FiiO Retro Box: a cassette that really plays

An 80s audio cassette shell, a metal volume wheel, and behind the transparent door a bay that takes a portable player. The Retro Box is a 5 + 5 W Bluetooth speaker that supports LDAC, works as a USB sound card, and turns into a listening dock when you drop a FiiO player into it. 683 g of plastic and metal, 152.8 mm wide.

What it does

• Two separate channels: 2 full-range 40 mm drivers at 4 Ω, each in its own chamber, backed by two passive radiators. Class D amplifier, 5 W per channel.
• Bluetooth 6.0 with LDAC: the bitrate goes well above SBC when the source allows it.
• USB sound card: connected to a computer over USB-C, it becomes an audio output at 44.1, 48 or 96 kHz.
• Working cassette bay: the side openings keep the 3.5 mm and 4.4 mm jacks and the microSD slot of the player you insert accessible.
• 10.5 hours of battery life claimed, two 18500 cells in parallel, recharge in 2 h 30.

What it doesn't do

• The FiiO Control app is Android-only. On iOS, there is no Bluetooth codec selection, no equaliser and no firmware update. It is the most frustrating limitation of the product and it is rarely mentioned.
• It does not play cassettes. The bay is a housing for a portable player, there is no playback mechanism.
• It has neither a 3.5 mm AUX input nor a microSD slot of its own: everything goes through Bluetooth, USB-C or the inserted player.
• The shell is plastic, including the door. Only the wheel and a few inserts are metal.
• AAC and aptX support is not documented by FiiO: count on LDAC and SBC only.

Footprint

152.8 × 98.8 × 76 mm excluding feet and wheel, for 683 g. This is a desk or shelf speaker you move around, not a backpack speaker.

Skill level required

None. You charge it, pair it and listen. The Android app is only useful for switching codec or setting the equaliser.

In the box

• 1 FiiO Retro Box speaker

See also: Retro-geek decor