New Perspectives – Avantgarde Acoustic Zero One

Text: Olaf Adam; Photos: Avantgarde Acoustic
This article originally appeared in 0dB Das Magazin der Leidenschaft N°3

With the unconventional concept of the Zero 1, Avantgarde Acoustic caused a stir and amazement in the hi-fi scene a few years ago. But that was just the beginning.

Only today does it become clear how visionary the concept of the Zero 1 was back then. Hidden inside the two minimally designed monoliths, available only in black or white, is not only the horn technology typical of Avantgarde, but a complete hi-fi system with numerous inputs, a D/A converter, active amplification, and wireless connection between the two units. Maximum sound quality with minimal visible technology—today, that's the definition of modern hi-fi; in 2014, the idea was downright revolutionary.

Multiple Award-Winning Design 

The story and even more so the success have proven Avantgarde right. This is shown by numerous test wins and awards in the relevant specialist press, but the team is especially proud that the Zero 1 has attracted attention outside the hi-fi scene as well. With the Red Dot Award and the iF Design Award—the latter even in the rare gold version—the Zero 1 has received two of the most internationally coveted design prizes, followed by a gold German Brand Award and an invitation to join the German Design Council. 

While the quality of the technology is immediately apparent to anyone who has heard it, it is above all the equally timeless and ultra-modern exterior that made the Zero 1 stand out to international design juries. And it inspired numerous new customers who demand the highest level of sound quality, but for whom hi-fi components and tangled cables piling up in the living room are simply not an option. The successful exterior is the work of Munich industrial designer Tobias Adami, who has been helping to shape Avantgarde Acoustic's products for years. 

With the Zero 1, however, Adami has undeniably delivered his masterpiece, at least as far as Avantgarde Acoustic is concerned. It was not just a matter of integrating the horn—predetermined in shape and size for acoustic reasons—into an elegant housing; all the electronics for control, conversion, and amplification also had to be sensibly accommodated. In the end, numerous discussions, concepts, and experiments even led to an entirely new manufacturing process for speakers of this size: the housing of the Zero 1 consists of two polyurethane parts, which are produced in large molds using a die-casting process. Only in this way could the complex three-dimensional shape of the housing be realized economically, and the material, thanks to its high internal damping, also has excellent acoustic properties. 

More Relevant Than Ever 

In the meantime, the Zero 1 is available in two versions. As the XD version with state-of-the-art digital technology including room correction, and as the semi-active Zero 1 TA, which can be connected to conventional systems like a normal speaker. Good design is also characterized by the fact that it doesn't age. And so the Zero 1 remains as current as ever. 

Avantgarde Acoustic Zero One - Gallery