ATC is a small but surprisingly successful company, a big player in the world of active loudspeakers for the professional audio industry where it has equipped the likes of Pink Floyd, Kate Bush, Lenny Kravitz and studios too numerous to mention. It also makes a range of passive and active speakers for home use of which the SCM11 is the second model up. There are also SCM7 and SCM19 standmounts alongside a floorstanding SCM40 in an entry level range of passive designs whose numbers indicate physical volume in litres.
This hefty little box contains one of the company's massively powered mid/bass drivers, the 45mm soft dome at its centre indicating the size of the voice coil behind but giving no hint as to the girth of the magnet that controls it. Because ATC works in the pro world it engineers its speakers to withstand the sort of abuse that long term, high level deals out.
As a result, it builds all its drive units to the same bomb proof standard, so if you want a speaker to play long and hard it's a very tough brand to beat. The only downside it would seem is that you need a decent amount of power on tap to do this safely (from the speaker's perspective), a fact reflected by the broad recommended power range. Up to 300 watts might seem OTT for such a diminutive speaker but if undistorted high volume is the goal then, quite frankly, you can't have too much power. While the sensitivity is low, the impedance is flat, so the load is not as tough as it can be with other ostensibly more efficient designs.
One difference that ATC's new entry-level range introduced was the alloy wave guide on the tweeter. This is designed to improve and smooth high frequency dispersion, but it must also create a little horn loading which improves sensitivity.
The real wood veneered cabinet is unusual in that it is sealed rather than reflex loaded. This has the drawback of reducing overall efficiency but the bonus of allowing deeper bass extension than a ported enclosure of the same size. The front baffle is doubled up with the second layer finished in grey, the post-formed edges introduced to reduce diffraction - sharp edges tend to break up the high frequency wave travelling across the baffle which can mess up imaging.
Performance
With a pair of 24in Atacama stands spiked to the floor and Blu-tacked to the speaker the SCM11s were auditioned pretty close to the wall behind them (about 10cm), the lack of any reflex port making it possible to reinforce the bass this way without muddying the midrange. Just to be on the safe side, a 200 watt Gamut D200 was given the job of driving them. It proved a harmonious combination, the little speaker proving that it can party as hard as rather larger alternatives while retaining a precision and solidity that is rare at this price.
Some find the balance of ATCs to be a shade on the analytical side. This is because they are voiced to have a flat response in order to be as revealing as possible. This approach requires clean and well balanced source components and recordings if it is not to sound harsh, but you can't blame a speaker for being too revealing.
Fortunately the benefit is worth the asking price because of the sheer realism that this speaker creates, and instruments like pianos are unusually convincing which is extremely rare for any affordable speaker. Voices likewise are full of character; you can always hear the lyrics (assuming the artist is singing in English and notwithstanding some of the bizarre inflections favoured by some) but it's the intent and the feeling that is important and that is never unclear.
This ATC has a tighter sound than competitors like the PMC TB2+, which sounds much more open and relaxed, but I am more inclined to believe this smaller box's version of events. It makes bass more solid and details more precise - 'analytical' is the word but fortunately this does not get in the way of the music.
There are more 'musical' sounding speakers on the market but they are not as resolute or wideband as the SCM11. If anything this speaker sounds better at higher levels, so if most of your listening is at background volume then I'd suggest you look elsewhere. However if you want to be absorbed in the visceral grip of anything from Beethoven to Zappa then these ATCs are the speaker for the job. In fact if you love music then you really should try and listen to it at something approaching realistic levels once in a while - and with a decent amplifier this speaker will let you do that. And that dear reader really is what living is all about.
 |
|
 |
|
The SCM11 is a typical ATC - heavily engineered, finely finished and straightforward to look at. It has a pro-style flat response that reveals rather more than most, especially at high frequencies, yet it's not bright and goes loud in a controlled fashion given sufficient power. All of which puts it in front of the sub £1,000 speaker pack.
|
 |
