I have noticed ATC is doing a special edition of their SCM20 Active speaker, details are on the atc website. I think they are a bit over £10K if anyone here is interested.
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I got a post re these today, they look nice with matching sub. I will have a chance to hear them my dealers ATC day next month.
Hi,
The 222 sounded great running the 40As. Big, deep soundstage, great instrument positions, sparkly top end and well-controlled bass. It remained composed when the music got dense and loud, such as classical crescendos or layered rock music.
When the Atom HE was swapped in, it just seemed a bit smaller in all areas. And a little shrill in high frequencies.
As said, from a headphone point of view, I was convinced the 222 was the better amp. I think @110dB has even commented on the fact that the 222 and 332 are better headphone amps than the Atom HE.
Is the 222 better than my NDX2 / 282 / SuperCap? Without a side-by-side comparison, I can’t say. But the 222 / 40A combo sounded great to my ears.
Daz
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Therefore we can conclude that the 272 is better than the 222.
If space is limited or you just preferred an Sat/sub. set up.
They look an absolute a winner !!
Of course you are paying over odds for the additional Special Edition stuff etc.
But the speakers seem to have some nice extra features that the standard edition doesn’t have ?
I have had both the 272/XPSDR and 222/NPX300 and it’s not close.
In fact, I like the 222/NPX300 combo better than the NDX2/282/HCDR that replaced the 272/XPSDR
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Naim told me the headphone socket in the new classic range is better than the atom HE.
No doubt there is a great synergy between Naim and ATC. A 500 level streaming pre would be great….
I guess if budget restrained an Atom HE maybe with a powerline into active 40’s would be a great system with a clear and simple upgrade path.
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Is it OK if I don’t scroll through over 1000 posts to ask about room positioning and stands for the SMC11 and 19?
I am going to dem these next week. Atom/250 system. Room is an odd H shape sort of attic with high ceiling but the speakers will go in a shallow alcove on one leg of the H only 3m wide. Preferably no more than 60cm from back wall and about 1.75m apart. I am obviously going to try at home if tempted to go further but wondered if bass is going to be a bit much close to the wall, and if heavy filled stands can ‘help’ moderate this. The ATC website says start 180cm from the wall! I am not a great heavy bass fan.
Also, has anyone tried Audio Chic wooden stands? Low mass but very stylish.
Thanks
Bruce
My room is little more than 10’ wide. My speakers are on Townshend Podiums which means that increases their width, ergo cannot go too much wider. They are fairly close to rear wall. The only times I have any boom is seemingly down to the way the music has been produced or at certain frequencies.
I found pulling my chair forwards a few inches made a difference. My room is small with quite a lot in it, so I am limited to what and where.
Certainly, ignore the 180cms bit!
Thanks
My mistake. I am trying the SCM11 and 19’s not the 40. Original post edited.
Bruce
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Good because I’m looking for a used 222…
I’ve had the sia2-150 twice in the past and the sia2-100 sounds almost identical , just less powerful. It’s also smaller and not as hot running plus the included AKM dac is very good. Plenty of power at 100w it’s a good high current power supply.
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Interesting. I’m all in favour of things that actually look like they would blend in nicely with furnishings in the living room, and I find nearly all loudspeaker stands to look brutally ugly.
Whether or not these perform well, who knows. Not that I need ant at the moment but I’ll make a mental note of them just in case.
Bass output of the smaller ATC sealed box will be somewhat restricted anyway though they integrate beautifully with the sub if you decide that you want to try that.
Mine are about 15cm from back wall and I went for lateral audio stands - most good stands are c£500 so factor that in. I was going to get the sold steel open ones but seeing them in the flesh I decided they didn’t suit my room.
I would always counsel a home demo 11’s and 19’s are great speakers but subject to room one maybe better than the other and you can always add a sub for that greater depth of sound.
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Thanks, interesting to see them so close to the wall. The black finish also makes the rather ‘marmite’ grilles look a bit less obvious.
Always going to finally trial any new choice at home after a demo.
Bruce
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Check Solidsteel stands also
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I seem to recall that @Simon-in-Suffolk used to run passive 19s and documented his experiences with choice of stand, but you will have to search for his posts, perhaps on the old forum, I’m afraid.
Incidentally, if you don’t like the grilles (and not many do), you might want to consider the SM20s, though you’d be shelling out quite a bit more for them.
Roger
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Hi I used open frame stands initially with my ATCs… by Something Solid. I then moved to Russ Andrews Torlyte stands… open frame wood and Torlyte.
The SCM 19s and 11s don’t have a heavy base at all, but too close to boundaries can make a blurry slower sound with poor stereo field in my experience. I don’t like high mass stands at all with ATCs … they tend to kill the sound in my opinion especially the mids and highs which is otherwise one of the strengths of ATCs IMO.
But each to their own. Rooms, speakers/stands are very personal things.
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