Avantgarde hornspeakers are exceptional in every way

The Avantgarde Acoustic Hornspeakers look stunning and sound truly astonishing.  All other speaker systems out there, even ultra-expensive high-end deities , struggle to deliver the dynamics, vibrancy and emotional impact of live music.  The Avantgardes do it effortlessly, even when driven by flea-powered single-ended tube electronics.   The Avantgardes avoid coloration and character by using mathematically determined spherical horns to produce perfect hemispherical wave fronts.  This increases detail while requiring minimal amplifier power to produce realistic sound levels and dynamics.  Horns are faster than conventional drivers (planar or cone) and that speed is directly reflected in much lower distortion, unrivaled transient response and superb resolution of  fine detail.

The Avantgarde Acoustic Hornspeakers - UNO, DUO and TRIO - continue to receive rave reviews the world over, even from high-end experts who previously disliked horn speakers.  The Uno 2.0 has been recently been voted Stereophile Product of the Year for 2000 and the Trios received The Absolute Sound Golden Ear Award 2000.

• Here are some excerpts from international reviews: (Please click here for details)
  

  • The Absolute Sound, USA
    “Five years ago, I rave-reviewed the world-class Avantgarde Acoustic "Trio Compact" spherical horn-loaded loudspeaker system and nearly got laughed out of the audio fraternity for daring to sing the praises of horns. Nobody’s laughing any more.

    Properly set up (which they never have been, as far as I can tell, at any CES) and properly driven (I strongly recommend Lamm ML-2s or Wavelength Napoleons or Cardinals), these gorgeous flowers make music and music-makers sound astonishingly realistic. There is no loudspeaker on the planet with better dynamic range and scaling than the Avantgarde Trios. They are to intensities, small-scale and large, what electrostats are to inner detail.  They also happen to be what electrostats are to inner detail to inner detail.

    Indeed, ideally positioned and driven, these things sound a great deal like ‘stats - that same speed, nuance, clarity, gorgeous color, and top-to-bottom liveliness. Only the Trios have balls like no ‘stat (no other speaker, period) does: tremendous dynamic clout and range, tremendous delicacy and detail, coupled with an openness and freedom from colorations unique to horn-loaded loudspeakers (and when mated with Avantgarde’s great new SUB225 CTRL subwoofers, without any “holes” in the fabric of sound).

    I don’t know why it took me this long to remind you how good the Avantgardes are, but, considering that they rival (and in many respects beat) their $70,000 competition, at $36,970 they are something like a bargain for well-heeled High Enders searching for the best of the best. (They are also the ideal solution for audiophiles looking for a truly uncompromising speaker that can serve double-duty for both home theater and two-channel/surround.) Provided you have the space to house them, you cannot buy a loudspeaker that gives you more ‘in-the-room’ presence. They are to their ilk what Mercury recordings were to theirs.”

    Jonathan Valin
    The Absolute Sound - Golden Ear Awards 2000, Issue 127, December/January 2001 Quoted with permission.
    
    

  • Haute Fidelite, France
    “In the world of speakers that are currently sold through high-end retailers, the TRIO 2.0 is an extra-terrestrial rarity. This kind of speaker system is really unique.   ……The happy ones, who have had the chance to listen to this horn speaker in a perfectly optimized room, will only come to one conclusion:  This is simply the BEST, in practically all areas!
    But taking into consideration the only criteria that really counts: the capability to reproduce music, the TRIO is an offer without any competition in the top end of the high fidelity panorama. The uniqueness of its design translates into its sound quality. ……Finally one has to say, that the TRIO has a very competitive price/performance ratio in the small world of absolute top speakers. Above all this is true taking into consideration that already a small tube amplifier is sufficient to let it play in top form.  In any case the TRIO has given us a moment of music which we will surely never forget.”
    
    Olivier Corton
    Haute Fidelite, Issue 51, June 2000, France

  • The Audiophile Voice, USA
    “Heard the DUO 2.0s for myself and totally agree - they are truly stunning.  Yes - one of the finest sounds at the show (CES 2000) as well as anything I’ve ever heard …period!!”
    
    Bill Wells, The Audiophile Voice, USA 

  • Stereophile, USA
    There was something utterly compelling about this speaker’s presentation of music, something that produced an emotional response in a way that rendered almost pointless the analysis of sonic attributes commonly used by audiophiles and audio reviewers. The Uno drew me into the music, focusing my attention on expressiveness in the playing and singing rather than on audiophile con­cerns like derail, soundstaging, tonal balance, etc.
    Martin Colloms reported that the Avantgarde Duo has extremely low distortion; I expect the same will prove true of the Uno. The effect of this low distortion was an absence of volume-dependent strain, and I often found myself playing the system louder than is my custom. Played at realistic levels, Reference Recordings’ Big Band Basie had a visceral impact, the combined weight of the brass filling the room with a power and punch that were simply breathtaking.
    In demos, there’s a tendency to want to show off the speaker’s ability to play loud, but the Uno doesn’t have to be played loud to sound dynamic.  A friend who admits to preferring levels considerably lower than the typical audiophile — and who promptly asked me to reduce the volume from the blow-the-man-down demo level — said that he was most impressed by how the Uno maintained a dynamic feel even while playing at a “background” level. At every level, the ebb and flow of musical expression — ie, microdynamics — was communicated with a precision that went beyond any other speaker I’ve had in my listening room.
    Perhaps the most surprising aspect of the Uno’s ability to present music was the way it seemed to transcend limitations in the quality of the source material. Poorly miked recordings, worn LPs, early digital transfers that I had dismissed as harsh-sounding—all came across as much more listenable, and at times were stunningly lifelike. The Uno was singularly lacking in hardness and grain, which lent an utter ease to the quality of reproduction.
    The music presented by the Unos was so vibrant, so compellingly natural, that whatever coloration was occasionally noticeable (and it was only occasionally) seemed like a small price to pay.
    
    Robert Deutsch
    Stereophile, September 2000
    
    The Uno 2.0 was immediately classified in Stereophile Class A (Full Range) Recommended components and Robert Deutsch bought the review pair.

  • The Listener, USA
    “So, to conclude, these speakers (The DUO 2.0s) are simply the best I have ever heard in my domestic system. Nothing else has come close to recreating the power and finesse of a full organ, or bringing a full orchestra into the living room, and conveying the emotion of a solo performance.
    My favourite reference speaker is now ousted in favour of these music-making devices. Don’t be swayed by people telling you they don’t perform and are coloured. These speakers make music in a way that you simply can’t argue with. ”
    
    Chris Beeching 
    The Listener, USA / Audio Quarterly, UK, Issue Q3 1999
    

  • Hi-Fi News and Record Review, UK
    “They (the UNO 2.0s) worked on all kinds of music and they sounded effortless.  On solo instruments they could be stunningly real, on orchestral music, they allowed you to unravel musical strands without conscious effort, and instruments were placed in a stage that had depth and tangibility. Although it’s an overworked word, ‘transparency’ really is what these designs can offer.   On CD, they seem to unleash more realistic dynamics than other speakers, yet they can still sound sweet.  On vinyl, they seem to allow you to listen further into the space which (as you suddenly realise) was captured on the original recording.”
    
    Steve Harris
    Hi-Fi News and Record Review, UK

  • Hi-Fi Choice, UK
    “The Duo breaks down the barriers between performance and reproduction in a way no conventional: box loudspeaker can match.  Such was the awesome tension and hair-curling realism of that midband.  The exceptional involvement found me trawling through old favourites with new enthusiasm.”
    
    Paul Messenger
    Hi-Fi Choice, UK

  • Fi, USA
    “They (the TRIO 1.0s) are unquestionably the finest loudspeakers I have ever heard in my home and, without any doubt, one of the best loudspeakers in the whole blooming world …and from an engineering standpoint the most remarkable.”
    
    Jonathan Valin
    Fi,  USA (now Associate Editor, The Absolute Sound)
    
    Jonathan Valin bought a pair of Avantgarde Acoustic Trios (Series 1.0).
    

  • For full transcripts of these reviews, please contact Aeolian at ans@aeolian.co.za

   PRODUCT RANGE

UNO - full description

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For a high quality entry into the world of spherical horns, the UNO is just right.  With a height of 146 cm, the UNO can be placed even in small rooms, and offers what no normal loudspeaker does: 100% emotion.  But do not underestimate the quality in spite of its compact size.  With an efficiency rating of 100 dB the UNO is a rocket among the conventional loudspeaker systems.  And this amount of high efficiency and high dynamics means more sound-staging, more detail, more fun.   The UNO offers much more than just perfect technology.  It reproduces the finest details and lets the musical oeuvre become a real revelation of previously undiscovered pleasures.  Both, from the acoustical as well as from the visual stand-point the UNO is sophisticated high end.

DUO - full description

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The DUO combines all of Avantgarde Acoustic’s technological and creative potential, resulting in a most sophisticated two way horn system.   With it's enlarged midrange horn, a driver system of exclusive quality and precise integration of all components, this system offers unrivalled performance across the sound spectrum.  Those who have heard the fortissimo of an orchestra in full cry, the sound of a human voice, or the natural faithfulness of an solo instrument played on this system, will appreciate the breathtaking dynamics and the homogenous sound quality of this system.

Although it looks very similar to the UNO, the DUO offers a substantial step up in quality.  With it's slightly larger diameter midrange horn, the DUO bass / mid crossover point is 170 Hz (as opposed to 220 Hz in the UNO) and the drive units utilized are of an altogether higher specification.

TRIO - full description

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The TRIO demonstrates the art of designing a loudspeaker system of absolute perfection.  It is a technical piece of art that took 12 years of hard work and huge capital investment to realise.  A landmark in loudspeaker design that once experienced will not be forgotten.

Avantgarde has recently enhanced the Trio range with the addition of the Trio "Omega" Classico  - a 19 ohm / 110 dB system offering unbelievable  dynamics and realism, even when driven by tiny SET amplifiers.  This system also necessitated the development of new subwoofers - the SUB230 CTRL - which use two 12" drive units per module.

Although the detailed descriptions offer somewhat technical presentations, we know from years of experience that while technical data is important, but it is not everything. For example, you may need the technical details of a roadmap to help you tour the lovely countryside, but it’s the sensory experiences that you’ll enjoy and treasure.

Contact us for an audition of these amazing loudspeakers.  It’s about the music, naturally!

For additional information, visit the Avantgarde Acoustic website at 

 www.avantgarde-acoustic.de

For pricing and queries contact Aeolian at (011) 487 2254