I find this recording tests the mettle of my regular Klipsch Cornwall IV speakers, pushing them to their limits… I had intended to sample just a few tracks but ended up listening to the whole album because the sound was so enjoyable. For example, Elbow's The Seldom Seen Kid became a lot of fun. However, after a few hours of use, the SCM11 began to open up, growing more transparent and increasingly dynamic. THE LISTENINGįirst impressions were of a smooth, tightly controlled sound that was solid and precise but a little constrained. Two sets of 4mm binding posts at the rear allow bi-wiring. The speakers are designed to be used without grilles, but an open mesh-type 'honeycomb' grille is provided. StereoNET's review pair came finished in Cherry veneer, but there's a choice of Black Ash, Black Satin, and White Satin. The SCM11's 381 x 232 x 236mm cabinet is solidly made and nicely finished and weighs a surprisingly heavy 10.8kg. ATC claims the end result is a crisp, detailed sound that remains smooth and well-balanced, practically regardless of where the listener sits. The controlled relationship between the drivers ensures the phase response remains linear over the quoted horizontal and vertical angles. It extends the cone's on-axis frequency response while improving off-axis dispersion, with no loss of transient attack. CLD is said to be a revolutionary damping technology which significantly reduces harmonic distortion. Increasing mechanical damping makes the on and off-axis response of the cone more consistent, but a heavy cone adversely affects transient response and reduces output level. However, it suffers from a reduced high-frequency response and multiple resonance points when listened to off-axis. A cone with high stiffness behaves more like a true piston over a broader range of frequencies and delivers an extended high-frequency response when listened to on-axis. When designing a bass driver, you can either go for a stiff cone or a light, flexible type. The drive unit has a powerful motor assembly for magnetic linearity and low distortion. It features ATC's CLD (constrained layer damped cone) driver technology with a hand-wound voice coil using flat (rather than round) wire. The 150mm bass/mid driver swings into action from 2.2kHz and below. Although ferrofluid has several benefits, ATC believes it eventually thickens up and impedes the movement of the dome – so the company designed its tweeter to work without it. Interestingly, the company avoids the use of ferrofluid damping found in most similar 25mm soft dome tweeters. The tweeter is a 25mm soft dome type featuring a neodymium magnet and precision alloy waveguard. While outwardly, the SCM11 looks superficially similar to many other 2-way standmounters, it's ATC's custom-designed drive units that make the difference. Frequency response is quoted as 56Hz to 22kHz (-6dB). This makes it easy to drive, with a nominal quoted figure of 8 ohms. Although this little box is fairly insensitive, ATC says its impedance curve is relatively flat. A maximum SPL (sound pressure level) of 108dB is claimed with a suitable amp. I partnered my review pair with Elipson's PF1/ A2700 pre-power combination, which features a Class D power amp delivering around 400W per channel. The SCM11 has a quoted sensitivity of 85dB for 1W at 1 metre as this is on the low side, it's recommended you use an amplifier between 75W to 300W output. It's one of six models in ATC's Entry Series, which starts with the SCM7 and goes up to the SCM40 there's even an active version of the latter, the SCM40A. The petite SCM11 is a case in point, a two-way compact sealed enclosure standmounter costing $3,299 in Australia. While the company continues to offer its studio monitors, its range has broadened considerably of late. It soon became legendary for the quality and reliability of its drive units. Its wares were initially aimed at recording studios needing tough, reliable, accurate, detailed transducers for professional purposes. So it's no surprise to find that the brand's smaller, less expensive loudspeakers like the SCM11 are almost as full of ingenious design details as the more expensive models.ĪTC was formed in 1974 and started out making high-quality drive units intended for studio monitors. Obviously, you can't simply sell pro audio speakers into the domestic market, but ATC's hi-fi products still have a strong whiff of professional monitors about them. The company isn't really one for compromises. So when it sets its sights on doing something smaller and more affordable, you expect something special… For nearly fifty years, ATC has been making some of the finest studio monitor loudspeakers in the world, acclaimed by professionals for their quality and reliability.
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