Engineered and designed by a cohort of elite engineers, some of whom formerly of Tannoy and KEF renown, Scottish speaker brand Fyne Audio has so far mounted a successful invasion of the market. So how will we find them once set up in our demo room?
In my view, I picture Fyne Audio speakers being made almost entirely by former engineers of KEF and Tannoy, reflecting their combined knowledge and skillset. With both companies making some changes, including Tannoy essentially fading away in the last few years, Fyne Audio has leapt into the market with both feet as a strong contender, seemingly integrating the finest qualities from those renowned brands into something even more remarkable.
The F502’s are the biggest of the F5 range, which are indeed very large, sitting around the mid-range of their speaker line-up. The speakers have been carefully designed with bevelled edges and rounded corners on their fixed plinths, which manages to soften their appearance, looking less domineering compared to more ‘boxy’ speakers such as the Wharfedale Lintons, yet their footprint remains undeniably considerable.
The presence of the speakers is clear in the room but still look and feel as premium as they deserve to. They come in a range of luxurious finishes, from stylish piano gloss that is available in black and white, to real wood veneer in either dark oak or black oak for a more classic feel. A nice touch of their design is the magnetic grille which can be used to hide and protect the drivers, or should you wish to have them on full display, the grille can be discreetly fixed to the back of the speaker.
Feel the power of your music, with the Fyne Audio F502.
Looking into the build of the speakers, the inspiration is very clear, although you’ll need to get on board with the slew of branding buzzwords. The IsoFlare driver appears like a horn-loaded tweeted, mounted into a mid-range driver which isn’t a million miles away from the likes of KEF’s UNI-Q design, or Tannoy’s Dual Concentric driver. Further down the cabinet we have the downward porting which is typically what we come to expect from Tannoy, but with that all-important Fyne Audio twist… say hello to the Tractrix bass diffusion system, BASSTRAXTM. Now, scientific wording aside, the bass port is essentially a curved cone shape which allows the air and sound to distribute evenly around the room.
Whilst the speakers might bear more than a passing resemblance to the brands that came before – once they’re playing, the similarities melt away. Although the speakers will run efficiently on any suitable amp, they really benefit from some extra power to get the very best out of them – and in this reviewer’s opinion, they sound phenomenal when driven by a Cyrus amplifier to squeeze every bit of detail out of them.
On Radiohead’s Idioteque, the imaging is instantly fantastic, drawing your attention away from the speakers and directly into the soundstage between them. The electronic fog is maintained throughout the undeniably unusual vocal melody and draws out each uncommon nuance and detail tucked away in the track.
Due to concerns over lack of bass with the atypical method of porting the speakers, it was inevitably a priority to test – and an unfounded concern. Mastered with subwoofers, 6LACK’s track Rules was a great way to put the bass to the test. The F502’s handles this song with more agility than they have any right to and manage to keep the bass tight and controlled. It is worth noting this control does diminish on weaker amplifiers.
So, if you’ve recently looked-into upgrading your existing set of speakers, have the chance to upsize or just want to treat yourself to a fantastic set of floorstanders, simply contact your local store to speak to one of our friendly sales advisors … and if the F502’s simply too large, the F501’s are a fantastic stand in.
Author: Tom, Cardiff Store
