ATC state that their speakers do not need running in, though some buyers have claimed they do. Mine have never given me listening fatigue, but then they’re 40s not 11s. What ATCs are though, is very revealing of source quality, in part as a result of their monitoring heritage. So, for example, edgy recordings perhaps monitored mainly for use on portable hardware, can be harder to listen to with such revealing speakers.
As for ATCs vs Neats, I have both in different systems and enjoy both but they do have very different sound signatures. My little Iotas are great for background listening whilst I am in my office. My only complaint is that the music is often so enjoyable it can easily distract me from whatever I’m doing. But if I want to concentrate on listening into a complex orchestral piece or jazz group, the ATCs in the main system take preference. I absolutely love my ATC setup for serious listening, but if you’re after “chilled-evening-with-a-glass-of-red-type-purposes” I’d be inclined towards the Neats.
The ATC’s are a very “honest” loudspeaker, but, as you suggest, not a particularly relaxing listen. Not “euphonic” as the hifi mags used to say.
My room is quite small, and causes quite a bit of boom on certain tracks at certain frequencies which can put me on edge when I am listening to music.I have a potential solution to this in mind, but this will have to wait a while.
My ATC’s (40A) took a good while to really break in and improvements in source and / or network made a difference…I have a tricky room and getting any speaker to sound cohesive was a challenge - a sub did the trick really bringing it all together.
Room plays a big part in how speakers sound so hard to guide other than get a home demo if you can as some report their ATC’s are at their best with a bit of volume.
I also have Neat Iota alphas on the end of a Nova - not the last word in detail but they sound great but a different experience to ATC.
I prefer to have as honest speakers as possible. If and when I want to tune the sound towards that slight euphonic feeling, I have endless possibilities to do it with dac’s, pre-amps, cables etc. Wrong electronics can make ATC’s sound too high resolution/analytical/tiring since they won’t mask the shortcomings. But succesfull matching of electronics and cabling can make ATC’s a relaxing listen.
For booming bass and room modes I recommend that you buy/borrow an UMIK-1 measuring microphone and use it with REW to measure your setup. After you find the problematic peaking frequency/frequencies you can take them down few dB’s with DSP and you’re done. In my room I have huge peak around 36-37hz. I’ve done a convolution filter with REW to use in Roon DSP to solve this one problematic frequency. Works like a charm. Only touch frequencies below 100-200hz where room acoustics dictate what you hear.
The atc tweeter will get a bit sweeter and it’s worth ditching the brass links and using cable jumpers and plug into the bottom (bass) . Mine sit 1.8m apart , 160 mm from wall to back of cabinet and toed in so I can just see the inside of the cabs.
Sure, if you convert the signal to digital. Probably not worth the hassle with vinyl though. One more reason why I prefer streaming and having my music on HDD. Obviously treating the room modes can be done with traditional acoustic solutions but it can be challenging.
Nice write up on your demo experience. Hopefully you can narrow the choice down to two and have a chance to do a home demo.
Between our different systems, age (hearing capabilities), room size, etc., the actual performance of the speaker can make a difference between the dealer’s show room and the our room back home.
Good luck with your decision… and enjoy the journey along the way.
This is an amusing picture of a camera taking a photograph of itself. But you can see a pair of ATC SCM-20s in the background. They are a long way from a back wall, and produce an amaxing stereo image which is easily locatable between and behind the speakers. I got them over 20 years ago, second hand, and they’re a bit battered, but lovely in that room. I thought I’d post, but I don’t think I’m your usual audiophile! love Stevie xx
I was offered a pair of ex-dem SCM50ASLT’s in pippy oak, at a decent price, (with dealer support and full warranty, I assume) but saw sense for a change and stuck with my purchase of the SCM40’s. For me, the finish was not the issue, the ££ and their size was.
Hopefully, this thread will still be active once yours are in situ
My room is tricky and bass was being “sucked out” (pesky room construction) the Rel addresses this and adds a depth that wasn’t there with the speakers alone.
I never compared any other subs so can’t comment on a comparison but pop over to rels site, they recommend the 510 with ATC 40a and there are some good videos to show set up etc.
I had always assumed the subs are for those that love rave music! The sub seems to do a lot by doing very little but it fills in the bottom notes and adds in some nice depth, makes the overall sound more cohesive.
By and large it’s quite easy to dial it in and position correctly.
