Quick Summary
The Fluid Audio Image 2 is a 3 way nearfield monitor with some interesting features including built in DSP which can host Sonarworks SoundID Reference calibration and a Cubemix mode which gives you two pairs of monitors in one.
After a few days with them, Julian found them to be solid performers with great control of the bottom end all the way to 40Hz, the onboard hosting of Sonarworks Sound ID Reference speaker calibration further improves an already good monitor and the Cubemix mode which restricts and shapes the frequency response to focus on the midrange was genuinely useful.
Pros
Excellent performance, particularly at the bottom end
Sonarworks SoundID Reference Integration
Cubemix Mode
Attractive pricing for a 3 way design
Cons
At present the software is less polished than the hardware
Price - $1899 per speaker
Going Deeper
I’ve previously auditioned both the FX80 and FX50 from Fluid. These monitors, particularly the FX80, offered a good sounding monitor which represented really impressive value at just $249 each. Great value is something of a killer feature and products which are built to a price should always be viewed as such, with the inevitable compromises being correctly seen as a consequence of their good value. But how far up the price ladder does this ‘value goodwill’ extend?
At nearly $2K per box the Image 2s have some very respectable competition from well known manufacturers, for example the Genelec 8340A, Neumann KH150 or Focal Solo6. The Genelec and Neumann monitors offer DSP and the Focal offers a 2 in 1 Focus mode similar to the Image 2’s Cubemix mode. But these are all 2 way designs. To offer these features in a 3 way design at this price point is worth paying attention to. My regular monitors, Neumann KH310s, are a sealed cabinet 3 way design but the Image 2s are 75% of the price of my Neumanns and offer onboard speaker calibration. If they sound good then they definitely deserve a place on a list of prospective new monitors.
Construction And Drivers
Before we get to the sound, let’s consider the construction. The Image 2s are deep with a relatively small front baffle (H 14.25″ x W 9.5″ x D 13.75″ / H 351 x W 241 x D 363 mm) and aren’t as heavy as I’d expected them to be (27.8 lb / 12.6 kg) but the woodwork is reassuringly solid and I was pleased to discover that these monitors are sealed cabinets, something I like about my KH310s. It’s good to see that mounting options have been properly catered for with the inclusion of substantial threaded inserts on both sides for Sound Anchor floor stands and for ceiling-mounting.
The drivers are an interesting combination of a 5” aluminium midrange cone covering 115Hz-2.8KHz, an AMT folded ribbon handling everything above 2.8K and dual, side-mounted, long excursion bass drivers handling the low stuff. Amplification is courtesy of class D units with 75W for the tweeter, 150W for the midrange and two separate 225W amps driving each bass driver independently. This gives a maximum SPL of 116dB with quoted frequency response of 28Hz-20KHz +/- 4.8dB. Fluid also quote 80Hz-20kHz +/- 2.0dB. The -3dB cutoff is 38Hz. As previously mentioned, the crossover points are 115Hz and 2.8KHz, the crossover is realised in DSP and the filters for the mid to high are Linkwitz-Riley 24db/oct and Butterworth 12db/per oct on both slopes between the low and mid bands.
The physical arrangement of these drivers is worth mentioning. The AMT tweeter and the aluminium midrange driver occupy a separate sealed enclosure in the cabinet with the influence of the two bass drivers being isolated from the others by a separating baffle a few inches behind the front baffle. The tweeter is set back 3 or so inches from the front baffle at the end of a deep waveguide which as well as loading the tweeter also time aligns it with the voice coil of the midrange driver. The Waveguide itself is symmetrical horizontally but not vertically and I found that on my desktop stands they sounded better used upside down which brought the tweeter to the correct height relative to my ear. If I were keeping them I’d definitely invert the logo and keep them upside down rather than invest in different stands.
The two 8” bass drivers are coupled internally, creating a structural element which braces the big side panels. Cabinet vibration is a significant source of distortion so internal coupling like this is an effective way to add structural integrity and has been done before but Fluid Audio have added a turnbuckle type screw between the backplates of the bass drivers which puts outwards pressure on the drivers, virtually eliminating woofer vibration, a system they call ‘Vibracer’.
The result is a very solid cabinet and, with this generous provision of bass drivers (and amplifier power) in a sealed cabinet with its natural -6dB/Oct rolloff and lack of group delay inducing ports, it really works. The bass behaviour, in terms of timing and how it behaves in your room, is as tight and consistent as I would have hoped. Being used to the response of my sealed, 3 way KH310s I sometimes find the results offered by ported cabinets a little messy.
Rear Panel
The back panel offers analogue inputs on both XLR and 1/4”TRS, digital inputs via AES and spdif, these monitors are good to a sampling frequency of 192KHz. Trim, contour controls and setup are via an assortment of pots and switches and a USB port for uploading Sonarworks profiles and a TRS for the optional footswitch for toggling Cubemix mode are included too. The Image 2 can be used either in tweeter at the bottom or the more conventional tweeter at the top orientation. If you wish to use them this way up the Fluid logo can be inverted by removing the front baffle.
Sound
As for how they sound in use, running them flat, as hinted at earlier, gives a pleasing full range experience. The bass extends all the way to 40Hz without bumps, holes or the dreaded indistinct timing of imperfect porting. The AMT tweeter displays its characteristic clean performance and the midrange aluminium cone is clean and articulate. I was listening out for any hint of amplifier noise as there was some noise evident in the (much cheaper) FX series I’d tried before. I’m pleased to report that these class D amplifiers are very quiet indeed. The contouring control on the back panel offer subtle voicing options but with the power of Sonarworks SoundID Reference on offer I progressed straight to that.
But not before checking out the Cubemix feature. I’ve seen features like this before, for example Focal’s Focus mode. The benefits of having a B pair of monitors to complement and offer an alternative to your full range A pair are well understood. The NS10 or the little Auratones of old were popular because they allowed mixers to check how well a mix survived in the real world of ‘mostly midrange’ playback systems which lacked the extended top end and particularly the deep bass reproduction of studio monitors. While it’s difficult to add bottom end to a speaker, it’s easy to take it away and this type of response is useful for hearing how much of your kick and bass will still be there when you’ve lost the bottom octave or two, and how the relative balance is now all that weight has gone.
The Cubemix setting does more than just bypass the bass drivers, it rolls off the top end and introduces a big push between 1 and 2KHz, as well as rolling off from about 200Hz. It’s very mid-forward indeed and I found it much more useful than I expected. You can engage it from software but using the optional footswitch I found it genuinely useful, not just for dialling in bass and kick but particularly for sitting vocals in the track.
So with the grotbox feature bypassed, it was time to investigate getting the flat, full range performance as flat as possible with the help of Sonarworks’ SoundID Reference, which allows users to create their own calibration profile for their monitor setup in their listening space, removing unwanted colouration and improving the accuracy of the monitoring system.
As opposed to running SoundID Reference in software, like I do with my KH310s, the integration with the Image 2s allows the user to store the profile directly into the DSP of the speaker, removing the need to use the SoundID Reference software once the profile is uploaded. Helpfully Sound ID reference even bypasses the software correction once the profile is uploaded to the speaker to avoid double-correction.
I’m already a SoundID Reference user but purchasers of Image 2s get a free 60-day trial of SoundID Reference. You’ll need a measurement mic to perform the calibration and you’ll need to remeasure if you change the layout of your studio or move your speakers. The setup procedure is straightforward, if lengthy, and involves making multiple guided measurements. The supplied Fluid Audio DSP Configuration Tool and Sound ID are used in combination and once the measurement is taken it can be uploaded to the speaker itself via USB and up to four profiles can be stored. I use a motorised sit/stand desk with monitors mounted on the desk and because they move with the desk as it changes position I need to store and recall two profiles so I’m glad to see provision for this requirement.
Conclusions
From my brief time with the Fluid Image 2s I can say that I’ve grown to like them more and more the longer I’ve spent with them. They tick a lot of my boxes in terms of what I like in a pair of monitors. They are 3 way, they are sealed boxes, they have built in DSP which can host speaker calibration data. They have good mounting points and auto power off – practical stuff which is important, and they sound big but are both compact and light – I’ve injured myself manoeuvring monitors before, solid construction is good but there is a downside… In addition, being someone who likes the perspective shift offered by checking mixes on ‘grot-boxes’ but doesn’t like the extra gear that involves, I’ve found the Cubemix mode genuinely useful.
As for negatives, there are of course a few. The main one is the Fluid Audio DCT software which is used to access the DSP in the Image 2s. All software is a work in progress but this doesn’t feel quite ready, particularly because only one monitor can be accessed at a time and the device name is cryptic, for example in my case I have “dev/tty.usbmodem414401 Image 2”. Not very informative. Talking to the manufacturer it seems they are already on the case and linking multiple units and custom naming of devices is on the way soon. I’d like an Identify button which makes the LED on the speaker flash too, and while the difference between full range and Cubemix mode is unmissable on a mix, I was caught out auditioning podcast audio and thinking I’d been sent terrible dialogue by a guest until I hit the pedal and found I was in Cubemix mode! An LED indication of Cubemix mode might have spared my confusion.
All in all, I think the Image 2s offer performance and facilities beyond their price and if, like me, you like 3 way monitors and generous, well behaved bass then you should check these out.
A Word About This Article
As the Experts team considered how we could better help the community we thought that some of you are time poor and don’t have the time to read a long article or a watch a long video. In 2023 we are going to be trying out articles that have the fast takeaway right at the start and then an opportunity to go deeper if you wish. Let us know if you like this idea in the comments.