SCM 20 PSL New Owner

[Nikhil]

Hello,

Brand new owner of a pair of SCM20 PSL here. It's great to find this forum.
I have been listening to my speakers almost non stop since I got them last week.

However, my enthusiasm has been dulled by the lack of information online.
There is almost little to no information in addition to the ATC website and a few other forums and blogs.
Perhaps I have been looking at the wrong places. Any pointers would be appeciated.

A friendly request for more information to ATC Support has gone unanswered so far.
I had asked for impedance curves for my speakers to help with selecting a suitable amp.
I have since read that ATC does not believe in releasing this information. Is this true?

The other (minor) issue I have is what appears to be poor cabinet finish at the binding posts (see photo below)




I am very happy with the sound and have been enjoying listening to my speakers immensely.
The SCM20s are everything I wanted to have and more. Will share my listening impressions on another post.

I look forward to spending more time on here.

Regards

Nikhil

[Mariner]

Welcome Nikhil and congrats to your speakers!
I own a pair of SCM20 for almost 30 years now, and, except for the first weeks, never was disappointed. But the speakers need a little time to open up completely.
(maybe that have changed up to now) So from my experience, the best is to come for you. I feed my 20s since the beginning with a Mcintosh MC 2205, and for me it's absolute satisfying. But I think that is a personal taste and you have to find out witch amp is good for you. We all have our "personal ears", and what's good for me might be bad for you. The only thing that also ATC advice is....power !
Have much fun.....

[Nikhil]

Thank you very much Mariner. 30 years is a long time. Amazing!
Is McIntosh a popular pairing with ATC speakers? I might have to explore their product line.

Thank you again for your kind words.


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[Mariner]

Hi Nikhil,

I don't think McIntosh/ATC is a popular combination. For me it was more like I was looking for suitable speakers for my McIntosh system. Then I heard the ATC10 from a dealer and was thrilled. However, he persuaded me to take the 20 because they have more bass foundation. In the first week I called my dealer and asked them to pick up the speakers again. He in turn asked me to be patient and after 3-4 weeks they had completely convinced me. It was a difficult start, but it was worth it. To date I have only exchanged the tweeter for a new one (old model). My power amplifier has 200W/8Ohm (minimum power according to ATC) and is very stable under load thanks to the Autoformer (tube technology). This is exactly what your future power amplifier should be. I think you'll get a few more suggestions here. I bought a used McIntosh at the time because they keep their value very well, and I had learned that you can “burn” a lot of money with this hobby if you are not careful. Good luck and have fun with your search!

[Nikhil]

Mariner,

Thank you for sharing your story. You have a very interesting dealer!
I also saw your system setup on the dedicated thread. Beautiful setup!

When you mentioned earlier that the SCM20s need time to open up, can you share how much time this took?
I have been playing them quite extensively so far and they are settling in very well. Should be an interesting time.

Regards



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[Mariner]

I think it's also a process of growing together. I was convinced after about 4 weeks. But that doesn't mean, as far as I can remember, that the speakers didn't "open" even more afterwards. Even today there are moments when I am surprised.

[Nikhil]

I agree with you. Speakers are complex when you get into the details.

So far I am happy with the way these SCM20s have opened up with about a week of play time. Initially the mids were muddy and needed about 5 - 6 hrs to open up. They still haven't opened up fully for sure but sound much better than they did a week ago. Just a few days ago I placed them on 24" Skyllan stands which brought the woofers to ear height at my listening position. My ears immediately noticed a bit of shoutyness. I am hoping that the drivers will settle in and smoothen out soon.

The tweeter has been a pleasant experience. Clean as a whistle from day one. My previous speaker has a top SEAS unit from a few years ago and I was bracing for some disappointment here. But the tweeter sounds superb. Clean and sweet is my impression so far.



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[SKY1950]

Hi Nikhil, if you have a reasonable dealer near you most will be happy to let you have a home demo it's the best way to decide how an amplifier will sound in your set up, I use a Audio T dealer in Brighton and they let me demo a ATC P1 amplifier and a Linn Akurate, this led to my ordering the P1 which sounded very good with my SCM 40 speakers, check your dealers !
Steve

[Nikhil]

Thanks Steve. I will try and contact my local dealer about ATC gear.

At the moment, I am planning to use a beefy dual mono amp I have from a local boutique manufacturer. The amp is a solid state design rated at 200W and I just got confirmation that current delivery is not going to be an issue as they typically build in some headroom. The preamp is a tube design which I believe is a variation on the old Marantz 7. Tubes are 6N2P which I remember sounded a lot better than the stock 12AX7. Should be interesting to see how the setup will sound.

Supplies were already affected earlier with the pandemic. The situation in the Ukraine has probably made it worse.


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[Mariner]

There must be a reason why you choose a tube (pre) and boutique (amp) combination. Maybe you still use vinyl (like me). I don't now the products but I think it's a very personal choice. So if you like and can afford it, from my point of view, there is not much reason to look after an upgrade. Sit down, listen and enjoy! 😀

[Nikhil]

There must be a reason why you choose a tube (pre) and boutique (amp) combination. Maybe you still use vinyl (like me). I don't now the products but I think it's a very personal choice. So if you like and can afford it, from my point of view, there is not much reason to look after an upgrade. Sit down, listen and enjoy! 😀

Thanks Mariner but there is a very simple reason. I already have the amps but have not used them in a while. After getting the SCM20, I got back in touch with the amp manufacturer. That is why I had wanted to get more info from ATC. But it looks like they should be able to drive the 20s without a problem. I am planning to send the amps back to the manufacturer to get them checked out - general health check up, biasing etc.

About vinyl - I have gone completely digital for about 10 years plus. Still have about 50 records in storage but no plans to go that route.


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[Mariner]

If they are already in your possession....so much the better! And after they have been revised by the manufacturer I would listen for a while before I would think about new power amplifiers. The world is going digital and I'm starting to feel like the Flintstones!😀 Nothing can replace the meditative experience of playing vinyl, but everyone has their own idea!

[Nikhil]

Amplifier Update:
It's been a while since my last post but I inserted the tube preamp + SS power amp combination about a month ago and the setup sounds fantastic. The 20s absolutely come alive the more power you feed them with. In some situations the bass articulation is startling. At this point it's safe to say that I am very happy with the speaker + amp combo.

I am still quite surprised to see how little information there is out there on the SCM20. For me this was a speaker that I wanted to try out almost 10 years ago but went a different route. So far the new tweeter sounds like a winner with the mid bass driver delivering remarkably detailed and saturated sound. For my needs and purposes this is a fantastic speaker. I have been listening to a lot of piano jazz (Jazz Trios mostly) but the 20s seem to revel in all kinds of genres. Rock sounds fantastic with these speakers with guitar riffs sounding remarkably good with real punch and energy. Vocals are just outstanding. What I like most is how really well put together the sound is from top to down. Just clear and coherent with superb dynamics.

I plan to add a sub woofer later on. Front runner at this point is the REL T/7x with the ATC C1 a distant second.



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[Mariner]

I started looking for a suitable sub for my SCM20 with an SVS (frontfire) because I thought a downfire would excite the room too much. But I was never really satisfied. Then I got a cheap C1 sub and had an old 2cm thick marble table top with the right dimensions (60x60cm). I put an insulation mat for washing machines, which fits perfect, under this tabletop to isolate the whole thing. Everything works perfectly and the bass is much cleaner and more contoured than with the SVS. It also goes much deeper.