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FiiO FD5 Review (IEM)

Rate this IEM:

  • 1. Poor (headless panther)

    Votes: 1 0.5%
  • 2. Not terrible (postman panther)

    Votes: 14 6.8%
  • 3. Fine (happy panther)

    Votes: 53 25.7%
  • 4. Great (golfing panther)

    Votes: 138 67.0%

  • Total voters
    206

Vict0r

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Moondrop cheap dynamic drivers as the Aria, Starfield and Kato are super hot IEMs too, and I suspect a similar value proposition with them as the HE400se and HD560S in the over-ear realm.

I have an Aria coming in today. Bit of an impulse purchase, but the hype is so strong that I wanted to hear it with my own ears. Cheap too! Paid $50 for a B-stock (damaged packaging) one.

EDIT: Just got them in but can't get a proper seal in my left ear with the included eartips. Guess my ears are just weird. Mids sound alright, though.
 
Last edited:

ZolaIII

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This costed 100$ (Creative discontinued them for most markets, they are still available in some like India) and if you are able to still find them you should go for it.
aurvana-trio-1.jpg
 

frix

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They are expensive, but they seem like a good value. Inasmuch as these might be used OTG, does any member have a recommendation for an Android PEQ app that could accomplish these corrections Amir, or, for that matter, Crinacle shows?
Poweramp EQ
 

PeteL

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But... wait a second... is this better than the majority of over-ear headphones or what I'm missing? The only trade-offs are sub bass and comfort?
Where do you see a sub bass trade off?
 

jae

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But... wait a second... is this better than the majority of over-ear headphones or what I'm missing? The only trade-offs are sub bass and comfort?
"Better" in the frequency domain, which mostly determines accurate pitch and timbre which affects what we hear the most. Many IEMs are better than other types of headphones in this regard. But you miss out on physiological/room interactions and other time-domain characteristics of headphones (to a lesser extent) and to a greater extent speakers which is why the perceptual experience is widely different between the three. IEMs definitely have their place in portability as well as monitoring/critical listening etc. but I personally don't find them particularly comfortable to wear for extended periods. Older music that was not mixed to do well with headphones is only fixed to a certain extent with crossfeed.
 

nyxnyxnyx

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IIRC this is only beryllium-coated. Makes me wonder how good those Dunu dynamic drivers might be (not just coated).
 

Earfonia

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This costed 100$ (Creative discontinued them for most markets, they are still available in some like India) and if you are able to still find them you should go for it.
View attachment 197549

Aurvana Trio sounds good, especially for the price range. Warm, good bass, and good treble response as well. The 3kHz primary resonance a bit low, so vocal presence a bit laid back. Overall pleasing and enjoyable sound, but not a neutral reference.

Creative Aurvana Trio - EITC-2021 - Harman Target IE 2019.png
 

xaviescacs

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"Better" in the frequency domain, which mostly determines accurate pitch and timbre which affects what we hear the most. Many IEMs are better than other types of headphones in this regard.
If we had a score like with speakers this would have a better score than many over ear headphones. Si as I see it they are better in FR, not just "better".
But you miss out on physiological/room interactions and other time-domain characteristics of headphones (to a lesser extent) and to a greater extent speakers which is why the perceptual experience is widely different between the three.
As I see it, with speakers you create the illusion of a live performance in a real environment with reflections, etc. but the sound is more accurate from this IEMs. Plus, amir reports great spatial qualities on this ones and group delay is very good.
but I personally don't find them particularly comfortable to wear for extended periods
I have plugged my current IEMs into my ears to evaluate if the lack of comfort compensates for a difference of 1k - 2k... tough decision, or not so much... This is kind of a game changer to me, I always had in mind I had to spend a lot of money to get a "distortion free" headphone.
 

don'ttrustauthority

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I'm impressed. I like over ear but this will fit a retirement plan!
 

ZolaIII

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@Earfonia you made me laugh with "natural reference", or such curve. Please don't post delusional uncomplete measurements (lacking program mesured lv all do I know for that graph it whose about 90 dB). Take a look at ISO 226 graph and impuls response instead.
Regarding 3.5 KHz deap it gives better phase sense but it does lay back female vocals a bit but there where it is it makes bigger contrast between lower and upper (over) tone range for them. You either like it or you don't (I am somehow both; like it in other content and not in music) anyway easy enough to menage with EQ.
Best regards.
 
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Earfonia

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@Earfonia you made me laugh with "natural reference", or such curve. Please don't post delusional uncomplete measurements (lacking program mesured lv all do I know for that graph it whose about 90 dB). Take a look at ISO 226 graph and impuls response instead.
I reference it to my own target, I like Aurvana Trio and I have it, but the tonality of it doesn't perceived to my ears as neutral. I do recording and mixing, so neutral reference is important for me.
 

ZolaIII

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I reference it to my own target, I like Aurvana Trio and I have it, but the tonality of it doesn't perceived to my ears as neutral. I do recording and mixing, so neutral reference is important for me.
That's exactly why we won't discuss it or what it supposedly should be (such target). I don't use IEM's (discomfort issue's) instead use earbuds (sacrificing subb bass) which is acceptable for me on the go. If you have hard right built preference (comes with practice) you can do mixing even on lacking equipment that you know very well (including it's deficits for example Yamaha NS10). I never said those are best IEM's ever, just very good for the price and good quality also (Creative could have done better with cable's as they did in the past with PTE one's but still better than what you will get with similar priced FiiO ones for example).

Have a nice time and enjoy.
 

respice finem

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This is a review and detailed measurements of the FiiO FD5 IEM. It is on kind loan from a member and costs US $299.
View attachment 197519

The FD5 is very elegant looking and feeling. It is solid weight wise yet has those fine features. It is not too big so fit my ear easily.

Note: The measurements you are about to see are made using a standardized Gras 45C. Headphone measurements by definition are approximate and variable so don't be surprised if other measurements even if performed with the same fixtures as mine, differ in end results. Protocols vary such as headband pressure and averaging (which I don't do). As you will see, I confirm the approximate accuracy of the measurements using Equalization and listening tests. Ultimately headphone measurements are less exact than speakers mostly in bass and above a few kilohertz so keep that in mind as you read these tests. If you think you have an exact idea of a headphone performance, you are likely wrong!

FiiO FD5 Measurements

Let's start with our usual dashboard and special target for IEMs:
View attachment 197520

I was pleased to see proper amount of deep bass response albeit, with some overshoot in upper bass/lower midrange. We also have a small trough and a bit of peaking from 3 to 6 kHz. Overall compliance is very good.

Here is the relative response which is useful for developing EQ filters:
View attachment 197521

Distortion is exceptionally low, beating a some "high-end" audio electronics!

View attachment 197522

View attachment 197523

Group delay is very clean:
View attachment 197524

Impedance is low but flat:
View attachment 197525

Sensitivity is typical for IEMs:

View attachment 197526

FiiO FD5 Listening Tests
As soon as I played my standard playlist, I could immediately tell the neutrality but with great precision/clean sound. I almost didn't develop an EQ but I thought I should to see the validity of our target response. I am glad I did because it did provide an improvement:
View attachment 197527

Without the filter, you thought the bass was just fine but put in that dip, go back and forth, and you realize that it is a bit boomy without EQ. Typical of this type of correction, the sound can then be a bit bright but pulling that the peak with filter 3 did the job nicely. Band 2 just filled the last piece of the puzzle. As much as I like the sum of these three filters, I could see someone thinking the sound is better without them which is fine by me. We are not talking about big correction here.

Once done, I could not wait to take the picture of the FD5 for the review, and return to listening to them. That is what I am doing as I type this! The sound is so gorgeously detailed and clean without a hint of brightness or distortion. Deep bass while not the same as the over the ear best-in-class headphones, is actually able to impart the impression of sub-bass. It is hard to ask for more.

Spatial effects at times were startlingly good such as the intro in the Pink Floyd track you see above. This kept repeating in other tracks where such effects existed. The level of realism made you want to turn your head to see what is behind you!

Conclusions
The FD5 shows excellent engineering with a response curve that is close to our target. The deviations in it are minor and easily corrected. Once there, you are treated to superb fidelity with amazing lack of any flaws/distortion. It is a joy to listen to. $299 is high compared to budget IEMs but at the same time, is way below high-end ones that fetch thousands. So depending on your perspective, it presents a nice bargain.

It is my pleasure to recommend the FiiO FD5.

-----------
As always, questions, comments, recommendations, etc. are welcome.

Any donations are much appreciated using: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/how-to-support-audio-science-review.8150/
Surprise, surprise... This time, a pleasant one.
 

Earfonia

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That's exactly why we won't discuss it or what it supposedly should be (such target). I don't use IEM's (discomfort issue's) instead use earbuds (sacrificing subb bass) which is acceptable for me on the go. If you have hard right built preference (comes with practice) you can do mixing even on lacking equipment that you know very well (including it's deficits for example Yamaha NS10). I never said those are best IEM's ever, just very good for the price and good quality also (Creative could have done better with cable's as they did in the past with PTE one's but still better than what you will get with similar priced FiiO ones for example).

Have a nice time and enjoy.
I agree with your points that if we know our equipment very well we can do decent mixing even using humble equipment. But it is easier and faster with better equipment.

For years I've been observing my personal neutral target (perceived as neutral) for IEM. And I understand with IEMs and headphones we have different HRTF between individuals so IEM target curve might be slightly different between individuals. And I totally understand that many people prefer certain coloration to enjoy their music, so neutral target may not be always their preferred target. I myself often enjoy certain coloration for music listening. Nothing wrong with that. Music is about enjoyment.

But I think it is beneficial to understand our own neutral target. From there we can estimate the IEM tonality from the frequency response measurement. Sometime we have the chance to audience the IEM before buying, sometime we don't. Understanding our preferred targe curve helps to estimate IEM tonality when we don't have the chance to test it.

I have 3 pairs of Aurvana Trio. 1st pair was the prototype given by Creative for feedback. The treble on the prototype was rather sharp and shrill, and they fixed it on the final version. The 3rd pair I bought because the 2nd pair mmcx connector got loose. I bought the 3rd pair because i like Trio. Although I like Trio for music listening, it is not my preferred IEM for mixing on the go.

And I totally don't understand why you called me delusional when I shared my impression and measurement for Trio. And I totally agree with you it is a very good sounding IEM especially for the price.
 

AudioSceptic

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This is a review and detailed measurements of the FiiO FD5 IEM. It is on kind loan from a member and costs US $299.
View attachment 197519

The FD5 is very elegant looking and feeling. It is solid weight wise yet has those fine features. It is not too big so fit my ear easily.

Note: The measurements you are about to see are made using a standardized Gras 45C. Headphone measurements by definition are approximate and variable so don't be surprised if other measurements even if performed with the same fixtures as mine, differ in end results. Protocols vary such as headband pressure and averaging (which I don't do). As you will see, I confirm the approximate accuracy of the measurements using Equalization and listening tests. Ultimately headphone measurements are less exact than speakers mostly in bass and above a few kilohertz so keep that in mind as you read these tests. If you think you have an exact idea of a headphone performance, you are likely wrong!

FiiO FD5 Measurements

Let's start with our usual dashboard and special target for IEMs:
View attachment 197520

I was pleased to see proper amount of deep bass response albeit, with some overshoot in upper bass/lower midrange. We also have a small trough and a bit of peaking from 3 to 6 kHz. Overall compliance is very good.

Here is the relative response which is useful for developing EQ filters:
View attachment 197521

Distortion is exceptionally low, beating a some "high-end" audio electronics!

View attachment 197522

View attachment 197523

Group delay is very clean:
View attachment 197524

Impedance is low but flat:
View attachment 197525

Sensitivity is typical for IEMs:

View attachment 197526

FiiO FD5 Listening Tests
As soon as I played my standard playlist, I could immediately tell the neutrality but with great precision/clean sound. I almost didn't develop an EQ but I thought I should to see the validity of our target response. I am glad I did because it did provide an improvement:
View attachment 197527

Without the filter, you thought the bass was just fine but put in that dip, go back and forth, and you realize that it is a bit boomy without EQ. Typical of this type of correction, the sound can then be a bit bright but pulling that the peak with filter 3 did the job nicely. Band 2 just filled the last piece of the puzzle. As much as I like the sum of these three filters, I could see someone thinking the sound is better without them which is fine by me. We are not talking about big correction here.

Once done, I could not wait to take the picture of the FD5 for the review, and return to listening to them. That is what I am doing as I type this! The sound is so gorgeously detailed and clean without a hint of brightness or distortion. Deep bass while not the same as the over the ear best-in-class headphones, is actually able to impart the impression of sub-bass. It is hard to ask for more.

Spatial effects at times were startlingly good such as the intro in the Pink Floyd track you see above. This kept repeating in other tracks where such effects existed. The level of realism made you want to turn your head to see what is behind you!

Conclusions
The FD5 shows excellent engineering with a response curve that is close to our target. The deviations in it are minor and easily corrected. Once there, you are treated to superb fidelity with amazing lack of any flaws/distortion. It is a joy to listen to. $299 is high compared to budget IEMs but at the same time, is way below high-end ones that fetch thousands. So depending on your perspective, it presents a nice bargain.

It is my pleasure to recommend the FiiO FD5.

-----------
As always, questions, comments, recommendations, etc. are welcome.

Any donations are much appreciated using: https://www.audiosciencereview.com/forum/index.php?threads/how-to-support-audio-science-review.8150/
Now we want to know how close the FD3 is for 1/2 the price. :)
 

Jimbob54

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In for a penny, in for a pound! Ordered today.

Hopefully some moondrops will get reviewed soon.
 
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