ATC SCM7 vs SCM11 ? Which one would you choose?

Hello. I'm new to ATC speakers sound but I have read many reviews about both speakers praising them for their great sound. I own a pair of KEF LS50 but even though I find they sound fantastic, I would like to go the extra mile and upgrade them to something better. I've read that the ATCs can handle more musical genres than the LS50s and that's important for me because I don't listen to audiophile recordings all the time but also 80s and 90s pop and rock that aren't known for having good recordings and you can find really bad recordings.

I know the SCM19 it's supposed to be the best of the entry level line but I wouldn't like to try the ATC sound paying $4,000 so my options are the SCM7 and the SCM11. If I really like the sound then in a near future I could upgrade to the SCM19 and use the other speakers in another room or sell them, BUT, in the meantime, do you think there is a great sonic difference between the 7 and the 11? The difference in price is $500.

The frequency response of the 7 is 60-22 and the 11 is 56-22 but specs sometimes doesn't mean that much in practical terms. Would the SCM7 gave me a much lesser experience than the SCM11?

Thank you very much for all your insight, best regards,

 

I'd go 11s over 7s and 19s over both, I'm assuming you can't get a proper demo or home loan which would be the ideal answer, even though I love ATCs buying any speaker without hearing them isn't a good idea.

 

Why would you choose ATC SMC 11?

 

I just find that I prefer the bigger enclosures you just get that little bit more out of them, I actually own and use an older pair of 7s in my second system, don't get me wrong they are excellent speakers, but if you have the money and there are no other issues that would rule them out I'd go for the 11s, well actually personally I'd go for the 19s, but you have to put that into the context that I use a pair of 50s in my main system and if you gave me an unlimited budget to replace them I'd go out and buy another pair of ATCs though active rather than passive. I am a somewhat biased ATC user, but I have compared my 50s against pretty much everything that was around; PMCs, B & Ws, Kefs, Tannoys, Martin Logans, etc., etc., plenty of nice speakers, but none that made me want to swap, although I could have lived with several of them, my experience of smaller speakers isn't as great, but I haven't heard any of similar size that I prefer to my 7's other than bigger ATCs.

 

ATC SCM 11 demo (sealed box speakers)

 

ATC SCM 7 demo (sealed box speakers)