DI: What is the main principle, idea and inspiration behind your design?
JH : The ONE.618 omnee.m speaker was conceived around the Golden Ratio—its proportions guide both the external form and internal wave-lens geometry, ensuring optimal acoustic dispersion. Inspiration sprang from brutalist concrete architecture and classic point-source loudspeaker design, unified through computational form-finding to marry sculptural purity with holographic sound.
DI: What has been your main focus in designing this work? Especially what did you want to achieve?
JH : My focus was threefold: material honesty, acoustic performance, and user discovery. I sought a low-carbon concrete mix that is acoustically neutral; a mathematically derived lens for true 360° horizontal and 90° vertical coverage; and hidden interactive elements—touch and gesture controls, wireless charging—that invite users to explore beyond first impressions.
DI: What are your future plans for this award winning design?
JH : We plan to expand the omnee.m line with additional colors and finishes, integrate advanced DSP routines for room adaptation, and launch an open-source customization platform so makers and studios can tailor form, material, and software to unique contexts. We're also developing enhanced gesture controls, a custom state-of-the-art concrete touch remote, and an advanced smartphone configuration app. Beyond omnee.m (medium), we'll create omnee.s (small) and omnee.l (large) variants. Our future plans continue exploration of architectural acoustics and sound/video integration while developing totally new products.
DI: How long did it take you to design this particular concept?
JH : From initial concept sketches to production-ready prototypes, the omnee.m endured a four-year R&D cycle—iterative material trials, acoustic testing, driver selection, and manufacturing process development.
DI: Why did you design this particular concept? Was this design commissioned or did you decide to pursuit an inspiration?
JH : It was a self-initiated passion project. I realized that a high-fidelity, omnidirectional autonomous all-in-one battery-powered speaker was missing from the market—most audio solutions are either directional systems that force listeners into a “sweet spot” or portable Bluetooth speakers with limited fidelity. Today, music is an integral part of daily life, so creating a single, elegant device that delivers 360° immersive sound while embodying material and aesthetic rigor felt like an essential and untapped opportunity. I aimed to demonstrate that concrete—a centuries-old material—could achieve studio-grade sound and modern interaction in a minimal form, challenging preconceptions about both material and speaker design.
DI: Is your design being produced or used by another company, or do you plan to sell or lease the production rights or do you intent to produce your work yourself?
JH : Production remains in-house under the ONE.618 brand. Our boutique workflow ensures quality control across casting, electronics assembly, and finishing. Down the line, we may license select editions to specialty audio ateliers.
DI: What made you design this particular type of work?
JH : I’m fascinated by multidisciplinary synthesis—combining architecture, material science, electronics, and sound engineering. A speaker system allowed me to explore form, function, and interaction in a single object.
DI: Where there any other designs and/or designers that helped the influence the design of your work?
JH : Dieter Rams’s Braun audio products for functional minimalism; Andō’s concrete works for textural depth; and avant-garde loudspeaker experiments by KEF and Bang & Olufsen for challenging dispersion norms.
DI: Who is the target customer for his design?
JH : Discerning listeners and design aficionados who value both acoustic fidelity and sculptural presence—those who appreciate tactile rituals and crave discoveries hidden within a product.
DI: What sets this design apart from other similar or resembling concepts?
JH : Omnidirectional coverage from a point-source driver; acoustically tuned concrete shell; hidden fiber-optic touch controls; and a true no-sweet-spot listening experience, all in a singular monolithic form.
DI: How did you come up with the name for this design? What does it mean?
JH : “ONE.618” references the Golden Ratio (1.618…). “omnee.m” blends “omni,” denoting all-around sound, and “eem,” hinting at immersive experience. Together they signal material proportion and acoustic ambition.
DI: Which design tools did you use when you were working on this project?
JH : Rhino 3D and Grasshopper for parametric form-finding; Python and C++ for driver optimization scripts; BIM for coordination; and concrete mixers, CNC mills, electronics prototyping rigs, and anechoic chamber testing.
DI: What is the most unique aspect of your design?
JH : Embedding invisible touch buttons and optical fibers directly within the concrete shell, combined with a mathematically constructed acoustic lens formed in solid concrete, achieves seamless omnidirectional dispersion without external waveguides.
DI: Who did you collaborate with for this design? Did you work with people with technical / specialized skills?
JH : This project was driven entirely by my own hands and mind. I conducted every phase—from concept, R&D, computational form-finding and material trials to prototyping touch interfaces, electronics and acoustic testing—through deep exploration, learning, and iterative problem-solving.
DI: What is the role of technology in this particular design?
JH : Technology underpins form-finding algorithms, driver-lens optimization, interactive gestures, wireless charging, and adaptive DSP routines—transforming concrete from static to responsive. It remains hidden, invisible, unobtrusive, and intuitive, activating only when needed.
DI: Is your design influenced by data or analytical research in any way? What kind of research did you conduct for making this design?
JH : Extensive acoustic simulations and empirical SPL mapping in anechoic tests; material porosity and damping studies; driver parameter sweeps; and user interaction trials to refine control layouts.
DI: What are some of the challenges you faced during the design/realization of your concept?
JH : Balancing structural integrity and acoustic neutrality in concrete; achieving precision in thin-section molds; coupling driver vibrations to a brittle material; and concealing electronics without compromising serviceability.
DI: How did you decide to submit your design to an international design competition?
JH : After receiving enthusiastic feedback during prototyping demos and industry showcases, entering A’ Design Award felt like the natural next step to validate the concept globally.
DI: What did you learn or how did you improve yourself during the designing of this work?
JH : I deepened my material science knowledge, honed parametric scripting to automate lens generation, sharpened my user-experience instincts to integrate hidden interactions intuitively, and advanced my programming skills in MCU, DSP programming, and electronics design.
DI: Any other things you would like to cover that have not been covered in these questions?
JH : The omnee.m embodies my belief that design should reward curiosity—its hidden features and layered experiences are invitations to look closer, learn deeper, and find joy in discovery.