orange and chrome specs?

[JoeGrapes]

Where can I find the specs on the MP orange and chrome ignition boxes? I want to compare the specs with a MSD 6A and Street Fire boxes. I realize the MSD boxes are multi spark but I should still be able to compare power out put.

[Chryco Psycho]

All the ecu does is ground the coil , it is a simple switch device triggered by the reluctor & pick up coil . The speed & accuracy of the switch is about all that changes , you want more power you need a different coil

[crash340]

So, the question I have is, why do people go to an MSD distrbutor and contol box, is it just more accurate in its timing etc, I have a Revenator at the moment, if I re-build my mopar distributor to as new and use a big ass coil, should that be enough!??

[JoeGrapes]

I see, so you can't really compare an MSD box to a Mopar ECU? Even taking into account that the MSD is multi spark and the Mopar orange box is not.

[cudabob496]

According to MSD, they're the best!
I've had complete MSD system for 15 years. Never a problem,
though once I got moisture under my dist cap.

[JoeGrapes]

I have an old orange box now. I'm going the MSD route but I'm trying to decide on which one to get 6A or Street Fire.

[Chryco Psycho]

The MSD doesn;t do more than the ECU either , so yes they compare
 the MSD Dist uses Chev advance design so it is easier to adjust it for total degrees & speed of advance , this can be adjusted in a Mopar dist too .
 The MSD 6a gets a signal from the dist the same as the Mopar ECU & grounds the coil , the switching speed is faster so under 3000 rpm it can do it twice after 3000 rpm it can only do it once like any other system .
 The coil is what controls spark output  .
 Better spark plug leads will get more power to the plugs

[cudabob496]

I had an older MSD 6AL box, but
then went to this one:

http://www.summitracing.com/parts/msd-6425/overview/

[crash340]

So, there isnt any real leap forward in going to an MSD system by the sounds of it. run a good (any suggestions???) coil and leads, tweak the advance on the factory unit and GTG

[JoeGrapes]

I had a older MSD 6A a bunch of years ago on the car and it did make a noticeable difference in starting and idle quality. After putting an Edelbrock E-Street EFI on last year I'm just not convinced the EFI is getting a really good tach signal from the old MP Electronic Ignition I have on now. Even Edelbrock says the E-Street runs really well with a MSD ignition. This time I will definably go with one of the digital boxes.

[purplefish]

Neil, what ignition system do you recommend these days?  Went through 2 failed MSD boxes and am back to Mopar dist and chrome box but wonder if I can do better for my 528 6bbl.  Thanks much

[Chryco Psycho]

Not even sure anymore !
I have tried everything I think !!
 The Rev-N-Ator would be my next purchase , I have seen dyno proven gains from faster switching / less misfired cylinders .
 The Orange boxes are not made in USA anymore & fail , I typically was using the chrome boxes on most builds
 I tried a few of FBO systems & had no success with them at all , but I have not used the new rev limiter version .
On the coil side there are two types
Wet - round can oil filled stock type coils
Dry - GM Hei type
 I do not see either as being better you just want one with a lot of output 50k + & good ign wires such as Firecore to get the spark to the plug & do not over gap the plugs , the wider the gap the longer the spark & more voltage required to jump the gap but above .045 gap it get very hard on the wires .
 The best ign right now would be a crank trigger with 4 coil packs , really not hard to do with one coil  , have your damper drilled with small magnets exactly 90* apart & build an adjustable  bracket [so you can adjust timing] for the pick up coil this will do exactly the same thing the dist does & trigger a single coil , the problem with 4 coil packs is u need a computer to fire the correct coil but this allow more time for each coil to build a  charge before firing the plug , this is what all the new prduction cars are using or even 1 coil / cylinder .
 I did this on a 440 we converted to EFI , but with a single coil so we had the crank trigger & fired only one coil but still used the dist to send the spark tp the correct plug , the EFI computer would have dealt with 4 coil packs just fine & the dist would have been in the trash bin .
I have used every ign system I can think of over the years , different versions of analog & digit from Crane ,Jacob, FBO, MSD,Pertronics.Mopar etc
 What I Like about Mopar is any parts store has parts at least , I ate up my dist at the dragstrip one day , the lock screw for the pick up came loose & there was a swap meet there that day  , I walked over to the swap meet & bought a used 400 dist for $20 swapped the parts & 10 min later I was shifting at 7000+ rpm again , didn't even miss my round !

[purplefish]

Gotcha, great info, thanks!

[HP2]

Gotta agree with CP. I've run stock systems with Chrome box and high output coil and it performed on par with a Jacobs, Crane, and MSD Digital 6.  I saw no change in  e.t. or m.p.h. at the track. All fired up easily, idle well, and would rev to 7k. But I'd also say that was a stock based ignition with some key upgrades, not an all original restored system.

One thing MSD, Crane, and a few others system can do is allow rev limits, start retard, and nitrous retard once you are hauling the mail.

[Aracer]

Note: The Capacitor discharges into the coil. The EUC. still uses a collapsed field like points. The coil is hot with 14volts until it fires.  The in a CD system the coil is used as a transformer, to amplify the stored voltage. 500 volts in and 50K out. Much faster and more efficient. Besides, the multi spark below 3k rpm helps poor mixture combustion. They also have microprocessors to decide on the current output and duration, and cease the multispark when the resistance at the plug drops, indicating there is less fuel left to fire. Read the sales pitch on Mallory Hyfire 6 AL #6853M.  ,,,other than that, what Chryco say's is Gold with experience to back him