Introduction

FiiO's relentless product release cycle continues! We covered a few DAC/amps from the brand already this year with every single entry being impressive for the money and feature set. Things have been more hit-or-miss on the IEM front with the FHE:Eclipse being a one-trick pony of sorts, the FA7s arguably in need of a price cut to be competitive, and the FH7S being a good implementation of the V-shaped tonality. But it was the budget-friendly JD3 we saw earlier this year that I was most impressed by from FiiO, so imagine my surprise when the company mentioned there was a new version coming out!


The original JD3 was made by FiiO as part of its Jade Audio brand that is meant to be a more affordable lineup of audio products for the masses. This new JD3 Black Edition gets mixed signals as to whether it is a Jade Audio product or not until you go to the FiiO Aliexpress store to confirm it is indeed one, but given the product page and all marketing refers to it simply as the FiiO JD3 Black Edition, I will do the same to avoid any confusion. As the name suggests this obviously is black in color to distinguish from the silver-colored IEMs that were the original JD3. It retains the bullet-shape design that quite a few people are fans of compared to IEMs that have cables that go over and behind the ears, and FiiO claims the new version has an updated driver in addition to a more Harman-style tuning to appeal to those who prefer it over the V-shaped tonality of the previous JD3. Thanks to FiiO for providing a review sample to TechPowerUp as we aim to put these claims to the test today, beginning with a look at the product specifications in the table below.

Packaging and Accessories

Packaging is on the simpler side for the FiiO JD3 Black Edition, which isn't surprising given the more value-oriented offering it aims to be. It's practically identical to the previous JD3 in that FiiO forgoes the typical cardboard box in favor of an acrylic chassis sealed in plastic. The clear acrylic panels reveal a cardboard panel inside with the FiiO logo, the expected Hi-Res audio logo, and the product name on front. There is a large cutout for a closer look at the product inside and we see the Jade Audio logo making an appearance on the back to go with the FiiO authenticity checker and contact information for the company. Lift off the top cover to access the contents inside including the IEMs and cable housing, with the microphone and line controls placed in snug plastic clamshell compartments with the rest of the cable in a larger cutout to the bottom. This is also where the other accessories are found, including a warranty card and plastic zip-lock bag containing additional ear tips.


FiiO includes four sets of silicone ear tips with the JD3 Black Edition which come in sizes SS, S, M, and L, with size M tips pre-installed out of the box. While simple single-flange silicone ear tips that won't win any awards, these will do the job just fine for the scope of the product. The flanges are not very stiff and should take on the shape of your ear canal entrance fairly well. What surprised me was the USB Type-C to 3.5 mm dongle adapter which is a neat extra accessory this new version gets! This will help Android and PC/laptop users connect the JD3 directly without needing an additional dongle/portable DAC. It's also useful when you don't have an available combo headphone/microphone jack on your client device for reasons we will see below.

Closer Look

The FiiO JD3 Black Edition continues to have a permanently attached cable as with the original JD3 and a few other budget-friendly IEMs such as the MOONDROP Chu. While not a deal-breaker for me, this is something you need to be aware of right away. It's also one of the few bullet-style IEMs that have the cable go directly down from the shells as opposed to over and behind the ears. This is otherwise the exact same cable as on the original JD3 except with black sandblasted aluminium alloy housings all over rather than the silver-colored ones before to match that particular set. It begins with a straight 3.5 mm TRRS connector—the extra contact to account for the in-line mic here and why that provided dongle is useful—that is gold-plated for additional oxidation resistance for an appropriate source. The splitter reveals the housing composition is a metal trim over plastic and has the FiiO logo on it. The conductor is made of high-purity oxygen-free copper and is quite thin to where I didn't notice it kinking easily. Indeed, I thought this cable was also shielded well enough to where I wasn't getting microphonics in regular use. The right side has a substantial insert closer to the ear that has an in-line HD microphone and tactile line controls (three buttons), and both channels terminate on the IEM shells with subtle L/R markings on plastic sheathing. There is no cable cinch, but the FiiO-branded cable tie will be useful for storing the IEMs somewhere safe—no storage/carry case is provided with the JD3 Black Edition.


FiiO has decided to bump up the JD3 Black Edition shells to have a similar aluminium alloy housing instead of the stainless steel before and the shells are unibodies machined out of a single metal chunk. It's finished well enough to not leave behind any machining marks and is no doubt anodized for the color and durable finish. The bullet-shaped body also has blue and red accent rings on the outside for some flair, which are the de-facto face plates here. This design allows for a semi-open IEM design FiiO has been using to good effect on other IEMs released recently, while also helping users easily identify the left (blue) and right (red) channels. Some tactile "dots" on the left channel cable further help visually impaired users, which is great. The pre-installed ear tips fit snugly over the machined retaining notch at the end of the nozzle, and do try out the other ear tips to ensure the best-possible fit with the JD3. I also appreciate FiiO using a metal mesh filter on the end to prevent contaminants from entering the acoustic chamber. Seen above is the set connected to my phone using the provided adapter and I can confirm the included microphone w/line controls works quite well for daily use—better than most TWS earphones!

Fit and Audio Performance

Seen above is the right side of the FiiO JD3 Black Edition installed in an anthropomorphic pinna that does well in showing my own experience with these. I have average-sized ears, and found the pre-installed size M silicone tips to work best. Given the JD3 is a straight-insertion set of in-ear monitors, it would be a fair assumption that it will fit just about anyone. The smaller size and bullet-shaped shells directly enter the ear canal and the cable falls straight down meaning you have more leeway in positioning the IEMs in your ears than with the more common approach of the cable going around the back of the ear and being a support point at the top. The JD3 is held in place just by the fit then, which makes a good seal all the more critical. These weigh a total of 19.3 g with the cable, and under 5 g each for the individual shells to where I had zero physical fatigue even for longer periods of use. I still recommend finding a cable clip to secure the cable to your shirt, if only to help with keeping the in-line microphone fixed in place when you want to use it while also reducing any potential cable microphonics. The semi-open nature of these IEMs also means passive isolation isn't high, which further increases the comfort factor when using these for longer periods of time.

The FiiO JD3 Black Edition builds upon the driver assembly used in the original JD3. We still see a single dynamic driver used here with a 9.2 mm diaphragm that's now a new titanium-plated composite. It's driven back and forth by neodymium magnets and is associated with a copper-clad aluminium wire (CCAW) voice coil. The acoustic chamber has a dual-cavity design that is marketed to produce faster bass transients. In the smaller inner cavity lies the driver itself, and near it is placed sound-absorbing foam to minimize the impact of standing waves and unwanted reflections for a more natural sound signature with increased resolution. The semi-open shells help in this regard, while also improving pressure balance throughout to minimize discomfort when listening. All this comes together to make for a set of IEMs with an average rated impedance (16 Ω) and sensitivity (107 dB/mW), which makes the FiiO JD3 Black Edition fairly easy to drive. The provided Type-C to 3.5 mm adapter works just fine if you wish to use the microphone, else you can simply use any generic dongle or portable DAC/amp without any bottle-necking concerns.


Testing was done similar to all other IEMs including the original FiiO JD3. Seen above is the measured frequency response for both channels of the JD3 Black Edition, which can be inspected further here if interested. You can also try comparing the measurements to FiiO's own frequency response on the product page, as well as change the target to the Harman 2019v2 in-ear target that FiiO is claiming this version is aiming for. It's not the closest measuring set to that target I have on hand, but then again I am not a big fan of that specific target to begin with given I find it has too much bass and upper-mids presence. The FiiO JD3 Black Edition is overall tuned better than your average set of IEMs at the same price point or even higher, and I dare say it's a more balanced tuning to better appeal to the audiophiles that would perhaps want a daily driver to take around while using over-ear headphones at home. There's plenty of bass here with ~10 dB of SPL increase in the lower frequencies compared to the low point at ~600 Hz to where this would still be described closer to V/U-shaped tuning than neutral with a bass boost. Bass extension is quite good all the way down to the sub-bass too. It makes for a sense of hard-hitting notes with the likes of EDM music but without much power behind them. This is especially so when listening to rock music, where guitars and drums could do with more of that engaging kick associated with the music.

That said, I will say that the newer driver seems more technically competent and "punchier" than the older ones on the original JD3, so there is a marked improvement in the overall listening experience for my preferences with the JD3 Black Edition. The mids are also more transparent than on the previous version and this helps a lot also for general media consumption with vocals no longer coming off second-fiddle to a somewhat bloated bass presence. Male vocals especially win out here although female vocals might still sound shouty owing to the aggressive ear gain in place. Unfortunately the complaints I had about weak imaging and a relatively cramped soundstage continue here and I wouldn't say the JD3 Black Edition is any more resolving either. The treble region is otherwise decently balanced, but is influenced by a slightly metallic-sounding timbre to instruments. That 6 kHz peak might bother some listeners who are susceptible to sibilance too although I didn't find it necessarily fatiguing or sibilant in itself—just perhaps emphasizing anything that is already present in recordings.


For context, I have the FiiO JD3 Black Edition compared to the original FiiO JD3 in addition to a couple of other low-cost popular entries released recently in the form of the MOONDROP Chu and the TangZu Audio Wan'Er S.G which will get its own quick look article in due course. In fact, I deliberately made sure to include it here since it's arguably my top pick for the <$30 market, if not higher. I do not have the 7Hz Salnotes Zero here and I am sure there are many others which I have missed too. The issue is that IEMs out of Asia these days seem to be mostly competing in a race towards the bottom so what is hot today will likely be surpassed a couple of weeks later. Take the JD3 from earlier this year, for example, whereby I feel the new JD3 Black Edition certainly supplants it as FiiO's new budget king. The JD3 Black Edition is more balanced in tonality and has better performing drivers owing to that updated diaphragm. It looks and feels better too and the provided dongle adapter sweetens the deal further. Then there's the Chu which was everyone's pick for a while before the likes of the 7Hz Zero came in with a detachable cable and arguably better tuning/fit. The TangZu Wan'Er S.G is next in line for that particular lunch, and just happens to be one of the better looking sets while also coming with plenty of ear tip options and a QDC-style detachable cable. It also outpeforms the JD3 in imaging and detail retrieval but is weaker with vocals overall and may not hold up as well to daily use to where I can certainly see a use case for the JD3 Black Edition. The bullet-style insertion is also a thing to consider since it is more universally appealing and, if you agree, the new JD3 Black Edition can be had for as little as $14.99 when on discount from an MSRP of $19.99 from the FiiO Aliexpress store. A basic phone dongle sometimes costs more than that and you get one included here along with an in-line microphone for even more value!