MMM will be, that is hell of an advantage...

Unless the $300+ price includes that entire box kit??? With the portable programing card??? That is just too cool to pass up even for a second or third ESC for your collection.

http://www.horizonhobby.com/Products...dID=SQBSSBMK03

Here it is on horizon. From what I understand it does come with the programing box as a package.

However... with Quarks recent dissolution of its USA based support, I'm a little hesitant to spend my money with them unless they prove they are keeping the customer service and support at a reasonable level. At this point it sounds as if they are struggling with that.

With the Mamba Monster release just around the corner and priced at under $200, I personally wouldn't even think of owning a Quark. I think Quark is going to find it tough to sell these in the US market once the Mamba Monster is unveiled.

I can tell you one reason I would be interested in the new Quark over the Monster Max. The SIZE. mounting the Monster Max in a buggy is gonna be a trick. Its like finding a place to mount a pack of cigarettes on your buggy. The Quark looks to be a more reasoanable size IMO. In a truggy or Monster Truck where space is less of an issue the MMM size will likely not matter.

The other thing is that nice looking portable programing box. That looks way better than a commputer interface IMO. I dont know about you, but I dont ever take my computer out with me when I run, but that little box would fit into the gear bag.

The Quark is technically specked as a 1/10 controller just like the 125B was so its probably not a quantum leap better than the 125B, but hopefully it will at least have the heat issue addressed with a normal stly heat sink and the 6s full charge stuttering issues addressed. If they did that I think that it could be a really nice little controller.

At this point nobody has tested the MMM, but the quark is released in other parts of the world already and is getting some excellent reviews.

Now if they just come up with a plan for some reasonable customer support in the USA...
Its really a shame to cuz they were one of the best up untill a couple months ago. Hopefully they come up with a plan.

I don't know about you... but I think this is awesome that we are so many choices showing up in the market.

Hello, Jerry.
You sound very happy about coming back to Korea with your kids. Good for you. Korea will welcome you and your son. It will be cool to race my Gorilla Revo with your E-maxx. Anyway, until then, take care.

I do like having choices, but after hearing about how many Quarks went up in flames, mysteriously stopped working and/or didn't work on 6S, I really have my doubts as to their quality. Also, taking into account their lack of service in the US lately, Castle will get my money. I'd rather support a company that I know will support the consumer if a problem arises. Even if I have to pay a flat rate fee for a MM repair, it's still better than having a $275 paperweight.

Thanks.
 

Hey Shawn where are you located there? And thank you for the words of encouragement. We are happy to be comeing back there, and I am excited about the boys getting into this hobby, because it is a lot better than some other things that they could be getting into. I hope to hook up and see you there, and we will definitely do some racing comparisons. See you in August.

Not trying to argue or convince you, but untill this recent change at Quark I had not heard of a single person that had a problem with quark service. As a matter of fact they were praised by many as being better response than Castle and just about any bad esc was replaced with little to no questions asked. And I certainly didnt hear of any unusually high number of Quarks going bad. As a matter of fact I personally think they were one of the more reliable and best fuctioning controllers out there. Yes they had their quirks, (poor case design for heat, 6s gave some strange issues when the pack was fully peaked) but so far every controller out there does have quirks, and right now you are comparing it to a MMM tht nobody has tested or even seen in real life. I gaurantee there will be some quirks with the MMM also, they just havent been found yet cuz nobody has run it yet. Hopefully Im wrong and its perfect for under $200.

All Im saying is IMO in general Quark makes a quality controller and if the new generation Quarks have the heat issue fixed with the normal stlye heat sink and the fully charged 6s issue addresses, they will be a very solid controller.

Will they sell more of them for use in MT and 1/8 applications than the MMM? Doubtfull. But, if they can come up with a decent support plan for the US market I think that it could be a very nice option.

I think i've read of more 125b's exploding than any other controller on the market. Cheap junk included. Problems with other quark models seem to have been very few and far between. It's just the 125b. Pushing the limits of the design I think. Hopefully the new ones will be better, and we will see US support returning.

I believe there are 3 reasons why you hear more exploding Quark stories:

1) There were (until recently) one of the few sensorless ESCs that were US-based. This made them desirable for warranty purposes.

2) They are actually a 10th scale controller. They have the same FETs and same number of FETs that the original MM used. However, since they can take up to 6s (sorta), people use them in applications where they were not designed to work in and things go poof. Heavier vehicles draw higher burst currents, not to mention higher brake loads.

3) They were one of the few ESCs that Mike carries which can run pretty much any type of motor (especially Neus where the MM was weak until recently). So, they were understandably popular and you are naturally gonna see more bad stories because there are a lot of them out there.

True, the Quarks had heat issues and other small irritations (like possible programming troubles, unclear LVC functionality, no true reverse brake, price), but they really are solid controllers. I'm still using both of mine (one in Revo on 14 cells and one in Hyper8 on 4s), and they still work just fine.

You want exploding ESC stories, just ask Serum to show you his Schulze hall of shame sometime! :wink:

Could it be that Quark overrates thier products, calling the 125b capable of 6s but really more of a 4s controller....the Maxamps of ESCs

I have heard great things about their service until they recently disappeared from the US. And yes, when they work for folks, they are great ESC's. Just considering the price, the necessity to add external heatsinking and now the lack of service in the US it all adds up to a poor choice for myself. Hopefully the new ESC will run fine without needing external heatsinking and their support will return to the US. However, even if all problems that were had with the 125B are resolved in the new ESC, their lack of service in the US makes it very undesirable to myself and likely to a lot of other consumers as well. No one wants to wait lengthy periods of time to get a product repaired, especially when the initial cost is greater than what should be a comparable product (MMM) from a US based company.


Agreed. They could be a nice option if they have US support. I still doubt I'd ever purchase it if for no other reason than cost alone. At ~$90 more than the MMM MAP pricing, it's of no benefit for me to buy an ESC with less current handling capability and the same voltage capabilities just for a handheld programmer. I don't constantly change settings on any of my Mamba, Sidewinder or MM ESC's, so I just don't see that added feature worth the additional cost.

Also, let's keep it real here. With the projected dates on the MMM and new Quark ESC, the MMM will likely be in consumer hands almost a month before the Quark shows up unless dealers start importing them to the US now.

Aside from that, when have we ever gotten forum support from an employee at Quark? We actually get information and help from both Tekin and Castle on this forum. They support us on here and so long as they have a product that meets my needs, they'll get my money versus Quark.

i like the looks of the new quark wonder how well it'd work in a 1/8th scale app?