Review: FAudio Symphony – Hidden Treasure

FAudio Symphony

Sound:

In this hobby of ours one thing is quite apparent, the Asian market sets the trends. There is nothing as vibrant and active as the community there and it’s no surprise that there are a lot of hidden treasures we Westeners don’t get to see. I’m trying to stay informed about the latest and greatest that’s going on in the key-market, and when I came across FAudio I knew they’re on to something special.

It was early 2018 when I got in touch with them, and I learned a lot about their history and the people behind the brand. It always fascinates me when someone works with passion and dedication to evolve the game to something bigger. With FAudio I had this feeling right from start.

When my pair arrived beginning of September I tried not to let my expectations get the better of me. Once I listened to them, I knew it’s going to be a good time.

FAudio Symphony

FAudio Symphony

The Symphony has a very nice balance in its sound, where no particular frequency range is standing out too much. The entire audio bandwidth has a great coherent sound to it, where bass, mids and treble connect seamlessly to each other.

Bass reaches deep with excellent extension into the sub-bass areas. Symphony has a very well defined and controlled low end, with good rumble and punch. It has a neutrally tuned bass, that matches great with acoustical and synthetic lows. Deep tones sound organic and well formed. Symphony has good body and weight in its low-ends. The resolution, speed, texture and layering of it are top notch.

The transition from bass to mids is just perfectly smooth. Lower midrange has a very slight warmth in them, that makes deeper sounding vocals and instruments a real pleasure. Midrange overall is well bodied and transparent. Voices and instruments sound natural and full. Upper midrange has a certain richness to it, that makes some sounds a real pleasure to listen to. The key-word for mids again is balance.

Mids are nicely rich and have good air in them, to not sound closed in. The sound stage is nicely spread in good dimensions. It reaches wide and deep, but you don’t get a feeling of holography if that’s something you’re after. With Symphony you’re closer to the musicians, but still at a good distance to not create a too intimate feeling.

FAudio Symphony

FAudio Symphony

Symphony has a wonderful stereo image, where instruments are well separated from each other. It makes it pretty easy to spot each musician on the stage and listen to them one by one. The background is nicely dark and clean.

Treble is finely tuned with a slight bump when reaching the upper segments. High notes are energetic, sparkling and softer. They provide good air to the entire sound, without becoming harsh, sharp or hot at any time. The treble extension is particularly outstanding to me.

Details are brought out with good care and are well rendered with good resolution. Micro-details are all there and easy to spot. Symphony is a monitor that stays in control, even in chaotic scenes where sounds seem to come from everywhere.

The striking balance and neutrality of the FAudio makes it a very versatile monitor for all genres, and it does not fear complex, big orchestra pieces. Symphony isn’t a particularly unforgiving monitor, but of course it all depends what you feed it. The better quality the track is, the more you will be rewarded by it.

It continues on Page four.

4.6/5 - (106 votes)
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A daytime code monkey with a passion for audio and his kids, Linus tends to look at gear with a technical approach, trying to understand why certain things sound the way they do. When there is no music around, Linus goes the extra mile and annoys the hell out of his colleagues with low level beatboxing.

4 Comments

  • Reply January 1, 2019

    Wills Chiu

    Hi Linus happy new year.
    How will you compare this and a12t?

    • Reply January 1, 2019

      Linus

      Hi Wills,
      thanks for your comment.
      Happy New year to you too, hope it will be a great sounding 2019 for you.

      The A12t is a more potent technical monitor that has higher resolution and better layering. The 12t punches harder with more drive. Symphony is smoother and fuller. The 12t’s treble is brighter and faster, while the Symphony’s is softer. Stage wise the A12t wins on both width and depth. Both monitors are excellent values in my book.

  • Reply January 7, 2019

    Ivan Parshenkov

    HUM is 2-BA for 1700?? Jesus

  • Reply May 14, 2019

    Bukhari

    I head the universal symphony at fujiya spring event they were far the best IEM I heard in 2019

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