ATC speakers / Monitors

[Ktacos]

Conclusion is you come here preaching about the superiority of other designs vs ATC without having conducted any proper A-B comparison.

My comparisons are from hearing ATC speakers next to better stuff like Genelec and Nuemann speakers. I work in audio for a living, have been mixing/writing/recording music as a profession for at least 15 years now. And that folks is why you don't make assumptions

Having said that, I don't really need to hear a big box with a 3" dome mid with 6" driver CTC spacing and a 3khz+ xover point, no waveguide on the tweeter on a large baffle sort of speaker to know I won't like that speaker.

We live in a world of small box speakers like the KH150 delivering exceptional linearity with low distortion and good dispersion with DSP built in. ATC is objectively behind the curve here. We simply live in a different world than when ATC started putting out their 3 ways and they haven't kept up.

 

[Behrelec 37]

Many on this forum love old art above all else, i.e. dusty, dry, grainy, grey art, and that is fine, of course, but it would be time to update your understanding of artificial selections to the present moment and not live as if inside the Windows XP operating system shouting that it is the best operating system in 2025.

Even though it practically does not handle your own banking matters on the internet, nor does it perform any other important tasks, because it has not even had any updates for almost half a century, let alone functional programs. Many of you who own ATC speakers practically admire antiques, and that is your choice. But it is really, really, really far behind the times already.

 

[Frank Dernie]

I have a 40+ year old pair of ProAc EBS speakers which use ATC mid dome and 9" bass driver with the normal Scan 2008 tweeter of the period.
I use them infrequently in my study (I hate background music so only listen in there rarely) but I am always pleased and surprised how satisfactory they sound in these non ideal conditions and quite a long way from me on the opposite wall.
I am not sure how much better a modern DSP speaker would sound back there but I am fairly confident they wouldn't last 40 years.

 

[Leeken]

Many on this forum love old art above all else, i.e. dusty, dry, grainy, grey art, and that is fine, of course, but it would be time to update your understanding of artificial selections to the present moment and not live as if inside the Windows XP operating system shouting that it is the best operating system in 2025.

Even though it practically does not handle your own banking matters on the internet, nor does it perform any other important tasks, because it has not even had any updates for almost half a century, let alone functional programs. Many of you who own ATC speakers practically admire antiques, and that is your choice. But it is really, really, really far behind the times already.

You sound like you write reviews for what hifi.

 

[a4eaudio]

You sound like you write reviews for what hifi.

More like WTF HiFi...

 

[Behrelec 37]

It would never occur to me to write false fairy tales in any public hi-fi/high end magazines that people pay for in order to satisfy their own buying desires or culture of thinking.

Freedom to disagree is a much better perspective for everyone on such audio industry discussion forums. Of course, much joy and future success in purchases for my opponents as well.
Underperforming products should not be praised under any circumstances. All human products have a best before date, which in every single.

The old saying still holds true. Moth eats and rust rapes.

 

[Mort]

You sound like you write reviews for what hifi.

Ignore was my decision. I'm on ASR to avoid that stuff.

 

[Chrise36]

It would never occur to me to write false fairy tales in any public hi-fi/high end magazines that people pay for in order to satisfy their own buying desires or culture of thinking.

Freedom to disagree is a much better perspective for everyone on such audio industry discussion forums. Of course, much joy and future success in purchases for my opponents as well.
Underperforming products should not be praised under any circumstances. All human products have a best before date, which in every single.

The old saying still holds true. Moth eats and rust rapes.

What speakers do you use and which ATC models have you heard?

 

[Behrelec 37]

main 1237a, rear surround 8260a, 8340a, subwoover 7071a.

The pictures are a few months old, and now I'm in another apartment, but today I can't clean up for a few pictures. Let's go with these when the setting is almost the same.

ATC models slightly smaller and larger than the sizes. I don't know the models.

 

[Chrise36]

main 1237a, rear surround 8260a, 8340a, subwoover 7071a.

The pictures are a few months old, and now I'm in another apartment, but today I can't clean up for a few pictures. Let's go with these when the setting is almost the same.

ATC models slightly smaller and larger than the sizes. I don't know the models.

For the same money i would choose Dirac AVR pair of SCM45A fronts a couple of subs and SCM 12 for surrounds. What would this system lack against yours?

 

[Behrelec 37]

Chrise36

Heh he...

Buy it now. Your priorities are different from mine. I hope the product palette you buy also satisfies your needs.

 

[dfuller]

Anyway, back on topic...

I wonder if you could install a DXT tweeter without any modifications other than tweaking crossover trims to any of the ATCs.

Alternatively, I wonder if you could fit a DXT faceplate to an ATC tweeter.

 

[Joe852]

My comparisons are from hearing ATC speakers next to better stuff like Genelec and Nuemann speakers. I work in audio for a living, have been mixing/writing/recording music as a profession for at least 15 years now. And that folks is why you don't make assumptions

Having said that, I don't really need to hear a big box with a 3" dome mid with 6" driver CTC spacing and a 3khz+ xover point, no waveguide on the tweeter on a large baffle sort of speaker to know I won't like that speaker.

We live in a world of small box speakers like the KH150 delivering exceptional linearity with low distortion and good dispersion with DSP built in. ATC is objectively behind the curve here. We simply live in a different world than when ATC started putting out their 3 ways and they haven't kept up.

You could easily EQ the ATC to be ruler flat if that's important to you. They have exceptional drivers, very low distortion, great dynamic range, great reliability and long-term parts availability.

 

[Ilkless]

You could easily EQ the ATC to be ruler flat if that's important to you. They have exceptional drivers, very low distortion, great dynamic range, great reliability and long-term parts availability.

That's not hard to achieve when one builds a driver with the 6" footprint but a 3" radiating surface severely compromising the overall system performance.

 

[Joe852]

That's not hard to achieve when one builds a driver with the 6" footprint but a 3" radiating surface severely compromising the overall system performance.

Yeah, sure. It's weird how you people pick random irrelevant things to focus on. What's the SINAD, 102 or 107?

 

[Blockader]

Yeah, sure. It's weird how you people pick random irrelevant things to focus on. What's the SINAD, 102 or 107?

The driver sizes, their spacing, and their distances to the baffle edges all determine a speaker’s directivity pattern. This directly affects how reflections sound compared to the on-axis response. Do you really think the tonal balance of those reflections doesn’t matter? Maybe learn more about speaker design before making bold claims about what should matter?

 

[YSDR]

The driver sizes, their spacing, and their distances to the baffle edges all determine a speaker’s directivity pattern. This directly affects how reflections sound compared to the on-axis response. Do you really think the tonal balance of those reflections doesn’t matter? Maybe learn more about speaker design before making bold claims about what should matter?

Of course the directivity of the loudspeaker matters but not in a way @Ilkless are mentioned. Smaller driver in a larger baffle typically means wider directivity in general but this doesn't necessarily means it's a bad or "severely compromised" design. But I could also say that, every loudspeaker is the result of many compromises, there is no perfect one for everything and never will be.

 

[Ilkless]

But I could also say that, every loudspeaker is the result of many compromises, there is no perfect one for everything and never will be.

But you assume the set of compromises ATC selects for is the best we can do, and is equally valid or legitimate to any other. Patently not the case. Not for the price. And not for even a lower price.

The apologism and complete refusal to acknowledge the evidence is frankly tiresome and anti-intellectual.

 

[YSDR]

But you assume the set of compromises ATC selects for is the best we can do, and is equally valid or legitimate to any other. Patently not the case.

I didn't assumed that ATC choosed the best compromise. But what is best anyway? If you choose one thing that a speaker (or anything else) should be good at, it will come at the expense of something else, no exceptions. In any case, time has proven ATC right so far.

 

[YSDR]

But maybe they choosed the best compromise and maybe that's why they are still in the business.
If they would need to change something on their speakers to stay in business, maybe they would change them.

I would like to see some IMD measurements of the larger 3-way ATC-s, I bet they would produce low distortions.