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93% would recommend to a friend 
JVC HA-FW01 Wood Series IEM
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JVC HA-FW01 Wood Series IEM
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Product Description
The newest installment in JVC’s Wood Series, the HA-FW01 IEM harnesses the power of wood to create natural-sounding audio with detail to spare. Its 50μm lightweight wood dome diaphragm is 40 percent lighter than conventional IEM diaphragms and equipped with JVC’s unique thin-film processing technology Read More
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Customer Reviews
4.6
(54 reviews)
5star(38)
4star(10)
3star(4)
2star(2)
1star(0)
By Feature
Build Quality
4.8
(5)
Sound
4.4
(5)
Comfort
4.4
(5)
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keyboard_arrow_downTheOneAndOnly
16
Feb 22, 2020
rhpot1991Thanks for the very good review. I own the HA-FX800 which are similar to the 850s. I LOVE the tone/timber but the bass is a bit overwhelming. Are the FW01 a little more neutral in the bass dept than the 800s and the 850s which you also own?
rhpot1991
228
Feb 29, 2020
TheOneAndOnlyI spent a day doing comparisons and the HA-FDX1 might be the better choice for you, it has considerably less bass than the others. With that said the bass signature between the HA-FX850 and HA-FW01 are very similar.
DeepSpaceus
72
Jun 13, 2020
checkVerified Buyer
My comfort IEM
I currently have about 12 IEMs. Some are much more expensive than this pair but I find myself picking up these more often than not. They have great bass but they don't muddle the other frequencies. It is a warm V shape sound but it doesn't bury the mids. Good imaging and soundstage, though not the best, but that is nitpicking. The reason I use them so much is because I can listen at lower volume, still get a nice impact and texture on the bass, and not miss the details in the other frequencies. I have A/B'd against many other IEMs and I find these to have a very pleasing balance that most of my other IEMs just don't reach. Recommended.
Recommends this product? Yes
Nicue
5
Mar 13, 2021
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Know what you're getting into
The IEM sound amazing and are pretty comfortable, but on certain songs the bass can overewhelm, so buy only if you're a basshead. but it still has incredible imaging and details
Recommends this product? Yes
Jakob
377
May 1, 2020
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Different in a very good way.
This is just an initial impression, most recommend 200 hours of break in, perhaps this is what's needed for the meh results with extreme metal which seemed to overwhelm these and just be too mashed together but...
Almost any other genre from Goa EDM to Kodo Japanese percussion or standard metal bands like Iron Maiden these pull out details I have not noticed on my other iem like Massdrop plus, Hem8 and even the Kaiser 10! It's hard to explain, it just seems to delve deeper into the sounds. More dimensional which is surprising to me due to the warm, rich nature of the earphone.
Sound is forward, in your head but has great imaging. A lot more forward and backward than most others along with side to side.
You feel like you are in the music.
Definitely V shaped with powerful, sharp bass. Strong impact.
Still has some sparkle, it's not muffled sounding at all due to all the detail and separation.
Stuff like Insomnium just wasn't working for me like it was too much crunchy guitars, pounding drums at once but I think this will improve in time.
I get the "timbre" hype over these. Just when you thought you have heard all there is too hear on an album this comes around and genuinely impresses.
Update.
The response for metal improved with the stock tips rather than the foam.
The issue with the music sounding mashed together decreased. May also have to do with break in.
One album that these really blew me away in just about every category of sound is NIN The Downward Spiral, the high res, recently mastered version is incredible.
I have listened to this album many times on a variety of iem and headphones, some much more expensive, and these woodie flesh out tiny details like no other.
Update 2.
These keep surprising me.
Metal has improved greatly.
Insomnium Winters gate is a pretty dense album and these dive deep into the music. I noticed a part where the soundstage widens momentarily for a passage that I had not noticed before.
Also, listening to Iron Maiden, these seem to... hold onto notes unlike most. It's weird because of the warm thick sound Sig you get the impression that these do not do detail like multi BAs but they do in a different way. Sounds may not seem sharp or as well imaged but these will play Steve Harris bass with plenty of detail. It's like they play more of a single note, it's a more delved into sound. I am noticing things that I had not and, for me, this is what I look for in any new audio gear.
(Edited)
toniidesu
318
Sep 11, 2020
checkVerified Buyer
I made it almost a full year without buying any new headphones, but as soon as I saw the words "wood dome diaphragm" I fell right off the wagon. For my preferences (warm, spacious sound), these don't measure up to my favorite over-ears, the E-MU Teak (review), but they do make an interesting counterpoint to the buck naked neutrality of the excellent Etymotic ER3SE (review).
Before I get into sound, I want to mention I've found them extremely practical paired with Shure's universal MMCX communication cable. Cable believers, eat your hearts out. I'd rather have a mic and playback controls than exotic wire forged from the ore of a fallen star. :) Not to brag, but I have gigantic earholes that make getting a good IEM seal challenging, so I also rolled the dice on these highly overpriced eartips and found I was able to get a better fit than with the included SpiralDots or the SpinFits I had lying around. Your mileage will of course vary.
With those two modifications, these have become my go-to tool for mobile music and phone calls, and since I'm home all day every day avoiding the plague, these earphones now get more action than anything but my E-MU Teaks, which still win easily on sound quality and comfort. The FW01 is a pretty comfortable design, but they're damn heavy. Gravity eventually makes your ear ache where it supports the driver housing, but the design is still comfortable for several hours of continuous use, so no lost points there. The microphonics also aren't terrible, which is nice for calls and walking around. These are probably a little too luxurious and heavy to wear out, but more power to you if you're rocking them on your wasteland ratrod/motorcycle/speedboat.
OK, onto the sound. These are a lot darker and more v-shaped than I usually prefer, which can be both a pro and con. The bass thumps and the treble can get hot (jazz saxophone can be slightly painful) but never sibilant. Treble and mids are both good in terms of timbre and detail, and true to JVC's grandiose mission statement, these make classical, jazz, and acoustic music sound nice and rich. Soundstage is decently wide but noticeably shallow, and imaging is somewhat muddled. It's a sound with a lot of body, which can give music good presence and physicality but also make more complex tracks sound a bit congested. Overall, the FW01 exaggerates the stereotypical strengths and weaknesses of single dynamic driver designs.
The problem (and the reason for the three-star rating) is the bass. There's too much of it (quantity) and it lacks detail and precision (quality). On tracks with a lot of low frequency action, it becomes intrusive and fatiguing to my ears, like listening to someone else's house party through a wall. It can also easily obscure the earphones' resolution, which is a shame because these are actually capable of good detail. So unless you're a hardcore basshead, these are probably more of a specialist than an all-rounder. That said, if your complaint with IEMs is that they lack bass and you're looking for a more upscale version of a mass-market (i.e. V-shaped) tuning, these might be just the thing.
One other thing to note is that these are super-sensitive, so it doesn't seem intuitive to amp them, but they sound more civilized when given some kind of supplementary power source. Even though they get plenty loud with minimal volume from a portable source, they don't sound especially clean unless you've got an amp to to tighten up the otherwise overbearing bass. However, not everyone has an amp, wants an amp, or buys headphones with this kind of rated sensitivity with the goal of amping them. And make no mistake, an amp won't fundamentally change their overall character and frequency response. This is true of all headphones, but people love to claim that boosting a signal from headphone A somehow turns it into headphone B, so I don't want that claim on my conscience.
For video games and movies, though, the thunderous bass morphs from liability into asset. I LOVE these plugged into my PS4 controller. They're by far the best gaming earphones I've used, and being able to use a third-party cable with a mic is really the cherry on top.
Build quality is also great, which is one reason to buy them over the Chi-Fi that's become Drop's bread and butter. If you're wondering about that phenomenon, it's because Drop can't lose money on logistically expensive group buys with brand names forever. Like just about every major e-commerce site, Drop has settled on the high-margin combo of house brands and China-direct. I don't mean that as an insult in this case. Chinese enthusiast brands are doing incredible stuff for <$200 these days, and that's to be admired and welcomed. However, those no-name brands have to cut corners somewhere, and it's usually on durability. These are built like something you could pass onto the next generation.
Update: speaking of Chi-Fi, I got the Moondrop Starfield and it delivers a much more balanced (if somewhat more artificial) sound at less than half the price of the FW01, so I really can't call the JVC a good value in the 2020 IEM market.
I think I've said more than enough about these, but let me know if you have any questions!
TL;DR if you're a committed basshead, buy these and enjoy them. If you like a neutral, balanced, bright, or analytical sound, these aren't the IEMs for you. I decided they're not really the IEMs for me, either, but I can't return them, so I gave them to a friend who fortunately loves them.
(Edited)
Ortho_Sympa
144
Oct 27, 2021
checkVerified Buyer
A very Warm IEM
This is a warm iem with boosted bass. The treble is a bit too dark for my taste (it is warmer than the 6xx) and the bass bleed into the mids. Overall, i think the JVC FDX1 has a better tuning and detail retrieval but the FW01 wins in term of slam and timbre. The FW01 is a fun and laid back iem while the FDX1 is a reference iem.
ryanrox
20
Feb 18, 2021
checkVerified Buyer
Great Until Left Earpiece Broke (UPDATED)
These have been great for the past six months. Then, suddenly, the left earpiece stopped working. I've tried switching cables, and it's definitely an issue with the left headphone itself. Drop won't replace it or offer any type of refund. Very unfortunate.
(UPDATE) JVC was absolutely awesome about honoring the warranty. Got a brand new set and they rock, again. These are my go-to IEMs. Still disappointed in Drop for not standing by the product, but glad JVC stepped up to the plate.
(Edited)
Recommends this product? Yes
reviewerX
19
Mar 7, 2021
ryanroxThe same thing happened to me but I was able to contact JVC directly to get a replacement.
flusck
205
Jul 27, 2022
checkVerified Buyer
completely satisfied
I bought these after quite a lot of research and hesitation to spend this much on IEMs. I'm glad I did.
Make no mistake - these are basshead all over. However, I found them to have a lot of detail and depth I've never heard before in IEMs (I topped out in the 100$-ish region in the past). I even found that some of my closed headphones don't come close. They can have that typical open-can effect of turning your head around because you thought you heard a sound from behind your shoulder. But it's always from the music.
You get plenty of tips and I found the foam ones to be the best by far. The foam seems to be of good quality and doesn't show signs of disintegration after 6 months of ~5 hours/week use.
I would have liked a more clever solution for the carry case, though. It's too cumbersome to always store them in there when on the move/putting them away for a while. I tend to carry them in my pants' pocket which just doesn't seem right for this price tag. Maybe this is just me though.
Recommends this product? Yes
danny87
556
Oct 24, 2021
checkVerified Buyer
Great IEM
From my limited experience in audio especially IEM:
Doesn't feel as detailed as the FDX1, the highs roll off earlier and it doesnt have the sparkle in the treble, but the bass is richer and goes much deeper. A much more enjoyable listen to me. Unlike the Meze 99 Noir which is just bass and nothing else, mids and highs are only slightly recessed, acceptable for what you gain in the lower frequencies. Bass bleeds slightly into mids but it's bearable. Gives the impression that the mids are thick. Bass isn't tight but it's not too boomy either. I much prefer this than the HD6XX for a fun IEM/headphones.
(Edited)
Recommends this product? Yes
Nothingman21
5
Jun 7, 2021
checkVerified Buyer
the classic monsters you love
if the wood bound signals to you as it does me supreme low end extension with yet crystalline mids and highs, fear not, these are exactly what you’re looking for. the cannons are back, hesitate not.
Recommends this product? Yes
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- The sound, what everyone is here for. This takes the sweet wooden sound that made many of us fall in love with JVC's wood IEM line and improves on it. If you liked anything in the prior HA-FX lines, this is for you.
- Comes with 5 spiral dot tips, and foam tips if you'd prefer them instead for some reason. This is more of a section than both HA-FX850 and HA-FDX1 offer. They seem a little different in texture as well, but I don't think they are spiral dot++ models since they lack any color on the inside.
- Carrying case is more compact than HA-FX850, pretty much the same as the one included with HA-FDX1 except for interior color.
- Comes with the same clip and cable keeper as HA-FX850, HA-FDX1 lacks both of these.
- The price here is unbeatable, the lowest recent price on imports is $340. Plus you get a warranty as well, which was something tricky with the imports.
HA-FW01 Cons:- The cable included with HA-FDX1 seems more premium. I'll have to wait and see how this cable holds up, it does have a nice braided feel but I'm worried it will suffer from possible damage at the plug like my HA-FX850 cable had.
- I do get some static discharge noise while wearing these with a sweater at work. I'll need to experiment with different cables to see if that helps.
- Can't be worn over the ear like HA-FDX1.
- Doesn't have replaceable nozels like HA-FDX1, but then again I don't really think it needs them either.
Size/Weight Comparisons: HA-FX850 (13g) - The smallest in diameter out of the 3, but also the longest. HA-FW01 (14g) - Right in the middle as far as length goes, might be a wash with the HA-FDX1 in terms of diameter. HA-FDX1 (20g) - The smallest in length out of the 3. Overall the HA-FW01 is the clear winner for me. It improves on everything I enjoyed from the HA-FX850. While I do like some of the features from the HA-FDX1, the sound of the wood series is what really draws me back in.