Introduction:
AFUL is a company that has been making waves in China for a while, only recently entering the global market with the Performer5 last year. While I haven’t personally heard it, the P5 made a big splash on release (for better or for worse) and since then has asserted itself as an excellent choice at the $200 price point. With the Performer8, AFUL seeks to improve upon their previous success, but how does it stack up?
Disclaimer: Many thanks to AFUL for making this review possible! While I was offered a discounted unit, I was not incentivized for a positive review. These thoughts are purely my own.
Where to Buy:
PROS:
- Very balanced and natural tuning
- Unique – it’s different from Harman or neutral with bass-boost
- Excellent detail retrieval
- Good timbre
- The cable and build are solid
- Pleasant and smooth tuning
- Great quality control
CONS:
- While not compressed or overly intimate, the stage is not the largest.
WHO THIS IS FOR:
- Those looking for a rich, lush, natural-sounding IEM with good detail retrieval
- Mids lovers
- Those looking for pleasant treble with good extension and sparkle without sibilance
- Those looking for a smooth and enjoyable listen
WHO THIS ISN’T FOR:
- Those who prefer very thin and clinical-sounding IEMs
- Those looking for something very incisive and crisp
Build, Fit, Accessories:
What’s in the box: The AFUL Performer8 comes with a decent selection of ear tips, faux leather carrying case, and a cable. It’s neither lacking nor excessive. And depending on where the final price lands, it is par for the course. The included cable has a mix of copper and silver plated strands and is also solid – well-behaved and of decent quality.
Build and fit: Build quality is excellent. The P8 comes in a 3D-printed resin shell standard for multiple driver IEMs. The IEMs themselves are very light and are small/medium in size. They are very ergonomic and are among the best-fitting IEMs I have tried. I can’t imagine many people having fit issues and my wife, who has tiny ears, had no problems wearing these.
Overall Sound:
The overall sound signature is very balanced, with excellent natural tonality. The sound has a satisfying lushness/richness with good extension on both ends. The bass is punchy and rumbly, the mids have a nice body and good clarity, and the treble is well extended, smooth, and pleasant, with a good amount of sparkle. The Performer8 is a very well-rounded IEM that does almost everything well!
Bass:
The bass extends deep. The shelf is slightly sub-bass-focused, but midbass is still quite satisfying! The bass quality is good, with a decent amount of texture. It’s a relatively tight bass with a lot of tactility – it punches, slams, and rumbles on demand without sounding overwhelming. It’s not particularly incisive, but it isn’t boomy or sloppy sounding. It’s simply well done.
Mids:
Mids are rich and lush. Both male and female vocals have a good amount of body and presence. There is a decent amount of warmth, but it’s not bloated or muddy. It does retain quite a bit of clarity, and for lack of better words, it sounds nicely balanced.
Treble:
The treble on the Performer8 is well-extended with a good amount of air and sparkle. It’s pleasant and smooth, perhaps with a slight brightness, but no sibilance to my ears. Violins, for example, sound sweet but not piercing.
Technicalities:
Details and Resolution:
Details and resolution on the Performer8 are excellent – competitive with IEMs currently priced around $500-600. Regarding detail retrieval, it outperforms the ThieAudio Oracle and is competitive with the Dunu SA6s and Xenns Mangird Top. Depending on where the final price lands for the Performer8, it could be one of the more, if not most, resolving IEMs in the price range. When listening to violin quartets, for example, you can easily pick up the quartet members placing their fingers on the fingerboard, taking breaths to cue phrases, etc.
Soundstage, Imaging, and Separation:
The stage is average to slightly above average for an IEM. It is not particularly wide, but there is some depth. Imaging is good with a decent amount of layering, but separation is average, which keeps it from being pinpoint accurate.
Dynamics, transients, and decay:
Given that this is a smoother IEM, it might not be surprising that transients aren’t incredibly incisive – the initial attack on notes is clear and defined but they are a bit “rounded” and could be crisper. Decay on notes is neither too fast nor too slow. The dynamics are decent but not standout.
Timbre:
Timbre is good. Overall, the Performer8 is a very natural-sounding IEM, and most instruments sound correct to my ear. Nothing sounds glaringly wrong to me.
Conclusion:
The AFUL Performer8 came out of left field and really surprised me. When I was offered the chance to review the AFUL Performer8, I was curious but did not know what to expect. I certainly did not expect to be as impressed as I was!
At $369.99, it is absolutely among the benchmarks below $500 – you’ll be hard-pressed to find anything better.
The AFUL Performer8 is an excellent IEM, and it gets my recommendation for anyone looking for a very well-tuned IEM that is easy to pick up and listen to. And while it isn’t a technical monster by any means, the well-balanced, lush tuning of the P8 handled every song I threw at it in stride with great detail retrieval to boot!
