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POLL- MSD 6AL & Mallory 6AL - Analog vs. Digital - which one to use? Opinions - POLL

Which 6AL ignition to use. Digital vs analog, MSD vs Mallory

  • MSD 6 AL 6425- digital (with dial rev limiter)

  • MSD 6 AL 6420- analog (with pill rev limiter, also have 6671 dial control for this)

  • Mallory Hyfire 6AL 6853M (limiter controlled by setting switches)

Results are only viewable after voting.
4mulas

4mulas

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Looking for opinions on MSD 6 AL boxes regarding reliability and performance for Analog vs Digital?? And Also Mallory hyfire 6 AL.

also- is the Mallory digital or analog, anyone know - hard to find info on this one…..

many have mentioned and or complained of the newer digital ones crapping out and leaving them stranded. Ona few post’s I’ve read that some wish they could the ‘old analog’ MSD 6AL as they were more reliable.

‘’what is the major difference between analog and digital?

I have the choice of using a new:
- digital 6 AL 6425
- analog 6AL 6420 (NOS-ish - from about 20 years back with about 500 miles on it at most) with remote dial limit selector 6671
Or a used for 6,000 miles:
- a circa 2006 Mallory hyfire 6 AL 6853m - the red anodized one, I think they were this way until msd bought them….
 
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I use the old analog msd 6al with the plug in rev limiter chips. .I have both digital units and analogs. since a buddy of mine had his original demon burn up in the shop out of nowhere, I always disconnect my negative battery cable when my cars are parked for the night. I have found that the digital msd units cause one heck of a spark when the negative cable is put back on the battery. The analog msd units haven’t sparked on my cars when the cable is hooked back up. I also know someone who had a battery blow up in his face because of a cable spark.
 
400sforever said:
I use the old analog msd 6al with the plug in rev limiter chips. .I have both digital units and analogs. since a buddy of mine had his original demon burn up in the shop out of nowhere, I always disconnect my negative battery cable when my cars are parked for the night. I have found that the digital msd units cause one heck of a spark when the negative cable is put back on the battery. The analog msd units haven’t sparked on my cars when the cable is hooked back up. I also know someone who had a battery blow up in his face because of a cable spark.
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Wow! I have never heard of the spark when hooking up the battery etc…. let alone a battery explosion. Why or how could this happen? Doesn’t msd need 12v power source to know when to switch on? I’m a rookie! All I’m out is appreciated
 
I've had a small arc when hooking the battery up. But it rarely happens. I have a old msd 6a box from 25 years ago. Never had one single problem, except for that I wish I had bought the 6al.
 
There is a heavy red wire going to the msd power box directly from a 12v battery hookup. .I’m no electrical genius but my thoughts are that maybe the digital msd board draws more juice upon battery hookup than the analog unit. .maybe I’m wrong in my thought process but I have cars with both digital and analog and that is what I have noticed. Battery explosions are rare but if you have a battery that is leaking fumes just right, a spark can explode them
 
Cannot believe there would be a visible spark when hooking up an ign box, assuming the wiring is correct. That would flatten the battery.
 
My 30 year old analog MSD 6AL still working.
Crane HI6 has been good too.
 
I voted for the 6AL analog, I have two in use, and heard bad things about the digital. But I have also had terrific service out of an old, OLD, Mallory 690 box, hyfire V, eighties vintage, and 15 lbs. It's twice the size and three times the weight of an msd box, uses dip switches.
If the Mallory is pre-msd takeover, I would use that too.
 
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I originally had the MSD 6 al2 that you could hook your computer to. It crapped out in about 2 months! I replaced it with a regular old MSD 6 Al. 4 years in and not an issue! Knock, knock!
 
I have an analog 6AL on my Charger. No issues in nearly 30 years. I also have a digital 6AL on my Ford F150, been there for about 3 years with no issues. About to install a 6M-2L (analog marine version) on my ski boat. On both the Charger and the boat, I use the original points as the trigger. In the event of a failure of the MSD, I just have to move a couple of wires and I am back to the OEM ignition to get me home. On the F150, I used the MSD plug and play harness which hopefully affords the same redundancy in the event of an MSD failure. Never had a failure, but have now probably jinxed myself.
 
My Crane HI6 has performed very well. I was surprised. I think it is about a 2005-2006 vintage unit. I bumped the rev limiter up 7000. When it was set at 6000 it did not allow the motor to get up to speed. Now seems to work great.
 
66Satellite47 said:
My Crane HI6 has performed very well. I was surprised. I think it is about a 2005-2006 vintage unit. I bumped the rev limiter up 7000. When it was set at 6000 it did not allow the motor to get up to speed. Now seems to work great.
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I have heard nothing but good about the crane boxes. To bad they aren't making them any more. It wouldn't hurt for msd to have a little more competition.
 
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I have a 6al analog and a 6al Digital. I killed a 6al analog years ago by hooking a battery charger up backwards (between rounds, in a hurry). That was the end of that one. Knock on wood, the analog one I'm using is very old.

Bryand
 
From what I have read the '6' boxes, MSD, Crane, Mallory etc all have similar specs.
 
Not sure if it matters, but I always triggered the CD boxes with the "points" input, not the magnetic input.
On the '71 Charger with the MSD 6AL (analog) I thought it went out once. I was at the track and was cooling off the radiator, and got some of the wiring wet.
Seems the unused magnetic pickup wires got some moisture in them (partly wrapped in the harness) and the car would not start.
I unwapped the harness part and dried the magnetic pickup wires, and everything was fine.
 
451Mopar said:
Not sure if it matters, but I always triggered the CD boxes with the "points" input, not the magnetic input.
On the '71 Charger with the MSD 6AL (analog) I thought it went out once. I was at the track and was cooling off the radiator, and got some of the wiring wet.
Seems the unused magnetic pickup wires got some moisture in them (partly wrapped in the harness) and the car would not start.
I unwapped the harness part and dried the magnetic pickup wires, and everything was fine.
Click to expand...
The problem you describe is actually MSD's anti-theft method, published in the instructions. You connect the unused trigger circuit, be it points or magnetic, to a switch to ground. When the circuit is grounded via the switch, the MSD box will not provide spark.
 
4mulas said:
Wow! I have never heard of the spark when hooking up the battery etc…. let alone a battery explosion. Why or how could this happen? Doesn’t msd need 12v power source to know when to switch on? I’m a rookie! All I’m out is appreciated
Click to expand...
I don't know anything about MSD stuff, but after chasing electrical draws for years, I've seen many cases of capacitors inside devices that draw large current only momentarily when first connected.
 
I have an old MSD 6 that was given to me back around 1999 from a friend that had it on his car for years. I have an add on rev limiter. Still working fine.
 
Changed my vote, just to give the Mallory some love. My hyfire V is as dependable as a brick for thirty years, and about as heavy.
 
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