This question has been asked to me multiple times, so I decided it’s time for a post!
Properties
Pigments: These days, Quin Gold is always a hue mix. Most, like the Daniel Smith one shown, are a mix of Nickel Azo Yellow (PY150) and Quin Burnt Orange (PO48). Some brands use a different earth orange, but almost all of the ones I’m aware of use Nickel Azo Yellow. MANS, meanwhile, is one of many versions of the common earth pigment PBr7, this particular one being very yellow-toned. It looks like a typical Yellow Ochre, but is more transparent.
Hue: The hue is similar: both are muted yellows with an orangey cast, and they both achieve roughly the same level of darkness. In masstone, Quin Gold is more of a gold color, while MANS is more muted and earthy, more like a tan. The color is more simular in dilute, washing out to a pale yellow. The Quin Gold yellow is a bit bright/lighter.
Transparency: Both are transparent.
Granulation: MANS is lighlty granulating, and QG is smooth.
Price: MANS is series 1 (cheapest) and QG is series 2 (a bit more expensive).
Color Mix Comparison
Quin Coral (PR209)
Quin Gold makes clear, bold oranges, whereas the mixes with MANS are more granulating and muted and look more like naturalistic rocks to me.
Quin Rose (PV19)
Quin Gold corals are more bold.
Ultramarine Blue (PB29)
The Quin Gold mixes read as muted olive greens to me, whereas the MANS mixes don’t read as green at all; they’re more like gray or muted blue.
Phthalo Blue (PB15:3)
The green mixes from Quin Gold are much bolder; the MANS doesn’t mix as much with the blue and results in grayer mixers. Still, MANS mixes more with Phthalo Blue than it does with Ultramarine. The Phthalo Blue + MANS mixes look pretty similar to the Ultramarine + Quin Gold mixes tbh.
Phthalo Green (PG7)
Quin Gold makes a bold yet muted green, whereas MANS makes a more muted, more granulating green. Both of these are viable Sap Green mixes. (DS uses PG7 + Quin Gold for its Sap Green, but the MANS version is more similar to DV’s Sap Green, which is made from PG7 + yellow ochre.)
If you want a brighter Sap Green, consider Nickel Azo Yellow (PY150); if you want a smoother Sap Green, consider Hansa Yellow Deep (PY65).
Conclusion
Although these colors appear similar in hue in photos, I find them very different in person. Quin Gold appears to me bright, glowing, and intense, while MANS appears to me muted, gentle, and soft.
I choose Quin Gold to paint intense rays of golden hour sun; or to mix bold, smooth greens with any green or blue.
I choose MANS to paint natural objects such as dry grass and sand; to drop into sunrises with blue to avoid green skies; or to mix muted, textured greens with Phthalo Green.
They’re different enough in properties and mixing behavior that I think it’s justifiable to have both on your palette – I often do!