I am just doing my research, as going to listen to a speaker at a dealers next week, and was just wondering if anyone had used ATC speakers (more of a UK thing probably) and more specifically the ATC SCM 40 with he M700 amps
I heard them in a demo about 12 years ago. ATC have made monitor quality speakers for decades on the principle of if it ain’t broke don’t fix it. They are honest to the point of unforgiving. Very detailed. I felt they would get tiring, but some people like that. So technically superb, but could you live with them?
Heard them at Cornflake in the West End with a full Naim rig.
Thank You. I am trying to demo a few speakers in the 3-4K bracket, and have had the Amphion Argon 3LS for a while now, (along with 2 Rel s8/12 subs)
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They are a great British Brand. I’ve been fortunate through friends been able to listen to ATC’s, Spendor’s, & Harbeth. All the greats comments here are true !
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It’s tricky reading about speakers because the product models last for years before update.
For what it’s worth, the the HiFi+ product if the year in this field is the Audiovector QR7. It’s Danish. My most recent purchase is from Denmark. The Danes know their stuff.
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They make some of the best studio monitors I’ve heard. If I was in the market for new speakers, they’d be quite high on my list. The M700s would sound great with them.
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In the long run, Harbeth are a lot easier on the ear. The other strength of the ATC is the bass, far superior to Harbeth, but with two REL S/812 (I have one and it does the job) there’s not going to be a bass issue. I think Harbeth offer wood choices, ATC don’t.
I suspect people buy the ATC for home use because they don’t need subs, so with subs that cost more than the speakers is a bit odd.
I would look at something like the Boenicke W5 or bang in the middle of @peterthebutcher price range is the Fyne Audio F700. Both these speakers are very highly regarded. They are also small and very pretty, the ATC’s main drawback is that they are big ugly lumps.
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Used to own ATC SCM20s back in 1990s, love them. Older ATC model had low sensitivity, which means they prefer high current, high power amps with decent damping. Not very forgiving but when it sings with decent recording / matching electronics / room, it has the punch that matches floor standing speakers. You are correct no need for sub even with SCM20, the mid to low end bass is very rich. Overall we had a lot of fond memory with these rosewood SCM20s.
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