The FiiO FW3 was kindly provided free of charge in exchange for an honest review. I didn’t receive monetary or any other kind of compensation and I don’t use affiliate links. The price of the FiiO FW3 is $100 and you can buy it from FiiO.eu.
Technical highlights
The FiiO FW3 is a stripped down version of the FiiO FW5, they are mostly identical except that the FW3 uses only one 10mm dynamic driver on each side instead of the three drivers configuration of the FW5. Additionally the diaphragm of the driver is from carbon fiber instead of DLC as in the FW5.
The FW3 is a specially developed fully-integrated TWS designed with a high-end QCC5141 Bluetooth chipset from Qualcomm. The fully integrated HiFi architecture of the FW3 brings HD Bluetooth connectivity with a top-level Bluetooth chipset and a professional AKM DAC chipset for the best-in-class experience with unparalleled sound clarity and impressive Bluetooth connectivity.
With the help of Qualcomm’s latest QCC5141 Bluetooth processor, FiiO FW3 supports all the latest high-resolution Bluetooth codes SBC/AAC/aptx/aptx Adaptive/LHDC and LDAC. It supports high-res 24Bit/96kHz sampling rate streaming. The Qualcomm chip also offers a multi-point connection for up to 2 devices at the same time. As of firmware v0.5, the LDAC support is still in experimental condition and it does not work as expected. It is not very stable and shuttering may occur. It still needs some polishing that hopefully a future firmware update will bring.
Independent audio architecture
The FiiO FW3 features an AK4332 high-performance DAC chipset from AKM Technologies. It enables stronger decoding capacity, presenting the listeners with top-quality sound performance. The circuit of the FW3 continued the design concept of DAC and headphone amplifiers which feature an independent volume control system. There are 32 volume levels, allowing for a more precise adjustment. When connecting the FW3 to the mobile phone (transmitter), it is suggested to set the volume of the phone (transmitter) to the maximum level, and adjust the volume through the FW3, so you can acquire complete audio dynamics from the Bluetooth transmission process and better sound quality.
For the FW3, FiiO did not put their focus on features such as active noise canceling (ANC). Instead, FiiO focused on bringing the ultimate in sound quality in a fully integrated TWS earphone. And while it is easy to adjust the frequency response curve via DSP, they chose not to do so. They instead chose to refine the physical design of the unit to reduce distortion, retain the unique sound of the driver – to maximize the sound quality through good design to fully respect the original music.
In order to provide the user with excellent clarity and resolution during voice calls, FiiO has equipped the FW3 with the latest-generation cVc noise-cancellation technology using one electret condenser microphone instead of the two silicone microphones that are found in the FW5. Despite the reduction in the microphones used, call quality is really excellent and crystal clear.
Appearance and fit
Readers familiar with the FiiO FiiO FD5 or FiiO FD7 earphones will definitely notice a resemblance, the FW3 follows the same design language and is just slightly bigger than its wired counterparts. The FW3 is not that bulky for a TWS earphone and additionally it is very lightweight because of the plastic construction. They are super comfortable and one of the best fitting TWS earphones that I have ever tested. They are IPX4 water resistant certified so they can be used at the gym or during outdoors workout. The charging case is also compact sized and lightweight and despite being made from plastic it proved to be durable and scratch resistant. The FiiO FW3 is available in two colors, white and interstellar – gray.
Battery duration
The FW3 is equipped with a 60mAh battery on each earpiece and a 380mAh battery on the charging case. The earpieces played continuously for about 6 hours on a single charge with the aptX codec and the volume set about 80% of its maximum value. The charging case allowed for about three extra full charges to the earbuds. Four white LEDs in front of the case act as the battery life indicators.
Accessories
The FiiO FW3 comes equipped with two sets of ear tips, balanced and FiiO’s HS18, in three sizes each, a USB charging cable and a cleaning brush. The HS18 eartips are very comfortable but they make the overall sound signature leaner, bass light and a tough mid-forward. The FiiO SK+FW5 carrying case is separately available for $10.
The FiiO control application
The FW3 is compatible with the FiiO control application which allows the user to adjust various parameters and perform OTA firmware updates. The application supports a 10-band parametric equalizer and many other settings, like Bluetooth codec preferences, low pass filter selection etc. One notable option is that you can limit battery charging to 85% in order to extend its lifespan.
User interface
Based on user feedback from the UTWS Bluetooth series, the development team chose to employ 2 physical buttons per ear unit for operation. The 2 physical buttons make it easier to control play and pause of the current track compared to the traditional 1-button setup. In addition, the 2 buttons are placed perpendicularly to the wearing angle making them easier to press without resorting to too much force. I much prefer physical buttons rather than touch panels because they are more unlikely to accidentally press while you fit the earshells and they offer a much simpler user interface . For a detailed explanation of the various functions please visit the FiiO website.
Wireless connectivity
The Bluetooth connection is really stable and I didn’t experience any disconnections or stuttering audio. I watched a couple of movies on Netflix without any significant latency. There is also a dedicated gaming mode that lowers latency and can be enabled from the FiiO control application.
Listening impressions
As per usual practice I left the FW3 playing music for about 100 hours. The FiiO FW3 doesn’t have a volume limiter and the independent audio architecture allows them to get very loud, reaching full dynamics like a cabled set.
The FW3 has a modern and agreeable tuning, the sound is musical and engaging with a mostly natural timbre while the balance is leaning towards a mildly V-shaped curve.
The overall sound signature is not neutral but there aren’t too many tonal inaccuracies so you can listen to modern tunes and at the same time go through some acoustic tracks without compromising too much. The single dynamic driver sounds cohesive and homogeneous without artificial timbre at any given frequency.
The low-end is well extended with a moderately emphasized bass that doesn’t cause any significant bloating or bleeding to the mid-range which sounds clean and well defined. The sound is warmish but not dark or veiled, the bass is quite clear, not that well defined but fast with sufficient layering and some great physical impact from the 10mm dynamic driver. It is full bodied and weighty while you can always use the HS18 ear-tips for taming the mid-bass to get a more neutral low-end but the texture will become a little leaner and drier.
The mid-range is evenly tuned to offer a balanced sound signature without too much recession or upper-mids emphasis. The FW3 has a sweet mid-range with sufficient transparency, good vocal intensity and realistic instrumental timbre. The treble is extended, lively and energetic enough. It is smooth and forgiving without causing any harshness. Don’t expect class leading clarity, resolution or detail extraction but still the FW3 is airy and luminous enough.
The FiiO FW3 is surprisingly wide and spacious sounding with plenty of air around the instruments and great positioning accuracy for a TWS earphone. The FW5 fares better in this department with sharper imagining, better defined positioning and grander presentation but still the FW3 is really not that far behind and very satisfying with some light classical music.
The design choices of the FiiO engineering team paid well as they managed to make a budget TWS earphone with a performance that is close to that of a well amped wired earphone of the same category. You will be surprised to find out how good the FiiO FW3 is for listening to your favorite tunes while moving around the town. For a little more refined and resolving sound I would choose the FW5 but the FW3 is almost as good and for $50 less.
Compared to the FiiO FW5 ($150)
The FiiO FW3 is a stripped down version of the FiiO FW5 with only one dynamic driver per side but with the exact same audio architecture regarding the electronics and topology used and they also look pretty much identical except for the color. The attentive reader will also notice that the notification LEDs are positioned at the upper part of the FW3, the finish is of higher quality on the FW5 and their cases have a slightly different shape.
Functionality, user interface and accessories are exactly the same for both earphones except the cleaning brush that is missing from the FW3 which also comes in a much simpler and compact package.
Their overall sound signature is quite close, they share the same kind of tuning but the FW5 has a more aggressive V-shaped curve with deeper sub-bass and a little more boosted bass, more recessed mid-range and a clearly emphasized upper mid-range and treble. As expected there are also differences regarding the technical performance where the FW5 has the upper hand. The FW3 is not that refined and resolving in the mids and the treble, the FW5 is more airy and extended with sharper definition, better clarity, increased transparency and detail retrieval while it is also more controlled and tight in the bass. The FW5 is also wider sounding by a fair margin with better imaging and grander presentation. Two very competitive TWS earphones by FiiO with emphasis on the sound quality alone, the FW3 is an excellent budget option while spending the extra $50 for the FW5 will buy you better technicalities and a slightly different tuning.
In the end
The FiiO FW3 is the little brother of the FiiO FW5 and while it costs $50 less it comes with the exact same functions and a sound performance that is not that far behind. The truth is that the market is very crowded and with the same amount of money you can buy a TWS set with active noise canceling but you will be hard pressed to find something as good sounding as the FiiO FW3. This is a budget friendly TWS set highly recommended for everyone who is willing to sacrifice some functionality in favor of the best possible sound quality for the money spent.
Copyright – Petros Laskis 2023.
+ Excellent sound quality for the category + Fun and entertaining tuning + Good bass extension + Musical mid-range and smooth treble + Loud and dynamic with good physical impact + Wide and spacious soundstage + Good passive noise attenuation + Excellent call quality + Lightweight and comfortable + Customizable through the FiiO control application + Stable connection with low latency + Good build quality and IPX4 certification + Physical buttons Lightweight and durable charging case - No active noise cancellation - Rather short battery duration - Doesn't support aptX HD - The LDAC is not well supported - The case feels fragile and plastic - The FW5 offers better sound quality for only $50 more - Not the last word in resolution and transparency - The competition offers ANC for the same price
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