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Recent months have seen Chinese audio makers that traditionally focus on IEMs — like Moondrop and Thieaudio — introduce over-ear headphones, and they’ve had varying levels of success at doing so. Moondrop’s first effort was the Void, and it failed to hit the mark. Thankfully, the brand redeemed itself with the $599 Venus, offering an exquisite design and large planar drivers with a fabulous soundstage. Similarly, Thieaudio’s Wraith didn’t quite get the tuning right, so the brand pivoted to the budget segment with the $129 Ghost.
Fiio is now the latest brand vying to make its mark in this category with the introduction of its first over-ear headphones, the FT3. Fiio churns out more products than Moondrop and Thieaudio combined, and the launch of the FT3 was highly anticipated. The headphones were set to debut at the end of last year, but the launch was pushed to early 2023, and they’re now available for purchase in most global markets for $299.
That price point already makes the FT3 very enticing, so let’s find out if Fiio managed to nail the formula on the first try and whether the FT3 can go up against the likes of the Sennheiser HD6XX.
As always, let’s start with the design. Fiio has a unique design aesthetic that favors a bold styling with sharp lines, and this language is seen throughout its portfolio, including DACs like the Q7 and K9 Pro. As such, it’s no wonder that the FT3 feature an aggressive design, and the look may not be to everyone’s tastes.
To Fiio’s credit, the brand didn’t skimp out on materials, and the FT3 features an all-aluminum chassis with excellent build quality. The outside of the ear cups feature a spoke-like design with the Fiio logo in the middle, and while it doesn’t exactly scream premium, it is a unique look, and it fits with the rest of Fiio’s product line.
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