ATC EL 150 Active speakers

[mevdinc]

Today is a very emotional day for me.

I have parted company with my beloved ATC EL150 Active speakers after so many years of wonderful listening pleasure.

I will miss them terribly but it is comforting to know that they are going to a new home in the UK where they will be just as much loved and appreciated.
Sold them due to the space constraints and another possible move.

I'm not in a rush for replacement but initially, I will probably consider a smaller but big and capable sounding all-in-one dynamic active speakers such as D&D 8Cs.
I would like to hear from any ATC users, who made the switch to a different brand with satisfactory results.
 

s

Thanks.

[Rexp]

5 hours ago, mevdinc said:

Today is a very emotional day for me.

I have parted company with my beloved ATC EL150 Active speakers after so many years of wonderful listening pleasure.

I will miss them terribly but it is comforting to know that they are going to a new home in the UK where they will be just as much loved and appreciated.
Sold them due to the space constraints and another possible move.

I'm not in a rush for replacement but initially, I will probably consider a smaller but big and capable sounding all-in-one dynamic active speakers such as D&D 8Cs.
I would like to hear from any ATC users, who made the switch to a different brand with satisfactory results.
 

s

Thanks.

As an ex dealer for ATC, I would say try PMC plus a good amp. If you want actives, your options are quite limited, or go with smaller active ATC's.

[mevdinc]

17 hours ago, Rexp said:

As an ex dealer for ATC, I would say try PMC plus a good amp. If you want actives, your options are quite limited, or go with smaller active ATC's.

Thanks for the suggestion but somehow, I never enjoyed the sound of PMC, I find the bass a bit exaggerated and the mid is not as magical as ATC's.
Of course, smaller active ATCs would be the obvious choice for me but at this stage I'm looking for an active system that has a built-in DAC/streamer. Search starts/continues. :)

[Rexp]

7 hours ago, mevdinc said:

Thanks for the suggestion but somehow, I never enjoyed the sound of PMC, I find the bass a bit exaggerated and the mid is not as magical as ATC's.
Of course, smaller active ATCs would be the obvious choice for me but at this stage I'm looking for an active system that has a built-in DAC/streamer. Search starts/continues. :)

Yeah PMC can sound less than tight with the wrong amp.

[Kal Rubinson]

12 hours ago, mevdinc said:

I never enjoyed the sound of PMC, I find the bass a bit exaggerated and the mid is not as magical as ATC's.

You are too kind.

[mevdinc]

9 hours ago, Kal Rubinson said:

You are too kind.

:)
I'm too honest perhaps.

[vinylvalet]

I and several friends run a Weiss DAC501 (remote control volume) directly into our active ATC speakers (SCM50ASLT or SCM100ASLT). That's just about as clean and simple as a speaker with built in DAC. I very much doubt the DAC built into any speaker would outperform the Weiss. The many useful DSP features put it over the top.

 

I think, like most folks that own and love ATC active, that you should stick with a smaller ATC active.

 

With that said, I have heard nothing but good things about the D&D but I have not heard them myself. I think in your case, an audition would be a must. 

 

The rest of us can only envy you for having EL 150s in your home for all those years. I would think anything else, including smaller ATC active, would be a disappointment. Unless your 150s had previous revision midrange and tweeters. Then you might get a nice surprise with even a lesser current ATC active model. These latest drivers are supposed to be a fairly significant improvement over the previous generation.

 

I use ATC active in both my home and studio so I'm just a little biased about this brand.

 

Best of luck. I hope you find the perfect solution for your new home.

[vinylvalet]

BTW, you should also look into Kii speakers; another brand with everything including DAC and DSP inside the box. There looks to be an informative thread just a bit below this one.

[grinner]

Take a look at the Buchardt A500. A stand mount with built in DAC. There is also the bigger floor standing A700. 

[mevdinc]

On 7/18/2022 at 2:36 AM, vinylvalet said:

I and several friends run a Weiss DAC501 (remote control volume) directly into our active ATC speakers (SCM50ASLT or SCM100ASLT). That's just about as clean and simple as a speaker with built in DAC. I very much doubt the DAC built into any speaker would outperform the Weiss. The many useful DSP features put it over the top.

 

I think, like most folks that own and love ATC active, that you should stick with a smaller ATC active.

 

With that said, I have heard nothing but good things about the D&D but I have not heard them myself. I think in your case, an audition would be a must. 

 

The rest of us can only envy you for having EL 150s in your home for all those years. I would think anything else, including smaller ATC active, would be a disappointment. Unless your 150s had previous revision midrange and tweeters. Then you might get a nice surprise with even a lesser current ATC active model. These latest drivers are supposed to be a fairly significant improvement over the previous generation.

 

I use ATC active in both my home and studio so I'm just a little biased about this brand.

 

Best of luck. I hope you find the perfect solution for your new home.

Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts with me.

 

I bought my first ATC SMC 20A Pro way back in 1998 when I lived in the UK. So, I am familiar with the differences between the smaller and the bigger ATCs. I know it's going to hard to replace my EL 150s but in the interim, I'm rather looking for a practical solution.
BTW, EL150s were factory upgraded to the new tweeter and the upgrade did make a difference.

As I said, I will get a simple practical replacement for the time being such as D&D or even the new KEF LS60 Wireless.

ATC may come up with another special anniversary model too. :)

Many thanks again.

[mevdinc]

On 7/18/2022 at 2:39 AM, vinylvalet said:

BTW, you should also look into Kii speakers; another brand with everything including DAC and DSP inside the box. There looks to be an informative thread just a bit below this one.

I did get a chance to listen to both D&D and Kii side by side in London several years ago and I preferred the sound of D&D.

[Nikhil]

On 7/3/2022 at 4:39 AM, mevdinc said:

Today is a very emotional day for me.

I have parted company with my beloved ATC EL150 Active speakers after so many years of wonderful listening pleasure.

I will miss them terribly but it is comforting to know that they are going to a new home in the UK where they will be just as much loved and appreciated.
Sold them due to the space constraints and another possible move.

 

Sorry to hear this @mevdinc ... I have just picked up a pair of SCM 20 PSL in March.  

Not really sure what would come anywhere near the EL150s!  Good luck with your search.

 

 

 

.

 

[mevdinc]

5 hours ago, Nikhil said:

 

Sorry to hear this @mevdinc ... I have just picked up a pair of SCM 20 PSL in March.  

Not really sure what would come anywhere near the EL150s!  Good luck with your search.

 

Thanks @Nikhil, much appreciated.

I enjoyed my ATC SCM 20A PROs for several years before purchasing the EL 150As.
Most of the wonderful ATC sound comes from the super dome midrange driver and as a result, I'm sure your 20s must be providing with a lot of enjoyment.
Your 20 PSL has the Super Linear drivers, which also helps. 👍

What amplification are you using with your ATCs?

All the best and enjoy you ATCs.

 

[Nikhil]

Thanks @mevdinc ... I have been really enjoying the 20s.

 

I am using amps from a local boutique brand called Acoustic Portrait.

The power amp is a beefy dual mono class AB design that is rated at 200W per channel.

The preamp is a tube design currently using 6N2P tubes to soften things up a little.

 

I also have the Job INT which also drive the 20s very well. 

 

 

.

[danielmeyers]

On 7/3/2022 at 2:09 AM, mevdinc said:

Today is a very emotional day for me.

I have parted company with my beloved ATC EL150 Active speakers after so many years of wonderful listening pleasure.

I will miss them terribly but it is comforting to know that they are going to a new home in the UK where they will be just as much loved and appreciated.
Sold them due to the space constraints and another possible move.

I'm not in a rush for replacement but initially, I will probably consider a smaller but big and capable sounding all-in-one dynamic active speakers such as D&D 8Cs.
I would like to hear from any ATC users, who made the switch to a different brand with satisfactory results.
 

s

Thanks.

It's a shame that you had to part with them. In fact, I am one of the lucky few ATC EL150 owners. I listen to them almost every day with joy and deepest satisfaction. I don't know if this helps you or not, but my recommendation (albeit in a different price range): PSI Audio!!! It's incredible how even the smallest speakers sound.

[mevdinc]

4 hours ago, danielmeyers said:

It's a shame that you had to part with them. In fact, I am one of the lucky few ATC EL150 owners. I listen to them almost every day with joy and deepest satisfaction. I don't know if this helps you or not, but my recommendation (albeit in a different price range): PSI Audio!!! It's incredible how even the smallest speakers sound.

Thanks Daniel!
You are so lucky. I used to listen to mine everyday for several hours too and I do miss them a lot.
I'm not rushing for a replacement, as I still don't know about my next location.
Currently, I'm just enjoying reading up on interesting new speaker brands and designs. I will also check out PSI Audio, thanks.
It's quite likely that I may end up with another pair of ATC again. I will share an update in due course. :)

Best wishes and enjoy your EL150s!
Mev