Reviews by Jansvast
Introduction
The Aful Performer 5 is a 4BA 1DD hybrid iem and is the first release from this unheard of brand. Since it's release it made a big splash with many hype reviews.
I did not buy this iem, Jesus Christ himself brought it under the Christmas tree on December 24th. All of the opinions in this review will however still be my own as I'm an atheist and am not afraid of hell. I've been using it almost daily for the past 6 months, so I'd say my knowledge of its strenghts and quirks is pretty good. While reading through this review, keep in mind that this is my first iem that costs over 50$, so I can't compare it to competition in it's price range. I still think that this little review can help an indecisive individual make the right purchase decision. Time to start with the review now, happy reading!
Build and box
The shells are smaller than expected and just disappear into my ears with the right tips (not the stock tips, those are pretty bad fitting for me). Fit security, comfort and isolation is top notch. Built using some sort of resin printing technology, the shells are solid with pre made sound tubes, have a gorgeous orange-silver-purplish faceplate and are lacquered over. The resin has an interesting property of becoming a pearl blue tone in the right lighting conditions. Three sound tubes lead into the nozzles and they have no mesh, so I put a tiny acousticaly insignificant piece of foam there for protection. Great thick 8 core stock cable with a straight jack. A padded metal puck case is included.
Sound
I would describe the overall sound profile of this iem as slightly warm neutral with great extension on both ends. It is suitable for high volume listening (and usage on public transit and outside, too).
Mids
I immediately fell in love with the mids here on first listen. Coming from a typically tuned 1DD iem for 50$ (think KiwiEars Cadenza-ish), they were an instant improvement in clarity and cleanliness. I was looking for something less warm and snappier than my previous iem and got exactly that. The mids are neither too forward or recessed, they are positioned just right in the mix. The lower mids are clean thanks to the bass shelf starting to rise slowly at 300 Hz, but they still have enough warmth from the bass to never sound thin. Vocals and instrument sound crystal clear and snappy. Very good, nothing to add. [5/5]
Bass
The bass is the weird aspect of this iem. Some might love it, some might hate it. It has a big boost in the sub bass area with mid bass being behind. Sounds very satisfying with sub bassy tracks. It gives a sense of "looseness" or "slowness" to the bass presentation and it doesn't quite fit the rest of the music, which is presented in a very crisp way. Could also be described as soft or pillowy. It is definitely not that tight and punchy type of bass some sets have. This causes the bass to feel like it is disconnected from the rest of the music sometimes. As a huge drum and bass fan tho, this adds an element for fun. Still, it is definitely not perfect, and besides the issue I just mentioned, it also lacks a bit if mid bass for my taste. Bass guitars are sometimes pushed to the background, which takes away from the "dynamics" and can sound unengaging. Felt in punkrock tracks. [3.5/5]
Treble
It took a bit of time for my ears to adjust to the amount of treble these have, but it's because of the iem I was using before was a dark sounding one with very relaxed treble region, especially the upper treble. As a result of that, I first found the treble of the P5 too spicy and hissy (my ears are also very sensitive to high treble). Luckily, after some listening, my hearing adjusted to the new sound and the treble quality is simply delightful. Treble extension feels about linear, with both lower and upper treble having roughly equal presence to my ear. It's extended wonderfully all the way to 20 KHz and beautifully detailed. I still would've preferred maybe 2 dB less upper treble (14k+) for a more natural listen, but it does not really bother me and absolutely shines on well recorded/sampled tracks. Quality electronic hi-hats and cymbals sound godly here. Crispy, snappy, clean. On the other hand, when the song was recorded poorly or has a low bitrate, it definitely lets you know! One of the drawbacks of good treble extension and detail
. Adds a great sense of airiness to the overall sound and also helps mids sound super clear.
I love using wide bore tips on these because they make the treble sound noticably airier, which also opens up the sound. If you want tamer, but not as good quality treble, use narrow bore tips. [4,5/5]
Technical bits
I'll be brief describing this aspect of the iem, since I can't compare it to anything in it's league and don't have experience judging these characteristics. Soundtage is not large (again, as I got used to it it doesn't feel like that much anymore), I'd say average-smaller sized. However, imaging feels great to me here. I can tell where member of the band are and where every sound is coming from. Stage is mostly slightly in front of my face and goes to slightly behind my ears (my previous iem staged in the back of my head and I despised that). Maybe one could describe it as "holographic". Everything is well separated.
Finish
This seems to be all I have to say about this iem. It took some getting used to, but it is now my daily carry and I rarely leave home without it. It will handle many genres, but if you're into Drum and Bass or other electronic music like I am, you'll love this. Hopefully these little gems will last me for years to come. For rock or punk, however, I believe there are better options out there for ultimate music euphoria. Cheers!
The Aful Performer 5 is a 4BA 1DD hybrid iem and is the first release from this unheard of brand. Since it's release it made a big splash with many hype reviews.
I did not buy this iem, Jesus Christ himself brought it under the Christmas tree on December 24th. All of the opinions in this review will however still be my own as I'm an atheist and am not afraid of hell. I've been using it almost daily for the past 6 months, so I'd say my knowledge of its strenghts and quirks is pretty good. While reading through this review, keep in mind that this is my first iem that costs over 50$, so I can't compare it to competition in it's price range. I still think that this little review can help an indecisive individual make the right purchase decision. Time to start with the review now, happy reading!
Build and box
The shells are smaller than expected and just disappear into my ears with the right tips (not the stock tips, those are pretty bad fitting for me). Fit security, comfort and isolation is top notch. Built using some sort of resin printing technology, the shells are solid with pre made sound tubes, have a gorgeous orange-silver-purplish faceplate and are lacquered over. The resin has an interesting property of becoming a pearl blue tone in the right lighting conditions. Three sound tubes lead into the nozzles and they have no mesh, so I put a tiny acousticaly insignificant piece of foam there for protection. Great thick 8 core stock cable with a straight jack. A padded metal puck case is included.
Sound
I would describe the overall sound profile of this iem as slightly warm neutral with great extension on both ends. It is suitable for high volume listening (and usage on public transit and outside, too).
Mids
I immediately fell in love with the mids here on first listen. Coming from a typically tuned 1DD iem for 50$ (think KiwiEars Cadenza-ish), they were an instant improvement in clarity and cleanliness. I was looking for something less warm and snappier than my previous iem and got exactly that. The mids are neither too forward or recessed, they are positioned just right in the mix. The lower mids are clean thanks to the bass shelf starting to rise slowly at 300 Hz, but they still have enough warmth from the bass to never sound thin. Vocals and instrument sound crystal clear and snappy. Very good, nothing to add. [5/5]
Bass
The bass is the weird aspect of this iem. Some might love it, some might hate it. It has a big boost in the sub bass area with mid bass being behind. Sounds very satisfying with sub bassy tracks. It gives a sense of "looseness" or "slowness" to the bass presentation and it doesn't quite fit the rest of the music, which is presented in a very crisp way. Could also be described as soft or pillowy. It is definitely not that tight and punchy type of bass some sets have. This causes the bass to feel like it is disconnected from the rest of the music sometimes. As a huge drum and bass fan tho, this adds an element for fun. Still, it is definitely not perfect, and besides the issue I just mentioned, it also lacks a bit if mid bass for my taste. Bass guitars are sometimes pushed to the background, which takes away from the "dynamics" and can sound unengaging. Felt in punkrock tracks. [3.5/5]
Treble
It took a bit of time for my ears to adjust to the amount of treble these have, but it's because of the iem I was using before was a dark sounding one with very relaxed treble region, especially the upper treble. As a result of that, I first found the treble of the P5 too spicy and hissy (my ears are also very sensitive to high treble). Luckily, after some listening, my hearing adjusted to the new sound and the treble quality is simply delightful. Treble extension feels about linear, with both lower and upper treble having roughly equal presence to my ear. It's extended wonderfully all the way to 20 KHz and beautifully detailed. I still would've preferred maybe 2 dB less upper treble (14k+) for a more natural listen, but it does not really bother me and absolutely shines on well recorded/sampled tracks. Quality electronic hi-hats and cymbals sound godly here. Crispy, snappy, clean. On the other hand, when the song was recorded poorly or has a low bitrate, it definitely lets you know! One of the drawbacks of good treble extension and detail
. Adds a great sense of airiness to the overall sound and also helps mids sound super clear.I love using wide bore tips on these because they make the treble sound noticably airier, which also opens up the sound. If you want tamer, but not as good quality treble, use narrow bore tips. [4,5/5]
Technical bits
I'll be brief describing this aspect of the iem, since I can't compare it to anything in it's league and don't have experience judging these characteristics. Soundtage is not large (again, as I got used to it it doesn't feel like that much anymore), I'd say average-smaller sized. However, imaging feels great to me here. I can tell where member of the band are and where every sound is coming from. Stage is mostly slightly in front of my face and goes to slightly behind my ears (my previous iem staged in the back of my head and I despised that). Maybe one could describe it as "holographic". Everything is well separated.
Finish
This seems to be all I have to say about this iem. It took some getting used to, but it is now my daily carry and I rarely leave home without it. It will handle many genres, but if you're into Drum and Bass or other electronic music like I am, you'll love this. Hopefully these little gems will last me for years to come. For rock or punk, however, I believe there are better options out there for ultimate music euphoria. Cheers!
