AFULly vibrant, clean and precise
PROS:
Great bass response
Coherent sync of drivers
Lively and vibrant sound
Awfully clean and precise
Prominent mids
Detail monster
Speed
Easy to drive but loves more power
CONS:
Mids being forward has a tendency to hotness. Trumpets in particular
Sound stage could have been wider
INTRODUCTION:
AFUL is another new player in the audio community. Well at least for me. It is the first time I’ve heard of them. In the writing of this review, Performer5 has been receiving a lot of love. For the sake of simplification, I will call it P5.
AFUL has a lot of patents and frankly, I am no sound engineer and the explanation of these techs left me clueless. I am more of a sound guy, a gigging musician, and we will focus on that. Sound good? I hope so. LOL
This is a touring unit and 4-5 more reviews are behind me and they will probably justify the job of explaining the technicalities that AFUL has put in P5. Moving on…
DISCLAIMER:
The gear on hand has undergone at least 10-15 hours of use before it was assessed.
No EQ is ever applied in my reviews.
For the sake of convenience, I try my best to use a stock setup. Not everyone has access to personal ear tips or cables. If personal ear tips, cables, or accessories are used, you will be notified.
As I try to be objective, my claims inevitably will be subjective and biased to my personal preference. I cannot stress more that you should take this with a grain of salt for we have different perceptions to sound and what we hear.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Configuration: 1 x Dynamic driver, 4 x Balance Armatures
Impedance: 35ohms
Sensitivity: 110db
Freq response: 5hz - 35khz
PACKAGING:
P5 came with a medium-sized box. Very simple in design with specifications indicated at the back. Nothing fancy here. Inclusions are below:
a pair of P5
a cable that is available in 3.5mm and 4.4mm termination
a metallic circular protective case
documentations
6 pairs of ear tips
Concerning ear tips, I am accustomed to wide and narrow bores and I was quite surprised to find only one kind. I go for wide bores usually. Though the stock tips are not that narrow, they are not that wide. It plays around in the middle in terms of bore size. What I notice is the stiffness of the stems of the ear tips. Nonetheless, I did go for the M size. They are blue and red in color and since it was only one kind, I decided to use the blue ones for the left driver, and the red for the right driver.
Ok buckle up and let us talk about the sound!
SOURCES USED:
Questyle QP2R
LG V30 quad dac with Centrance Dacport via Hiby Music app
LG V30 quad dac with IFI Hip Dac v2 via Hiby Music app
MacBook pro 2011 with Centrance Dacport via Foobar
MacBook pro 2011 with IFI Hip Dac v2 via Foobar
Tidal Masters and Qobuz Studio
SOUND IMPRESSIONS:
What greeted me on the first listen and remained consistent is how clean and fast the sound presentation of P5. Adjectively fun, lively and energetic. It is a W-shaped sound signature to my ears, and the mids play a big role in this assessment. Let’s break it down.
The lows gave a good punching and attack. Mid-bass focused and has an adequate reach on the sub-levels that portrayed good rumbling. Simply, lows have a substantial elevation but are not quite on a bass head level still. Highly defined and detailed. Micro details like the vibration of bass guitar’s string and the batter of drum kicks hitting the skin are heard every now and then. Lows are fun to listen to and will give you a good nod, especially on modern tracks. Classic tracks like Alan Parson’s Project sounded very tight and thumpy without any bloat. It is like a good knocking on the door. Thudding and snappy.
Mids are prominently forward (which falls right down my alley) making P5 a mid-centric set. Snappy, fast, and with fast attack and transients resulting in a clean and precise presentation of many elements like pianos, rhodes, vocals, guitars, organs, woodwinds, and many more. Note weight and density is admirable and did not sound thin or lacking. Tonality and timbre are spot on and did not sound artificial or synthetic.
One caveat though. The forwardness can sometimes be overwhelming. At times, it feels like a bit too much information is being fed to me and I don’t know what to listen to or follow. Do take note this is just a nitpick. The mids are still something to love and desire.
Another thing I want to point out is upper mids can sometimes be hot. Not sibilant but hot. It’s a Long Way to the Top by Ac/Dc has these bagpipes at the middle of the song that can get irritating. I confirmed by comparing P5 to my Audeze Sine that indeed, P5 has that elevation on the upper mids that has a tendency to hotness.
Sparkly, airy, detailed, and open is what I can say about the trebles with excellent control. Bells, cymbals, and hi-hats are well-defined and very crisp and transparent. Xylophones, marimbas, kalimbas, and brass sections are very energetic and full of life. Deprived of sibilance and not fatiguing to listen. Not the brightest set I’ve heard but micro and macro details are prominently present to be heard. Trebles still shine even with warm sources and even crispier with neutral sources.
Now concerning BA timbre, the P5 by far is one of the most natural-sounding hybrid set I’ve heard. Personally, it surpasses my Kinera Idun Golden and Seeaudio Bravery red edition in terms of being organic. My jazz tracks sounded real to life and so far, I have no recollection of it sounding artificial.
Conclusively, P5 performed beyond my expectations and sounded outright excellent and proper in all aspects of the frequency spectrum. As a neutralist that I am, P5 still performs right up my alley and preference. P5 deserves applause from me and is worthy to be sitting amongst my top IEMs.
TECHNICALITIES:
Technical capabilities are one thing I have emphasized in judging audio gears. And being a musician plays a huge role in my conclusion. Being constructive in my job is a nature I can’t shake. Diving deeper…
Let’s start with the weakest link. Sound stage. Right off the bat, P5 gave me an intimate staging. It reminded me of Seeaudio Bravery OG. I have stated in my reviews before that having an intimate sound stage has its pros for me. It is very constructive when I’m breaking down songs and deciphering chordal harmonies. Simply, the closer the sound is to my ears, the easier it is to be deciphered. Makes sense?
On the other hand, having a sound stage this intimate gives me a sense of an overwhelming impression. At times, complex tracks seemed too much information being fed to me. It is not fatiguing to listen to but it is fatiguing to process. This is a nitpick and not a deal breaker for me and purely my subjective take on sound stage.
Now, with an intimate sound stage, some elements struggle to shine especially those that need to be prominent. P5 surpassed this dilemma and in fact with the track Maputo by Bob James and David Sanborn, P5 performed well with good balance. Let me explain a little further. On this track, pianos, rhodes, guitars, and synthesizers are present. On top of that, the main melody is a saxophone played by David Sanborn. On the time stamp where the solos are playing, it amazed me and what I heard are elements randomly going forward and back and never overlapping the main melody which is the saxophone. In a phrase, the piano will shine because the part was supposed to shine then back off after that and let the saxophone shine again. And it happened with the guitars too and synthesizers. I will not dive into the tech that is making this possible but there is something special in this give and take nature of the P5. So the narrow sound stage is not a deal breaker if you are into wide stage.
Imaging is pinpoint and accurate as hell and well placed. I just reviewed the Bqeyz Winter before this and both are exceptionally accurate and the elements are a breeze to follow. It doesn’t struggle with complex tracks and instruments are highly discernable.
Speed is one of the strengths of P5. Attack and decay are quite fast and snappy resulting in a very precise and clean sound presentation. Polyphia with their bombarded instruments and insanely fast-paced guitars are very easy with P5 and succeeded without breaking a sweat.
Separation is favored over layering and I think it is because of the narrow sound stage I explained above. Once again, every element has its own domain, and bleeding or muddiness was never encountered with P5.
Conclusively, technicalities all passed with flying colors for me making P5 more than capable to handle anything you throw at it. Clean and precise are the perfect words to describe its technical prowess.
FIT & ISOLATION:
Comfortability is very high and no physical fatigue is present with P5. The shells are very light and easily disappear once worn.
A minor concern with the tips though. The ear tips are very stiff and if you are accustomed to wide bore and soft tips, the stock tips will give a little bit of discomfort. I find the stiff tips perfect for the sound making P5 sound full and rich. Using a softer tip will decrease the punchiness and soften the overall sound making the P5 less lively and energetic.
This is purely subjective and you are welcome to use your own tips. Go and explore to your heart's content.
COMPARISONS:
vs Kinera Idun Golden 2.0 ($169)
P5 lows have more weight and punch. More prominent.
P5 sounded more fun and engaging
Sound stage is wider with Idun by a hairline
Technical capabilities are on par
Both have that edgy and precise sound presentation
Idun still is closer to being neutral having a leaner sound signature
Both are natural and organic
Imaging goes to P5
Conclusively, P5 is more engaging and fun to listen to. Idun’s sound signature is not for everyone given its almost neutral nature. P5 is easier to appreciate. But Idun will serve as a better option for monitoring, mixing, and be used as a reference for neutrality.
vs Seeaudio Bravery Red ($299)
P5 lows are more prominent. Has more weight.
Trebles are airier with P5.
Both have good extension and reach on top.
Layering and separation are almost on par.
P5 appeared louder on the same volume level.
Mids are more forward on P5.
Sound stage seems wider with Bravery.
Conclusively, P5 reminded me of the OG Bravery. The red edition of Bravery sounded more mature and leaner. While both portrayed good technicalities, Bravery wins with a cleaner sound due to its leaner sound signature. Both are fun to listen to with P5 having the richer sound presentation.
vs Audiosense DT300 ($179)
Both are closely similar in sound on the lows.
Mids and trebles are more open with P5. DT300 sounded warmish.
Both are nicely natural and organic in tonality and timbre.
Treble sensitives will favor DT300.
P5 has a more edgy and aggressive attack. DT300 sounded softer.
P5 has more defined drum kicks.
Mids of DT300 are lusher and richer hence making DT300 catered for mid-centrics.
Sound stage goes to DT300.
Both are technically capable. P5 having a slight upper hand.
Conclusively, P5 is edgy and has that faster attack in sound, and DT300 is more softer and relaxed. It surprises me actually for a full BA configuration set (DT300) to be softer in sound presentation. It will now fall to personal preference. P5 being the aggressive set, DT300 the softer choice. Both are very engaging and natural sounding.
TEST TRACKS:
That’s the way of the World by EWF
Africa by TOTO
The Girl in the Other Room by Diana Kral
Balmorhea album All is wild, All is Silent
Sila by Sud
Smooth Escape by D’Sound
Never too Much by Luther Vandross
P.Y.T by Michael Jackson
Ain’t no Sunshine by Eva Cassidy
Shoot to Thrill by AC/DC
Another one bites the Dust by Queen
Good times bad times by Edie Brickell
Alice in Wonderland by Bill Evans
Ain’t it Fun by Paramore
Redefine by Incubus
Far Away by Nickelback
Lovesong by Adele
Lingus by Snarky Puppy
Harvest for the World by Vanessa Williams
Love Bites by Def Leppard
No Such Thing by John Mayer
As by Stevie Wonder
Whip Appeal by Babyface
Ain’t Nobody by Chaka Khan
Futures by Prep
Landslide by Fleetwood Mac
Every Summertime by NIKI
SADE tracks
AC/DC tracks
Queen tracks
And many more… I always listen to High-resolution format, being the least quality 16bit/44khz FLACS be it offline or online.
VERDICT:
Putting it bluntly, there is no doubt that P5 is one of the honorable mentions of 2022. A great release before the year ends. A fun and engaging IEM with impeccable attack making everything sound precise. Accuracy is also its strength. The only caveat I have is having a narrow or intimate sound stage.
I have also mentioned above that with its mids having a forward nature, sometimes is too much to process. This is speaking for the purpose of breaking down songs.
Nonetheless, everything sounded right and proper to my ears and if I will have that extra $219, I will definitely pull the trigger on this one.
I can safely say that P5 is also constructive for musicians and vocalists or anyone in the music business. The casual listener and the hard-core audiophile will not find it hard to love the P5.
Coming from an unfamiliar company, AFUL, this is a surprise for me. AFUL (not a wise choice for a name actually) will be under my radar from here on out. They have patents on their techs and I’m really looking forward for their future releases. Maybe something for the budget consumer will be a wise move.
Even then, the asking price is much justified by its performance and I honestly think the P5 is a very competitive IEM in its price bracket.
I would like to give thanks to HIFIGO for sending this unit as a tour to us here in the Philippines and to a co-reviewer Neil Nino Clark for facilitating the tour.
That’s a wrap and thank you for reading! Again, love the music more than the gear! Cheers, and catch you on the next one!
PRICE: $219
Purchase links:
https://hifigo.com/products/aful-performer-5
https://www.amazon.co.jp/dp/B0BN5R23ZP/aful+performer+5/
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0BN45CJX4/aful+performer+5/
https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256804801271867.html
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