ATC SCM-35

Pitdog,

I see your excellent system already has a good 150 WPC amp and you have installed this in a very large room with high ceilings.

My two cents would be to go for something a bit more beefier than the SIA2-150 on the power amplification side at least 250 to 300 WPC to make a significant audible difference for music with demanding base levels or, alternatively, since you have a great power amplifier already, the ATC SCM 0.1/15 sub. Even though your speakers are full range (down 6db at 48 HZ freestanding is an impressive spec.) The sub would fill out the extreme low end of base in a large room with high celiings. Another possible advantage of a quality sub is that it will put you on a first step on the way to eventually having a HT system of as high quality as your stereo system...

well, i was considering several really strong amplifiers, but here enters the cost factor - im thinking about a most cost effective solution for these passive speakers. right now i have a very good and strong poweramp, but no preamp. with getting ATC integrated i was thinking about killing two birds at once and not going into serious sosts. ATC amp should be guaranteed to be a good match for these speakers...
and - with a solid 150W these speakers can go really loud and clean, and natural, thats one of the reasons i like ATC so much.
(and i think i'll stick to this company for a long time)

as far as stonger amps go - well, i thing more cost effective way to go would be to get an active SCM50ASL some time in the future, not spend money and play aroung with half measures.
would i really be so much better off with some 300-400w behemoth? mebbe two poweramps from atc? anyways, i welcome any more power suggestions

as far as the sub goes - this is another matter and im thinking about it. im more interested in a av setup based on a good stereo to be honest, dont feel any need (as of now) for more channels. a good screen nd a good stereo system would suffice for me.

>Shadorne - one more issue: how about cables, what do you think and what expiriences do you have regarding atc and speaker cables? i tried PAD Venustas and the change was really positive...

I have tried a variety of thick cables for a variety of passive speakers, especially for long runs, from as cheap as power extension cord to moderately expensive Monster Cable.

Honestly, I simply can't hear the difference, which is maybe just a reflection that I don't have "golden ears" or that my other components are robust enough that special cables are simply not needed. (Some might argue that my other components are of too poor quality, bad match etc. to benefit from better cables).

In any case, my Cable experience, poor ears, wrong components or otherwise, should not disuade others from trying special cables....if they work for you, as many claim, then go for it! To each his own and good luck!

This next bit may sound funny: Actually, I do use the thick Monster Cable over the thick power extension cord for the passive speakers I use...even if I admit to being unable to hear a difference. I think of this as an insurance attitude: Better for me to make sure that cheap cables are not possibly degrading the sound in some horrible way that I have not readily perceived than to use cheap extension cord, especially seeing as I already paid for more expensive Monster Cable anyway! And, of course, for the additional cost, the cables look significantly more professional than ugly bright orange extension cord but, *sigh*, I would certainly prefer to be able to hear an improvement!

>Shadorne as far as cables go... you see, im an engineer myself (architect), so i understand the "if you coannot measure it it does not exist" approach for e.g. ATC engineers have.
but - i was really, really surprised with this whole Venustas deal. theres lots of changes i hear but most easily distinguishable are: much tighter bass, all around cleaner sound. so this particular experience is the only reason im thinking of actually getting these cables.
they're not that expensive anyway...
you write amongst other things “wrong components, wrong ears ". well – as far as i can tell from my short but enjoyable experience with ATC gear, these speakers are not overly detailed, not flashy in sound, but if a listener wants - most anything can be heard, in a sort of natural, not oppressive way. these speakers do reveal quite a lot about the rest of the system and the recording (which i guess comes from their studio origins), at the same time allowing for hours and hours of easy listening without getting tired of their sound.
So – im planning on performing a double blind test, with a cheap OFC cable and PAD Venustas, right now im sure i’l be able to differentiate what is plugged in. but ill see.
up until now i had those cables two times and every time the difference was ...staggering. the system came to live literally, with el cheapo Straight Wire cables all sounded dull and muted in comparison, with bloated bass.
and to be honest – looking at the economic side of the whole game – i’d prefer not to be able to hear a difference and be happy with regular ofc cables :) i think my particular combination of poweramp, speakers and these cables gives such easily noticeable effect. but to be honest – i cannot wait to switch to something you enjoy, that is active ATC monitors. no worries about speaker cables, about matching amplifier, just a decent source, preamp, room and the music flows :)

as far as ATC goes – i really like their solid engineering, their no nonsense, no fuss products. I also like their cost effective approach one can go into with active speakers. it would be difficult to match active speakers performance with separate components at a reasonable price... wouldn't you agree? having active scm100s.
while i was looking for some new gear i auditioned quite a lot of things and was really tired of all flashy, pretending to be original sounding things, appealing to some perceived audiophile fancy while sounding in some respects great, but unnatural, too flashy or plain strange (jmlab, bw, thiel, phonar, zoller etc etc....). Zoller Evolution – what a great performer...but in many ways unnatural. i hope you know what i mean. ATC sounds just right, backed with great engineering, giving all one wants to hear and at the same time sounding natural.

Pitdog75,

I would be interested in the results of your cable blind tests...as you may have gathered I respect that there must be small differences between different cables....my obsevation is simply that, at least for my ears, I have not found these small differences to amount to an audible difference.

On ATC speakers, I like your comments... here are my impressions and I will try to be as sanguine as possible to help others decide if they should even consider this gear.

I would describe ATC speakers as having a noticably excellent mid range but apart from that their sound is very simply neutral or accurate.

I suspect the base response has been carefully engineered with less harmonic distortion than many lower cost systems. Some people may describe the ATC base as understated, weak or absent compared to typical "boomy" base resonance of many consumer Hi-Fi speakers, or that they sound "un-musical"; this argument is a fair point, more harmonics do sound fuller and more resonant. My impression on ATC speakers is I am better able to hear that the base on various source material is as varied as the mid range....something that is noticably less evident with many consumer Hi-Fi speakers with a warm base and more harmonics. I suspect that the reason for the warm harmonics laden base in much consumer Hi-Fi audio is that it is a quite sensible and lower cost way to efficiently generate a fuller sounding base with smaller cones and cabinets, furthermore, add a tuned reflex port to reinforce the base and the manufacturer has a very efficent lower-cost design that unfortunately adds plenty of base harmonic distortion, especially as the volume is turned up. Conversely from consumer audio, ATC ports on large professional units are not tuned to reinforce base but to control cone extension and smaller ATC units simply do not have a port.

Another noticable difference is that ATC speakers can play extremely loud - and I mean extremely loud with low distortion levels.

The above characteristics of ATC speakers should be noticable to most anyone comparing ATC to a variety of other speakers.

There are some other less noticeble qualities: ATC speakers have a great dynamic range (softest to highest sound) and play at all sound levels quite consistently. Finally, at loud levels, ATC speakers suffer from relatively little distortion and compression due to the robust driver, cabinet and heavy magnet designs (relatively less thermal compression and other effects than lower cost designs).

In summary, I would charaterize the ATC speakers as engineered for consistent, solid and accurate sound from low to extremely high levels, which is probably why they are chosen by many professionals for studio applications; admittedly, not the sound or solution to fit everyone's need or taste and, like all speakers, still far short of being altogether devoid of distortion.