The FiiO FG3 is a gaming headset aimed at audiophiles, but after several weeks, I'm not totally convinced

FiiO FG3: one-minute review (Image credit: Future) As an audio journalist, I’ve covered FiiO plenty of times; the brand is known for beloved digital audio players like the JM21 and digital-audio converters like the FA15 .

But I was surprised to see the brand enter a totally different market, trying its hand at a gaming headset.

The FiiO FG3 is the resulting device, and it clearly bears some of the audiophile DNA that FiiO is known for.

It offers a coaxial dual-driver set-up, which is uncommon in games-focused headphones, and also totes a lightweight DAC control module to jump between audio presets.

So it should be a gaming gem, right? Right? Well, I think something was lost in translation.

FiiO’s hardware is fantastic for music, and the FG3 is the same, with the dual-driver set-up and handy EQ modes working well.

However, it’s not quite as good for gaming, which isn’t ideal for a 'gaming' headset.

Audio is often too muddy and rumbly to do justice to the layered sound design of an immersive environment or frantic battlefield.

It’s largely the low-end which lets the side down, with higher-pitched sounds cutting through pretty effectively.

This won’t affect all games, and dialogue-heavy or rhythm ones will benefit massively from the tuning.

The fit of the headphones isn’t perfect either.

While the cups are incredibly soft, the headphones squeeze and the headband is too firm.

I had to take breaks from long gaming sessions to avoid my head hurting.

That all may sound like a series of criticisms, but there’s a lot to like here too.