Aful Performer 5+2 VS Symphonium Audio Meteor

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Naming drama aside (P5+2? just call it Performer 7), this Aful packs a quirky driver party: 2DD for low end, 4 BA split across mids/treble, plus a tiny micro-planar for the highest sparkle, all marshaled by Aful’s neat miniature crossover. The shells are lightweight, comfy and prettier than they need to be; the cable feels “don’t bother swapping” nice, with 3.5 or 4.4 options. The box is loaded with silicone tips but no foam—a miss, because the right seal changes everything. Price target sits around $250, which sets expectations high but not ridiculous.

Stock silicone yields a surgical, respectful tuning with bass that skews neutral and controlled. Swap to well-sealing foam or hybrids and feed a juicy source (warm Class A or tubes) and the set wakes up—stage snaps into a cohesive scene right in front, imaging gets laser-etched, and that micro-planar adds a pinch-of-salt treble spice without turning harsh. It’s an up-close presentation—sometimes almost claustrophobically detailed—in the best way: think “men with trumpets in the head,” precise placement, and excellent extension up top. Not as rowdy as the Explorers; more like a surgeon in a Hawaiian shirt—technical, but with a wink.

Practical upside: the clarity and positioning make this great for gaming and even viable for mixing/mastering checks; just don’t crank it into pain territory. Bass stays tight and responsive, treble sails high, and coherence holds. Tip and source matter a lot: with foam + warm power, it sings; with plain silicone, it’s merely polite. Final tally: a confident 8.5/10—doing a lot right at its price, dinged half a point for making everyone do math on the name.

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Packaging and accessories go hard: a wild Nightjar cable that actually behaves, a tiny waterproof case, foam and silicone tips, even a burlap sack. The shells are much smaller than other Symphoniums and easy to fit with the right tips (xElastic/SpinFit helped). Build and unboxing feel premium and the cable ergonomics are spot-on.

Tonally, this is a U-shaped, boombastic, in-your-face tuning—big bass, crisp treble, recessed mids—designed to shove the music right into the bubble. It’s energetic and aggressive, doesn’t change much with amplification, but can get prickly with some tips and then oddly dull up top with others. The treble lacks excitement, mid clarity feels veiled, and soundstage is limited; “bass-bass-bass” dominates while detail and air don’t keep up.

At $600, the value proposition is the sticking point. Back-to-back swaps against cheaper sets reveal clearer vocals, cleaner highs, and even better bass texture elsewhere, which makes this Meteor hard to justify. For those chasing slam, sparkle, and space, there are multiple sub-$200 options that do more with less. Verdict: stylish presentation and fun punch, but too pricey for the performance—many alternatives simply outshine it.

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Aful Performer 5+2 lands as a hybrid of the beloved Performer 5 and the punchier Explorer. The unboxing is the familiar P5 affair—same case, same style of tips—nothing flashy, but solid. The shell mirrors the P5 in size with a comfy little stabilizing wing that locks in well. No metal nozzle or front filter here, yet tip retention is secure and hassle-free. The flat 2-pin socket is straightforward, and the stock cable feels thick and supple with a reliable chin slider and handy red/blue channel markers. Overall: understated build, great ergonomics, daily-driver ready.

Sonically, this one aims neutral with a very distinct top end—clean, dynamic, incisive. Think switching from black-and-white to color; cymbals and overtones pop with a slightly crunchy/pristine edge that energizes detail without turning harsh on good recordings. Bass isn’t about sheer quantity; it’s about slam and dynamics—quick on the draw, well-controlled, and satisfying when called upon. Vocals sit a notch forward, microdetail is strong, and the overall presentation is coherent, clear, and technical with convincing stage, resolution, and imaging. Not a treble-shy or bass-bombed tuning—more a refined all-rounder for those who want clarity and bite.

Versus the original P5, the 5+2 fixes the missing “air” and soft edges, trading them for crisper transients and better extension. Compared with Explorer (a value champ), the 5+2 brings superior upper-treble reach, detail, and vocal focus. Against Performer 8 and Cantor, it feels more visceral—the P8 is smoother and more relaxed, while Cantor pulls finer microdetail but with less bass slam. Sets like Dino Quattro or J’s Estrella bring bigger fun or treble theatrics, yet the 5+2’s balance and everyday versatility win more often. Net take: a neutral-leaning, highly technical upgrade that stands tall in its bracket—easy to recommend to anyone chasing clarity, speed, and controlled impact over pure warmth or excess bass.

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Aful’s Performer 5+2 upgrades the original hybrid with 2DD + 4BA + 1 micro-planar tweeter and lands around $240–$250. The unboxing is practical: three sets of silicone tips, a pocketable puck case, and a soft, nicely draping cable (available in 4.4 or 3.5), though the braid can look a bit loose and the pre-formed hooks run large. The resin shells shift between blue and green under different light; fit is medium-large, very stable, and comfortable once the right tips are found. Note the narrow nozzle without a retaining lip and partially exposed bores/filters—tip grip is key and a little care prevents ear-gunk ingress.

Tonally this leans mild V-shaped: a clean midrange with a confident bass boost, a touch of lower-treble presence for bite, and well-extended air up top. The result is more incisive and punchy than the original P5, with clearer on/off transients that aid separation and layering. Trade-offs show as a hint of gritty/plasticky treble texture on cymbals and brushes—not harsh, but less natural than ideal—while the bass stays tight and exciting.

Against Aful’s Explorer, this sounds brighter, more spacious, and more technical; Explorer plays warmer/denser with smoother treble but less openness. Versus the pricier Thieaudio Oracle MK3, tuning is broadly similar: Oracle is smoother and deeper with a softer attack, while the Performer 5+2 brings more snap and engagement for less money. As a modern mid-tier hybrid, it absolutely still has a place—energetic, spacious, and well-executed—earning a solid four stars.

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Warm-tilted and unapologetically bassy, Symphonium’s 4BA Meteor aims for a thick, relaxed presentation that still feels refined up top. The bass carries notable mid-bass weight—authoritative for BA, if not as tactile or tight as the best DD sets—while the overall picture favors cohesion over knife-edge separation. What elevates it is the treble: impressively extended, smooth, and free of glare, adding micro-contrast and vocal texture that keeps the warmth from turning soupy. Imaging is only so-so, headstage feels enveloping rather than wide, and tonal clarity takes a back seat to body—but the tuning “hits different” in an inviting way.

Build and ergonomics mark a clear step up from Helios: a smaller, medium-sized metal shell with comfortable ingress/egress and generally easy fit, though security is merely average and the faceplate print/finish can look a bit rough under certain light. Accessory details may vary, but the package shown included a nice pocketable case and a well-behaved cable (watch polarity on 2-pin). At $600, it positions itself as Symphonium’s most approachable entry, boutique quirks and all.

Against peers, Dunu’s SA6 reads cleaner and more neutral with crisper imaging (its bass can be hit-or-miss), while Shuoer EJ07M “Kind of Lava” feels the most technical here—superb DD bass and slightly tame treble with a narrower stage. The Meteor carves its own lane: a warm-neutral, meaty signature with standout treble quality and a cozy stage that’s easy to live with. Verdict: a confident 4/5—not for clarity chasers, but a uniquely satisfying alternative for those who want rich warmth done right.

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Performer 7 lands with a neutral-balanced, laid-back tuning and good treble reach. The presentation is clean and generally safe, though there’s a touch of sizzly “planar-ish” timbre up top. Technicals are solid for ~$200—slightly behind sets like Quintet and Super Mix 4, about on par with Nova. Bass from the dual 6 mm DDs is tight, controlled, and free of bleed, but lacks the slam and rumble of competitors using larger drivers; mids are well separated with decent layering.

The weak spot is vocal extension: a push around 1.5 kHz tries to bring them forward, but a dip through 3–6 kHz keeps them from opening up. Tamer upper-mids help avoid fatigue for rock/metal, yet the modest low-end impact leaves drums and basslines feeling uneventful. It’s a mid-volume set that doesn’t scale well—turning it up accentuates the 1.5 kHz emphasis and treble sizzle. Treble isn’t peaky, just a bit glassy at times; for K-pop the smoother mids can work if less extended vocals are acceptable.

As a value play, there are stronger options: Nova, Chopan, and Super Mix 4 offer better bang-for-buck; for a similar clean/neutral target, Tanchjim Origin sounds more natural with better bass texture and vocal reach, and DynaQuattro adds sub-bass and fuller vocals—none with the planar-ish timbre. Even AFUL’s own P5 is cheaper and more fun, while the Explorer undercuts the price and scales impressively. In today’s crowded market, P7 is a competent all-rounder but not distinctive enough to stand out.

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Thick, meaty mid-bass steals the spotlight here: kick drums and bass guitars hit with authoritative punch, driving songs forward with head-bobbing momentum. Despite being BA, the low end doesn’t sound like BA—impact is heavy, rumble is extended, and separation/texturing are fantastic, especially on instrumental tracks and Western artists with rhythm-heavy mixes. The treble surprises too: airy cymbal strikes cut through the warmth, violins/flutes glow with a smooth, non-fatiguing shine, and overall dynamics/scale impress—turn it up and it gets better.

Trade-offs show up in the midrange. That generous mid-bass can mask vocals on busier tracks, pushing them a bit distant and making textures harder to pick out versus cleaner sets like OG Monarch or QKZ x HBB’s DSP-tuned rivals. Note weight is more natural (never thin), but the set is warm-tilted rather than neutral, so vocal-centric ballads and mid-forward mixes can feel too cozy. As a targeted recommendation: for poly-rhythmic, low-end-driven genres it can be a grand slam; for all-rounder use, consider a slight EQ dip to the mid-bass to unmask vocals and open the mids—doing so keeps the Meteor’s energy intact while restoring clarity.

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The AFUL Performer 5+2 (Performer 7 / P7) takes the P5 recipe and adds a second 6 mm dynamic for the lows and a micro-planar for the highs, nudging MSRP to $240. Unboxing mirrors the P5: nine pairs of tips and a decent case, but the accessories feel bare-bones at this price—no foam tips and a non-modular cable, even though the included 8-wire is supple and well-behaved. Build is classic AFUL: 3D-printed resin, blended nozzle (no mesh or lip—watch tip retention), single rear vent, and striking blue-green mosaic shells inspired by Suzhou gardens—cool-wall approved with four compliments to one “meh.” Fit is semi-custom and a touch chunkier than P5; comfortable for most, a conditional pass for small ears. Note a sporadic batch quirk: some units have over-tight 2-pin sockets; exchanges fixed it for affected buyers.

Tuning sits in warm-leaning neutral territory. The dual dynamics deliver punchy, textured bass that rumbles without bloating; guitars and drums carry convincing weight. Mids are the star—rich, full-bodied, vocal-forward without shout, with clean separation and natural tone. Treble from the micro-planar is smooth yet energetic: cymbals and vocal harmonics sparkle, special effects have bite and body, and only treble-sensitives may find hot mixes a bit lively. Technicalities impress for the money—detail retrieval and nuance feel a class up—while stage and imaging are solid rather than showy.

Against peers: the Tangzu x HBB budget pick mirrors the overall tonality but P7 offers higher resolution and more treble finesse; the planar “Heyday” alternative is brighter/faster with leaner bass; versus Performer 5, P7 brings tighter low-end, smoother treble, and better extremes detail; the Fresh-collab competitor pushes vocals further forward with bigger stage but leaner lower mids. Verdict: a versatile all-rounder that suits broad libraries and even content creation thanks to its balanced tonality and detail. Not for bassheads, trebleheads, or strict Harman-lean seekers, and the accessory pack/cable quirk holds it back from a slam-dunk. For roughly $240, though, it’s a brilliant, resolving upgrade in the AFUL line.