There's no shortage of Bluetooth speakers jostling for a place in your shopping cart, making it a challenge to stand out. Fluance is hoping to catch your eye with the unusual looks of the Fi70, and please your ear with a 3-way driver system powered by a 280 W integrated amplifier.
The company's largest Bluetooth speaker to date, the Fi70 sits on its own pedestal and features a hand-made wooden cabinet designed to reduce music-spoiling resonance for what Fluance promises to be a natural, warm sound with an accurate response. The enclosure also has bass reflex porting to the rear. With the stand, dimensions come in at 29.5 x 11 x 36 in (749 x 279 x 914 mm), with a back-breaking total weight of 81 lb (37 kg).
The mains-powered speaker system is said to be the first wireless speaker to host two 8-inch woofers, with two 1-inch neodymium dome tweeters and two 5-inch woven glass fiber midrange drivers completing the throwing muscle. The frequency response starts at 30 Hz and runs up to 20 kHz, with a crossover frequency of 150 Hz and 2.5 kHz.
With all that room-filling sonic potential, it is somewhat disappointing that Fluance has elected to only include Bluetooth 2.1 wireless technology (albeit with aptX support) and not add something with enough bandwidth to comfortably handle hi-res music playback, but there is a built-in FM/AM tuner and a 3.5 mm auxiliary audio jack. There's also an optical input which could see the system used to enhance console gaming or replace TV soundbars.
Touch controls to the top can be used to adjust settings, such as EQ, and there's a USB charging port that allows listeners to top up mobile devices while enjoying the tunes.
The Fi70 is available now in bamboo, black ash or walnut finishes for US$499.99.
Product page: Fluance Fi70
