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ATC Speakers...Do you use them with Grill On/Off

Hi,
I recently bought a pair of ATC SCM40 speakers. I am using it in a room of about 180sqft. Listening distance is about 8 ft.
I use a Symphonic Line Power Amp with them. The Power amp is very revealing and extended on both ends. Paired with ATC, I am getting very high resolution tones but I also feel that when I listen with the Grills off, here are some issues I see:

1. I get some direct sounds from the Tweeter and Midrange (its a three way speaker) which doesnt allow the speaker to dissappear completely

2. Even though I hear more detail with the grills off, I also find sometimes the sound is not relaxed, its a bit sharp

With Grills On...problem (1) is almost solved.
Problem (2) is solved to a good extent if not fully but it happens at the cost of a little loss in resolution. The leading edges are slightly less prominent. But surprisingly I find it more musically right when its playing with the Grills On. I am wondering what ATC recommends and what other ATC owners have experienced in this regard.

Is it that, since I use a very revealing amp along with a very revealing speaker I am facing this situation ?
What kind of cables are generally preferred with ATC ?
pani

Showing 2 responses by shadorne

shadorne's avatar
shadorne
7,477 posts
 
In theory they won't sound very different at all because these have rounded edges on the baffle - so the grill plays no role in helping to reduce edge diffraction - so the imaging/soundstage should be unaffected.

With large open weave fabrics, all you could expect is a very slight attenuation above 6 Khz of 0.5 db to perhaps 1.0 db at 12 Khz. It might be just audible. This may be perceived as more clarity with the grills off. If your amp has a treble tone control you could achieve a similar effect as taking the grills off by moving it up one notch.

Consider that anomalies from room acoustics: the floor and wall coverings and furniture may swamp any grill on or off affect
shadorne's avatar
shadorne
7,477 posts
 
I am not sure whether ATC speakers are best set up with little or no toe-in, and perhaps current ATC owners can advise. If sound is little direct, you may want to try as little toe-in as possible.

In a large space you will not notice much effect from toe-in (as they have wide even dispersion) - so just point the straight out and you'll generally get the widest sweetspot and smoothest in room response (think of your speakers as two floodlights and you want to evenly light up your room). I would suggest experimenting with toe-in if they are placed close to side walls (3 feet or less) - to reduce the amplitude of early reflections (best to keep near reflections at least 3 feet from a speaker).

Ryder has some excellent points - where you sit and how close the speakers are to the side walls is very important for the soundstage and image. A really small space suggests using a diagonal configuration with listening chair roughly 6 feet back from the plane of the speakers (avoiding the middle of the room - don't sit in the exact middle). I can't emphasize enough the importance of space around the listener.
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