Active ATC vs Spendor / Pass Labs

I think if I were to go with active I’d want a really smooth or colorful preamp to go with it.

with the atc’s i have found this very much to be the case

i still have my beloved atc scm10 and 20 actives, and i have kept an audio research ref 3 linestage, to drive them -- solid state linestages were just too unforgiving of all but the highest quality recordings rendering 60-70% of the music out there unlistenable...  the tube magic of the ref 3 were the goldilocks mating

@rfc --

Irrespective of the difference in volume levels (and room/gear) between the two setups, i.e.: the Spendor vs. ATC system, what was your main takeaway in terms of the core traits you heard from them? While not an optimal context of comparison it’d still give you an overall bearing on the fundamental sonic differences. The ATC speakers I’ve heard, all of them active iterations (that is, incl. one pair of passively driven ATC SCM100’s, fed by a Crown Studio Ref. II), to my ears are particularly well sounding at "normal" listening levels - say, 75-85dB’s and above. Maybe that’s indicative of both the way they’re balanced and how relatively unflappable they are at higher SPL’s due to their great, low distortion drivers and active config. Which is also saying that to some degree at least their pedigree at "normal" to higher levels isn’t due to them being lesser performers per se at lower levels, but because they’re somewhat more effortless at higher listening levels than most hifi speakers. For sure the brilliant 3" midrange dome of the active ATC SCM50’s will wring out more information, clarity, intricacies, composure and dynamics than the Spendor’s, by a mile - while being an extremely coherent sounding speaker package top to bottom - but that’s not necessarily to say you will like them more overall.

The advice given by Erik on a separate preamp vs. DAC-direct isn’t irrelevant. Personally I have a dedicated studio segment DAC/preamp (with a great analogue output stage, PSU and volume control) coupled directly to my power amps, i.e.: via a digital crossover, and the range of separate preamps I've tried haven't yielded a more "meat on the bones" imprinting nor other that would make them the more desirable option. It certainly depends. 

You shouldn't notice the large ATCs changing sound character between low, mid, and high loudness levels. They are designed and made to behave that way.

Before buying, I'd recommend demoing much more of both of them, listening to music you usually listen to.

ATCs are exceedingly low-distorting, linear in frequency, and resilient to power compression. Some people, like me, prefer that. Some don't - ATCs sound too boring and analytical to them.

Spendors are more exciting: as I understand, through less linearity in lower and higher frequencies, which are somewhat boosted, and subtle inside-the-cabinet-reverb.

Both are somewhat less than ideal regarding horizontal and vertical dispersion characteristics - they may sound quite different depending on your room. ATCs, especially, love well-damped rooms.

Long demoing in your room would be ideal. If you could arrange that, perhaps by offering the dealers some "rental fee", that would help you make a much more informed choice.

This is past history so take that into account. I was friends with Gordon Holt from the mid 70s until his death. Gordon was concerned with accuracy, the knid that sounded like the real thing on good recordings. Gordon did a lot of recording including many recordings of the Boulder symphony orchestra. He knew sound and he knew the original sound of his recordings. The last speakers Gordon bought with his own money were ATC 50A active speakers. He considered them among a handful, at most, of speakers that gave back what was on a recording. And this is not second hand. I was involved a  bit in discussions with him when he was deciding to buy the ATCs.

I'll add I recall speaking to him about a review he did on an 5 speaker plus sub ATC system that he gave a rave review a few years earlier. I asked him if it was really that good. He told me yes. I asked him what he was going to do when ATC asked for the system back. He jokingly said he would kill himself. I was at Vegas CES the next year and in the ATC room speaking to the founder of ATC and told him that story. And he told me the system I was listening to was the one taken back from Gordon.

I have no doubt the Pass/Spendor system will be wonderful and you won't be sorry if you end up with it but the ATC system will be more accurate and what really matters to me personally will be more dynamic. I don't just mean it will play louder cleanly, which it will, but it's changes in level from mini to midi to maxi will be more accurate and will make good recordings sound more like live acoustic sound than the Spendor/Pass system.

I have the following:

ATC SCM150 passive

ATC SCM20 passive

ATC SCM50 active

all of them can be played at any level and they play equally well at quiet or loud or anything in between.