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- Jan 23, 2020
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Welcome to the boards, I'm glad you posted here.
I don't agree with the ATC hatred here either. Their SL spec drivers, especially that coveted mid-dome (which is the greatest midrange driver in the world), are engineering feats that have yet to be surpassed by anyone. The one area you can criticize with ATC is the lack of extended bass until you pay $20k+ for the SCM150s. The tradeoff is ATC goes for the lowest amount of distortion in the bass. You just have to pay a ton of money for full range. ATC's rule at revealing every detail in a recording (and the electronics you feed them). These are not speakers you probably want to have if your recordings suck, unless you want to know how much they suck.
Not surprised you are missing the dynamic punch with KH310s. That's definitely something those speakers don't have.
I think one reason for some of the ATC hate here is due to how closely(in time) it was reviewed to the PMC, with both being British studio monitor brands. The ATC measurements were actually fairly decent(not awful, especially with EQ), while the PMC measurements were terrible. For some reason, I often see PMC and ATC lumped together. It was also an older discontinued and passive ATC, which is likely not representative of their current active lineup. ATC is pretty honest with the fact that their passive speakers don't measure as well or sound as good as their active speakers, and that they mainly make them to satisfy the "audiophile" market, which likes to play with amps.
BTW, I don't agree that the ATC mid dome is the best there is . It's a topic that's come up a bit here, and while it is a great driver, many have correctly pointed out that the Neumann dome is actually even better(going by measurements). Maybe ATC did it first, but I think Neumann kinda one upped them.
@BlacklightBully , I think your impressions actually jive with the measurements. The Barefoots have more bass extension, and still measure really well. The Neumanns measure near perfect, but the difference isn't huge, and they don't have the bass punch of the Barefoots. I would expect it to be close when listening without subs in play, and wouldn't be surprised if many preferred the foots. Especially if you're judging by what's more fun to listen to. Neumanns are certainly a bit more honest, but bass is definitely fun .
I think all the discussion about the measurements being different from manufacturer specs kinda hid the fact that the foots still measured really well overall. Amir even gave them a recommendation.