FiiO Jade Audio JW1 On-Ear Sport Earbuds – Mid Is Center
FiiO Jade Audio JW1 is a $35 USD pair of on-ear earbuds with no parts that go inside of your ear, but with Bluetooth 5.3, water and sweat resistance, and with SBC and AAC support, made for sport and for those who want a casual sonic companion.
Introduction
Jade Audio is a FiiO sub brand for entry-level products with good build quality, but entry-level pricing, usually available from shops like Linsoul or Amazon, but not readily available from local shops, like FiiO original products. Jade Audio has proven to be a successful venture of FiiO as those are super affordable products, but with solid performance, usually designed for the casual user rather than the diehard audiophile. Jade Audio has the same public relations / support as FiiO, so you can expect excellent support, great build quality and a good experience when purchasing their products.
I’d like to thank FiiO for providing the sample for this review, in exchange for my honest opinion. We are not receiving any incentive for this review and Audiophile-Heaven has no affiliation with FiiO or Jade Audio beyond this review.
Product Link
You can grab one from www.amazon.com here: https://amzn.to/3QdgncX
If you’re in the UK, you can grab one from www.amazon.co.uk here: https://amzn.to/3Qg5dUI
And if you’re from Europe, you can grab one from www.amazon.de here: https://amzn.to/45oHRk8
Build Quality/Aesthetics/Fit/Comfort
As is the case with most wireless Bluetooth IEMs, Jade Audio JW1 is made of the two Bluetooth earbuds, and a charging / transport case. There are two colors available, one black and one white, and although in person the black color would likely look better, in photos the white variant looks really cool. The Open-Ear earbuds are designed around a huge 14.2 mm dynamic driver, and they have IPX5 Water resistance.
With an open non in-ear design, comes great comfort for the ear canal, but they are literally clipped to your ears, which can be cumbersome at first, and there’s no passive noise isolation, the sound leaks a lot, plus besides the driver being close to your ears, there is no proper seal, so the bass rolls off below around 70 Hz, while the treble also rolls off above 11 kHz. The weight is low, at 9.5 grams for each earbud, you can barely feel that you’re wearing them, and they sit comfortably on my ears.
FiiO designed those to be versatile and to work for outdoor usage, running, jogging, and they work great for all of those. The Bluetooth codec is 5.3, but the bluetooth codecs supported are just SBC and AAC. The touch controls are at the back of the JW1, literally behind the ear, so no touching by mistake is possible, but this can be a little odd if you’re coming from most TWS IEMs.
The battery life is quite good, and they have a 6-hour battery life per charge with the case having two extra charges, so about 18 hours of battery life in total. It takes around one hour and a half to charge the IEMS from the case, and around one hour and a half to fully charge the case. In my experience, the experience is really good, the bluetooth connection is strong with Samsung S23 Ultra, the earbuds sit nicely in my ears, and they work as intended.
Sound Quality
The main source I’ve been using to drive the FiiO Jade Audio JW1 is Samsung S23 Ultra, but I also tested them with Huawei P30 PRO, both of them doing a great job at powering the FiiiO Jade Audio JW1. The overall sound is clean, with no distortion, and they reach a maximum volume of about 90 dB when placed correctly on the ear. The design is very open and if the volume is medium or low, you will hear every bit of sound in your room, including keyboard typing and other sounds.
The bass starts at about 70 Hz, below which there is a roll off given by the design, as there is no direct canal constructed between the driver and the ear. This means that most music will have focus on the mids, although the upper bass is audible and gives a bit of warmth to the midrange, making it pleasing and fun. The bass tends to be existent, but JW1 is best for rock, metal, emo, pop and music that has a lot of information in the midrange, and which does not rely heavily on bass, like EDM or RAP. There are certain bass notes audible down to about 40 Hz, but they depend a lot on how tightly the earbuds are held to your ears, if the ear anatomy does not allow for the JW1 to sit really close to the ear canal, you’ll likely hear the bass starting with 70 Hz.
The midrange is clean, and it is clearly the main element sonically with JW1. We have good detail, but the midrange has surprisingly good presence and vocal tonality. Guitars are always audible, and the midrange has a fairly good warmth and instrument body, the soundstage is wide and holographic, and the instrument separation is very good. The midrange is very pleasing, musical, smooth in textures, yet detailed, making the FiiO Jade Audio JW1 super pleasing and clean, and enjoyable with rock, pop and music that has a strong emphasis on voices in general.
The treble tends to roll off above 11 kHz, but there is enough of it relative to the midrange that JW1 sounds airy and crisp, with a good sense of micro detail for most music. The treble is not very aggressive, but the texture is on the natural side, which can sound slightly grainy with rock and metal, although it is barely enough to keep pop, and commercial music engaging and interesting. All in all, the sound is very open, mid-centric, but playful, has a good body and is pleasing to hear.
Value and Conclusion
Since the price tag of the FiiO Jade Audio JW1 is just 35 USD, they can be said to do everything right, they are made well, they feel nice on my ears, and they have a good sense of detail and clarity, and while Open Ear designs are something you need to get used to at first, it can take away the fatigue of wearing IEMs, if you have sensitive ear canals, all while still having a very interesting sound and sonic presentation.
At the end of the day, FiiO and Jade audio designed a nice entry-level product with a good build quality, neat design, and with a nice transport / charging case, with good battery life and a strong bluetooth connection, FiiO Jade Audio JW1 being fully recommended for their exceptional sonic performance and clarity, if you want an open-ear design.
Product Link
You can grab one from www.amazon.com here: https://amzn.to/3QdgncX
If you’re in the UK, you can grab one from www.amazon.co.uk here: https://amzn.to/3Qg5dUI
And if you’re from Europe, you can grab one from www.amazon.de here: https://amzn.to/45oHRk8
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Full Playlist used for this review
We listened to more songs than those named in this playlist, but those are excellent for identifying a sonic signature. I recommend trying most of the songs from this playlist, especially if you’re searching for new music! The playlists are different for Spotify, Tidal and Youtube, and based on the songs I enjoy and are available on each!
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_cjBXGmwSHSdGcwuc_bKbBDGHL4QvYBu
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5J3oloz8Riy9LxEGenOjQ0?si=979ba4f082414be7
https://tidal.com/browse/playlist/330fd544-8e5b-4839-bd35-676b2edbb3d5
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