JVC FX3X Review and Impressions Thread

The JVC FX3X doesn't seem to have much information available as of yet, so when I saw a local store carrying them I decided to pick them up and post some impressions and a review.

I was bored waiting for some gear to arrive so decided to take one for the team (sort of since I can return these for a full refund).

Lets get some basic 's out of the way. These have an aluminum body with a 10mm carbon diaphragm neodymium driver and some form of bass port on the top of the IEM (but this port does not seem to affect isolation as these isolate very well). The design is pretty well done and these are comfortable and can be worn over ear or straight down. The cable is actually nice with a good rubbery feel and weight (but not to much weight), worn over ear the microphonics were very low. It does not have a chin slider though which I don't like and I prefer an L jack versus the straight jack it comes with. It has OK stress relief though and feels like it's built like a tank.

Initial sound is these are what they claim, they are BASS MONSTERS! But they are not quite as one note as that, the mids are fairly clear and present as is the treble. The treble actually is much less offensive to my ears than the FXT90 was. I am not sure I will like the overall sound enough to keep these but so far I am impressed enough that I will continue to burn them in and test them until next week before I make a final decision.

If the bass settles down and the mids and treble improve a bit these may actually become closer to a balanced IEM than they are now but only time will tell this tale. Overal though at $70 I think they may be a good performer at their price range and for those who found the FXT90 to harsh a possible alternative at a better price point.

I would say unless something dramatic happens these will never be a detail monster but they may be a FUN Monster. The sound stage is not huge and the imaging is not super accurate but they are average to slightly above I think.

reserved for review

After 24hrs of burnin the bass has settled down quite a bit so it's not feeling like I have 2 subwoofers shoved in my ears. But the bass definitely muddy the midrange making it a bit muffled and a bit to warm/dark for my tastes. But I am a definite mid-head so take some of my concerns with a grain of salt if you like a V shaped signature or lots of bass as you may find the mids quite clear.

The treble is definitely better for me than the FXT90 though and I do feel it has improved with the 24hrs of burn-in as well.

So far I have enjoyed choral music, jazz, classic rock, psychodelic rock, and Celtic with these. I have not tried any hiphop, trance, or other bass heavy genres as I do not listen to those but I suspect these will please listeners of those genres quite well. I did not like hard rock (AC/DC and the like) with these as they simply are to dark and muffled to do that genre justice.

If anyone loves bass heavy music mainly and other genre's secondarily, these might be a great option. If your into other genre's more though like I am I don't think these are a good enough fit musically.

I kinda went crazy and bought another expensive fullsize headphone (Shure SRH-1440) though so these will definitely be going back to the store sooner than later.

I see a few people have read this thread, so hopefully it's been of help so far but I am not sure I will bother with a full review since my bias signature wise may cause a review to be to much on the negative side.

Been listening to these as I typed up a couple of posts and I have to say these actually are a better sounding headphone than I have been giving them credit for. They are certainly not offensive in any way and might just be a good headphone for a lot of people. The treble actually has pretty darn good detail and the bass is also pretty good from a texture perspective. Aside from my mid-range demands I am pretty impressed...