- Fyne’s IsoFlare tech/BassTrax in its cheapest full-range design yet
- The downward-firing BassTrax port means placement won’t be an issue
- …and they’ll be ideal for smaller apartments (like mine)
I’m a big fan of Scottish loudspeaker specialist Fyne Audio’s products, from the audiophile-adjacent SuperTrax ‘super tweeter’ I saw at the High End Show in Munich last year to the special production floorstanders and the big, buxom Fyne Vintage X we saw in Bristol Hi-Fi Show 2024. But one thing I really don’t expect from Fyne? A genuine space-saving tower solution.
But that’s what the likable Scottish audio outfit has only gone and fashioned, by adding a new model to its acclaimed F500E loudspeaker range – the F55E. This compact floorstander brings the brand’s celebrated IsoFlare point-source technology and BassTrax diffuser system to its most accessible full-range design yet and honestly, I’m all ears.
To backtrack just a touch, the company’s new entry-level F500E Series (announced earlier this year) marked a major milestone for Fyne Audio as the company transitioned to become an all-IsoFlare brand. Across seven ranges and over 60 models, every loudspeaker in the Fyne portfolio is now built around the brand’s patented point-source driver technology – so what I’m saying is, this is the most cost-effective way to get it.
So what’s the deal? The brand-new F55E completes the aforementioned F500 line-up and is above all a slim, room-friendly floorstander that aims to bring Fyne’s considerable know-how with passive, beautiful stereo speakers to a wider (and more budget-conscious) audience than ever before.
Fyne’s coming for Dali’s patch – and I predict a top rivalry
Fyne tells me that the F55E’s “discreet footprint makes it ideal for smaller and medium-sized rooms where space is at a premium but musical ambitions are not” and it’s the kind of phrasing I adore. Preach, Fyne.
The driver array includes Fyne’s proprietary 5-inch IsoFlare driver and downward-firing port system with BassTrax Tractrix diffuser. Now, as anyone who’s spent hours trying to place speakers toting a rear-firing bass reflex port in a small room knows, a downward-firing port will be much less fussy. Fed up of walking around speakers that are basically in the very middle of your small sitting room, angled in but as far away from any walls as possible because that’s the only way it sounds good? Perhaps look to Fyne’s F55E.
In the F55E, Fyne tells me that its IsoFlare point-source driver integrates a multi-fiber mid/bass cone with a titanium dome compression tweeter, mounted concentrically to share a single acoustic centre. This means that every frequency covered by those two drivers radiates outward from the same point in space, for a time-aligned wavefront – ie. it should promote good timing and musical cohesion.
Another point of note is the brand’s distinctive FyneFlute surround, an undulating edge design that, says Fyne, “effectively terminates cone energy, suppressing resonances that can color the sound”.
Pricing? Of course – the Fyne F55E in Black Oak finish is available now, and Walnut will land in early 2026. Both cost $1,099.99 / £899.99 / €1199.99 per pair (so around AU$1,809).
At this level, I think Dali’s Oberon 5 floorstanding speakers are surely the Fyne F55E’s chief competition (and those are tough to beat) – but looking at Dali’s Kupid lineup it’s clear to me that Dali too is going more affordable these days.
How good are the Fyne F55E stereo speakers? I can’t be sure, although on paper there’s a lot to love. I’d love to find out though, so watch this space…
The best stereo speakers all budgets
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becky.scarrott@futurenet.com (Becky Scarrott)
