FiiO FD5 Review (IEM)

[Aperiodic]

View attachment 197565
FiiO FD5
Volcanic field system
Copper clad aluminum coil made by Daikoku Company, Japan.
Magnets N52
Beryllium coated DLC membrane

WTF is a 'Volcanic field system'?
These might be great but that sounds like marketing gobbledygook to me

 

[brandall10]

WTF is a 'Volcanic field system'?
These might be great but that sounds like marketing gobbledygook to me

There's so much marketing gobbledygook in this industry.

I imagine even for companies that take engineering seriously there is a tussle being engineering and marketing, most likely because the user base is going to split on what they care about.

 

[nyxnyxnyx]

I don't think BA is the problem here, it's just that well-executed DDs are just really good.
In my overall (unconfirmed) knowledge, BA setups started to grow because it's tricky to control DD exactly the way the developers want, while BA can do it reliably and comfortably.
If I remember correctly there was a series or at least an article from the founder of FitEars (or some other brand, I'm not sure now). They talked about the difficulty along with pros and cons of BA vs DD in many aspects.

 

[Hifihedgehog]

@amirm, I currently have the Elysian Annihilator on demo. This is probably a stretch, but if I shipped them to you now, would it be possible to get them measured and back in a two weeks' span?

 

[brandall10]

Elysian Annihilator

Most likely not due to a sizable backlog... but it may help to underscore its name is because what it does to your wallet coming in at nearly $4k... being the most expensive IEM reviewed to this point might help put it toward the front of the line.

 

[amirm]

@amirm, I currently have the Elysian Annihilator on demo. This is probably a stretch, but if I shipped them to you now, would it be possible to get them measured and back in a two weeks' span?

Unfortunately not. These IEMs were sent last August! It is a really bad time for me right now as the amount of gear has piled up so high.

 

[Hifihedgehog]

Unfortunately not. These IEMs were sent last August! It is a really bad time for me right now as the amount of gear has piled up so high.

Figured you had a backlog a mile high. Thanks anyway!

 

[Hifihedgehog]

but it may help to underscore its name is because what it does to your wallet coming in at nearly $4k... being the most expensive IEM reviewed to this point might help put it toward the front of the line.

So it seems based on the reply above @amirm has or at least once had them back in August of last year. The other thing outside of price are the rave reviews (which is subject to subjective nonsense) and more importantly this chart on Crinacle that appears rather promising. It would seem to smooth out the minor peaks of the FD5 and extend the treble out to the limits of human hearing. THD is the only "unknown" here, but it seems very clean and tidy from what I am experiencing on my demo unit right now:

Crinacle's IEM Graph Comparison Tools | Hangout.Audio

The world's largest public database of IEM measurements.

crinacle.com

In either case, Amir can only humanly review so much and the ever-present demand for him to review every last speaker, amplifier, DAC, headphone, and now IEM known to man means he has to pick his battles and let some things slide off. I hope someday it gets reviewed given the promising results from Crinacle, but I have to also be respectful given the realities of time and energy Amir has to balance and navigate, this being a hobby for fun, after all.

 

[brandall10]

So it seems based on the reply above @amirm has or at least once had them back in August of last year. The other thing outside of price are the rave reviews (which is subject to subjective nonsense) and more importantly this chart on Crinacle that appears rather promising.

I think Amir was talking about having the IEM in this thread (the FD5) since last August.

AFA Elysian, I made a mistake in confusing them with Oriolus, which seems to be a company that is lauded simply because of the insane prices... at least Elysian appears have a history of increasing the price point to similar insane levels to coincide w/ better performance, but even as of a few years ago they had some pretty poor performers that were excessively priced in their respective brackets.

Still, I contend there is nothing about IEM engineering or R&D that explains why something needs to be this expensive... they're charging it simply because people will pay for it, not because any unique performance merit. Considering they're neck-and-neck w/ the U12Ts on both Crinacle and Precog's lists though, and they're a tribid it *would* be super interesting to see how they measure.

 

[GoMrPickles]

Unfortunately not. These IEMs were sent last August! It is a really bad time for me right now as the amount of gear has piled up so high.

What do we need to donate to pay an ASR intern

 

[amirm]

What do we need to donate to pay an ASR intern

None work as cheap as me unfortunately.

 

[Merkurio]

Just donate me an APx555 and I do it with great pleasure following exactly the same methodology as Amir "for free".

 

[amirm]

Hehe . You also need the GRAS system so you are looking at cool, $45,000!

 

[Merkurio]

Hehe . You also need the GRAS system so you are looking at cool, $45,000!

A bargain considering that there is a more expensive esoteric product out there for sure, so ASR members know; the offer is still open!

Haha, grettings Chief!

 

[Hifihedgehog]

Considering they're neck-and-neck w/ the U12Ts on both Crinacle and Precog's lists though, and they're a tribid it *would* be super interesting to see how they measure.

Well, I have had the opportunity now to compare them side-by-side with the FD5 today and they are immediately several leagues above the FD5. The treble is indeed less peaky than the FD5 yet extended well above 10 KHz with ease without the least bit of grain. It's definitely an endgame IEM in my book. Listening to my Lord of the Rings UHD direct rip blew my mind. Enunciation and inflection is spot on (e.g. fricatives or sibilance-relying phonetic sounds like S's and Z's are properly crisp and clean and yet don't sound like a drill into the eardrum at all) and the dynamics and soundstaging are simply out of this world. It is the closest I have heard to perfection and my preferences yet I have heard from any IEM or headphone. It exceeds the HE-1000, HD800, and so on that I have thoroughly listened to. I immediately committed to a purchase.

 

[Somafunk]

Hehe . You also need the GRAS system so you are looking at cool, $4

Nah, there’s a guy on YouTube who says all you need is your ears.

 

[Curupira]

Still, I contend there is nothing about IEM engineering or R&D that explains why something needs to be this expensive... they're charging it simply because people will pay for it, not because any unique performance merit. Considering they're neck-and-neck w/ the U12Ts on both Crinacle and Precog's lists though, and they're a tribid it *would* be super interesting to see how they measure.

That depends, some type of exotic drivers are more expensive than your regular DD or knowles armature. It still won't justify the +1k pricing, but it also will reveal some shading marketing. The first iteration of the KZ ZEX, for instance, was laughed over the community because KZ was claiming that they used eletrostatics drivers on a $30-50 iem. And those criticisms were right.

 

[Madlop26]

Well, I have had the opportunity now to compare them side-by-side with the FD5 today and they are immediately several leagues above the FD5. The treble is indeed less peaky than the FD5 yet extended well above 10 KHz with ease without the least bit of grain. It's definitely an endgame IEM in my book. Listening to my Lord of the Rings UHD direct rip blew my mind. Enunciation and inflection is spot on (e.g. fricatives or sibilance-relying phonetic sounds like S's and Z's are properly crisp and clean and yet don't sound like a drill into the eardrum at all) and the dynamics and soundstaging are simply out of this world. It is the closest I have heard to perfection and my preferences yet I have heard from any IEM or headphone. It exceeds the HE-1000, HD800, and so on that I have thoroughly listened to. I immediately committed to a purchase.

If I would do a subjective assessment of IEMs on ASR, I would not dare to omit the report of the proper blind test, including procedure and results, otherwise I am in the risk of not to be taken seriously

 

[Orion76]

Wow, nice review. Kinda thought I was happy with my current headphone collection, but these are very intriguing.

For what it's worth, I had a FiiO E7 USB DAC + FiiO E9 headphone amp that lasted for almost a decade before switching to my current Topping E50 / L50 combo.

 

[xykreinov]

I always thought most IEMs over $1000 like 64 Audio were borderline snake oil, but these FiiOs really set that conviction in stone.