Disclosure: I’d like to thank FiiO for providing me with the JT3 for this review. All thoughts and opinions are my own, and FiiO had no say or input on the contents of this review.

The FiiO JT3 (Jade Audio JT3) is an affordable open-back over-ear headphone positioned firmly in the entry-level hi-fi category. Priced at $70 USD, it’s part of FiiO’s Jade Audio sub-brand, which focuses on budget-friendly products for casual listeners dipping their toe in the audiophile world. The JT3 features a 50 mm dynamic driver (PU+PEK composite diaphragm) and an open-back design with angled drivers, aiming to deliver a spacious, speaker-like listening experience. Essentially, the JT3 is positioned as a fun and immersive open-back option that performs above its price point. Does it actually succeed, or did too many corners get cut to keep it below $100? Let’s get into it and find out.

• FiiO JT3
• 3.5mm cable with an inline microphone and dual 3.5mm connections
• 3.5mm to 6.35mm adapter
• Storage pouch
• Manual

Despite its low cost, the FiiO JT3’s build quality and design have the qualities of a much more expensive headphone. It has a sturdy construction that mixes plastic with metal in key areas, giving it a premium feel instead of that of a budget headphone. The headband is a steel band with a self-adjusting suspended strap underneath for comfort. Sturdy metal yokes connect to large oval-shaped earcups, which sport aluminum-magnesium alloy grille faceplates on the back. It’s a thoughtful touch that instantly adds more visual appeal and prevents any toy-like flimsiness when handling it.

The rest of the material is lightweight ABS plastic, but nothing feels loose or creaky. In fact, with its matte black finish (also available in silver) and metal accents, the JT3 has an understated, utilitarian style reminiscent of classic Sennheiser HD-series studio headphones.

Comfort is another area that shows the JT3 is not your average budget headphone. The FiiO JT3 weighs about 330 grams, which is on the average side, but the weight is evenly distributed by the wide suspended headband strap. The headband strap has a decent amount of padding on the bottom to cushion the weight distribution even further. The earpads are thick, over-ear cushions with a soft velour fabric covering memory foam padding. These pads fully encampass the ears and feel gentle on the skin, avoiding the sweatiness or peeling issues of faux-leather at this price. There’s also enough room inside the earcups for your ears to breathe a little. The clamping force is also just right, as it’s secure enough to stay put, but not too tight to feel any real pressure or discomfort.

That said, there are a couple of design compromises befitting a budget model. The earcups do not swivel much, if at all, and the frame doesn’t fold, so the JT3 isn’t very compact for travel. The limited swivel means the pads may not sit perfectly flush on every jawline, but I personally did not have any issues with it.

The included braided cable, which features dual 3.5 mm plugs for the earcups and a 3.5 mm TRRS jack for source, is functional and even has metal connector housings, but it’s a bit stiff and springy to the touch. The cable does come with color-coded plugs (red for right, blue for left) that correspond to color-coded connections on the earcups, which makes setup easy. The cable also includes an in- line microphone with a multifunction button. The mic performance is decent for calls and gaming, essentially what you would expect from an in-line mic. FiiO also provides a few nice extras in the box, namely a plastic drawstring carrying pouch and a 6.35 mm adapter, which are welcome additions at this price point.

The sound profile of the FiiO JT3 is characterized by a warm, slightly dark V-shaped sound. It’s a tuning that prioritizes engagement, musicality, and a fun factor over clinical accuracy or reference-level transparency, but without sacrificing too much resolution or detail.

For the source devices that I used for testing, I tried to select a range of budget and mid-fi options that would complement the price point of the JT3 (essentially, what type of source would someone already have who is looking at a $70 headphone?). I mainly used the FiiO K11 (a relatively inexpensive but very capable desktop DAC/Amp), iFi ZEN DAC V2, the Surfans F20 (a budget-friendly DAP), and the Shanling M1 Plus.

Efficiency & Sensitivity

One of the FiiO JT3’s selling points is that it is easy to drive despite being an open-back headphone. On paper, it has an impedance of about 80 Ω and sensitivity around 97 dB/mW, which is moderately demanding, but in reality, most portable devices can power with more than enough volume overhead.

Even a phone or basic laptop output will get adequate sound and volume out of the JT3. An external amplifier is not strictly necessary to enjoy these headphones, which makes sense given the target audience. In my testing, the JT3 ran perfectly fine directly from my Surface Laptop 7, and even small dongle-DACs like Apple’s USB-C to 3.5mm dongle. That said, the JT3 scales up with better amplification. Using a dedicated dongle DAC/amp or a desktop amp can tighten up the bass and expand the soundstage slightly.

Most importantly, though, listeners won’t need any costly or extra gear, as this headphone was designed for everyday use and works well from ordinary sources

Bass

The bass response of the FiiO JT3 is tuned on the warm and full-bodied side, which gives the headphone a fun, engaging character. It has an emphasized mid-bass that adds a lot of punch and warmth to music, so right away you can tell the JT3 is not a neutral or bass-light studio headphone. There is a good amount of rumble when called for, and a bit of added energy that helps you feel it. To my ears, the mid-bass is a bit forward, which has an effect of making the sub-bass sound weaker in comparison. The JT3 focuses more on punchy mid-bass impact than on deep sub-bass extension, which leans it more into bloated bass territory. The upper bass/lower midrange region, which creates a sense of richness and weight in most tracks, is slightly boosted. This tuning can make kick drums, bass guitars, and electronic beats sound very full, but at the expense of clarity.

Given the price and intention of the JT3, I think the overall bass performance is impressive. The bass is quick, punchy, and generally well controlled. Bass lines and drums sound convincing, meaning the JT3 can deliver a tight bass rhythm without muddying everything up too much. In complex mixes or bass-heavy songs, the strong mid-bass can bleed into the lower midrange, causing a slight veil effect, which is fine as long as you are not trying to do any critical listening.

Midrange

The midrange of the FiiO JT3 (voices, guitars, pianos, etc.) takes a slight step back in the overall mix due to the V-shaped tuning, but they’re not completely lost. In fact, I was surprised at how natural the midrange sounds, given the emphasis on the bass. As the JT3 is an open-back headphone, the midrange benefits from the lack of internal cup reflections, so vocals and instruments are not trapped in a tiny chamber, and therefore it avoids the cupped hands effect that some closed-back headphones in this price range can exhibit.

Male vocals carry a nice warmth and body that is likely aided by the bass lift, while female vocals still remain light and expressive rather than dulled or hollow. The JT3’s midrange is smooth and rich, complementing vocals with a bit of warmth.

However, the midrange presence does vary depending on what you’re listening to. When a song has a lot of mid-bass energy, the lower midrange can get masked or recessed. For example, deep male vocals or instruments like cellos can blend into the boosted bass, reducing their clarity. Thankfully, the upper midrange (higher-pitched vocals and strings) fares better. When a female singer hits a high note, the JT3 shows that it can reproduce midrange frequencies with clarity and presence, which shows that these headphones are capable of reproducing good vocals and instrument sounds when not overwhelmed by the mid-bass.

Treble

The treble of the JT3 is tuned to be safe, smooth, and slightly relaxed. This keeps it in line with its warm, consumer-friendly sound signature. High frequencies are present enough to give music some detail and air, but FiiO clearly avoided any harsh peaks that could cause listener fatigue. As a result, the treble is completely non-sibilant and easy on the ears. Cymbals, violins, and female vocals are reproduced without any shrillness or metallic edge, meaning you can listen for hours without any fatigue.

Despite the relaxed treble, it is not completely muted, and even has a mild lift in certain areas to keep the sound from being overly dark or dull. The upper treble provides a bit of sparkle and clarity that gives cymbals some shimmer and string instruments some bite. The treble tuning walks a line between providing clarity and avoiding harshness, and for the majority of tracks, it stays on the smooth side. If you play an aggressively bright track at high volume, you might catch a hint of sharpness, but otherwise, the treble here is very polite and non-offensive.

Technical Performance

One area where the JT3 surprised is its spatial presentation. The combination of imaging precision and soundstage size is quite impressive for an affordable open-back. Thanks to the open earcup design (and possibly the angled driver placement), the JT3 produces a presentation that feels more out-of-head and expansive, with a real sense of width and atmosphere that is rare for a sub-$100 headphone.

The imaging on the JT3 is generally competent and enjoyable, though not pinpoint-precise on an audiophile level. Instruments and voices are clearly separated in the stereo field, so you can distinguish different elements and even pick out some placements. The imaging is not so analytical that it isolates every sound with extreme precision, it’s more of a gentle separation that maintains an immersive, unified soundstage. Overall, the JT3’s technical presentation feels natural and cohesive

Gaming

The above sound profile and technical performance lend themselves very well to allowing the JT3 to be an excellent gaming headphone. Meaning, it has an expansive enough soundstage and accurate enough imaging performance that spatial accuracy in competitive multiplayer games is excellent. Playing Battlefield 6 with Dolby Atmos enabled, I was able to hear the directional cues of footsteps, player movement, and gunfire, and they were accurately reproduced in the positions I expected them to be in. The bass performance also means that explosions and vehicle sounds are hard-hitting, but you don’t lose the detail for knowing where enemy players are.

I also used the JT3 with the Switch 2, playing some Zelda: Breath of the Wild. The soundtrack and atmospheric sounds really complemented the JT3’s sound profile, and the open-back nature of the headphones helped bring the expansive world to life and improved immersion.

The FiiO JT3 is a capable and compelling budget open-back headphone that successfully balances cost with audio performance. Build quality, comfort, and an engaging sound profile are the main highlights here. It’s rare to find a sub-$100 headphone that feels as solid and well-put-together as the JT3, complete with metal accents, a quality cable, and plush earpads. These factors make it easy to love the JT3 as a daily driver for music, videos, and gaming alike. In terms of sound, the headphone delivers ample bass slam, a forgiving midrange, and smooth highs, which means it can make all kinds of music sound fun and non-fatiguing. For an entry-level headphone, that is high praise, and underscores that the JT3 is not merely “good considering the price,” but enjoyable in its own right.

That said, the JT3 is not without issues. Its sound profile is decidedly colored, with the heavy mid-bass and laid-back treble, meaning this is not a neutral or reference headphone by any stretch. You will not enjoy any critical listening with these. Those who prefer a very balanced or analytical sound might find the JT3 too bassy and veiled, especially if coming from studio headphones with a flatter sound profile. Likewise, the polite treble, while pleasant, does rob the audio of some clarity and air. Another minor drawback is the limited earcup swivel/adjustment and the somewhat stiff stock cable. While these don’t affect the sound quality, they do remind you that some compromises were made to hit the low price point. However, such faults are relatively small in context. For most casual listeners or new audiophiles, the JT3’s shortcomings will be easy to forgive or even unnoticeable, given how much it gets right in terms of musicality, build, and comfort.

The FiiO JT3 is a great fit for listeners who want an easy-to-drive, fun-sounding headphone for everyday music enjoyment. As well, they are extremely serviceable as a gaming headphone, meaning they can be your all-in-one headphone if desired. Due to its versatility, I have no problem highly recommending the FiiO JT3.

---

The above links may be affiliate links. All commission earned through them goes directly to maintaining this site and bringing you more audio reviews.

---

I’m not always able to cover all the details of a product, both hardware and software, in our reviews. If you have any specific questions about this product, please feel free to leave a comment or contact me directly.

Be sure to check out our excellent Buyer’s Guides, as well as our other Reviews.