In the hand, the headphones feel surprisingly light. There are lots of nice details, the ear cups are hinged to allow for compact storage and there is a pleasantly reassuring snap when pulled into position. As you would expect there is a nice combination of premium plastics, fabric and metal.
Build quality
fantastic audio clarity
Buttons feel a little cheap
Product Specs:
Driver unit: 40mm
Bluetooth Version: 4.0
Music Play Time: 14 Hours
Weight: 425g
Audio and Comfort
No carry case, considering the price point.
Bluetooth Frequency band: 2.402GHz-2.480GHz
Charging Time: 1.5 hours
Playback Time: 4-6 hours
Continuing on from our look at Floyd Rose's FR-18 Wood headphones in the last issue of Guitar Interactive Magazine, Daniel Le Gresley continues his review of the Floyd Rose headphone range with the Floyd Rose FR-36BK Bluetooth Headphones and the FR-360 Pro Series Wireless Sport Earbuds.
Take a ride on any London Underground train in 2018 and you'll see lots of people walking around with their Beats, Skull Candy or Bose hardware, invisibly connected to their phones via the alchemy of Bluetooth. The Floyd Rose FR-36BK fit into this new marketplace with ease. From within the premium, quality packaging appears a familiar clamshell black case. Its reinforced fabric and plastic composition are secured with a heavy duty zip. Manufacturers have come a long way in the presentation department and if the packaging is anything to go by these Floyd Rose FR-36KB's seem to be placed in the mid-priced but premium sector.
Pulling on the zip reveals the FR-36's nestled inside the clam, a small netted compartment at the top holds the charging cable and a mono lead for wired use. The instruction is clear and simple and the addition of the NFC interfacing option offers welcome connection simplicity. In the hand, the headphones feel surprisingly light. There are lots of nice details, the ear cups are hinged to allow for compact storage and there is a pleasantly reassuring snap when pulled into position. As you would expect there is a nice combination of premium plastics, fabric and metal. However, at this price point, the operation buttons feel cheap, the haptics is too soft for my taste. Apart from that small detail, the build quality is solid.
Holding down the main button for 2 seconds powers up the headphones and with a simple tap of my phone, the Bluetooth connection options appear. To wear, the headphones feel very comfortable and the lightness that I had questioned earlier now makes more sense. You could use these for the commute and for long journeys with ease.
Now for the real test, how do they sound? Like their build quality, they sound solid, there is enough bass for my taste and even though they are not noise cancelling, they feel loud and bright with little distortion even at full volume. Floyd Rose opted for a 40 mm driver which offers a comfortable low-end response but may feel a little light for some genres. The FR-36's are billed as Pro series but the studio is not their natural home. I gave the cans to a producer friend of mine and he could detect some fizzing between 6-8K and too much low frequency between 300 - 600k. I suspect, however, that these headphones are not intended for this environment.
Ultimately the Floyd Rose FR-36K's are a very solid pair of headphones. I lived with them for over a week and had no issues with Bluetooth, the battery life is good, I was using them all day with no issues. The sound will be perfect for most and the build quality and styling is appealing to the eye and touch. Floyd rose are in a very crowded sector but if you are in the market for mid-priced premium headphone they're worth a look.
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