Review! The Fluance Ai60 Powered Loudspeaker!

[@brianmarcus6005]

90 days zero negatives no DSP nightmares. No hiss ever soft or low. The best ever highly recomm. 30 day money back guarantee if not happy. I dropped the speaker and the ring around speaker broke. Called Fluance to buy replacement and they sent out free of charge in 3 days. Great customer service.

[@Rathbone_fan_account]

That's what I would say if I were a Fluance PR guy... JK, these speakers seem spectacular. As a European, I absolutely envy you guys for being able to get your hands on them.

[@brianmarcus6005]

@@Rathbone_fan_account I am retired in Las Vegas. Not affiliated with Fluance what o ever genius.

[@Rathbone_fan_account]

@@brianmarcus6005 Did you even read my whole comment?

[@brianmarcus6005]

@@Rathbone_fan_account You insinuated i work for Fluance. You are a jerk.

[@stephencosta6814]

@@Rathbone_fan_account that's the way we Americans roll brother LOL good luck I hope you find a nice set

[@hi-fihaven2257]

Man you are killing it with affordable gear! Great looking speakers, nice finish work. Great review as always man!

[@grimmheart]

I have them. Love them. On my desk. Bought a sub for my own taste, but they're gorgeous to me and the build quality is great for an audiophile noob.

[@ZeroFidelity]

Sweet! And yep, Fluance knocked it out the park with the look and build.

[@carewser]

which sub did you get?

[@robertomusitano4238]

Thank you for taking the time to review these speakers.

[@jheyhey39]

The video says there is no way to tell what bass and treble are set to, but the small light on the front of right speaker gives visual indications when treble or bass is it at max, min, and neutral positions.

[@ericelliott227]

Go Sean Go! Dude, your killing it. Real world reviews are extremely rare and very needed....especially now! Any realism is welcome! This was not a negative review in any way in my opinion and more importantly in the manufactures opinion! Yes, hats off to Fluance for having a set and saying go ahead, we want to know. That only happens with a very few companies and that is a shame, because it is the best way to ferret out problems and work on solving them. Companies who listen to customers are successful. Your real world approach to reviews serves that as well because unlike most pro reviewers who are just shills for the latest snake oil or objects unattainable to most folks, you are also stepping into the shoes of the customer. You are approaching it from the stand point of "what if I were the one making this purchase"? I usually advise folks looking or trying to decide on a piece of audio gear or a whole system to stay out of forums and don't read or listen to the big reviewers because they really don't bring much to the table. Plenty of sales talk will happen at the dealer or shop, you don't more of it. (I've been in this circus too long and grew tired of the clowns). You need real world approach, how you will be using it, etc. You need the pieces native character and other facts, then go from there. That is what I tell folks. I also tell them to come over here or to Ron's channel if the piece in consideration happens to be reviewed. Hey, I was struggling trying to decide on my new amp for my referenced system and you reviewed something from one of the companies on my short list. It was not the exact piece, but from the same line. The minute you opened the hood was when I declared mission accomplished pretty much. Keep speaking real truth Sean, it helps customer and manufacture alike whether they immediately realize it or not.

[@edshipe2555]

I've had this speaker for almost 6 months and find it a great buy for $299. I hear the hiss but don't find it distracting unless your up close and above 60 % on the volume. As he points out you can mitigate some of it by setting the input devices level a little higher than normal. They do have a V shaped freq response that's more extreme at lower speaker volumes. Maybe they were trying to make up our reduced lower and high freq hearing at low volumes. Even still it is still on the warm side. I have heard the DSP and or compression get a little strange on complex music especially some of my favorite King Crimson tracks at higher volumes. I find the speakers dont like being to close to a wall or being farther than 2.5 feet out from one. Still sound dam good and has lots of good features for 300 bucks.

[@pavelpavlenko7367]

Excellent review, thanks!

[@r3forge]

If I watch reviews like yours, I instantly know, that the reviewer is taking his job seriously. You spent enough time with the product to find out about an issue, some standard user wouldn't even notice initially. Thanks again for your work! I would love to hear your oppinion about the Kii Three, if you manage to get one for review. And once you are on it please let me know if you find it worth a sports cars price :D

[@ZeroFidelity]

Thanks man. I dunno. $13g's can buy you a nice S197 Mustang GT. I haven't spent any quality time with the Kii's, but I'm already leaning towards going with the V8. :D :D

[@YannickKhong]

@@ZeroFidelity Heard the kii3 in tower form at the Montreal Audiofest last weekend. It wasn't a positive experience compared to the Navis towers. I'd blame DSP :P (Navis don't have dsp apparently)

[@NiSHAN256]

best speaker reviewer without a doubt 👍 thanks ❤

[@hnipen]

Great work, as always :-)

[@arthurwatts1680]

Thanks for the review, Sean, and its fantastic to hear you describing the warts that had to come with something that retails for so little money. I realise that your channel isnt 'Desktop Fidelity', but I'd love to hear your opinion on the iLoud Micro Monitors and some of the more expensive Edifier range. Some will laugh, esp at the latter, but its not that long ago that audiophiles were laughing at Swan ('chi-fi' blah blah) - we laugh these brands off at our peril if we're interested in speakers specifically for desktop use, The first Edifiers I heard (admittedly ~10 or so years ago) were absolute crap - worse than Logitech - but hopefully someone will send you a pair. Cheers.

[@muzammelhaquemukul7089]

Hope you can review the new Ai61 and see if the new one solved the hissing and distortion issue.

[@Tincanturtle]

Can you give out your personal speaker recommendation per price bracket?

[@Alvarochahin]

Fluance SX6...Believe the hype!

[@sudd3660]

this was a real review :) i hope that all dsp that built into powered speakers are defetable in the future, just a on/off dps button whould solve a lot. then you get a speaker that sealed and plays louder and integrate with subwoofer better. depends on how much dsp cover up in frequency of course, if its only add some bass its good to be able to switch dsp off.

[@Audfile]

Yeah, defeat what makes them so good, thats a great idea.

[@sudd3660]

its a toggle, only benefits from that.

[@Audfile]

@@sudd3660 there's no benefit to deactivating the DSP in an active speaker design. It doesn't even make sense.

[@sudd3660]

only deactivate the dsp eq, not crossover of course. then its good. assuming this speaker has active crossover in amp and not a plate amp with passive crossover. what's great with this speaker is not the dsp, its the application of corrects crossover design, sealed cabinet and drivers.

[@Audfile]

@@sudd3660 but it's not an "eq" in the sense of some slider bars. It's way more going on. Just buy a passive speaker with an old school crossover. Still plenty of those.

[@SteveDave227]

"Let's skip the introduction." .... "Let's roll the intro." .... ???

[@pkal244]

"This is not your typical review... we're gonna talk about the good things AND the bad." ??_??

[@YannickKhong]

I see a seiko watch enthusiast, I click like :D

[@dudN8R]

I'm here to find the SKX of speakers, more accurately sound system set-up like your BR03 + IOTAVX combo - must be in the right place

[@wiebl5266]

Man, you are on fire!

[@shawnorjiakor]

Love these speakers.

[@i.am.Crispin.Crunch]

Holla them speaker beauty-in-the-wild photo shoots. Seriously. 😍

[@52youngb]

I would love for you to review the Ai61

[@patrik4656]

Good review !

[@cybergod77]

appreciate the frank review. Do hope you can review headphones too in the near future

[@joshualieder7524]

Are the Fluance 41 s worse? I need good budget bookshelfs for my vinyl turntable. I have budget Edifiers now. I'm a pauper.

[@robertmaloney567]

Buying a Fluance RT 85 and looking for speakers to pair with that. Want great sound $700 - 1000 range. Recommendations?

[@turcinovic90]

Regarding the problem, both the Hum and the weird behavior of the DSP, it seems to me like a Gain problem. I experienced the same with my Dsp/Crossover. Lowering the gain solved it completely! Maybe that s the reason you had it in a room and not in close setup! Of course, I cannot say for sure as I do not know your setup or the speaker's data.

[@swayback04]

So what you're saying is lowering the source volume and raising it on the speakers solved the dsp issues for you? I've had them for about 3 weeks and I just boxed them up for return because of the bass muting higher frequencies on certain tracks. Not sure I want to take them out again at this point, since the bass was always a bit much for me even at its lowest level, but it would be good to know for future reference. Thanks!

[@swayback04]

Actually, I had the same issues when I ran them with optical input, so I'm more confused now than before haha

[@GussDavey]

Did the DSP go crazy when the connection was USB, and the PC output was not set to higher than 50% ?

[@genesheerin3625]

Anyone know what the test setup was ... which input was used ... bluetooth, USB or optical?

[@VenVile]

Those speaker stands are beautiful. What's the name of them, and where can I purchase them? Thanks

[@llaeeZ]

DIY

[@stevec5637]

I've run these for a month now. First i had these on bluetooth and there was hissing, i switched to optical (because bluetooth is compressed and optical is better anyways) and the hissing is completely gone at any level. Also heard that the hissing could be caused by the power converter so maybe a better power converter will solve that problem. These are not audiophile speakers - but an audiophile does not spend $299 and expect that level of performance. These have incredible value and you will be hard-pressed to find another $299 set of speakers that have the functionality and sound to match these.

[@amb3cog]

Could you please tell me the input that it defaults to when you first turn these on? I want to get these for my Mom, but she wants them for her TV only. And she's got a weird thing about changing the inputs on digital things. She's old, and just can't wrap her mind around it, I guess? So I want to set it, and forget it. Thank you in advance. ✌️

[@shawnorjiakor]

@@amb3cog Optical input is the best for TV.

[@johnsweda2999]

Does it have a USB input so you could do a firmware update or manually change DSP to your liking or monitor it..? Should have ASP. If you could bypass the preamp in the speaker you shouldn't get any hiss

[@ZeroFidelity]

My understanding is that this is a "You get what ya get" situation. I'll let you know if I find out otherwise. I'm guessing that no matter what, you're still going to get noise from these speakers. All of these integrated circuits that are in close proximity to one another tend to create a lot of noise. It's an issue that most affordable actives suffer from. Throw a Bluetooth receiver into the mix, and you're all but guaranteed to experience some form of hiss.

[@johnsweda2999]

Does it have a USB socket on the back

[@francoisboyer7238]

Did you get a chance to see if the Ai61 as the same problem or did Fluance fixed it? thansk

[@slydog55]

What causes the hissing noise in your opinion?

[@alexanderchenf1]

So what's the best computer speaker that money can buy?

[@OfficialMarkZuckerberg]

I was excited for these until i read that almost everyone gets noise feedback while its turned up. so not ideal for nearfield listeneing. i guess i will go with the Kantos?

[@bluelines1792]

I wonder if you hooked up a Topping D3 headphone amp using it's headphone jack output would perhaps settle things down.

[@neilhay5311]

Did you go through a proper break in period because I replaced a YAS-108 sound bar with a pair of AI60’s and would not consider going back.

[@Kiheioldman]

Are you gonna be reviewing the new edifier s3000 pro ?

[@worldpeace3618]

Kiheioldman same question!!

[@hialastair]

Same question!

[@mariosupa4027]

Great review as usual Sean. Coincidentally I had I ordered a surround speakers from them a week ago the XLBP they were on sale at $120 plus tax ordered them and was charged twice the tax. I called to find out what happened and was told it would take the accounting a couple of days to correct it. So I said please cancel my order and I'll reorder them. By the time I reordered them the price went back up and the sales man would not give me the original price. Not a pleasant experience with Fluance. In my opinion I was not treated very well by the company rep. Any hoo life goes on with Buchardt and Definitive Technology Speakers lol. New SVS sub coming soon.

[@ZeroFidelity]

Mario - I'm sorry to hear of your less than fortunate experience with Fluance. That bites. And heh, which sub is coming in? I have a 3000 sitting in a box. I'll get to it... one day. :D

[@mariosupa4027]

The SB2000 the 3000 would be total overkill. Even the 2000 isn't needed in my setup the Buchardts go down plenty by themselves. Just what to give them more body. Hopefully I'll be able to dial the 2000 in to where you won't know it's even on.

[@edmondsamuel51]

These or the Kanto YU6?

[@edwardz.rosenthal9946]

From appearance alone I was really expecting above average sound quality. Something about the proportions, material choice & finish had me ready to hear an enthusiastic glowing review from you, and for the most part that's what you delivered. The dsp issue is the deal breaker, though, because I'm looking for a multi purpose set that can provide consistently pleasant tones in various applications. Did you experience the dsp problem with a sub woofer hooked up? Maybe that cures it?! Thanx.

[@ZeroFidelity]

Edwards - I confess that I never connected a sub to these, so I have no idea if that would impact a thing. And yeah, the DSP problem is concerning. While you DO get a 30 day return period with the product, I certainly understand your hesitance to move forward with the purchase.

[@whotookaegir]

What powered bookshelf speakers would you suggest for a more "neutral" listening experience at the same price range?

[@nathanjones4039]

Speaking of affordable gear, any interest in reviewing KLH’s line of speakers?? They’re back & headed in a good direction under David Kelley, ex president of Klipsch, I’m intrigued what your thoughts may be on the new brand? I ordered the Kendall’s, cause for the price there’s absolutely nothing in its price bracket that compares to having real wood veneer, magnetic grilles, a plinth for decoupling, an incredible frequency range and a TEN YEAR warranty, which is just unheard of. I’d really like your thoughts & a possible review of the new line!

[@ZeroFidelity]

Yep. I too noticed the re-emergence of KLH. Truth be told, I reached out to one of the brand managers many months ago. I got the run around until I finally gave up. Would still be down to check them out at some point.

[@dougg1075]

3:30 on that fine watch? Great review

[@MurchyMurch]

RIP Cody France. Where can we hear the full song?

[@ZeroFidelity]

Dang. I had no idea. RIP Cody . Meanwhile, you can find it at Epidemic Sound.

[@CinemaDemocratica]

Reviewers say stuff like this all the time: "Now, the powered speaker is the right speaker, so you'll need to put it on the right if you want to listen in phase." Nonsense: Just connect the left input interconnect to the right socket, and vice-versa, and then you can put the "right" speaker on the left. Not sure why this triggers me, but if one more reviewer says that you have to cross the speaker wires on the back of a Naim NAIT, I don't think I'll be responsible for my actions.

[@marsh5953]

does anyone know what stand is this and where i can buy it?

[@cameronbajt4]

Hey said it was DIY.

[@M3RRIH3W13]

I have ai40s. It's in a desktop music system and a cheap $13. USB dongle DAC/Amp. The DAC is a Hi-Res certified thing. It has soundstage and hear instruments hi and low, left, right, and in the middle. I was listening to Steely Dan and found the vocal is off the middle a little to the right. And hiss, none, as zero. The Fluance said it takes 80 hours of moderately loud playing to loosen the speaker. I found that to be true in tone, it was stiff and the treble was not good, but I can't describe it in audio review world. I would recommend it with a DAC. Even the cheaper JBL 104 and M-Audio AV-40 sounded much better, maybe it overcomes the speaker engineering. I don't know, but I think Fluance sent you a bad one and should have sent another one instead "broadcast a turd!"

[@monsterGLL]

You should test KS-Digital C88 Reference.

[@hansmayer7814]

I use a pair of Vanatoo T0 for my desktop listening (with a dayton 10" sub). How would these compare? Thanks for your great reviews.

[@EliasEH89]

Please help. This or S1000DB ?

[@theadventuresofrussandcoco2077]

Great Seiko

[@RonoTron01]

Thanks for the review. I'm looking for Ai40, to listen to piano music, do I get Ai40? Ai60? or HS5? I will be listening in a near field environment.

[@chrisAclaes]

Do you have any experience with Elac’s Uni-Fi UB5’s? I just picked up a pair of those (half-off) for a 2.1 channel record system under a vintage receiver. I’ve given thought to bypassing that with these specific Fluance’s. Any suggestions?

[@ZeroFidelity]

The UB5's will offer better all-around performance. At least in an objective sense. I'd only encourage you to step towards these speakers if you're looking for a solution that takes up less real-estate (with regards to your components+speakers), has modern features, and a warmer sound. Otherwise, whatchu got should be fine!

[@chrisAclaes]

Zero Fidelity Thanks for the reply, man. Love your videos even if they’re often over my head and out of my budget. Don’t be afraid to be a little negative sometimes, it really helps us beginners.

[@ZeroFidelity]

@@chrisAclaes Thanks. Yeah, I realize that 90% of my videos aren't geared towards the beginner, but I'm glad you're here just the same. :)

[@stevenswall]

You mentioned not realizing it was class d, does it not hiss at all?

[@stevenswall]

10:30 Confirmed, it hisses. :( Deal breaker.

[@ZeroFidelity]

My comment was aimed towards the folks who feel like anything with a Class-D amp will take on a specific, predicable aural signature. As for hiss: Yes. I'm pretty sure I spoke of that issue three or four times throughout the vid.

[@stevenswall]

@@ZeroFidelity All good. Sometimes I use the comments to take notes and update it when I find the answer. Part of me wants to get a cheap 2.1 system like the Harman Kardon Soundsticks or the Klipsch desktop system. I swear those didn't hiss as much as these sound like they too. JBL LSR 308 had too much hiss for me too.

[@sudd3660]

i have had hiss on all my powered speakers, shoulf be easy enough to find passive speakers and small integrated amp at some price, solving hiss and get same or maybe better value if you find one of them on sale. Loxjie A10 Integrated Amplifier if you got analog outputs.

[@oraz.]

I wonder how it is vs rokit g3

[@ZeroFidelity]

If the G3 is like the other KRK's that I've heard, and I've heard quite a few, then I'd expect the KRK's to be cleaner, more balanced, and more accurate sounding. They're certainly good enough for amateur mixing use. The Fluances will sound bigger, warmer, and a bit more forgiving of poorly recorded material.

[@scottlowell493]

"achieving greatness" with a Class D PWM amp which is now equal in fidelity to class A/B, which won't be produced much, if at all in 10 years. Much like class A (the old audio snob favorite, snobs that sniffed at class a/b) is dead in the water. The Ai60's drivers are bargain basement....but obviously not bad for the money. FWIW: The fluance T85 turntable is no joke, considering how good it is for the $$$. I need to hear the double impact because generally, a mass of tweeters like that is a bunch of phase issues. Yes, I will point out each time class D sounds great. We differ on the class D level of quality. Eventually, you will coalesce and accept the truth.

[@stephencosta6814]

Excellent review Sean Z reviews had the same problem with noise from the smaller version the 40s I don't think you have a bad sample I believe they're all like that you are 100% correct they would be a grand slam if the manufacturer did a pretty easy fix to this thank you for saving me the trouble of purchasing these only to find out and return them I cannot deal with noise issues or possessed DSP LOL Sean your reviews are a great source of information keep up the good work a big fan of yours... Steve Costello...

[@linnmagic]

I’ll buy it if it beats the JBL 306P which you can get for half the price of the Fluanse when it goes on sale.

[@BrianMWPG]

It won't beat the JBL - but at least in Canada, the JBL are typically around $290-300 each, and the Fluance is $400 for the set (one powered, one passive) so is a fairly large price difference.

[@brianmarcus6005]

Low or HIGH. My bad.

[@Lolobond11]

I bought these and the hiss sound was horrible. I end up getting an SMSL AD 18 amp and the Micca's RB42. Best bang for the buck

[@gilbertcrespin5631]

I got mine for $75 used!

[@waterkant999]

This is a great fucking Hiss

[@carewser]

A company that doesn't mind a bad review? Gutsy

[@mrmaschinaadventures]

Sean, awesome vids as always :) - Very curious about a side by side comparison here vs. the Edifier R2000db which perform well above their $250 mark and are built like a piano lacquered brick shithouse.... Cheers, Mario - Dragon Quartz Audiophile Standmount Winner kzbin.info/www/bejne/oJ7RlKmba7qrbqM

[@YannickKhong]

Oh boy... DSP nightmare O_O

[@lesmatthews459]

WOW!! Z reviews disagrees with you BIG time! He thinks the worst speaker ever made!!

[@IamVintage72]

Too many issues. Too bad because they look great..

[@briansimmons5363]

So tied of desk top application reviews .

[@andrewtaylor6121]

So they suck. Damn!