Audio brand FiiO has been launching new products every month this year. You may not have heard of the brand yet, but you soon will because their products hit the ideal sweet spot between price and performance.
The latest product from FiiO to arrive on my desk for review are the FT1 closed-back dynamic headphones designed for hi-fi listening. Fitted with oversized 60mm transducers, these new headphones offer a frequency response that spans from 10Hz to 40kHz. That’s a lot more than the usual 20Hz to 20kHz and much of that is down to those large second-generation dynamic drivers.
The larger-than-average drivers convert sonic energy more efficiently and serve up a solid foundation for a tight and forward bass. The larger diameter results in lower low-frequency resonance points, ensuring a deeper dynamic bass response.
The FT1’s diaphragm mainly consists of paper wood fibers made from 90-year-old spruce wood sourced from Northern Europe. This material is often used in the manufacture of musical instruments and the wood helps deliver a clear sound and natural tone.
The spruce wood is soaked, cooked and then beaten to create specific pulp before a precise proportion of carbon fiber material is added. The diaphragm then undergoes another round of baking and molding, resulting in a final thickness of about 0.1mm.
FiiO has used a light PU material with a high internal resistance for the W-shaped suspension gasket for the 25mm voice coil which is made with ultra-fine Japanese copper-clad aluminum wire. Each wire core in the CCAW coil has a diameter of 0.035mm — about the same width as a human hair.
According to FiiO, the W-shaped diaphragm achieves a 25.8% increase in effective vibrating area, enabling it to store more energy. This setup minimizes vibration loss between different materials and reduces distortion, producing a clean, warm and detailed sound with a wonderful analog profile.
The FiiO FT1’s ear cups are made from carefully selected FAS-grade American Black Walnut. The wood has a smooth grain that’s unique to each pair to each pair, so no two headphones will look the same. The wood is dense and that helps to reduce cavity resonance in the ear cup, minimizing standing waves.
The build quality of the FT1 headphones is exemplary, especially considering the price. They feel like premium headphones like the superb Romanian-made Meze Audio. The three-axis headband of the FT1 has a dozen levels of adjustment. The high-density breathable mesh design of the large ear cushions efficiently dissipates heat buildup between the cushions and the listener’s ears. The side of the ear cushions is made with protein leather.
To ensure the FT1 can plug into a wide range of sources, FiiO has supplied two interchangeable cables. One of the cables terminates with a 3.5mm single-ended plug, while the other has a 4.4mm balanced Pentaconn connector. Both cables are made using an Oxygen-free Copper-plated Silver Wire with 392 wires, to ensure a highly transparent and robust sound signature. The FT1 must be the most affordable pair of headphones I’ve ever reviewed with a balanced 4.4mm termination for use with high-end DACs and digital audio players.
As I’ve already hinted, these headphones are a bit special. Even if they were twice the price, I still think they would be worth it, but at their price, they are a bit of a steal. You’d have to spend a lot more money to get a pair of closed-back headphones with a balanced connector and such an engaging sound.
So, how do the FiiO FT1 sound? Wonderfully beguiling although it does depend on the listening material. Badly mastered or over-compressed music will sound muddy. The FT1 remind me of the Meze Audio’s Classic 99 headphones; the wooden earcups impart a similar warmth and a lack of resonance that gives the overall sound an analog feel.
The frequency range of the FT1 is wide, but the treble never sounds shrill and the bass never booms or imposes on the mids. The only area where there might be a blip is in the upper midrange where things can have a slightly squashed and nasal quality on some vocals, but it very much depends on the type of recording you are listening to. The FT1 have an open and neutral sound with a flat response, enabling the music to be heard as it was intended.
The soundstage is not exceptionally wide. For some people that’s a positive because some headphones can produce a soundstage so wide it makes things sound like they’ve been through some kind of spatial audio processing. The warmth and analog feel of the 60mm dynamic drivers is infectious for me and the lack of distortion meant I could listen to them for a long time without fatigue.
I put the FT1 headphones through their paces with some classic jazz. First up was Know What I Meanalbum by Cannonball Adderley and Bill Evans, recorded way back in 1962. It’s amazing how much detail the FT1 were able to reveal in that 63-year-old recording. Back in those days, there was very little manipulation like compression, just excellent mic placement and good recording quality. The FT1 headphones pick up the warmth of Percy Heath’s acoustic bass, with all its detail, on this Gordon Jenkins arrangement.
The FT1 offer a deep dive into the recording and all the instruments in the Modern Jazz Quartet’s rhythm section were picked out beautifully. These headphones won’t forgive a badly mixed or shoddily recorded piece of music, but if the artist and recording engineer have done their job properly, these closed-back headphones will bring out the detail and rhythmic feel of a recording without sounding harsh or analytical.
Verdict: The new FiiO FT1 headphones with their oversized 60mm drivers, delicate voice call and gorgeous American Black Walnut earcups, produce a sound that will transport you back to the heyday of vinyl and classic hi-fi. I loved them and the fact the FT1 are so affordable makes me love them even more. Some people will find the soundstage a little cramped, but I love that you can now buy a pair of headphones with the choice of balanced or single-ended cables to suit the DAC or audio system you are using. If you like your sound with a flat response as well as clarity underpinned by a secure bass, then you will enjoy the FiiO FT1. And you’ll love the price tag even more.
Pricing & Availability: The FiiO FT1 are shipping now and priced at $159 / £139 / €159.
More info: www.fiio.com
Tech Specs:
- Type: Closed-back.
- Drivers: 60mm dynamic.
- Frequency response: 10Hz – 40kHz.
- Impedance: 32Ω.
- Sensitivity: 98dB/mW@1kHz / 113dB/Vrms@1kHz.
- Ear-cup material: American Black Walnut.
- Ear-pad pressure: 4.5N±0.3N.
- Cable material Silver-plated oxygen-free copper.
- Cable length: 1.5m.
- Headphone connectors: 3.5mm (Single-ended) / 4.4mm (Balanced).
- Weight: 340g.
- Supplied accessories: Hard zippered storage case, 1 x 3.5mm single-ended cable, 1 x 4.4mm balanced cable, 1 x 3.5mm-to-6.35mm adaptor, 1 x quick-start guide.
