[FiiO UTWS3] True Wireless Bluetooth Module/MMCX/0.78 2pin/QCC3020/TPA6140A2/ Bluetooth 5.0

[Shiven]

Sound is too personal; but if you're starting out, and if possible, do a test-run with different sound signature before committing to a custom. It's a big investment. Do you have an audio store nearby that you can test in person?

If trying out in person is impossible (understandable in these times), you can also get a bunch of cheap Chinese iem with different sound signature (like under $50 cheap) and see. My guess is once you find one that suits your taste, you can expect (normally) a better refinement on such sound going up the price. Of course this is not always the case, but you get the idea.

Crinnacle and others have graphs that can aid you in identifying the sound that you like once you have some experience. From your list, if you like the Buds+ (i have them too, they're nice), you might enjoy a bass boosted or V-shape sound or Harman. Again, this is up to your ears and taste so my advices can only do so much. It's a fun and costly journey (sorry about your wallet).

Regarding usage with Fiio UTWS3, it's the 2nd step after your journey of obsessing over different iems.

The custom mold isolation and comfort depend greatly on your ears. Some people swear by it, some don't (like me). Just whatever you like really.


do a review

Also, I was wondering if anyone can measure the changes in sound between wired and UTWS3. It sounds excellent alright, but seeing the actual effect would be interesting

The Jabra and Buds+ are V-shaped or harman tuned iirc. Dunno about the Klipsch. But this is the common consumer tuning which is 'bass' heavy and somewhat brighter than neutral.

The Tin T2+ is very close to DF neutral (minimal bass and a 'pinna' gain). The Openhearts are V-shaped or bass heavy iirc. So thats 2 of 3. For bright or treble heavy I'm not sure where to go, the original Tin T2 would be one but fit doesn't work well with over ear iirc.

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/bes...s-sharing-reference-list.805930/post-16089367

That all makes sense; I'll look into this topic more. One last question (trying not to derail the thread too much): do you have any recommendations for finding a good audio store where I can test in person? I'm currently near Grand Rapids, MI; I did a quick Google search of this website and didn't see any discussions of audio stores in my area. In any case, you've both definitely given me lots to look into, and I really appreciate all of your help!

 

[corgifall]

I'm very interested in these, and I had a few questions that I was hoping people could give me guidance on.

First, as background, I'm a new customer in the market for high-end IEMs -- I've wanted some for a number of years, and I'm now at the point where I'm finally seriously looking at purchasing some soon. Originally, I wanted to get some high quality, custom-molded IEMs that were also truly wireless. That option doesn't really seem to exist (and I'm intrigued/persuaded by the points made earlier in this thread about that setup potentially being inefficient given that batteries would die and significantly shorten the useful life of an expensive audio product); someone linked me here, and I'm pretty much sold on getting a pair of these. The UTWS3 sounds like a potentially great option to combine high-end, custom-molded IEMs with TWS.

That said, I want to try these out and make sure I'm okay with the form factor before I drop $$$ on nice IEMs that I'm planning to pair with these for a TWS experience. But I don't have any earbuds with detachable cables currently (like I said, I'm very new to this market). My thought was that I might as well get some very cheap earbuds with detachable cables and use them with the UTWS3 just to make sure I like the form factor and overall experience -- understanding, of course, that the sound quality wouldn't be what I was hoping for long-term when I upgraded to higher end IEMs.

It looks the FiiO FH1s is a good option for the earbuds, with a detachable cable and price tag less than $100. I'm planning to get a UTWS3 and a pair of FH1s to do a personal fit/function test. Anything obviously wrong with that plan?

Picking the connector is also a bit complicated, since I haven't yet decided what IEMs I'll ultimately get; I was planning to get the MMCX connector version of the UTWS3 and then get a 2-pin converter if needed. Seem reasonable?

Also, earlier there was discussion about TWS versus TWS+. Is there a list of what devices support TWS+? In particular, I'm wondering if my Samsung Galaxy S10e would have TWS+.

Do you have a preference in sound? I really like the FiiO FD1 paired with the UTWS3. 80% of the time I'm running those on the UTWS3 with the OE 2 pin adapter. There is a point where you hit power limits on the UTWS3 and the bottle neck for sound quality on some iems ends up being the UTWS3. Also, the 2 pin version isn't a recessed compatible connector. This means some iems won't work with that version. I recommend grabbing the MMCX version and OE 2 pin adapter.

 

[fusionramjet]

I would be interested in this beta firmware. I'll take some higher background noise if it meant that I'm not blowing out my ear drums. Even with my Tasker profile, I switched bluetooth headphones too quick yesterday and almost blew my eardrums out before Tasker kicked in and auto lowered the volume for me. No bluetooth earphones behaves like this, it seems pretty dangerous if this is the default behavior.

I just ordered the UTWS3 and waiting for it to arrive.
I'm also concerned that it automatically goes to full volume.
For clarification, when it connects, does it make the phone go to full volume? Is it possible to set the volume level on the UTWS3 so the actual volume upon connecting never starts off too loud? (versus having to lower it after it goes full blast)
My concern is that, although I could lower the volume before putting the IEMs in my ears, I don't want it to overstress the drivers in my IEMs and damage them.

 

[hockeyhippopotamus]

I just ordered the UTWS3 and waiting for it to arrive.
I'm also concerned that it automatically goes to full volume.
For clarification, when it connects, does it make the phone go to full volume? Is it possible to set the volume level on the UTWS3 so the actual volume upon connecting never starts off too loud? (versus having to lower it after it goes full blast)
My concern is that, although I could lower the volume before putting the IEMs in my ears, I don't want it to overstress the drivers in my IEMs and damage them.

It automatically goes to the full volume on each reconnect. You must remember to lower the volume before hitting play.

 

[Ocelitgol]

hmm....the full volume doesn't happen with me on Note 9. I tend to maximize the phone volume and then change the volume on UTWS3. They never go max on the UTWS3 itself and UTWS3 remembers the previous volume settings on itself.

 

[hockeyhippopotamus]

hmm....the full volume doesn't happen with me on Note 9. I tend to maximize the phone volume and then change the volume on UTWS3. They never go max on the UTWS3 itself and UTWS3 remembers the previous volume settings on itself.

That's weird. I have a s10+ and I can see the volume bar jump to full on each reconnect. From reading other people's replies, as well as the reply from the FiiO account, it looks like that's the default behavior as well.

 

[fusionramjet]

thanks for everyone's replies!
to hockeyhippopotamus: makes total sense. somehow, I forgot this step. hitting play.

 

[Ocelitgol]

That's weird. I have a s10+ and I can see the volume bar jump to full on each reconnect. From reading other people's replies, as well as the reply from the FiiO account, it looks like that's the default behavior as well.

just checking, have you disable absolute volume? This should enable you to control the volume separately.

Jumping straight to full seems like the sound of the phone is synced with the sound of the UTWS3. Maybe it's worth to check out?

You can change it in developer options.

 

[hockeyhippopotamus]

just checking, have you disable absolute volume? This should enable you to control the volume separately.

Jumping straight to full seems like the sound of the phone is synced with the sound of the UTWS3. Maybe it's worth to check out?

You can change it in developer options.

I found the absolute volume setting. I've gone ahead and disabled it and I can confirm that with absolute volume disabled, the phone will not change the media volume when UTWS3 connects.

The thing is, I actually like Absolute Volume enabled. I normally keep my media volume muted when I don't have a BT headset connected. With any other bluetooth headset or car's bluetooth, once they're connected, it goes back to the previous volume that I had it set for that particular device. Now, if I have Absolute Volume disabled, it's going to stay on mute.

I still think that UTWS3 should not default to Max volume on each reconnect. No other bluetooth headset behaves this way, and I maintain that it's dangerous and should be changed in a firmware update. But, thank you Ocelitgol for pointing out a temporary workaround.

 

[jgrabber]

Received mine from Hifigo yesterday - and so far, I love them!
Super comfortable to wear and compared to my BTR3 my FA7s sound basically the same on them (plus the looks go great together). So happy!

I still think that UTWS3 should not default to Max volume on each reconnect. No other bluetooth headset behaves this way, and I maintain that it's dangerous and should be changed in a firmware update. But, thank you Ocelitgol for pointing out a temporary workaround.

+1 for not defaulting to max volume and giving users an option in the app.

 

[fusionramjet]

to Ocelitgol: thank you! that's great. i'll try it when i get mine.

 

[FiiO]

Do you know where to get a suitable converter? Would adding this not make it too long?

Dear friend,

You could try to search one from Aliexpress maybe. A user showed me that his converter for the UTWS3 is working for his recessed 0.78 headphone:

Best regards

 

[FiiO]

The Story of FiiO UTWS3---From James

Chapter 3 updated

https://www.head-fi.org/threads/the-story-of-fiio-utws3-from-james.951675/#post-16091740

Chapter 3 My experience after long-term heavy addiction to true wireless earhooks

As I am getting older, I begin to realize how important it is to work out. When I am climbing mountains, doing long-distance running or trail running, I really appreciate that music can stay with me.

Anyway, what I am trying to say is that I am really addicted to true wireless earhooks in my life, so that I am able to better share the pros and cons of this product with you.

Before the launch of the UTWS1, I have used many Bluetooth products, including the traditional Bluetooth earphones FB1, the neckband sports Bluetooth cable, true wireless Bluetooth earphones like Airpods, FiiO EW1 and FW1, and the abortive FW5 which was planned to customize with public molds. Each type of these products act obviously in both pros and cons. However, none of them have fully satisfied my needs.

The sound quality of traditional Bluetooth earphones is indeed much better, especially the FiiO LC-BT2, which not only supports high-definition Bluetooth formats such as LDAC, but also uses an independent DAC/Amp chip with HiFi architecture. The sound quality is already very good, better than that of matching schemes of wired earphones+average mobile phones.

In recent years, the popular TWS (true wireless stereo) earphones are portable and convenient. However, other than its ordinary sound quality, the biggest problem is that when we put it on, we always have a feeling that it is going to fall off. In other words, it just cannot give us a sense of security, thus making bad using experience. Generally speaking, for current TWS earphones, it is hard to make progress in hardware and acoustic schemes due to the volume limitation even if it supports the aptX format.

These problems were better solved on the UTWS1. First of all, the UTWS1 uses a Qualcomm Bluetooth chip that supports the aptX format. In terms of the acoustic scheme, users can match the UTWS1 with any earbuds of MMCX and 0.78 connectors based on their preference. For me, I usually match the UTWS1 to Westone's customized ES5 earbuds. It is qualified to compete with any TWS earbuds in terms of sound quality even if its noise floor is slightly obvious. In terms of wearing comfort, UTWS1 ear hook+earbuds are basically similar to Beat's TWS sports earphones. Therefore, it is securely fit when you wear it well, free from worries of intense exercise causing it to fall off.

Since the day the UTWS1 came to me, I have never used other types of earphones when doing exercise. The good sound quality, fit and comfortable wearing and great convenience that belongs to TWS earphones made it hard for me to open my mind to other types of earphones.

For sure, there are still some problems on the UTWS1: slightly clear noise floor despite being optimized, inconvenient charging, pairing and power on/off operation. However, I believe compared to sound quality and wearing methods, the design of TWS earhooks with earbuds may be the most ideal music scheme for those who like to enjoy sports and music at present.

 

[chicolom]

@FiiO Will the 2 pin version of UTWS3 be coming to amazon US as well? I see the MMCX version available on amazon.

 

[Ichos]

Hello dear friends.
I have uploaded my review of the UTWS3.

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/fiio-utws3.24877/review/25116/

I loved them.
Very highly recommend.