I have a pair of custom built active 110 ASLs that I bought from an orchestra. It was part of a portable stage setup. I had always wanted some ATCs since I first heard them in a shop in Chicago in 2001.
They are a very matter of fact speaker. They don't have a lot of character of their own. They seem to change with the source. Their most notable characteristic is the ability to play as loud as you want without any distortion. I can watch an action movie as loud as it would be in the theater without any strain - it's quite an experience. This makes them great for music that has big dynamic swings.
The pair I have is from about 2012 so it predates the new ATC tweeter. They are a little bit soft on top. This can be a good or bad thing depending on your preferences but it's their most noticeable deviation from complete neutrality IMO. It makes them slightly easier on the ears when you're listening to a recording with a bit of excess treble but it also detracts a little from something that is well recorded and that has a lot of atmosphere. The new tweeter may have fixed this.
There is nothing quite like active bass. The ones I have are sealed and don't have any hint of exaggerated bass but the bass quality is just better than passive. The transients are razor sharp, the texture is fantastic. Maybe there are passive speakers that can do it as well but they're definitely rare.
As far as microdynamics go, I'm not sure myself if that's a characteristic of the speaker or it's that other speakers tend to exaggerate it. I do think a lot of speakers exaggerate various things that can make them sound kind of magical but that also are a distortion that has a downside as well. I think ATCs excel at higher volumes more than lower. The ones I have sound fine at lower volumes but if you're going to listen to smaller scale music at lower volumes I wouldn't go with ATC since you're going to be paying for dynamic ability that you won't use. My experience is with big ones so this may not hold for the smaller ones or the new tweeter may make a big difference.
I've got a pair of Thiel 3.7s as well in another system and I'd have a hard time picking between the two. They're both fantastic, both designed for accuracy, and yet significantly different. The Thiels don't have near the dynamic capability, although they will play plenty loud for most people. They sound better at low volumes and they do atmosphere better. Whether this is due to the first order crossovers or more extended tweeter I don't know but I consider this a pretty easy distinction to make.
The ATCs do better with a full orchestra or meaty rock n roll. The Thiels are better with smaller scale stuff. I listen to a fair amount of smaller scale string recordings and acoustic jazz and I prefer the Thiels for that. They're really fantastic. If I want to listen to Ozzy or a full orchestra I prefer the ATCs. They can deliver a bass line or the scale of a large orchestra a bit better.
They are a very matter of fact speaker. They don't have a lot of character of their own. They seem to change with the source. Their most notable characteristic is the ability to play as loud as you want without any distortion. I can watch an action movie as loud as it would be in the theater without any strain - it's quite an experience. This makes them great for music that has big dynamic swings.
The pair I have is from about 2012 so it predates the new ATC tweeter. They are a little bit soft on top. This can be a good or bad thing depending on your preferences but it's their most noticeable deviation from complete neutrality IMO. It makes them slightly easier on the ears when you're listening to a recording with a bit of excess treble but it also detracts a little from something that is well recorded and that has a lot of atmosphere. The new tweeter may have fixed this.
There is nothing quite like active bass. The ones I have are sealed and don't have any hint of exaggerated bass but the bass quality is just better than passive. The transients are razor sharp, the texture is fantastic. Maybe there are passive speakers that can do it as well but they're definitely rare.
As far as microdynamics go, I'm not sure myself if that's a characteristic of the speaker or it's that other speakers tend to exaggerate it. I do think a lot of speakers exaggerate various things that can make them sound kind of magical but that also are a distortion that has a downside as well. I think ATCs excel at higher volumes more than lower. The ones I have sound fine at lower volumes but if you're going to listen to smaller scale music at lower volumes I wouldn't go with ATC since you're going to be paying for dynamic ability that you won't use. My experience is with big ones so this may not hold for the smaller ones or the new tweeter may make a big difference.
I've got a pair of Thiel 3.7s as well in another system and I'd have a hard time picking between the two. They're both fantastic, both designed for accuracy, and yet significantly different. The Thiels don't have near the dynamic capability, although they will play plenty loud for most people. They sound better at low volumes and they do atmosphere better. Whether this is due to the first order crossovers or more extended tweeter I don't know but I consider this a pretty easy distinction to make.
The ATCs do better with a full orchestra or meaty rock n roll. The Thiels are better with smaller scale stuff. I listen to a fair amount of smaller scale string recordings and acoustic jazz and I prefer the Thiels for that. They're really fantastic. If I want to listen to Ozzy or a full orchestra I prefer the ATCs. They can deliver a bass line or the scale of a large orchestra a bit better.