FT3 Dynamic High-Res Over-Ear Headphones

At the initial price of $300, I found the FT3 to be a great deal. At the current price, it's an incredible bargain. Build quality first, just fantastic, especially for the price. Ear cups look a little plasticky, but they're mostly metal with good heft and very sturdy feel. The headband seems to have a center of spring steel wrapped in leather with a self adjusting comfort strap that seems to be made of vinyl. The headband and comfort strap work fantastically well. It's one of the best headbands I've used at any price and is an absolute rarity at the current price of $220. The ear pads are good, nothing terribly special and are likely the low point of the otherwise stellar build. They're perfectly comfortable and remain cool on the ears, but aren't terribly plush. One wish I have is for replacement and upgrade pads to be more easily accessible. I've had difficulty finding them anywhere other than Chinese vendors. That's a bit of a shame too, as replacing the ear pads is fantastically simple, I wish ALL headphones allowed pad swapping so easily. You simply pull the ear pads and they pop off with a firm tug. There's a plastic ring on the pads with 5 little plugs sticking out. You align the plugs with the holes on housing and press to pop back in. After dealing with some incredibly inconvenient pad swapping procedures over the years, this is incredibly refreshing. Now, sound quality. Very neutral tuning with fairly extended bass for an open back dynamic headphone of this price. Good dynamics, once again for an open dynamic driver and a very musical timbre. Unsurprisingly, at 350 ohms, the FT3 benefits from an amp, but with pretty good sensitivity it's certainly not required, especially at moderate volume. Also unsurprisingly at 350 ohms, the FT3 does very well on OTL tube amplifiers. Both the Little Dot MK3 and Schiit Valhalla 3 were capable of lighting up the FT3 very well, with punchy dynamics, slight warmth and crystal clarity. Extended highs from these amps lends the FT3 and overall very slight v-shaped tuning. The FT3 also pairs very well with the Aune S17, offering fantastic resolution and a slight mid-range emphasis compared to the two OTLs. Overall, a very technically capable, musical and mature sound for the money. For the price, I'd have zero hesitation recommending the FT3 over the typical audiophile suggestion in this price category, the Sennheiser/Drop HD6XX. I think the FT3 is more musical, less veiled and more technically capable than the 6XX, does even better on tubes, and I feel that the FT3's build quality is substantially better and more luxurious than the excessively plasticky 6XX Lastly, accessories. Again, the FT3 excels here. A very nice and sturdy case is provided as well as a good quality cable that includes adapters for 3.5mm, 4.4mm, 4 pin XLR and 6.35mm. Two sets of pads, suede and protein are included as well. Overall a very solid accessory bundle for the price. At the current price of $220, I think the FT3 is just an insane value. Given how popular the FT1 is (and deservedly so), it seems as if some of Fiio's other models aren't getting the attention they deserve. The FT1 Pro and FT3 are chief among them. If you're looking for a quality open back under $300, I can't think of a better option than the FT3.

I have nearly 25 pairs of headphones ranging from the Philips h2xr to my Klipsch hp-3 and audeze lcd-x. I have plenty of experience with "mid-tier" cans. I am comparing these to my other dynamic drivers. Overall score: 8.5/10 For the money, these perform well against their price category peers, though at full MSRP you can find similarly performing units for less when discounts are to be had. Heck, you can get a few higher quality units for just a little more when discounts are on the table. Given that, I can't say that they sit too highly abovetheir competitors when at full price. All said, I've spent $300 on dumber things, but I don't want to waste my money making lateral moves in audio. If you are looking at these for your first pair of headphones, you won't be disappointed. You get a great sounding product at an affordable price. If you e got a range of cans on your stands, these will still provide you with a new, worthwhile experience. If youre looking for something to last you years as a daily driver, you may want to consider some of the alternatives below. Audio Technica ATH-R70X ($250-375) More lively than the ath-r70x, but lacking the same resolution. I still would choose my ath-r70x over these for overall quality and enjoyment. Emotiva GR-1 ($200) Very neutral compared to the emotiva, but not as "fun" or boisterous. It's kind of a draw overall, but the gr-1s can be had for $200 right now. Sound signature is distinctly different: the ft3 sounds "reserved" ("veiled"?) in comparison. Theiaudio Ghost ($140) Way more detail and clarity than the cheaper ghost (with upgraded pads), but those are half the price. The ghost are a great candidate for their price range, though. Still, for twice the price I would say that the Fiio are a better package. Save those pennies. Beyerdynamic DT 880 (250 Ohm?, $125-300) When compared to my dt880 they had better sensitivity and all around soundstage, though the 880s still delivered with mids above the fiio. Overall, the 880s are more "relaxed" product. Honestly, it's a hard pick here, though I have a bias for beyerdynamic as a brand AND the 880s can be had for 1/3 the price depending on where you look. The ft3 wins if priced the same. Sennheiser HD600 (a classic, $300-500) The hd600 sit proudly above these in overall performance, but definitely have an accentuated frequency curve that caters more to a wider audience. The ft3 holds it's own, but for rock and more bombastic music the hd600 are my choice. Focal Elegia ($300-375) Against the elegia the ft3 fall short in every catagory. Sensitivity, bass, mids, and soundstage: the focals aren't even fazed by the fiios entering the arena. While that may seem unfair given that the elegia originally sold for $900 USD (crazy!), they can currently be had for closer to $325 USD. Far money bang for the buck there. Harmonicdyne Zeus ($275-350) The Fiio deliver a more clear and flat sound than the Zeus and overall communicate a wider of genres more effectively. The Zeus have a distinct coloration that sounds great for metal and aggressive music whereas the ft3 just dont have the same punch. I imagine that the ft3 would be a better mixing choice or preferable for jazz, but don't have the same excitement and tanginess with rock.

Finally a pair that don't pop on bass hits, when cranked up on my Denon X4500H, clear as a bell. Sennheiser hd 650 or the Beyerdynmics dt 990 can not handle what these do. I will actually be keeping these ones. who would have thought. So far none can handle what I put on headphones except these!!! These are by far the best ones I have ever heard so far. I am now a Fiio Fan. Yes sound is old school v curve but not quite, has all levels hearable highs, mids, and lows. Also some people complain about ear fitmit. I gots some satelittes for ears, I just tuck them in the cup and it does not bother me at all. After a minute I don't even notice they are there, yeah they are heavy metal construction that weigh more, but I got a big head lol. They fit me just fine. I couldn't ask for a better set of headphones. I sent BD DT 990 pros back and ZENs hd 650's back because they were weak compared to these. Edit: last a couple days and one side or the other quits, tapping gets sound back briefly and stops, First pair left side quit, second pair right side quit. Both having same issue tap in it and it kicks in for a second or two. they need to check QC, I returned them for a pair of BD 990DT 600 ohms, wish I could have not had to edit this review. Was 5 stars but now only 3

Well-made and sounds amazing. Everything feels primo and fancy. The only issue is the ear cups are too small for my ears and hurts over time just because they can't fit inside... but another issue is the fact the earpads are those peg snap ones... those sucks to take out and replace I really hate it when anyone uses those... At the very least I wish they added one where it has that normal earpad ring so we can use our own pads to find better comfort.

When I got these headphones, I was skeptical about their build quality and price to performance ratio. My previous best open back headphones were the Sennheiser hd 599s. This blows it out of the water in every way. I was particularly impressed by the sub-bass. It shakes your ears without any compromise on sound clarity. It's built VERY sturdy, no Hifiman QC lottery here. The accessories are indeed impressive, I would personally recommend the suede pads for a more fun listen. Every plug under the sun is included, and comfort is decent. For 150$ new, this is an easy buy for any beginner audiophile, and stands toe to toe with other 300$ options. I've always been impressed by Fiio products, and will continue to buy from them.

they sound good and the value of the accessories included is nice but QC and customer service are non-existent. i had accessories missing and the cable completely failed on me and was unusable, i had to purchase a replacement. i reached out to customer service but only got back complete silence. i liked them, except there seems to be QC issues and no possibility of help from customer service

Great set of headphones. I own a crazy amount of headphones and these are some of my recent favorites. Sound is quality and balanced. Build quality is very solid, but the comfort is really what shines here. Ear cup is spacious, though I wouldn't mind it being a little larger. But that suspension headband!! Not many headphones use this design and it is a comfort game changer if you wear your headphones for extended periods. It is so important to find a set that does not rest directly on the top of your head and this set delivers. Would love to see Fiio do more full-size headphones.

Really good quality and sound