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ATC SCM19 (Entry) vs ATC SCM20 (Classic)

ATC speakers goes perfect with ATC amps. Other successful pairings worth mentioning: Exposure, Plinius, Simaudio, Krell, Lavardin, Accuphase. Of course, the best to use are the active ATC.
 
saureign said:
The two ATC product ranges are very much alike in sound presentation, but very different altogether. The Entry series are more forgiving (and more suited for small rooms), while Classic series are truly studio monitors (and more suited to bigger rooms), they will ruthlessly expose bad recordings. So, beware of what you want: to hear nicely music, or to hear nicely recorded music?
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Yes, and this is exactly how I recall Brad Lunde (ATC's US importer) describing the SCM19/SCM20 difference on the old ATC Forum (as reported by people to whom he demonstrated them).

AIUI the technical difference is that the tweeter is the higher-spec "S" model in the SCM20, but standard spec in the SCM19. The mid-bass is to "S" specification in both (see the driver lists here from ATC's Romanian distributor - the link points specifically to the mid-bass driver showing its use in both the SCM19 and SCM20).

A choice depends on individual taste. I don't have any recordings where my enjoyment of the music suffers excessively from loudspeakers being too revealing at the top end even though I do notice poor sources. But that's just me. I think it's worthwhile for anyone to understand their own tastes well enough to make a good choice for themselves.

And then the amplifier. Neither 'speaker is too demanding on an amplifier from the impedance PoV, which is refreshingly high compared to modern impedance standards (several measurements are available online). But sensitivity is lower than average so higher power is a good idea. In a large room you really should veer in the direction of the 300W end of ATC's recommended amplifier power range. In a smaller room their 75W minimum recommendation will be enough I suspect.

ATC's 150W amplifiers look like a really good general match technically but what the individual perceives in practice will be more important.
 
Unfortunately for a home user, the ATC Classic series are extremely revealing. Once you had a scm50ASL in house, you will know what I mean. With 50ASL, more than two thirds of my CD collection of 1500+ titles sound barely listenable. The Classics expose every little detail, every harmonics, being so linear, so dynamic, so transparent, that you can identify every mistake the producer has made in the record. I listened many titles more than 100 times each, and with 50ASL I found out that I am listening to them for the first time. Every music that I like was there in all its glory, stripped down to its last nuance. It's not for nothing that ATC Classics are identically made like their studio siblings...
 
saureign said:
Unfortunately for a home user, the ATC Classic series are extremely revealing. Once you had a scm50ASL in house, you will know what I mean. With 50ASL, more than two thirds of my CD collection of 1500+ titles sound barely listenable. The Classics expose every little detail, every harmonics, being so linear, so dynamic, so transparent, that you can identify every mistake the producer has made in the record. I listened many titles more than 100 times each, and with 50ASL I found out that I am listening to them for the first time. Every music that I like was there in all its glory, stripped down to its last nuance. It's not for nothing that ATC Classics are identically made like their studio siblings...
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I have 50ASLTs and my experience is the opposite to yours - 99% of what I listen to is extremely listenable. Classical, jazz, rock, old, new - all good.
 
Anyway, maybe I chose the wrong words for a greater good. Maybe, it would have been better to say that my cd collection became unrecognizable - it was like I was hear the music for the first time, even I have known it by heart.
So, listening to ATC Classics redefines the music and out relation to it. All is so clear, so here. ATC Classics won't lie. One of the best speakers available. Only, be prepared for the naked truth.

If I had a 50sqm room available only for stereo, I would choose in a heartbeat a pair of scm300ASL PRO in soffit mounting.
 
50ASL’s are revealing but you need to be careful with system matching. Wrong front end will absolutely make these unlistenable and cause listening fatigue. Linn seems to be nice match for them since I haven’t experienced listening fatigue at any point.
 
20s are a different animal than 19s. More detailed, more transparence, more dynamics, more of everything. 20s really need many class AB watts to sing properly - but with a reasonable damping factor (significantly less than 1000).

20s vs. 19s: better damped, heavier and larger enclosure, 'S''-spec tweeter, and better crossovers (2.1kHz 3rd order vs. 2.5 kHz 2nd order)
 
I am extremely happy with my SCM40 speakers, driven by a Naim 250DR. They are pretty revealing of a poor-quality recording but more than make up for this in their excellent sound quality, personally I think Naim and ATC normally work well together. I have regularly listened to the 50s driven by a Naim 500 and if I had the money this combination would be in my system.
 
Like Woodface, I have active 40’s and I’d say they are extremely forgiving on less well recorded music. Indeed I’ve been really surprised at some albums that I love but are a bit meh in that respect. Take early Paul Weller albums for example, I’ve always loved them but the recordings really lack sparkle. On the ATC’s, they sound superb.

@paulbysea if you were to upgrade, I’d seriously consider active ATC’s as I think you’d end up with a better sound for a lot less £££.
 
JezmondTutu said:
Like Woodface, I have active 40’s and I’d say they are extremely forgiving on less well recorded music. Indeed I’ve been really surprised at some albums that I love but are a bit meh in that respect. Take early Paul Weller albums for example, I’ve always loved them but the recordings really lack sparkle. On the ATC’s, they sound superb.

@paulbysea if you were to upgrade, I’d seriously consider active ATC’s as I think you’d end up with a better sound for a lot less £££.
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I have heard both and think when they are Naim powered ATC speakers usually sound better to my ears, but I will give a good listen to both if I am ever in the financial position to upgrade.
 
paulbysea said:
I have heard both and think when they are Naim powered ATC speakers usually sound better to my ears, but I will give a good listen to both if I am ever in the financial position to upgrade.
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Interesting - most do seem to say otherwise. Indeed, one of the guys on the Wam had 40’s with a 300DR and switched to 40A’s because he felt they wete noticeably better.
 
I have never heard ATC speakers although have lots of experience with Naim DBL’s which is really not the same thing. But I have been reading up on the SCM20s of late dew to the fact they are a sealed design and was wondering if they’re like a refined JPW P2 or larger Linn Kan.
With a Linn / Naim system I was thinking of trying a pair out but was wondering if I’m completely off the mark here ?
 
dingding said:
I have never heard ATC speakers although have lots of experience with Naim DBL’s which is really not the same thing. But I have been reading up on the SCM20s of late dew to the fact they are a sealed design and was wondering if they’re like a refined JPW P2 or larger Linn Kan.
With a Linn / Naim system I was thinking of trying a pair out but was wondering if I’m completely off the mark here ?
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Naim sn3 and scm11 here…work very well even at low vols..
 
I drive my SCM19 v2s with a 200 watt per channel McIntosh receiver and I've found the sound incredibly beautiful on all my recordings, principally vinyl but a good amount of CD and SACD.
 
JezmondTutu said:
Interesting - most do seem to say otherwise. Indeed, one of the guys on the Wam had 40’s with a 300DR and switched to 40A’s because he felt they wete noticeably better.
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I used 40's with SN2 + HCDR from 2014 to 2019 and then went active with 40A's. 40A was so good that little over a year and I ordered 50ASL's. Anyway, 40 to 40A was one of the biggest leaps in performance I've ever experienced in this hobby. 40's probably work great with Naim amplification if there's just enough juice but SN2 lacked some serious power compared to active driven 40's. Without HCDR they were pretty much unlistenable and with HCDR they sounded good but after hearing what the actives are capable of, I knew what I had been missing.
 
Yunie, at my very first audition of hifi, with my workmate, the dealer told us not to buy anything there and then, but think about things, so don't worry about that aspect.
However, I'm just the same, feeling guilty spending hours listening to equipment, then not buying anything, but if you're serious your dealer won't mind, as he's after repeat business.
Good luck.
BTW, we both bought Rega Planar 3 decks, but different amps and speakers, and yes, I've bought other equipment from him, since.
 
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