MUSIC PERFORMANCE The sonic character of the Atlantic setup proved to be something just barely on the warm side of neutral. Treble was relaxed — smooth but not attentuated in any way. Songs like Tracy Chapman’s “Crossroads” sounded rich and seductive but still highly detailed, with honest, naturally brassy cymbals and no extra spit or sizzle. Voices, including Ms. Chapman’s, were uniformly excellent: warm but not excessively so, defined, and in-the-room present. I occasionally noted just a hint of low-midrange emphasis, a largely euphonic characteristic that made some voices — baritones, particularly — faintly richer than they should have been. Otherwise, vocals and other midrange elements like the viola and cello in a favorite stereo recording of Beethoven quartets were almost completely free of the common colorations that can mar a speaker’s sonic signature.

The Short Form

atlantictechnology.com / 781-762-6300 / $1,410 ($1,280 IN satin black OR maple)

Plus

•Neutral sound on movies and music. •Musical, compact sub with useful crossover bypass. •Capable two-way center with handy tilt-base and controls.

Minus

•Could use greater sub power for larger rooms.

test bench

The 1200L/R satellites had very uniform directivity, resulting in virtual identical frequency-response curves used as either front or surround speakers. The subwoofer offered modest dynamic capability, averaging 97 dB SPL from 25 to 62 Hz and hitting 104 dB max at 62 Hz. Full lab results

MOVIE PERFORMANCE Unlike the speakers reviewed here, the film Troy rates as neither good nor small nor cheap — but the DVD does feature a boffo soundtrack. Atlantic’s System 1200 had the goods for smooth, cinemalike presentation of a big-screen epic, nicely blending dialogue, music, and effects without calling attention to itself with colorations or cabinet buzzes. But then, unless your grasp of the classics is seriously deficient, you don’t watch Troy for the story. (Hint: nobody gets the girl.)

This saga is lean on big-bass effects — it’s hard to go really large ’n’ low 2,000 years before gunpowder — but when they arose, such as with the big-drum effects in the musical score, the 212SB sub impressed me with its deep, high-impact delivery. It played loud without a hint of boom or any obvious strain, thanks to good low-end extension, my use of the crossover-bypass mode, and effective protection circuitry that kept the subwoofer from running short of power or physically bottoming out. Aperion’s sub was demonstrably louder (by a good margin), but the Atlantic went deep and retained better definition when played loud. Still, there were moments when the system would have benefited from a sub with a little more power — or a second 212SB.

BOTTOM LINE Atlantic Technology’s compact and attractive System 1200 strikes an intelligent performance balance between music and home cinema for modest rooms. I was impressed at just how well the company retained its neutral and highly regarded “family sound” at this very reasonable price.

Print

Stumble It