The Performer8 Performs admirably

Pros: Excellent Treble
Decent cable
Good Mids
Decent packaging
Great Instrument Separation
Good imaging

Cons: OK bass
Ugly color – my opinion
Mediocre/flat Soundstage

Overview:

Up for review today is the AFUL Performer8 (P8). This is the latest IEM from AFUL, which is either the worst or the best company name ever. Previously, AFUL was known for their Performer5 – which managed to dethrone the famous Moondrop Blessing 2 as one of the best high-end “budget” IEM picks. I listed the Final A5000 above the Blessing 2 as well, so really, the question is, how does the extra 3-driver version of the Performer…perform?

The P8 uses 1 DD for bass and 6 BAs for the mids and highs. It also contains an air-pressure relief system so no painful pressure build-up on the ears over long-listening periods. The P8 retails for $370 and you can get one with fast shipping here: https://amzn.to/3oPhEvN. I paid full price for these because I am a masochist. More on the other parts of this IEM are below.

Accessories/Earpads/Eartips (8/10):

This is always a difficult section for me to write because I’ve seen $20-80 IEMs come with excellent accessories (Truthear) and I’ve seen $3k IEMs come with crap accessories (far too many). So, when I see that the P8 comes with a decent-sized box, good padding, a leather carrying case, and 6 pairs of ear tips, I’m not mad at it because it’s more than some kilobuck+ IEMs come with. So, I’d list this as the bare minimum that an IEM should come with – way better than some offerings from FiR for instance. On the other hand, the $80 Truthear HEXA comes with a similar offering, but more ear tips. So, it’s a nice package, but nowhere near something like the Noble Ronin or FAudio Mezzo LE. So, it’s enough to earn it 8/10 points, but not enough to push it into the upper echelons, even at this price (which is low for high-end and high for low-end).

As always, I’m using my Spinfit W1 tips since they’re the best tips I’ve found (you can buy them here if you want a set: https://amzn.to/3WDrNIk.)

Cable (7/10):

This is a pretty good stock cable. It has good sound, good coloration, good thickness, good weight, and good flexibility with only minor wire memory. It also has quite good microphonics with very little noise when turning my head or tapping on the cable. My biggest gripe here of course is that there is no 4.4mm balanced connector for better power (and sound on some IEMs – Orchestra Lite for instance). 3.5mm is convenient since almost everything still comes with a 3.5mm port, but at this price, we’re entering into mid-to-high-end territory depending on who you ask. At this price level, quite a few people have a 4.4mm jack or an XLR-4 they can adapt to 4.4mm. It’s very easy to adapt 4.4mm to 3.5mm, but impossible to make a 3.5mm into a balanced cable, even with a 4.4mm adapter. So yeah, that bugs me since you can get the excellent Truthear SHIO DAC/AMP with a 4.4mm adapter for only $70 (https://amzn.to/3qA4Tpj). Anyways, enough 4.4mm rant, this is a good stock 3.5mm cable in 2-pin and ears the P8 a 7/10 points. If you want a cable that can switch between 3.5mm, 2.5mm, and 4.4mm, I recommend the Kinnera Leyding or Ace/Magic Rope (https://amzn.to/3OW13kN and https://amzn.to/3CfmOEr).

Build Quality/Comfort (9/10):

The build quality is basically classic acrylic quality. I don’t anticipate any cracking or issues with the shells. I get some serious Monarch Mk2 vibes from these IEMs (though I think the MMk2 still sounds a bit better). The two IEMs look almost identical color-wise. Sadly, I hate the color scheme on both – it’s not my taste, I prefer the MMk1 over either of these (I won’t take points off for personal taste though). The P8 does add an interesting vertical stripe pattern the MMk2 didn’t have though and I think they look slightly (ever so slightly) better than the MMk2. They are nowhere near as gorgeous in my opinion as the Sound Rhyme SR8 or Kiwi Ears Orchestra Lite (OL – https://amzn.to/45Rx8Qv). Still, the build quality seems on par with most of this type of IEM (and it feels a bit more premium than say…the Aroma Audio Jewel or OL for instance thanks to the solid fill.

While these do give me MMk2 vibes, they are certainly smaller and more comfortable than the ginormous MMk2. They do put a small amount of pressure on my inner ear since they fit inside more than a lot of higher-end IEMs. They’re nowhere near the comfort perfection that the Final A5000 (https://amzn.to/45OPe5P) are, but they’re better than a lot of recent IEMs that keep growing in size in every direction. I’m giving these a 9/10 in this category since they do well, but are not perfect.

Sound:

Check out the wolfhawk.squig.link below to see how these compare to the two other IEMs that I consider to be the closest in price and performance, the A5000 and the OL. All three of these track pretty closely to each other, with the P8 having the most mid/sub-bass, followed closely by the A5000 and lastly the OL. The OL dips pretty hard in the lower mids and then peaks earlier than the A500 in the highs while the P8 has very muted treble comparatively. Upper mids presence is a battle between the A5000 and the OL with both focusing on different instruments to highlight. All three have a downward slope past 3.5k with a minor peak between 8-9k.

I am powering these from my HiBy R6Pro II using the 3.5mm jack on medium gain with the A/B amplifier (since the battery sucks enough as is) at around ~40/100 volume. These are pretty dang efficient IEMs to run at 40 with an unbalanced connection.

Lows (14/20):

I’m starting off with the Mid-bass/Sub-bass test I’m using David Guetta’s “I’m Good (Blue).” The bass drums are pretty good with solid impact and relatively quick decay – no distortion from the DD here, which some very expensive IEMs can’t do. The sub-bass is good and clearly apparent, but can’t compete with the TOTL IEMs bass like the Xe6/Rn6, or Trifecta for pure soul-rattling sound. Still, in this price range, it competes directly with the A5000 with some very good overall bass quality and quantity – 8/10 points here.

Up next is Demon Hunter’s “I Am A Stone,” which I use to test whether the bass is too strong and overwhelms the mids as that is just as important as how strong/good the bass is. Oddly, based on the chart I was expecting more bass quantity overall, but the P8 is pretty muted on the bass here. This song has the tendency to have overwhelming bass in the background that can drown out the mids here. The good news is that this doesn’t occur at all. The bad news is that the bass is almost undiscernible at all, only coming in strongly a few times during the song. Unfortunately, that throws off the balance of this song quite a bit, earning this section a 6/10 points (5 points for perfectly not drowning out the mids, but only 1 for bass presence).

Mids (15/20):

Weaving The Fate’s “The Fall” is my test song for clean/dirty guitars and vocals with background instruments to see how clearly the vocals can be heard. The intro guitars are very clean, the cymbals can be clearly heard, and the distorted guitars actually sound really good. The vocals come in cleanly with excellent detail and a forward presence that doesn’t drown out the drums or cymbals. The guitars are not muddy at all, even when distorted. There’s no sibilance – the overall here is a very good presentation. My biggest complaint is that the song sounds pretty flat with a 2D soundstage and a “thinness” that I don’t love – it’s a trend I see on quite a few songs that prevents the P8 from ever competing directly with the SR8. Still, for the price, it’s good and earns it 5/6 points.

Staind’s “Something to Remind You” has clean electric guitars and wonderful vocals – this song tests vocal quality and background noise. The thinness continues with the guitars, but the vocals sound great here. Excellent vocal body and a forward presence that takes up a lot of the soundstage. The bass is pretty muted and there isn’t the level of detail I expect to hear from this song when Aaron Lewis runs his fingers up and down the frets, but it’s still a good presentation at this price level. The bass is decent quality though, and certainly doesn’t overpower the mids, letting them shine through. Overall, this song earns 5/7 points for its thinness and lack of detail.

To test classical instruments in the mids, I’m using The Piano Guys’ “Code Name Vivaldi.” The intro cellos do a good job competing without one overpowering the other. Some of the “soul” I look for in this song is missing though. It doesn’t feel like the instruments are enveloping you, it feels more like you are just hearing sound shoved at you from one direction. This song will not give you chills on the P8 like it can on some higher-end IEMs. That’s a shame because the instruments all come in clearly with no distortion or imbalance, but they won’t wow you particularly either. 5/7 points here as well for a good overall performance that falls a bit flat.

Highs (17/20):

To test sibilance on headphones I use Panic! At The Disco’s “High Hopes.” There’s a small amount of sibilance here, but compared to most IEMs, it’s basically non-existent. This is one of the least sibilant sets of IEMs I’ve heard in a VERY long time. Love it – this song is rarely tolerable on high-end IEMs thanks to their ability to portray treble at such a high level, which usually comes with a side-effect of sibilance. 5/6 points here!

Dream Theater’s “The Alien,” is the highs test song I use to see if the cymbals/high-hats/snare drum can be clearly heard and distinguished from the rest of the music (also good for instrument separation.) It’s surprising to find an IEM that doesn’t have a lot of sibilance. It’s even more surprising when it somehow manages to perform well on this song. It’s not one of the best treble presentations I’ve ever heard, but it’s definitely above average. The cymbals and snares can be clearly heard over the distorted guitars and drums. The instrument separation is very good here and the cowbell can even be heard in the background – no mean feat for the P8. There are some details lacking and it’s a tad muddy, but it’s excellent for this price range and even above – 6/7 points.

Michelle McLaughlin’s “Across The Burren” is another of my favorite highs/sharpness test songs as it can easily sound painful on some headphones. I’ll be very surprised if there’s any sharpness here considering the other two songs’ performance…performer…whatever. Yes, there’s a tiny bit of sharpness, yes I’m surprised, and yes it only happens on a couple of notes throughout the entire song. It’s an overall good presentation and better than many more-expensive IEMs. Again, a 6/7 making this one of the best overall treble scores I’ve ever given. YMMV.

Soundstage/Instrument Separation/Imaging (6/10):

I use MGMT’s “Time to Pretend” to test soundstage, instrument separation, and imaging. The imaging is surprisingly good (2/3) and the instrument separation is very good (3/3). The soundstage isn’t the best and is very forward-leaning and a little narrow (1/3)– I’m really not expecting much from an IEM in this price range since the best IEMs I’ve heard in this category were $3k+. A 6/10 here is still quite respectable and matches some much more expensive IEMs.

Comparisons:

The P8 is a very good IEM, but I’ll personally still take the A5000 over the P8 for less money. The A5000 just has so much breadth for almost $100 less. The A5000 has better bass as well and both have good mids, though the P8’s treble is definitely better. The OL can’t quite compete with either of these, and it’s not very good with the stock 3.5mm cable, though even a $20 4.4mm cable upgrades it quite a bit. The same could be true of the P8, but the stock 3.5mm cable does well enough that it’s a close second to the A5000. The fact remains that I’d still take the A5000 for quite a bit less money and the famous Final E-type ear tips and excellent size, weight, appearance, and comfort over the P8. Both are very good for under $500 however. The SR8 trumps all 3 but costs twice as much – performing at TOTL IEM level in casual listening. Only a review of that one will reveal its strengths and weaknesses – it’s coming soon.

Conclusion:

The P8 is a very good IEM and competes with a TON of more expensive IEMs. It can’t quite compete with the SR8 or the A5000 on the stock 3.5mm cable, but a 4.4mm upgrade might fix that. The treble is some of the best I’ve ever heard though and the mids are very good, but the bass needs some work in the quantity department. Still, if you like the looks, you can do MUCH worse for sound on a mids/highs focused IEM.

Accessories / Earpads / Eartips (10 pts):	8​
Cable (10 pts):	7​
Build Quality/ Design / Comfort (10 pts):	9​
Lows (20 pts):	14​
Mids (20 pts):	15​
Highs (20 pts):	17​
Soundstage / Instrument Separation / Imaging (10 pts):	6​
Total:	76​