00:00FIO FG3 gaming headphones are primarily designed for gaming but as it turns out
00:06gaming is far from the only thing they're good for. A bit later in this video you'll hear a real
00:13gamer's first-hand impressions of using them but my task is a little different. I want to find out
00:20how well the FG3 handle music and especially movies. Hello dear friends, my name is Arkady
00:27Zanon. I am the founder of Premium Hi-Fi. We are located in Riga and Puikinac, people with sound.
00:39The first thing you notice when you take the FIO FG3 out of the box is that the headphones are
00:44quite light and don't feel bulky at all. They weigh about 315 grams including the microphone.
00:50They fit very comfortably on your head. When you move, the design doesn't make any annoying noises.
00:58The earpads are soft and external noises are muted quite naturally even though there's no active
01:03noise cancellation. For a gaming headset that you might have to wear for several hours in a row
01:10or even an entire day, comfort is a very important feature. And here, in my opinion,
01:16FIO did a great job. The design is foldable and the earpads can be replaced if necessary.
01:24The cable is long, totaling about 2.2 meters. It consists of sections about 70 centimeters from
01:31the headphones themselves and a half meter section with a USB sound card and control unit.
01:36The cable has a braided fabric sleeve. It gives quite a solid impression.
01:47But technically, these headphones are much more interesting than you might expect from a relatively
01:52inexpensive gaming headset. The FIO used an unusual design here, something like a coaxial
02:00two-way construction. Each earcup has two dynamic drivers installed.
02:05The main one has a diameter of 50 millimeters and is mainly responsible for the low and mid frequencies.
02:11And right in its center, there's a second 16 millimeter dynamic driver. It's a dynamic driver
02:18with a titanium coated diaphragm, which reproduces the high frequencies.
02:23An electronic crossover splits the frequencies at around 4 kilohertz.
02:27So what we have here is not just two drivers that were randomly put into one earcup.
02:34FIO has actually built a full-fledged two-way system in each earcup. And for an affordable gaming model,
02:42this approach is quite rare. The headphones have an impedance of 32 ohms. Impedance.
02:48But what's even more interesting is that the USB section contains its own electronics, a DAC, DSP,
02:55and a separate amplifier for the headphones. The system supports signals up to 24-bit, 192 kilohertz.
03:02You can connect the FG3 via USB or USB-A. That's why they work with computers, laptops, smartphones,
03:10as well as popular gaming consoles, including PlayStation 4, 5, and Nintendo Switch.
03:16And you don't need to install any special drivers. Just plug it in and use it.
03:22On the control unit, you can adjust the volume, mute the microphone, and switch between the main sound
03:28modes, music, cinema, and game. And if you want to dig deeper into the settings, there's FIO FIO control web.
03:36You don't need to install anything on your computer. The settings open right in your browser.
03:42There is a 10-band equalizer. There are sound profiles for different scenarios.
03:47FPS, action, Missouri BA, music games, movies, and music.
03:52Virtual 7.1 is especially interesting. It works in cinema and action game modes,
03:59and is supposed to create a more immersive surround sound environment.
04:09Of course. What gaming headset would be complete without a microphone? Here, it's detachable. So,
04:15if you're just listening to music or watching a movie, you can remove it entirely.
04:20ENC is used for voice, environmental noise cancellation, and it's important not to confuse
04:25this feature with active noise cancellation in the headphones themselves. ENC is for the person you're
04:31talking to. The algorithm tries to pick out your voice and reduce surrounding sounds. For example,
04:38keyboard typing, mouse clicks, and other background noise. In addition, through FIO control web,
04:45you can enable side tone, which mixes your own voice into the headphones. This is convenient during long
04:51voice conversations. Because you can better control the volume of your own speech, and you won't be
04:57shouting loud enough for the whole house to hear. Now, for the most interesting part. How does it all
05:07sound sound? I tested FG3 in two scenarios that interest me personally, music and movies. Let's start
05:14with music. And here, I can't say that these headphones blew me away. The sound is quite normal. There's bass,
05:22mids, and high frequencies. Nothing is particularly annoying or distracting when listening to music. The balance
05:29is quite pleasant. But I still can't call the FG3 audiophile headphones. For music, not bad. They're
05:37enjoyable to listen to. But I didn't hear any special level of detail, naturalness, or musicality here that
05:45would make me choose this model just for listening to music. And that's absolutely normal. Because FG3 were
05:53not primarily created for that. But when I turned on a movie and switched the headphones to
05:59cinema mode, the impression changed a lot. This is where the FG3 start to do exactly what they were made
06:05for.
06:07The sound becomes bigger, more spacious, and much more cinematic. The virtual 7.1
06:13processing really expands the space. The effects surround the listener much more convincingly.
06:19There's plenty of bass. Explosions and special effects get the scale and weight they need.
06:24At the same time, the dialogues remain prominent, clear, and are well anchored at the center of the
06:31sound stage. And you get exactly the effect you want from watching a movie with headphones. You analyze
06:37the recording quality less, and you get immersed in what's happening on the screen much faster.
06:44So for movies, FIOFG3 really impressed me. Watching films with them is a great pleasure.
06:52But movies? That's only part of their purpose. Because the box says gaming headset.
07:00So enough listening to me. Let's hear from someone who actually used FIOFG3 for its intended purpose.
07:13I want to say that the headphones are pretty good. In the game, I felt quite comfortable.
07:21I like that there are different sound modes. And I used a different mode for each game.
07:26For example, for the story game that's on the screen right now, I used yellow.
07:34I used this yellow one. The game became more immersive, and the sound seemed more pleasant,
07:40more spacious. It was really nice to listen to. Also, when I played Valorant, which is a shooter like
07:49Counter-Strike 2, I used the blue indicator. It seemed more convenient for playing shooters,
07:59because the sounds had a sense of space too. I could hear where the enemy was moving, who was shooting,
08:06where they were shooting, what they were shooting with, what was being used.
08:10I also watched videos on YouTube. And on YouTube, when I was watching YouTube, I used the green indicator.
08:18The green indicator is... I don't know how to say it. I'll say that it's just regular sound, but it
08:24is...
08:24Well, just like when you usually watch, that's just regular sound.
08:27Without any enhancers, right?
08:29Yes, without any enhancers, just regular sound. The microphone is also pretty good.
08:35Compared to these ones, Ushenka, Meow, it's your turn.
08:39Odeza Max.
08:40The microphone is a bit worse. But overall, the microphone's noise cancellation is also very good.
08:48What did your friends say? Can they hear everything well, right?
08:50Yes, they could hear me clearly. And there was no background noise either.
08:54I know you play a lot. You have long gaming sessions. And I know that your Odeza Max headphones are
08:59quite
08:59heavy. So tell me, how do you like these Fiao headphones?
09:03That's one of the many advantages I'd like to highlight. These headphones are very light,
09:09and you can barely feel them on your head. It's like you're just sitting there.
09:14It was really nice to play because you hear the sound, but there's no pressure on your head.
09:20So you can play for 24 hours straight. Tell me, please, how did they connect to your PlayStation? Did the
09:26PlayStation recognize them right away, or not immediately? Oh well, there was nothing difficult
09:31about it. I took the cable, connected it to the PlayStation, and...
09:37That's it. It worked right away. I just had to switch from my headphones to these in the PlayStation
09:41settings. The only downside is the cable. I don't really like wired headphones.
09:48I'm so used to my wireless ones that I can go to the fridge with them, do something else. So
09:54when
09:54I use the cable, connect them, it's inconvenient because I have to take them off if I want to go
09:59somewhere. Yeah, that's a bit of a downside, but overall it's still very convenient. All right, Nikita,
10:06thank you very much for the interview. Good luck in your games and stay healthy. Yeah, thank you all.
10:15Well, my friends, the FIOFG3 turned out to be an interesting experiment by the company,
10:20which has been working in hi-fi for many years, and now decided to apply its experience in a completely
10:26different category. An unusual two-way coaxial design, its own DAC and DSP, separate gaming modes,
10:33virtual 7.1 surround sound, good comfort, and a detachable microphone. For music, personally for
10:40me, these are just good headphones, with nothing that would wow an audiophile, but I really liked
10:46watching movies with them. But how well do they handle their main task, gaming? You just heard from the
10:53person who specifically tested them for this purpose for a whole day. That's all. I'm Arkady Zenin,
11:00signing off, and may the force of the sound that's right for you be with you. Feel free to visit.
