FiiO FT13

An evolution of the FT1 with ‘Purpleheart’ charm and more sparkle

FiiO’s FT13 is a closed-back, 60 mm dynamic driver headphone that promises to build on the strengths of the excellent FT1 while polishing the industrial design, materials, and ergonomics.

Visually, the Purpleheart wooden earcups are striking, and according to FiiO, the tone of the wood should deepen over time, which I think is sort of cool. Overall, the look reminds me of some classic Fostex headphones like the TH910.

Having listened to the FT13 for about a month now, I have some mixed feelings about it. On the one hand, I feel it is an overlooked headphone that got some mixed early impressions, possible based more on comparisons with the FT1 rather than looking at this headphone in isolation.

But, I do think it ‘rides’ that treble details ‘boundary’ a little too much, but that was an area where many people felt the FT1 lacked, so I would not blame FiiO for tweaking the balance on the FT13.

Basically, FiiO made a different sounding headphone than the FT1 and if you understand it well enough you may find you like it more than the FT1. This might be especially true with the new optional velour earpads (HS-FT13A) which I received during the review process and are probably my favourite option so far. However, most of the content of this review is based on listening with the original earpads (specifically the stock pleather earpads).

Overall, I would say the stock FT13 is an upgrade in build quality over the FT1 and features but a ‘side grade’ in sound quality. But, those who really liked the FT1 balance probably won’t like the FT13 as much but probably will like the HS-FT13A earpads as they bring the sound much closer to the FT1.

This review got delayed a little as when I received the HS-FT13A I wanted to include some details of those alternative earpads, but I also wanted to include a number of simple tweaks for those who want to tweak the treble on the stock earpads.

But I am probably getting ahead of myself, so let’s move on into the unboxing experience first before getting into the sound and tweaking.

Unboxing and build quality

The packaging is nice and now typical of the FiiO experience:

The back of the box is clean but with minimal information:

Inside, the headphone is protected in a robust hard case with accessories neatly organized:

Opening the box	Accessories and case

First look out of the box	Spare earpads and manual tucked underneath

The included cable and adapters are excellent quality and a big upgrade over the FT1, and I do appreciate how the case has storage for everything like the more expensive FT7.

Cable in case	Adapters packed

Nice selection of adapters:	One of the best cable swapping systems:	3.5mm and 4.4mm adapters:

Cable swapping is straightforward:

Unscrew this end	Swapping terminations	Connector detail

Both ends of the cable are of decent quality, and given it is a lightweight cable, I do think this is an excellent ‘stock’ cable in this price range:

The recessed angled connectors are nice and work with most of my cables if you don’t like the stock cables:

Overall, I feel the headphone build quality is excellent and one of the main reasons I feel has bene an overlooked option and an upgrade over the FT1 in this area.

The other obvious upgrade is those lovely earcups, though my wife did not believe they were wooden (as the wood is possibly polished too much, especially compared to the new Meze 99 Classics V2 which has a more natural wooden look):

On Purpleheart wood

According to FiiO, the earcups are crafted from Purpleheart wood from South America, which is exceptionally hard and visually unique. Over time, apparently the lighter tone will evolve into a deeper purplish-red, which should add a touch of character to the finish, though mine are the darker colour already:

Fit and comfort

There is a nice depth to the ear cups, and because the driver is angled, your ear will not touch the grill:

The newer HS-FT13A earpads actually add a little more depth to the ear cups:

Clamping force is moderate, and given the suede pads are plush, I really like the overall comfort, but as I mentioned earlier, the newer velour earpads are probably the most comfortable option.

But that clamping forward with the stock earpads and the angle of the earpad might actually be a subtle problem for some people. I spotted some reviews where people mention not getting the seal because the clamping force at the bottom of their ears was not the same at the top and this could lead to a leak in the seal. I personally did not find this, but I thought I should mention it anyway and possibly the newer slightly deeper earpads might also solve this problem.

Headband extension:

The headband extension mechanism is probably better quality than the FT1, but strangely, it is probably outsized for most heads:

This is all I needed on my large head	This is the max

One important note: So, given this extension mechanism and the way the clamping force works with this headphone, I would recommend, if possible, auditioning this headphone before buying it. If it works for you (and it does for me) this can be an extremely comfortable headphone to wear. But for example, for my wife, she found even at the smaller extension it was too big for her head.

Headband padding:

The headband was ok as far as padding and probably slightly better than the FT1, but at the $300 price range I feel FiiO might have had different material choices for headband comfort:

Headband padding	Padding detail

I reviewed the cheaper FiiO / Jade Audio JT7 recently, and I feel that headband padding was better than the FT13.

Stock Earpads

The included earpads have different comfort and ‘heat’ profiles and, ultimately, different tonal outcomes which I will get to in a bit:

The ‘alternative’ lambskin earpads:

I felt the suede pads got a little too warm over longer listening sessions but actually were my favourite for comfort.

The velour HS-FT13A earpads — a posslbe game-changer for the FT13

During the review process, FiiO sent me a pair of their new velour HS-FT13A earpads, and these quickly became my favorite option. They arrived in simple packaging:

You can identify they with the branding on the back:

The velour material offers several advantages over the stock earpads and they compress very well and are very comfortable:

Here is a comparison of the depth compared to the 2 stock earpads:

Here are a few comparison photos of the three earpad options:

Note: with the FT1 you could buy many third party earpads, but it was a bit of a hassle swapping earpads, the clip on mechanism used with the FT13 (and with the FT7) allows much faster (and better aligned) earpad swapping but at the ’expense’ that you are stuck mostly with FiiO own earpads for swapping.

Here is a closeup of the earpads material:

Note: I did ask FiiO whether these would become a standard offering, but unfortunately, they will remain an optional extra. In my opinion, they’re well worth the ~$40 investment, especially if you have the FT13 and found the treble a little too much or that you were not getting a seal. So, with three different earpad options providing three distinct sound signatures, the FT13 becomes a much more versatile headphone that can adapt to different preferences and use cases.

Driver design and construction

The FT13 features FiiO’s custom 60 mm dynamic driver with a PU (polyurethane) and nanofiber wood composite diaphragm made from birch. This combination aims to deliver both rigidity for transient speed and natural resonance control for tonal warmth, though the treble is still not as smooth, it can be improved with some tweaks I will share later.

The visible driver through the protective grille shows careful assembly and finishing:

The driver is angled within the housing, which not only helps with ear clearance but can also influence spatial cues by directing sound at a slight angle rather than firing straight into the ear canal, though this opinion is still a bit controversial.

The protective grille allows some visual inspection while maintaining acoustic transparency, and the angled orientation is clearly visible when the earpads are removed.

Sound impressions

If you get the seal (head-size-dependent), the FT13 largely preserves what made its predecessor so enjoyable: confident bass and a natural midrange. The voicing here adds a little extra treble presence and a noticeable bit of extra energy around ~5 kHz, which can be exciting but occasionally tips into “too spicy” on brighter masters.

Tweak 1: If you find some tracks a touch forward up top, a simple PEQ peak cut near 5 kHz and a gentle high-shelf reduction bring it back to a smoother, more relaxed balance.

Note: while the bass subtly changes with the velour earpads, the main difference is the treble is more pulled back and less aggressive and doesn’t need a PEQ peak cut.

Bass

Tracks:

• Massive Attack – Angel
• Daft Punk – Doin’ It Right
• Hans Zimmer – Mountains
• James Blake – Limit to Your Love
• Billie Eilish – bad guy

Extension and slam are solid for a closed-back at this price. Sub-bass rumble is present without masking mid-bass texture. On Angel, the descending low notes stay controlled with minimal bloom into the lower mids.

With the suede pads, the low-end feels slightly more elevated and weighty; kick hits have a bit more thump. Limit to Your Love’s large sub sweeps sound satisfyingly physical without becoming woolly.

Mid-bass articulation is a strong suit. On bad guy, the rhythmic drive is punchy and well defined, helping the track stay lively at moderate listening levels.

Midrange

Tracks:

• Fleetwood Mac – Dreams
• Adele – Hello
• Agnes Obel – The Curse
• Norah Jones – Come Away With Me
• Dire Straits – Brothers in Arms

Vocals sit naturally with good body. On Dreams, lead and backing vocals layer cleanly without smearing. Guitars carry a woody resonance rather than a plasticky edge.

Piano and strings are rendered with convincing envelope and decay. The pedal work in The Curse is easy to follow, and the instrument’s body isn’t thinned by the treble lift.

Compared with the earlier model, there’s a touch more presence energy that can bring vocals a half-step forward, which many will perceive as added clarity in well‑recorded pop and acoustic tracks.

Treble

Some sample Tracks:

• Norah Jones – Don’t Know Why
• Vivaldi – Four Seasons (Carmignola)
• Tool – Pneuma
• Steely Dan – Aja
• Patricia Barber – Code Cool

There’s a touch more upper‑treble energy than the older model, which can add air and sparkle. Ride cymbals in Aja have a clean, silvery sheen without turning splashy at sane volumes.

Compared with the FT1, the ~5 kHz presence region is hotter here and can emphasize stick attack, consonants, and certain guitar edges. Switching to the suede pads helps, and a peaking EQ cut around 5 kHz (−1 to −2 dB, Q ≈ 1.0–1.4) plus a gentle high‑shelf reduction (for example, −1 to −2 dB from ~8–10 kHz upward, Q ≈ 0.7) reins it in while preserving air.

Tweak 2: The velour HS-FT13A earpads as they offer a more relaxed, balanced treble that brings the FT13 much closer to the FT1’s relaxed presentation without requiring EQ. This became my preferred option over the christmas period for longer listening sessions.

Soundstage and imaging

Staging is naturally intimate for a closed‑back, with stable left‑right placement and convincing center fill. Layering in small‑ensemble jazz is organized and easy to parse.

The angled driver may contribute to a slightly larger sense of space than expected, particularly with the leather pads. Live tracks like Hotel California (Hell Freezes Over) project a coherent front arc with good separation of crowd ambience from instruments.

Macro‑dynamics are lively; micro‑dynamics are a notch more articulate than expected in this price bracket, which helps with low‑level detail in classical strings and acoustic recordings.

Tweaks to the treble profile

So what I have found interesting in the past month (and what delayed this review) was looking at some tweaks for the treble. Obviously, PEQ as I suggested above, is one of the simplest as is the newer velour earpads but the treble response of a headphone can very personal, so it is important to understand if and when to tweak the sound profile and have as many options as possible.

Note: Every closed back headphone I have heard had uneven treble, which I feel is the nature of a closed back with reflections inside the closed cups causing resonances, so the best tweak can be physically altering the dampening:

Tweak 3: Dampening the treble

Tweak 4: NOS mode on a R2R DAC A fourth option which I personally would not recommend as much as those above is to do with device ‘synergy’ which I almost hate to recommend as I feel it is normally a ‘marketing game’ played to try and get people to buy an audio stack from the same manufacturer.

But while reviewing some of the latest FiiO R2R DACs (K13 R2R and the Warmer R2R), I measured the change in treble on the FT13 and a side effect of how the ‘NOS mode’ works with R2R DACs is a general reduction in the treble.

Technically this is a poor solution as it is not as consistent as the 3 previous tweaks, and really OS Mode is more appropriate if you are chasing listening to the original sound of a recording, but for example, here is a measurement of the change in the treble with the FT13 and a R2R DAC with NOS mode enabled:

You can hopefully see a general reduction in the treble response with NOS mode enabled due to the way the R2R DAC works. Possible FiiO Engineers had R2R DACs in mind with the FT13.

So, for those who hate EQ this might be an interesting option, but not necessarily better than PEQ or the tweak that @solderdude suggested. And having used it for the past week, I feel the newer velour earpads are the best overall option with the bass port tweak that Solderdude suggested.

Earpads, preferences, and research context

Another interesting thing I thought I would mention is some criticism around the alternative suede pads on the FT13. I think a company offering distinct tunings via earpads is a very positive thing, especially at this price range.

So, as I have been listening to this headphone, I have also been reading the latest edition of Floyd Toole’s “Sound Reproduction,” and specifically the chapter by Sean Olive where he discusses headphone preference clusters. The graphic below illustrates two main preference classes for over-ear headphones; one of these shows a preference for an elevated bass shelf — which aligns somewhat with the suede pads deliver on this model.

And while not exactly the same, I feel that FiiO is trying to offer a viable different tuning that closely matches that other preference for bass should be encouraged:

At this price, this flexibility without EQ is great, and when you add the new velour earpads, you get a third option which is slightly less v-shaped:

Overall, I like a headphone with earpads options that actually change the sound profile, and that is what you get now with the FT13.

Specifications and Measurements

Item	Value
Model	FT13
Acoustic design	Closed-back
Earcup material	Purpleheart wood
Driver	60 mm dynamic
Driver diaphragm	PU + nanofiber wood (birch)
Frequency response	7 Hz – 40 kHz
Impedance	32 Ω
Sensitivity	113 dB/Vrms @ 1 kHz; 98 dB/mW @ 1 kHz
Weight	About 356 g (excluding cable)
Max power	2000 mW
Cable length	1.5 m
Cable materials	Secondary refined Furukawa monocrystalline copper + high‑purity silver‑plated oxygen‑free copper
Audio plug	Detachable plugs to dual 3.5 mm TS plugs
Earcup pressure	4.2 N ± 0.3 N

At 32 Ω and ~98 dB/mW, this is easy to drive from modest sources. Even dongles provide healthy headroom; desktop amps simply add dynamic range and more PEQ abilities.

Measurements and frequency response snapshots

Note: These measurements were taken with my KB501X soft ear pinnae with a 711 clone coupler. And are available on Pragmatic Audio here

Let’s start with the frequency response with the stock earpads.

Frequency Response and Channel Balance:

You can see that the upper treble is both a bit sharper and very peaky:

But most closed back will have peaky treble as the resonances from the earcups will dominate the treble region.

Whether you want this is really a preference thing, I personally would reduce the treble a little using one of the tweaks I mentioned above.

The channel balance is good, though, and here is the FR against Harman:

There are 2 areas highlighted above:

1. A slight mid-bass boost
2. That uneven treble is a bit sharp

Comparing all three earpad options

With the addition of the velour HS-FT13A earpads, you now have three distinct sound signatures to choose from:

Here’s the same comparison against the Harman target:

As you can see, the velour HS-FT13A earpads significantly tame the treble peaks while maintaining good bass extension and midrange presence. This gives you some nice tuning flexibility without needing to reach for EQ.

Solderdude modifications:

I applied the simple bass mod and some dampening material (a paper tissue cut to the shape of the driver), and measured the FR differences:

Note: I should have used a single ‘ply’ towel as this paper towel I did use lowered the treble a little too much, but I hope you get the idea of the differences some simple reversible physical modifications can make.

Comparison with the FT1

For comparison on here is the FT1 compared both on my KB501X but also with the measurements done by the headphones.com team compenstated to a linear DF:

On my KB501X:

And on the 5128:

While not exactly the same, they have a very similar trend, and I have highlighted 2 areas where they are different and that can be tweaked easily.

Glasses

One other measurement I thought might be interesting is the difference when wearing glasses or not as that seal needed for decent bass response can easily be broken when wearing glasses:

But as you can hopefully see above, you look a little bit of bass with normal glasses, and even with thick glasses you only lose a few dB of bass, so easily to compensenate with PEQ if you have thick glasses.

Comparisons

Versus FiiO FT1

• Build and comfort: The newer model feels more premium in hand with a sturdier swivel and nicer finish. The catch is sizing — the adjustment range skews larger here, so smaller heads may get a better fit with the older design.
• Tuning: Stock, the FT13 pushes a bit closer to the sun with extra treble presence (notably around ~5 kHz). If you do not use EQ and value smoother treble, FT1 is the safer listen. With two quick PEQ tweaks (5 kHz cut + gentle treble shelf), FT13 becomes the more refined option while keeping the satisfying bass/mid foundation.
• Accessories: The case, modular terminations, and cable quality are all excellent — a nice step up.

Wood finish comparison	Adjustment mechanisms

Versus ZMF Bokeh (closed)

• The premium competitor aims warmer and is considerably heftier, with earpads that set a high bar for comfort and a more elaborate tuning ecosystem. The newer FiiO holds its own for clarity and extension per dollar, though it can present a bit brighter stock.
• If you like a richer, warmer tone and crave pad/tuning experimentation out of the box, the boutique option remains special; if you want a lighter, more affordable closed-back with a premium finish and energetic, modern tuning, the FiiO makes a compelling case.

Rating explanation

I have given the FT13 a Pragmatic Rating of 4 out of 5. The stock sound is a side‑grade over the cheaper FT1 but the build and accessories are a clear step up. But as I hopefully showed in the review there are many ways to tweak the sound profile. If you are on a budget the FT1 remains the better choice, but the FT13 is a closed back that should be considered if you want an physical upgrade over the FT1 and like a little more sparkle (or are willing to try some tweaks in this review. I feel especially the new extra velour earpads make the FT13 become the stronger all‑rounder, but I cannot include those in the overall rating as they are extra.

Conclusion

Overall, FT13 is a side‑grade over FT1 in stock sound: similar bass and mids, but a brighter top with more presence that won’t suit everyone. Where it does pull ahead is build quality, finish, and the many ways to tweak the sound.

If you never use PEQ and value smooth treble above all else, FT1 is the safer pick at its price; if you’re after something a bit more ‘detailed’ or willing to tweak or buy the extra velour earpads, FT13 is a great option.

So, while the FT13 is roughly double the price of the FT1 (especially if you buy the extra velour earpads), I feel it should be evaluated on its own merits and compared to the closed back competition in this price range (sub $400), there is very little to compete with the complete package you get with the FT13.