Canadian-based Fluance, best known for its home theater systems, has dipped its toe in the Bluetooth speaker market recently. The company’s latest release is Fi50 ($200), a large stationary Bluetooth speaker. Fi50 has two 5″ glass fiber composite drivers and two tweeters in its MDF wood cabinet housing, and the speaker pumps out an impressive 40W of power. The Bluetooth 2.1 speaker supports aptX. Touch controls are found on the top of the speaker, and the back of the unit has both an audio port and a 2.1A USB port to charge an iOS device.
Fi50 comes in three designs — walnut or ash with a black front panel, or bamboo with a white front panel — which is the version we received.
Fi50’s design is an eye-catcher, but not necessarily in a good way. While most of the speaker is contained in a handsome engineered wood cabinet, the glossy front white panel is a bit at odds with rest of Fi50. Also, the plain logo could really use a redesign — its front-and-center placement looks cheap. Fi50 is about 21” x 5.75” x 7” and weighs 9.8 pounds without the adapter.
Between the drivers on the front panel and above the logo is an illuminated volume/treble/bass display. The speaker’s volume can be controlled from an iOS device via Bluetooth, but it won’t change the number on the front of Fi50.
On top are touch controls for the volume, treble, bass, and the brightness of the display. There’s no battery on Fi50, so an included adapter plugs into the back, near the audio port, USB charging port (a nice addition), a pairing reset button, and the power switch.
While Fi50’s look is underwhelming, the speaker’s sound is actually quite impressive, especially within its price range. Fi50 delivered well-rounded, accurate sound when playing a wide variety of songs and genres. Bass performance was solid, but Fi50 isn’t a big thumper. The speaker gets more than loud enough for a room or a smaller outdoor space.
