FiiO’s FT5 Open-Back Planar Magnetic Headphones Might Be Ideal for Dongle DACs

FiiO have been sturdy gamers within the common IEM class for numerous years and there’s no query that they know design high-end DAPs and among the greatest Dongle DACs in the marketplace. We’ve examined loads of their merchandise over the previous 3 years and there has not been one clunker on the record.

Designing headphones, nonetheless, is a really completely different course of they usually have been seemingly content material with letting the bigger producers personal that piece of the pie, so long as audiophiles continued to buy the remainder of their merchandise.

However one thing modified through the pandemic; FiiO got here to the conclusion that there was alternative to supply dynamic open-back headphones that have been underneath $400 and in addition give you a substitute for what HiFiMAN and Audeze have been providing on the entry-level within the planar magnetic class.

The FT3 and the 32 Ohm iteration are at the moment underneath overview and our early takeaway is that each fashions are extraordinarily revealing and that FiiO might need spent its time through the pandemic moderately correctly engaged on its proprietary driver expertise.

The FT5 share one necessary factor in widespread with the FT3 32 Ohm mannequin — they’re much simpler to drive and that may make them extra suitable with a wider vary of DAPs and Dongle DACs.

FiiO FT5

The $499 FiiO FT5 are lastly out there for the large dance and have some fascinating design particulars price mentioning.

The FT5 undertake a nanoscale diaphragm coating course of — the coils of the motive force are printed onto the diaphragm utilizing high-end expertise from the semiconductor business. ​

This ensures that not solely the thickness of the coils are extra constant, however the weight of the coils are way more evenly distributed – leading to a much more constant and correct sound.

Following in depth testing, FiiO’s engineering workforce have designed the FT5 with 20 N52 neodymium magnets per driver. 11 magnets are positioned on the within of the FT5’s planar magnetic driver and 9 magnets are positioned on the skin – main to twenty magnets per channel and 40 in complete for all the headphone.

The balanced placement of magnets ensures the aluminum alloy coils are evenly distributed within the magnetic discipline, and it additionally permits the motive force diaphragm to be balanced between the forces of the interior and outer magnets — guaranteeing constant motion of the motive force and lowered distortion, for a better constancy sound.

One of many issues FiiO needed to realize with their first pair of Planar Magnetic headphones was excessive sensitivity, while making certain they have been simple to energy. Historically, Planar Magnetic headphones have featured low-sensitivity, which means usually highly effective desktop audio amplification is required to drive them to their full potential. ​

The FT5 just isn’t like a standard planar magnetic headphone. Thanks to twenty neodymium magnets with a excessive magnetic density of as much as 1.5T, 6μm skinny diaphragm, and nano-level aluminum alloy coating expertise, the FT5’s driver is each mild and robust, permitting for a excessive sensitivity of 110dB/1Vrms @ 1kHz.

This implies the FT5 may be simply pushed — even by moveable gamers — permitting them for use in variety of completely different eventualities.

Giant 90mm planar magnetic driver

The FiiO FT5 employs a big 90mm planar magnetic driver. In comparison with a standard dynamic driver, a planar magnetic driver converts sound vitality to sound waves in a extra balanced manner, by vibrating in a way more even manner. The vibrations are distributed throughout all the driver diaphragm and there’s little distortion brought on by the rigidity of the diaphragm materials.

Open-backed design

To attain its nice sound, the FT5 options a big 90mm planar magnetic driver with 20 magnets on a single facet of every driver. To additional attain its max potential, the FT5 additionally accommodates a specially-designed open-backed acoustic construction. The rear of the motive force housing is rigorously designed to behave as a sound wave baffle to isolate the sound waves within the entrance and rear of the motive force housing.

The grille of the FT5 is scientifically designed to regulate and exactly speed up the air circulate when the motive force is transferring, with the meant purpose of providing a a lot wider and deeper soundstage.

Specs

For extra data: fiio.com/ft5

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