I think this amazing earphone deserves its own thread, let's see if we can get some impressions!
Aful Performer Impressions Thread
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AmericanSpirit
Member of the Trade: Night Oblivion
I’ve left some footage on P5, and some other info that HiFiGo’s PR staff missed (she’s not an engineer, so yea excuse her for being tech ignorant)
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/bes...dac-amp-dongles-list-etc.805930/post-17311170
https://www.head-fi.org/threads/bes...dac-amp-dongles-list-etc.805930/post-17311170
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Today we take a close look at the $219 AFUL Performer 5 hybrid universal IEM. Find out how this popular budget friendly IEM performs and why we're recommending it, now on Headfonia!
https://www.headfonia.com/aful-performer-5-review/ -> Article by @Virtu Fortuna
https://www.headfonia.com/aful-performer-5-review/ -> Article by @Virtu Fortuna
LaVey1999
Head-Fier
I've ordered the P5 and he should arrive at the beginning of April 
wideload
Head-Fier
I am debating between two iems, Aful P5 and SeeAudio Yume 2. Anyone with experience with both? Thanks!
Tonally, the Performer 5 is warmer than the Yume II. The former has larger bass, though the bass isn’t as tight and textured. The Performer 5 also has less treble, though it has a thicker note weight.
Both sets are no slouch when it comes to technicalities. Though the Yume II has better soundstage width, and it is slightly better when it comes to micro-detailing and clarity, though instrument separation and imaging are very close.
acygni
100+ Head-Fier
Anyone have experience with their Band 5 Pro and Band 8 Pro? Band 5 is supposedly the domestic version of Performer 5, though I suspect it's a retuned/upgraded version since they graph differently and is the only available model in its home market.
The P5 is also about 25% cheaper than B5Pro, where as traditionally, ChiFi products are 30% more expensive internationally due to retail margins. Makes you wonder where the cost cutting happened.
The P5 is also about 25% cheaper than B5Pro, where as traditionally, ChiFi products are 30% more expensive internationally due to retail margins. Makes you wonder where the cost cutting happened.
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LaVey1999
Head-Fier
I got the P5 in the mail, but not tried them yet. I've bought it in hope that the P5 is a mix between the 7Hz Timeless AE and Moondrop Aria Snow, less bass than the AE and not as clinical/boring as the Aria Snow.
I've seen many reviews with extrem different opinions. From neutral treble to dark or even harsh, from big soundstage to small and so on. Either the batches vary that much or the P5 is a special case.
Anyway, I will compare them with my 7Hz Timeless AE, but I don't think, without hearing them yet, that the P5 is darker than the Timeless AE.
When I used them for a while, I will post my impressions/comparison on here and on the 7Hz thread where I can be more specific regarding the AE.
I've seen many reviews with extrem different opinions. From neutral treble to dark or even harsh, from big soundstage to small and so on. Either the batches vary that much or the P5 is a special case.
Anyway, I will compare them with my 7Hz Timeless AE, but I don't think, without hearing them yet, that the P5 is darker than the Timeless AE.
When I used them for a while, I will post my impressions/comparison on here and on the 7Hz thread where I can be more specific regarding the AE.
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LaVey1999
Head-Fier
I've seen now that the thread name is not correct, they're not the Aful ''Performance'' 5. If you created this thread, maybe you can change that, so that more people could find this thread. I don't want to be rude or something, I'm grateful that this thread even exist.I think this amazing earphone deserves its own thread, let's see if we can get some impressions!
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LaVey1999
Head-Fier
After enough time with the P5, I can now share my impressions with you.
A quick overview of the upcoming themes
– Price
– Build/Comfort
– Sound
– Comparison with the 7Hz Timeless AE
PRICE:
…
I paid 219 for the Performer5 here in germany, which is the the same as the MSRP in the US for example.
Build/Comfort:
…
The Performer5 looks awesome. Despite being on the bulky side, they weight next to nothing. At first they felt a bit cheap. Don't get me wrong, the P5 are super light and well built, but the shell finish is strange, it feels like cheap plastic all around.
But:
The Cable is amazing! It's nicely braided and looks stunning. It's the best stock cable from all of my in-ears and headphones in my inventory!
I have no problems with the P5 comfortwise. They seem to match perfectly with my ears.
Sound:
…
I could use the P5 for everything, I can even play games with them. They're super versatile and comfy. The Aful Performer5 has great tonality. Idk if it's bc of the BA's, but the separation is amazing. You can hear every aspect in the recordings.
They're almost neutral in their presentation. I find the bass of the P5 perfect for my taste. It's the typical dynamic bass with good texture. The mids are clean and guitars pushed forward. Hi-Hats sound pretty crisp and detailed. The vocals are not particular upfront in the mix, but they seem to have a lot air. The soundstage on the P5 is above average with a good width.
Against the 7Hz Timeless AE:
…
A quick comparison with my Timeless AE shows, that the P5 can stand it's own.
I like the signature and tonality of the P5 more. The biggest win over the Timeless AE are the dynamics. Live recordings sound very good and not compressed like the AE's. The P5 play all what you throw at them on a high level. The vocals on the Timeless AE are full-bodied and deep male vocals are amazing, the whole sound of the AE is so thick and full, it's nuts. That's the best things of the AE's.
In the end, it's depends on what you want. The 7Hz Timeless AE is pure engagement and fun, the Performer5 is an allround-workhorse.
I you want more advanced infos about the 7Hz Timeless AE, feel free to check my various posts on the 7Hz Impressions & Discussion Thread.
A quick overview of the upcoming themes
– Price
– Build/Comfort
– Sound
– Comparison with the 7Hz Timeless AE
PRICE:
…
I paid 219 for the Performer5 here in germany, which is the the same as the MSRP in the US for example.
Build/Comfort:
…
The Performer5 looks awesome. Despite being on the bulky side, they weight next to nothing. At first they felt a bit cheap. Don't get me wrong, the P5 are super light and well built, but the shell finish is strange, it feels like cheap plastic all around.
But:
The Cable is amazing! It's nicely braided and looks stunning. It's the best stock cable from all of my in-ears and headphones in my inventory!
I have no problems with the P5 comfortwise. They seem to match perfectly with my ears.
Sound:
…
I could use the P5 for everything, I can even play games with them. They're super versatile and comfy. The Aful Performer5 has great tonality. Idk if it's bc of the BA's, but the separation is amazing. You can hear every aspect in the recordings.
They're almost neutral in their presentation. I find the bass of the P5 perfect for my taste. It's the typical dynamic bass with good texture. The mids are clean and guitars pushed forward. Hi-Hats sound pretty crisp and detailed. The vocals are not particular upfront in the mix, but they seem to have a lot air. The soundstage on the P5 is above average with a good width.
Against the 7Hz Timeless AE:
…
A quick comparison with my Timeless AE shows, that the P5 can stand it's own.
I like the signature and tonality of the P5 more. The biggest win over the Timeless AE are the dynamics. Live recordings sound very good and not compressed like the AE's. The P5 play all what you throw at them on a high level. The vocals on the Timeless AE are full-bodied and deep male vocals are amazing, the whole sound of the AE is so thick and full, it's nuts. That's the best things of the AE's.
In the end, it's depends on what you want. The 7Hz Timeless AE is pure engagement and fun, the Performer5 is an allround-workhorse.
I you want more advanced infos about the 7Hz Timeless AE, feel free to check my various posts on the 7Hz Impressions & Discussion Thread.
mochill
Headphoneus Supremus
Damn, band pro 5 looks awesomeAnyone have experience with their Band 5 Pro and Band 8 Pro? Band 5 is supposedly the domestic version of Performer 5, though I suspect it's a retuned/upgraded version since they graph differently and is the only available model in its home market.
The P5 is also about 25% cheaper than B5Pro, where as traditionally, ChiFi products are 30% more expensive internationally due to retail margins. Makes you wonder where the cost cutting happened.
Enjoying the P5 with a nice 8 wire copper cable off my desktop. The P5 loves power...music is very textured...I hear very good imaging as well...the bass is very interesting...leans towards analyticle but is also musical and fun to listen too 
. Layered and again, rich with texture.
. Layered and again, rich with texture.
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I'm really enjoying the Performer5 a lot. From all recent IEM that I've tried/owned (IE600, FiiO FH9/FD5, B2 Dusk), I like these the most. Really detailed, fun and engaging sound and very good balanced tuning.
I also found very interesting the measurements from SuperReview with different impedance adapters. How the whole tuning change with different impedances, as the impedance rises, the bass quantity goes up, and the upper midrange and treble downshift. We can have different tuning on the Performer by simply changing the output impedance on the source. This can lead to different impressions/reviews from people who have sources with higher impedance. That's why I only use sources with low impedance, around 1Ω, but I want to try the other tunings myself, so already ordered 20Ω and 70Ω adapters from AliExpress.
I also found very interesting the measurements from SuperReview with different impedance adapters. How the whole tuning change with different impedances, as the impedance rises, the bass quantity goes up, and the upper midrange and treble downshift. We can have different tuning on the Performer by simply changing the output impedance on the source. This can lead to different impressions/reviews from people who have sources with higher impedance. That's why I only use sources with low impedance, around 1Ω, but I want to try the other tunings myself, so already ordered 20Ω and 70Ω adapters from AliExpress.
I have received the impedance adapters. With the 20Ω adapter the Performer5 become too dark for my liking, but it's fun to try it with more bass. The 70Ω is unusable, too much bass and no highs. This shows the importance of the source output impedance. That's why I measure every source that I use myself, to make sure that the impedance is around 1. Most of the manufacturer doesn't write in the spec sheets what the impedance is or give us wrong specs. For example, Audioengine D1 is according manufacturer website with 2Ω impedance, but I have measured 10Ω.
TomatePasFraiche
New Head-Fier
I'd like to add that I played around with this too since I use a Singxer SA-1 which has a Hi-Z Lo-Z switch (adds 10 Ohm on every output) and it has already a tremendous impact.
IMHO I really like the original tuning (for 1ohm impedance) and the extension in the treble sounds fantastic to my ears. The bass never truly slams whether it's boosted by the impedance or not (it doesn't feel tight enough to my taste) so overall there's really no reason for me to use the high impedance with the headphones (I do love the bass they have still, I just like it better in the regular tuning).
IMHO I really like the original tuning (for 1ohm impedance) and the extension in the treble sounds fantastic to my ears. The bass never truly slams whether it's boosted by the impedance or not (it doesn't feel tight enough to my taste) so overall there's really no reason for me to use the high impedance with the headphones (I do love the bass they have still, I just like it better in the regular tuning).
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