FiR Audio M3

FiR M3 IEM

1. Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with FiR. I received the pair of M3 I listened to as part of the FiR tour.

2. Introduction: I’ve only had IEMs for a few years. I was initially worried I wouldn’t like them, so I started slowly. Over the past year in particular I’ve found myself using my IEMs more than my full size head phones: the convenience of portability. So, I have started climbing the ladder. My current long-term reference for in-ears is the Campfire Audio Lyra II. I like the overall balance of the Lyra II, but enjoyed the bigger bass of the Vega, though I only got to listen to those for one evening. I have been looking for an upgrade ever since discovering I’m an emerging bass-head.

3. Design: The M3 is a three- way design: dynamic woofer and balanced armature midrange and tweeter drivers. I’ve been intrigued by these hybrid designs ever since I bought my Campfire Lyra II. I really like the sound from that single dynamic driver IEM, especially the bass slam (though I now want more depth than the Lyra II can provide). I’ve heard deep rumble from various designs which employ balanced armatures, but those I’ve heard don’t have visceral impact. What I’m hoping to hear from the M3 is bass physicality from the dynamic driver plus the speed and finesse of the balanced armatures. I hope to hear good cohesiveness in the presentation since only three drivers are used. All this is along the same lines as heard in home audiophile discussions about the purity of sound from two-way speakers when compared to multi-driver speakers. I don’t know yet if I have an abiding preference for one design or the other, but my current leaning is for fewer drivers.

The housings are generally triangular, and fairly deep. The sound pipes are fairly long. Both of these traits are good for me. Triangular housings seem to fit my ears pretty well and the long sound pipes will let me get deep insertion. I’ve worn ear plugs at work for years, so I am used to jamming things as far in my ear as possible. Shallow insertion feels unstable to me.

The housings are nicely made: smooth with rounded edges. They might be die-cast, but I’ll bet they are milled. I don’t see any fasteners holding the face plate to the housing. The outside looks powder coated: satin black for the body, gray for the face plates. There appear to be vents below the RCX connector (you can see them if you hold your monitor just right).


The M3 housings are well crafted and understated, like an English luxury car. They are not so sculpted as the Meze Rai Penta I also have (more Italian looking), and cleaner than the Campfire Audio Lyra II.


4. Packaging: I can’t make a comment about the “retail” packaging from FiR as I received my set as part of a tour. Truth be told, I don’t much care about packaging anyway. Sure, it’s nice to see a fancy box, but I’d rather have my money put toward the IEMs themselves; or at least good tips. Honestly, after I put the box in the closet, the next time I’ll see it is if I wrap it up to mail it to the new owner.

5. What’s in the box? What came in the box sent to me was a large (for IEMs) metal can with a screw-top lid containing the M3 and a second cable. Also in the box was plastic baggie with some extra tips. The metal can is lined with foam, and has a cleaning brush in the lid. But, it’s too big for daily traveling. I’ll have to use one of my other cases while these M3 are in my care. Of course, one counter argument to this is, “Those IEMs are supposed to be in your ears, not in the can.” I can’t argue with that.

6. RTFM: No literature came with the tour pair of M3. That’s good, I’d have to spend audition time to read it, anyway.

7. Physicals:

7.1. IEM Connector: These have FiR’s RCX connector. I won’t quibble about whether it’s mechanically superior to an MMCX. What I do know is I have a few cables with MMCX connectors I can’t use with these IEMs, and I’ve never worn out an MMCX connector. Perhaps musicians do. I hope FiR will offer MMCX as an option for those of us who aren’t hard on their gear. Last: the 2.5mm cable provided came with “RCX angled black” connectors at the IEM end. Strangely, the angled parts of the 4.4mm cable were smaller than those on the 2.5mm cable. I didn’t like either: they didn’t fit my ears or with my glasses well. If I were to order a pair of IEMs from FIR, I’d try their “RCX Barrel” connector instead. But the photo on the FiR website makes the stock barrel look really big, and it may be awkward. Perhaps a minimalist strain relief and no memory wire that allows the wire to be wrapped over my ear as closely as possible?

7.2. Cable: The FiR cable provided with my tour pair is really thin and flexible. It comprises four wires, twisted, not braided. Microphonics weren’t a problem for me. No microphone is offered, which is fine by me.


7.3. Source connector: One of the cables supplied came with a right angle 2.5mm TRRS balanced connector, the other with a big right-angle 4.4mm. The 2.5mm plug itself has surprising heft for something so small. The barrel hiding the cable strain relief is surprisingly big. I don’t know yet if it’s actually a big deal, but my initial impression is I wish the barrel was smaller. The 4.4mm plug stands pretty tall above my DAP.



7.4. Tips: The tour pair were supplied with three pairs of foamies. I tried one pair, but didn’t give them much chance as foamies don’t generally work well for me. I will say this: the sound pipe of the FiR M3 is noticeably smaller than the Campfire Audio sound pipes I’m used to. Foamies work better with these IEMs than with Campfire products. For me. Notwithstanding, the foamies didn’t support the ear pieces well and I never felt them to be secure in my ear.

Anyway, I quickly changed to silicone tips. I started with a pair of Final Audio single flange I had out from another pair of IEMs which coincidentally arrived this week, too. I had the same impression of insecurity with the Finals as I did with the foam tips, so on to JVC Spiral Dots. I was hoping the wide bore would allow all the M3 sound into my ear and the small profile would allow deep insertion. Not so much. Perhaps if I’d had a pair of ML (13mm diameter), but I had M and MS. The M3 felt loose in my ears and I had lots of bass leaking out (confirmed when I touched my finger tips to the M3 housings and pressed them lightly). On to a new pair for me: RHA dual flange. These worked well. Snug but comfortable fit, good seal to keep that dynamic bass goodness in. I also tried SpinFit 240 dual flange tips as well. I thought the sound strangely closed-in, some top-end air was suddenly missing. Odd, since the bores of the SpinFits appear to be the same diameter as the RHA. Hmm…

8. Fit, Comfort, Isolation: I like the shape of the M3 housings. I’ve found, in my limited experience with IEMs, the triangle shaped housings fit my outer ear reliably. I had all kinds of trouble with the Campfire Atlas. Try as I might, I could never get them seated just right, so I hardly ever heard what they are capable of, unless I held them in place. The first time I listened to the M3 with the RHA tips I had them in for almost two hours. After the silicone warmed up and got seated, I didn’t notice the ear pieces at all, only the sound. Perhaps in this photo you can see how the angled RCX stick a bit away from my head. I didn’t have this with the Penta or Lyra II, which have MMCX connectors I can rotate to keep the cables right next to my skin.

9. What I Listened to: I like simple and compact, so I used my AK70 MkII.

10. Soundstage: I am not a soundstaging aficionado, at least not when it comes to head phones. The M3 soundstage struck me as narrow, it rarely extends past the face plates. They present decent separation across the width of the stage: with orchestral music, violins are on the left, wood winds left of center, brass to the right, celli and basses to the right but in front of the brass. Imagine my surprise when the bass drum in Night on Bald Mountain (Mussorgsky, Reiner on RCA Living Stereo) came from the left! While I don’t notice much differentiation in height or depth, big orchestral pieces sound similar to what I hear from my normal seat at our concert hall: 20th row center. It could be I am not good with spatial cues. I won’t argue with anyone who tells me I’m full of it here. That said, I was able to keep track of “Chicago” (Tom Waits, As Bad As Me). To me, there is a lot going on in that song. Baritone sax, and two guitars to the left; Tom W. a snare and bass left-of-center; and a banjo, trombone(?) and a train whistle (again, ?) to the right. All are playing different parts and perhaps different tempi. I can’t keep up with it through my speakers in the living room, but through head phones…

An exception to this is “Auberge” by Chris Rea. At the beginning of the song a man walks, while whistling, from left to right. Once just outside your right ear, he kicks a bottle back across the sound stage, then follows it back where he came from. He ends his stroll somewhat outside your left ear.

11. Highs: Treble response was actually the second thing I listened for, after bass. Admittedly, bass has been on my mind recently. I’m impressed by the high frequencies of the M3. They are smooth and mellow, without harshness. After listening to both the M3 and a borrowed pair of 64Audio U12t I found the highs of the same cloth. Not identical, of course, but neither is the etched, “revealing”, extra-detailed sound I’ve heard described about other head phones. I don’t really like hot treble, it fatigues my ears. The M3 are on the mellow side of detailed.

As smooth as the treble is, I was concerned it lacked detail and would become boring. So I listened to a few tracks that have some information at the top of the frequency spectrum. There is a triangle, pinging away behind the rest of the orchestra in “Siegfried’s Funeral” in Gotterdamerung. The M3 provided the sharp leading edge of the stick hitting the metal as well as the bell-like decay without making it sound hard or brittle. At the other end, my favorite Allman Brothers song, “Jessica” (Brothers and Sisters) has cymbals that sound splashy rather than sparkly to me. Perhaps this is a result of 1970s rock ‘n roll recording, rather than the competency of the M3’s tweeter.

The M3 can do transients, too. I’ll cite The Doctor by Doc Powell and New Levels New Devils by Polyphia. Sharp attacks and definite stops to each note. Cymbals on The Doctor are much cleaner than on Brother and Sisters, and the M3 allow me to hear that.

12. Mids: I have to admit, I didn’t spend a lot of time focusing on the timbre of the midrange. I choose to believe that is a good thing: if I thought the midrange sounded off, I’d have spent time trying to figure out why. With my current focus on bass performance, I listened to bass-heavy tracks first. Even so, midrange and treble were well represented and even in level with the bass, unless bass is elevated in the song.

As far as vocals are concerned, I listened to a few tracks specifically for vocals. I really like “Genius” by Julia Fordham. Ms. Fordham’s voice is rich and resonant through the M3. There is some sibilance in this recording, but her voice has power, rhythm and a bit of range. Also, “Something Cool” by June Christy. Tom Waits’ voice was satisfyingly gruff and rumbly when listening to “Chicago” from Bad As Me.

I listen to a lot of guitar- based rock and jazz. Jeff Beck, Fleetwood Mac, Boogaloo Joe Jones, Pat Metheny, Rush, Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, and others all made it through the rotation during my time with the M3. All the various tones were reproduced and presented on a rich palette. I loved listening to my favorite guitar players with the M3.

But, worried the bass would overwhelm the midrange, I started consciously avoiding “bass tracks” and listening to acoustic music. I listened to a pretty wide range of acoustic music “scales”: solo piano, jazz quintets, jazz big bands, small classical ensembles, full orchestras. What I found is the quality of the M3 bass scales with the quality of the recording, as it should. I found string bass in Miles Davis’ “Half Nelson” (Workin’) to be boomy; however, the bass in “In a Mellow Mood” (Duke Ellington and Billy Strayhorn) was deep and rich and detailed. I’ve really enjoyed listening to Henry Brant’s Ice Field. Mr. Brant throws everything at the listener, from organ to triangle. I’ve not heard this piece live, unfortunately, but I think I can hear it all. The organ never overwhelms the other instruments. The first time through Bach’s Brandenberg Concerto 1, I thought the low notes from the cello out-sized. A couple subsequent listenings; however, convinced me everything is in balance.

OK, back to mids. For microdynamics and detail retrieval I’d like to hear to nylon-stringed guitar, but I’m not sure I have any in my collection… Pat Metheny provides a good demonstration in “The Sound of Silence” (What It’s All About), steel stringed though his instrument is. Pat M. plays his forty-two string guitar aggressively, and I can hear the sharp start of each plucked note, as well as the resonant decay and the reverberation in the room. Another of my favorite instruments for midrange reproduction is the vibraphone. I have had head phones that produce the initial transient of the mallet hitting the bar, and others able to produce the warm blooming decay of the instrument. The M3 does both. I love the groove of a good vibe solo.

13. Lows: There are a couple of characteristics about bass response important to me. The first: Pink Floyd must sound good. One of my favorite things about Dark Side of the Moon, Wish You Were Here, The Wall, et cetera is the bass wraps its arms around you and holds you close. It’s warm and smooth and wonderful. The other is: I would love to find a head phone able to reproduce “It’s For You” by Pat Metheny Group (As Falls Wichita, So Falls Wichita Falls) properly. I am beginning to think this is a fool’s errand, there just isn’t enough volume inside ears to allow Steve Rodby’s bass the room it needs to bloom.

Bass from the M3 goes down low, quite low. I don’t listen to EDM, but the M3s fill my head with bass and rumble my ear drums when it’s on the recording. The soundtrack from Blade Runner 2049 has some serious electronic bass, and it’s all there from the M3. Likewise with bass- heavy tracks like “Deeper Well” (Emmylou Harris), “Digging in the Dirt” (Peter Gabriel) and “Dirty” (Earth, Wind and Fire). “Deeper Well” made shivers run up and down my spine, literally. The bass might be called overwhelming by some. It was higher in level than Emmylou’s voice, but it absolutely did not cover her vocals.

Bass, even low bass, is not one-note thumping. One of the cleanest recordings I have is The Doctor by Doc Powell on the VTL label (perhaps the only recording Luke Manley ever did, pity). On that recording I can hear the strings of the electric bass vibrate. Bass also scales nicely with volume. One of the last songs I tried with this in mind is “Limelight” (Rush, Moving Pictures). When listening at a low- level Neal Peart’s kick drums were lifeless thuds and Geddy Lee’s bass nearly MIA. However, turning the volume knob brought life to the kick drums and rumble and detail to the electric bass.

All that said, a friend of mine listened for a day as well. He prefers his bass leaner and faster than I do. He listens to a lot of metal and needs to hear the nuances of machine drumming and fast, strummed guitars. He found the bass of the M3 too dark/ warm/ wet for his taste, though he did like it better than other well- known bass cannons like the Vega and Atlas. His current favorite is the Fiio FH7.

Oh, “It’s For You”? Nope, I need a subwoofer in the living room.

14. Gestalt, Zeitgeist, Fahrvergnugen (and other German words meaning “the whole enchilada”): I have a similar reaction to the M3 as I did when I got an extended audition of the Audeze LCD-X. The M3 demand attention. They make it difficult to allow your music to fade into the background. I find myself turning the volume up higher than I typically do so I can hear more of what the M3 has to offer, just like with the LCD-X. It can get exhausting, really, to the point where I sometimes need a break. But I always come back wanting more. Different from the LCD-X, though, the M3 are not always in your face. I was able to enjoy both the weird syncopation and ecstatic dynamics of Polyphia as well as something as tranquil as Khirimian Hairig by Alan Hovhaness (a slow, solo trumpet accompanied by strings).

15. Comparisons: I would have loved to compare the M3 to the 64Audio Trio, but I didn’t have access to those. I was able, though, to listen to a pair of U12t, a pair of Meze Rai Penta I just received as well as my long- term Lyra II. Note that all four did well with the synthetic bombast of Hans Zimmer’s sound track for Blade Runner 2049. The real differences shone through with acoustic music (as one might expect) and well-recorded rock and jazz.

64Audio U12t: The U12t has better detail retrieval as demonstrated by Doc Powell, “All Right Now”: the first low-ish guitar notes vibrated better, and there was more shimmer in cymbals. Emmylou Harris’ voice sounded with more vibrato, sounded more worn (“Deeper Well”). Differences are small and could be attributed to lack of level matching. The attribute that makes me interested in the Trio is the possibility of visceral bass response, like I heard with the Atlas and to a lesser extent the Lyra II. While the U12t bass is smooth and detailed, at best it’s able to rumble. The M3 is able to vibrate my ear drums, which is exactly what I am looking for. In addition, the lowest bass of the M3 is more detailed with more punch.

Meze Rai Penta: After the lack of love I’ve seen for the Penta, I wasn’t prepared for them. Sure, the best tips for me were the last I tried, and they sounded poor until I finally slid a pair of SpinFit 240s on the sound pipes. Once that was done, though, hold on! The fit is really good for me, even though they aren’t as triangular as the M3. They sit even a bit better inside my outer ear. Fit ‘n finish is first-rate as well. Bass goes as low, but without quite the same volume in the lowest octave or two. That will make the Pentas a bit less overwhelming to some, those who find the M3 (or the Vega, Atlas, Legend X) too much of a good thing. But, they don’t have the same impact as the M3, consequently, the excitement factor suffers (you may have noticed I listened to “Deeper Well” a lot this week, the Penta are second best with this song, for this reason). Mids are beautiful. I did, though, find a couple of recordings that sounded hollow with the Pentas when they sounded full with the M3. Perhaps that is bass bleeding into the midrange and creating a bloom that isn’t really there on the recording. Whatever. After listening to the M3, I missed it when listening to the Penta. I think the Penta’s tweeter might be better than the M3 tweeter. A bit more etched, enhancing detail presentation, a bit more air, a bit more articulation. Soundstage revealed by the Penta is also in-my-head, like the M3.

Campfire Audio Lyra II: Believe it or not, the Lyra II hold their own quite well in a number of ways with both the M3 and Penta. I still like my Lyra for all the reasons I bought them: bass, smoothness, the cohesiveness of a single driver, a bit of sparkle on top. Oh, and fit. Who wouldn’t love a little bitty IEM that just nestles in like this? Missing from the M3 presentation is the excitement factor, which I think is generated by pace-rhythm-and-timing. The Lyra II don’t go as low or hit as hard in as the M3. In addition, lowest bass is more one-notey. There isn’t quite as much body or expressiveness in Emmylou Harris’ voice, nor Julia Fordham’s. There isn’t as much air around the instruments, as much room sound. Highs are a bit muddier or splashier, less defined. The soundstage is a bit wider, extending out past the cover plates a bit, though not holographic or all-encompassing.

Here’s how I know the U12t, Penta and Lyra II are all satisfying like the M3 in their own ways: soon after putting any of the four in and plugging them into my DAP, I’d forget about the differences and just listen unless I made a conscious effort to remember I have a review to write.

16. Conclusion: I am impressed with the FiR M3. The two things I’d hoped I would hear: coherency and impactful bass, are there. When present, bass can be heavy and enveloping. However, when it’s not called for, the bass gets out of the way to allow, for example, a harpsichord to shine. The M3 has the pace- rhythm- and- timing to keep up with the busiest of music, but also the mellowness to allow a good groove to develop or allow appreciation of tranquility.

Now that I’m on the list, I can’t wait to hear what the M4 is capable of. If it keeps the excitement of the M3, but adds the treble detail of the Penta? Oh boy!