Is Atomic CLR worth the high price tag?

lauke-lux said:
It's the form factor if the Elis that keeps me from buying one. Doesn't look very pragmatic on (small) bar scenes. Have a single CLR neo that sofar never showed any problems and sounds "kickass" ; it will blow up any bar we play when I push it too far (so I try not to). The neo is about 33lbs which is acceptable imho. I love it's 2 input channel concept which makes me using it as a backline and band monitor, which would be mandatory for any replacement unit I'd buy. I would have liked to get a second one for stereo use but the after sale problems of Atomic get too much publicity not to be true.
Maybe I might want to try an FR12 just to see what is the hype about this fr-fr amp.
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From my point of view, the enthusiasm for the FR-10/12 is due to its good price-to-performance ratio, and that's great news for us! Because generally speaking, FRFR systems targeting guitarists are usually too expensive.

The second reason, which shouldn't be overlooked, is the Fender logo!

I owned a pair of CLR Neo MKIIs, and I agree with most people who use these amps: they sound amazing. I also liked the wide sound dispersion of this type of speaker.

Regarding weight, our best friends are loudspeakers with neodymium magnets; that's what I use. Then I use a separate amp head and passive cabinets because I prefer moving 8 kg + 8 kg + 8 kg rather than 24 kg. It's common sense, and my back thanks me.
 
mnkyby66 said:
Awesome - will look for the link. My FR-10 has no his. Would appreciate some tonal goodness tho. ChatGPT keeps advising me to buy an Atomic CLR NEO MKII.
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Get the Fender with the V3 pre. It's excellent. More amp-like, and the built-in EQ is great for tweaking (both have a line-out, which can be very useful).
 
some people lean toward alternatives like AccuGroove Espresso+ FRFR Cabinet
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The 2 tweeters next to each other in this speaker present a huge red flag to me, even though the specs look good otherwise. Using dome tweeters may avoid some problems related to horns, but they probably do not have the required power handling, hence why the power is divided over two of them in this design. The distance between the tweeters starts causing all kinds of weirdness (lobing, comb filtering etc.) when that distances reaches > half a wavelength, getting worse as the frequency increases. Woofers and mid range drivers can effectively couple because the wavelengths are longer. For tweeters this is not the case because of the very small wavelengths. At 3 KHz, the wavelength is 11.4 cm (about 4.5 inches) so the distance between the tweeters cannot be more than half of that,. At 6 KHz, it is 5,7cm or 2.25 inches. this only gets worse at higher frequencies. It is practically impossible to put tweeters physically close enough to avoid huge issues in the high end. Line array systems etc. use very elaborate waveguide designs to make multiple high frequency drivers somewhat behave together. Just putting multiple tweeters on a baffle doesn't cut it IMO. Purely for guitar this may be tolerable for a lot of people as a 4x12 produces tons of this weirdness and there it is part of the experience, but for a proper "FRFR" IMO it's a problem as this colouring should not come from the reproduction speaker system.
 
Back in the day it was claimed that to have something better would require spending $5,000 instead -- meaning: it is/was amazing value for the price.

I'm a case that has read too much fact and hype about it back then, so I psychologically can't find anything else better for that price. I actually think it's rather "cheap." If $1000 was no object to me, I'd still buy two extra, despite non-existing service (as you can service/replace some boards yourself).

If you don't crave the special speaker or "flatness" it indeed seems advisable to try the Fender.
As I don't have any other monitors here, the flatness of a CLR is a blessing/requirement to me (but my original one is heavy)...
 
srooijens said:
The 2 tweeters next to each other in this speaker present a huge red flag to me, even though the specs look good otherwise. Using dome tweeters may avoid some problems related to horns, but they probably do not have the required power handling, hence why the power is divided over two of them in this design. The distance between the tweeters starts causing all kinds of weirdness (lobing, comb filtering etc.) when that distances reaches > half a wavelength, getting worse as the frequency increases. Woofers and mid range drivers can effectively couple because the wavelengths are longer. For tweeters this is not the case because of the very small wavelengths. At 3 KHz, the wavelength is 11.4 cm (about 4.5 inches) so the distance between the tweeters cannot be more than half of that,. At 6 KHz, it is 5,7cm or 2.25 inches. this only gets worse at higher frequencies. It is practically impossible to put tweeters physically close enough to avoid huge issues in the high end. Line array systems etc. use very elaborate waveguide designs to make multiple high frequency drivers somewhat behave together. Just putting multiple tweeters on a baffle doesn't cut it IMO. Purely for guitar this may be tolerable for a lot of people as a 4x12 produces tons of this weirdness and there it is part of the experience, but for a proper "FRFR" IMO it's a problem as this colouring should not come from the reproduction speaker system.
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Interesting lecture keep these coming.
 
srooijens said:
The 2 tweeters next to each other in this speaker present a huge red flag to me, even though the specs look good otherwise. Using dome tweeters may avoid some problems related to horns, but they probably do not have the required power handling, hence why the power is divided over two of them in this design. The distance between the tweeters starts causing all kinds of weirdness (lobing, comb filtering etc.) when that distances reaches > half a wavelength, getting worse as the frequency increases. Woofers and mid range drivers can effectively couple because the wavelengths are longer. For tweeters this is not the case because of the very small wavelengths. At 3 KHz, the wavelength is 11.4 cm (about 4.5 inches) so the distance between the tweeters cannot be more than half of that,. At 6 KHz, it is 5,7cm or 2.25 inches. this only gets worse at higher frequencies. It is practically impossible to put tweeters physically close enough to avoid huge issues in the high end. Line array systems etc. use very elaborate waveguide designs to make multiple high frequency drivers somewhat behave together. Just putting multiple tweeters on a baffle doesn't cut it IMO. Purely for guitar this may be tolerable for a lot of people as a 4x12 produces tons of this weirdness and there it is part of the experience, but for a proper "FRFR" IMO it's a problem as this colouring should not come from the reproduction speaker system.
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I own an AG Robusta and Latte and they are by far the best speakers I've used with my AXEFX. The Latte has the two tweeters and I have not experienced any of the issues you are concerned with. My Acoustic band actually uses it as a PA for smaller gigs. It is basically a large studio monitor. The Robusta is a bit of a different animal and a little more raw. AG is pricey but well worth the investment IMO.

Edit: I've owned two CLRs and a host of other powered monitors before finding AG.
 
ipressthebutton said:
I have not experienced any of the issues you are concerned with.
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Yes, you have, just maybe not consiously.

I do not always agree with this guy in the video below, but the measurements he does here are a nice illustration of what happens here:



Also I cannot think of ANY reputable studio monitor with multiple tweeters covering the same frequency range.
 
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jharpersj said:
CLR's sound killer, but if they break you are fucked, I have two, one has some weird noise coming from it, there is no support and no replacement parts (since they will not respond to emails). SHORT ANSWER DO NOT BUY A CLR. Fender, Laney or in my case I love the RCF
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What he said, but I'd also add the EV PXM12P as a good alternative. I think they're pretty popular here, and a pair of them is what i use. Search here, they'll come up, pretty positive reviews, no service nightmares I'm aware of, and some good support stories.
 
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SteveD61 said:
Hey Guys

I have a Fender FR12 and a listing for a used Atomic CLR has come up in my local area (about half the new price).

Could someone with expereince tell me if the Atmic CLR is substantially better than the FR12?

My other option in to trade the FR12 for an FR10 as I'm getting older and really like the smaller form factor of the FR10

Cheers and thanks
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I bought a pair and they sounded great but only worked for a little over a year.
I reached out to Atomic for months but no reply.
 
Bought a pair in 2014....possibly 2015. Sounded great not only for guitar but music overall. Worked flawlessly until 2024, one power supply/amp/or some other thing inside stopped working. I had someone working on it but they never did figure it out. The second one did the same thing a couple months later. I truly did like the sound but since my experience is not unique, I would not recommend either.

I don't have any feedback related the the Fender FR12.
 
lauke-lux said:
It's the form factor if the Elis that keeps me from buying one. Doesn't look very pragmatic on (small) bar scenes.
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Mine work nicely as long as I don’t have to stand against them, which would make any cabinet be a PITA. At about 4 feet they sound great and get even better with a few feet more. They have coaxial speakers that have very good coverage. I’m quite happy with mine.
 
Greg Ferguson said:
Mine work nicely as long as I don’t have to stand against them, which would make any cabinet be a PITA. At about 4 feet they sound great and get even better with a few feet more. They have coaxial speakers that have very good coverage. I’m quite happy with mine.
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Are you saying that if you have to be closer than 4 feet, your PXMs sound better? Are there any other circumstances where you'd prefer the PXMs?
 
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