Disclaimer: This unit was provided by AFUL through HifiGo for free in exchange for a written review. No incentives of any kind were given and the review you are about to read are my own thoughts and opinions. Thanks once again to AFUL and HifiGo for the opportunity and support.
Pros:
- Capital “T” Treble
- Tonal balance
- Details
- Coherency
- Price
Cons:
- Mid-bass slightly recessed
- Stage width could be bigger
- Not top of the class vocals
- Accessories are sparse
Driver Setup: 1 Dynamic Driver + 7 Balanced Armatures
Price: $370
Purchase link and info: HifiGo
Comfort, fit and isolation: Great.
Sources used: Topping L70, Chord Mojo2 (+ Poly), Fiio BTR7, Moondrop MoonRiver2 Ti, Shanling H7, Hiby R6 Pro II
Tips used: Azla SednaEarfit, stock black tips, Divinus Velvet tips
My usual test playlist with some of the songs used: Tidal
Table of Contents
Prologue, Build and Accessories
Marketing. Marketing is the name of the game, as far as brand and customer relationship goes. It’s nearly impossible that no one young enough has never heard of Google, Coke or Mc Donald’s, even if they never used or bought something from them. If we extrapolate this into the audio world, it goes the same way, just on a nicher scale. Everyone will know Sony, JVC or Sennheiser, but not everyone will know most Chi-fi brands. And this is where marketing kicks in.
AFUL is no exception and was relatively unknown until the last quarter of 2022 – at least outside of their domestic market. When they decided to open their business to the rest of the world, they marketed themselves as revolutionary and made some bold claims that had yet to be proven, while announcing two hybrid models to be shipped internationally: Performer 5 and Performer 8.
By November and as their first western release, the Performer 5 (P5) already had big shoes to fill, as the promises were endless – and it did. Most reviewers, including me, did enjoy and even recommended the P5 as an alternative to the usual suspects (read planars), with some minor caveats like its soundstage. Whatever mojo AFUL did inside those shells worked out and their mass marketing and flying samples translated into a now known brand and model.
Almost half an year later, the promised Performer 8 (P8) sees the light, clocking in at around $370 – a competitive and ruthless but stable bracket, – and once again pouring out bold claims. For the sake of longevity and boredom, I will spare you the detail of all the technology used, but I do encourage you to read the product page if you are interested in it. In short, they took what they used on Performer 5 and made it better, or so they say.
But the tuning technology is not the only thing that makes the Performer 8 reminiscent of its predecessor. The shell size and shape remains barely the same, built of what looks like a better resin material. This particular aspect also means that the fit, comfort and isolation are basically perfect to my ears anatomy, but as always, your mileage may vary.
Still on the same boat comes the box and accessories that, besides a new more premium feeling PU leather case and a different cable, are basically the same. This is a nitpick but at almost $200 more, I’d like to see a more premium set of accessories and a different box, just for psychological reasons of getting an upgrade over the Performer 5. I do have to admit that I much rather prefer and appreciate the new stock cable over the one used in the first set.
While the stock tips work and I’ve used the black ones for a long period of my listening time, I found the AFUL Performer 8 to be somewhat sensitive to the tips used, ending up preferring more wider bores such as the Azlas. As for driveability, the Performer 8 is very easy to please and will run off mostly from any source, with my subjective preferences tilting over for the more neutral or warm colored ones.
Now to segway from a ramble into an actual review, nothing better than the most cliché pun that has totally never been done: Will this set Perform AFUL-like?
Sound
Disclaimer: All the critical listening was done through my Topping L70. All sets mentioned were volume matched to 73 dbs @ 440 Hz using a decibel meter. My frequency response graphs are measured using a clone IEC-711 coupler, using stock tips matching the resonance peak at 8k Hz whenever it’s possible. As per usual with this coupler, this resonance peak is usually a coupler artifact (non-existant to the ear) and the measurements after it may not be totally accurate. If you would like to see or compare the graphs for this set and many others, you can do so on my squig.link database.
If we take a macro look before delving into the details, we can find the replay of the P8 under the neutral with a bass boost category, but with some tweaks. The bass boost is mostly palpable on the sub-bass region and the female vocals are slightly forward.
Bringing AFUL’s own P5 to the table feels natural in an attempt to spot the evolution. My personal nitpicks with that set were mostly addressed: losing 1 to 2 db in the bass shelf and presence region while gaining some air in the upper treble region. All in all, the sound signature is now more relaxed and mature – and spoiler alert, much more to my liking.
This signature ain’t strange to me, but it only really stroke me when I fortunately started one of my morning with my beloved Helios SE – which I’ve been calling my IEM of the year and one of my all-time favorites so far, – and right after I switched into the Performer 8 to write this review, I quickly got a slight technical shock, the tuning didn’t. And no, this doesn’t mean they are close enough, but you get the idea.
The bass of the AFUL Performer 8 is nothing less than a cookie-cutter clean 8db shelf that corrects itself somewhere right after 200 hz – just like my own theoric target. I call it cookie-cutter because it is safe, but it works. Tracks such as Why So Serious? leave nothing to the imagination, but rather a controlled and powerful performance of extension and physicality, but without any exaggeration.
Despite checking the marks and having nothing else to add to it, I still have to disclose that the P8 won’t be a basshead’s dream. This becomes even more evident once we glide into the mid-bass area, as the speed and tightness go hand in hand with a minor scoop in the frequency response. During the replay of Jain – Makeba, it becomes pretty evident that there’s a lack of “oomph” to the tuning but rather a very precise and controlled impact. If I had to nitpick something about the P8’s tuning, this would be it.
On the brighter side, all the above ensures good clarity in the lower mid-range, opening up the rest of the frequency, as there’s no bleed running its course but rather a very coherent presentation. The fundamental notes on pianos such as Hania Rani – Glass are kept at a commendable pristine state, with an ever so slightly touch of warmth to its note weight. Also remarkable at this price point are P8’s separation and layering capabilities, but more on that later.
As we start climbing up to the upper mid-range, I do have to point out that vocals on the Performer 8 aren’t top of the class, but still a good neutral. The male vocalists take half a step back on the presentation, that while it maintains its timbre, loses itself in the mix sometimes (Tame Impala – Instant Destiny). The female vocals have a slightly skewed timbre on Lana Del Rey – A&W, due to the gain peak being present around the 2k hz, followed by a minor dip. While they are still great and maybe even one of the best around this price range, it leaves me bittersweet as there was room for improvement, but I’d consider this more of a nitpick by someone who heard dozens of sets, rather than something most people would pick on the fly.
Other than vocals I consider the upper mids pretty pristine and neutral flat and, if you haven’t guessed by now, the Performer 8 saved its best for the end, as this is where the magic happens. And no, I do not mean it lightly but instead think Performer 8’s treble is the best in class up to its price point.
Its plateau-like shape, totally reminiscent of its predecessor P5, ensures a smooth yet precise and very detailed presentation. From Vai’s guitar solo on top of some hats on Tender Surrender (1:50m) to Billy Cobham’s kit on Red Baron, or during the venerable and feet tapping brass rhythms of Push Pull, the combination of well tuned top part of the mid-range with P8’s treble is nothing more than music to my ears, with a great instrumental timbre.
As if that wasn’t good enough, the technical chops of the AFUL Performer 8 are the cherry on top, as they are more than proficient to back-up the relatively safe tuning, easily competing with the top dogs of the bracket in this regard. Besides its sharp transients and top of the class detail retrieval, the imaging chops are nothing to write off.
The depth and precision of instrument placement during Fear Inoculum is commendable, leaving one wishing it also had better stage width. Despite not being the widest, this is where the separation makes its magic and takes this presentation to the next level, masking the lack of size with an ability to fully separate each note from each instrument group (Buena Vista Social Club – Chan Chan), creating a great sense of layering across in front of you. I consider this to be the biggest and best upgrade of the P8 versus its predecessor, Performer 5.
Comparisons
As far as competition goes, it’s well known that the sub 400 usd bracket is one of the most ruthless and left behind, as there are some key sets that completely monopolize this segment.
One IEM that I consider a direct competition of the Performer 8 is one my personal favorites, the DUNU VULKAN. Despite their tuning resembling a close replica until the air region, the devil lives in the details. The bass quality of the Vulkan’s isobaric dynamic drivers has better presentation and presence, and so does its vocal replay.
Nonetheless, the lines that kept VULKAN from being the king of hill are what makes the Performer 8 a top contender: sharp transients, great detail and a commendable tuned treble region with actual extension and air.
Furthermore, this would not be a typical review around this price bracket if there was no Moondrop Blessing twin mention. The Moondrop Blessing 2: Dusk has better mid-range and stage size, but that’s about it. The lack of bass quality, coherency in sound and a recessed treble make the Performer 8 a better IEM in every other field, at least in my books, but just like the VULKAN, they are more of sidegrades than proper upgrades.
Versus the technical king of the segment, the Moondrop Blessing 3, the competition gets tighter. The B3 comes out clearly as perceivable more “technical”, mainly due to the all the clarity formed from the lower mid-range to its ferocious ear gain region. While I do think the Blessing has better stage size and dynamics, I do not think their detail level is that far apart.
But that’s pretty much it, as Tonality is a complete bloodbath in favor of the Performer 8, especially for those that like to do longer listening sessions like me, with the only mention going to the bass quality, with the Moondrop taking that round home.
Final Thoughts
The Performer 5 hosted the party, but the Performer 8 took the spotlight on the dancefloor. I titled my previous review of “A new generation” and I was only half right. It is indeed a new generation, but I didn’t know how much impact AFUL could do – but now we do. I won’t pretend they will stop here, as new pictures from some HK AV show have been shared and AFUL seems to be preparing new models, including flagships, so we better keep our eyes open.
With all things into consideration, I do think the Performer 8 merits itself as one of the best IEMs of the year and a top contender around its price point. While it doesn’t have as good bass as the DUNU Vulkan, a mouth watering mid-range and soundstage as the Blessing 2 siblings, but at the end of the day it competes and then outclasses the competition in the treble and detail fields.
On a personal level, I think the Performer 8 is the most well rounded IEM of my collection up to its price point, and that says a lot. Recommended.
If you would like to see how this and other sets rank against each other, you can do so on my spreadsheet database.
Thanks for reading!
nymz reviews 
Leave a comment