After two years of waiting, we finally have the second true wireless earphones from the FiiO FW series. During the experience, it can be clearly found that in order to pursue better sound performance, FiiO has given up the current mainstream active noise reduction and sacrificed wearing comfort. But in my opinion, all these waiting and giving up are worth it. If you have a certain pursuit of sound quality, then I think FiiO FW5 should be a suitable tws earbuds for you.
FiiO FW5 specs and features:
- Bluetooth 5.2 with aptX-Adaptive/LHDC/LDAC codec
- 10mm Dynamic driver + balanced armature driver
- Hi-Res Audio+Snapdragon Sound certification
- 7 hours playback of per charge
- Charging case can charge earbuds fully 2 times
- $99 – Check latest price on AliExpress, Amazon US or other Amazon countries
Below this FiiO FW5 review, you will find the soud style and specs comparisons of the FiiO FW3 wireless earbuds.
Accessories and Appearance Design
After unboxing the FiiO FW5, what attracted me the most was not the earbuds themselves, but the various accessories displayed below. The earbuds follow the tradition of regular HiFi earphones in terms of accessories, and the accessories are very rich. FiiO FW5 comes with a Type-C charging cable, 3 pairs of balanced eartips, 2 pairs of treble-enhanced eartips, and cleaning tools in the package to meet the diverse needs of users. Such rich accessories are still very rare compared to the general traditional true wireless earphones.
The charging case is made of the more mainstream matte material. The size of the charging case is very compact, and the all-black matte color design does not look like plastic, and it feels very delicate. There are four power indicators on the front of the charging case, which can intuitively prompt the current power when charging and opening the cover. The Type-C interface on the back is also in line with the current mainstream design. In general, the design of FiiO FW5 charging case is highly consistent with that of the previous generation. It is a product that has no obvious features in appearance, but is excellent in ease of use.
Different from the very low-key design style of the charging case, the appearance of FiiO FW5 earbuds is very surprising, which can be said to be a completely different design language from the previous generation. The matte frosted body with exquisite workmanship brings an excellent metallic texture to earbuds. The design on the earbud cavity is that four embossed curves run through the entire panel. The curve is not a simple and straightforward design, but has ups and downs and changes in width and width. This kind of design and processing gives people a natural and concise beauty, full of artistic flavor.
And upon closer inspection, there is a silver metal grid design with holes hidden in the gaps below the relief curves. Although this design makes the FiiO FW5 look like a semi-open true wireless earphones, the metal grid is just for decoration.
Connectivity, Comfort and Game Mode
FiiO FW5 uses Qualcomm QCC5141 bluetooth chip, which is based on the Bluetooth 5.2 standard, which also lays a solid technical foundation for the headset experience. Thanks to the advantages of the large panel design of earbuds, the FPC antenna can be placed closely on the panel, which greatly improves the signal problem of earbuds. It is of great help to increase the transmission distance of wireless signals, enhance its penetration ability and anti-interference ability.
Also, FiiO FW5 support multi-point connection, which can connect two bluetooth devices.
In actual use, after the game mode is turned on, whether watching movies or playing games, the sound transmission latency is within an acceptable range. In the subway with a very complex environment, there are no problems such as disconnection. In terms of daily use experience, the performance of FiiO FW5 is still very good.
For true wireless earphones, the beauty of appearance design is only one aspect, and the wearing comfort of earbuds is the most important thing. Since FiiO FW5 is a HiFi true wireless earphones that focuses on sound quality, the acoustic components inside the earbuds are much more than ordinary TWS earbuds. Therefore, the size of this earbuds is much larger than that of traditional true wireless earphones, which does not affect people with relatively large ear canals like me. But for petite girls, if they wear FiiO FW5 for a long time, they may still feel uncomfortable swelling.
Control and APP
In terms of operation, FiiO FW5 earbuds adopts the solution of physical buttons. The earbud has two physical buttons, and daily simple operations can be completed through a total of 4 buttons on the left and right earbuds. Operations such as play/pause, volume adjustment, and previous/next song can be realized by single-click or long-press operations, which is more convenient to use and further reduces learning costs. However, since the buttons are designed on the top of the earbud, there is still a possibility of misoperation when wearing it.
In addition to conventional button operations, FiiO FW5 also supports the operation of earbuds through the FiiO Control APP. Including mode switching, charging protection, indicator switch, filter setting, etc. In the APP, you can adjust the balance of the earbuds channel, and you can adjust the filter according to your preferences to find the sound that suits you. In addition, the game mode can also be turned on in the APP to obtain lower sound transmission latency.
Sound Quality of FiiO FW5
FiiO FW5 earbuds adopt a full-link HiFi design, equipped with Qualcomm QCC5141 bluetooth chip, support the more mainstream Bluetooth 5.2 connection protocol, and have QHS high-bandwidth technology. It supports 96k/24bit aptX Adaptive, LHDC and LDAC codec, and the received audio is converted and driven by the high-performance DAC AK4332 chip. The earbuds adopt the acoustic structure of 1 dynamic driver+2 Knowles balanced armature driver, which makes the sound more durable. The specification of the dynamic driver is 10mm DLC diaphragm+PU gasket.
High frequency: The extension and quantity sense are actually good, but the overall density is still different from high-end wired earphones.
Mid frequency: Slight reverberation, which has a certain blessing to the sense of space. The performance of instrumental music can well reflect the sense of resonance, while the vocals are relatively mellow.
Low frequency: This 10mm mid-low frequency dynamic driver is a complex of contradictions. The transient response is fast, the low-frequency extension is deep, the elasticity is good, and the sense of freshness is full. But the abundant quantity sense brings a very strong reverberation, which enhances the sense of atmosphere and gives people a false false transient illusion.
Sound field: The horizontal expansion is good, and the vertical direction has just the right depth performance. The extension of the instrumental music and the breath of the human voice are just right, so the shape is still an oval with a wider horizontal direction.
Symphony: I personally feel that FiiO FW5 has a good sense of music in the symphony, which is very good. The disadvantage is that the resolution is still a bit poor, and the details of micro-dynamics and weak sounds will have a smear feeling. Of course, this sense of smear also enhances the sense of music and listening to a certain extent. Thanks to the blessing of the dynamic driver, FiiO FW5 is still very good in terms of dynamic expressiveness and sound tension.
OST: FiiO FW5 is quite good in terms of taste and sense of space, so the original sound will give people a strong sense of substitution. Especially after the Buff blessing of the low-frequency and extremely low-frequency parts, it will make you ignore the performance that is not so extreme in details.
Specs Comparison: FiiO FW3 vs. FiiO FW5
| Model | FW3 | FW5 |
|---|---|---|
| Bluetooth Platform | Qualcomm QCC5141 | Qualcomm QCC5141 |
| Bluetooth Version | 5.2 | 5.2 |
| Audio DAC | AK4332 | AK4332 |
| Dynamic Driver | 10mm Carbon-Based Dome Diaphragm Dynamic | 10mm DLC Dome + PU Diaphragm Dynamic |
| Armature Driver | N/A | Knowles RAD |
| Call Microphone | Electret Capacitor *1 | MEMS Microphone *2 |
| Call Noise Reduction | Single-Mic CVC Noise Reduction | Dual-Mic CVC Noise Reduction |
| Control Buttons | 4 Physical Buttons | 4 Physical Buttons |
| Game Mode | Support | Support |
| Multipoint Connection | Support | Support |
| Audio Codec | SBC/AAC/aptX/aptX Adaptive/LHDC | SBC/AAC/aptX/aptX Adaptive/LHDC |
| Snapdragon Sound | Support | Support |
| APP Control | Support | Support |
| Battery Life | 7 – 21 Hours | 7 – 21 Hours |
| Sound Style | The sound is more inclined to the mid-low frequency, the vocal is thick, and the atmosphere is sufficient, which is more suitable for the interpretation of vocal and pop music.
The vocal positioning is slightly forward, but it is not close to the ear, and the mouth shape is slightly larger. The timbre is relatively neutral, and the fundamental frequency of the vocal is improved. |
With the support of the armature driver, FW5 has a brighter and clearer mid-high frequency performance. When performing metal percussion instruments, it has a more realistic on-site restoration ability.
Compared with FW3, the female voice of FW5 has more line sense. There is not too much coloration in the mid-low frequency, and the low-frequency quantity is not much, which reduces the influence on the turbidity of the mid-frequency. The overall sound style is a high-fidelity and high-resolution tuning route. |
| Price | $69 | $99 |
Check the FiiO FW5 price:
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- Check latest price on other Amazon countries
