GEEKFLY GF8 TWS IEM Review

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

GEEKFLY GF8 True Wireless IEM Review

 

Introduction:

GEEKFLY is a new company that is focused on the development and production of

High-End wireless audio products and has according to their website more than 20 invention patents in this area.

The GF8 is the first product of the company with some impressive hardware specs like a Triple Hybrid Driver configuration which is a combination of 1x Balanced Armature + 2x Piezoelectric Ceramic + 1x Dynamic Driver. It features also the latest Bluetooth standard 5.0, IPX5 Dust/Waterproof certification, MEAOES (multiple audio experiences) Technology for 3 types of sound modes and many more.

 

Disclaimer:

The GEEKFLY GF8 True Wireless IEM was provided to me by the company PENON Audio for review purposes. I am not affiliated with GEEKFLY or PENON Audio beyond this review and these words reflect my true and unaltered opinions about the product.

 

 

Price:

The MSRP price for the GEEKFLY GF8 is 99,00 USD and can be purchased from the link below;

 

 

 

Package and Accessories:

The TWS600 came in a small box which features the brandings, specification and illustrations of the product.

This box contains the following items;

  • 1 pair x GEEKFLY GF8 True Wireless In-Ear Monitor
  • 1 pcs x charging case
  • 3 pairs x Silicone Ear Tips
  • 1 pair x Foam Ear Tip
  • 1 pcs x USB Type-C cable
  • 1 pcs x User Manual/ Quick Star Guide

 

 

 

Design, Build Quality, Fit & Comfort:

The monitor shell of the GEEKFLY GF8 has a pretty simple industrial design language with a robust look and feel and is made of plastic in black color with exception of the metal sound nozzle.

The monitor is slightly bigger than Xiaomi Airdots and the TFZ X1/X3 but not overdone in its size especially for an IEM with a 4 drivers per monitor. It sits also pretty comfy in my ears that are average. The use of lightweight material like plastic is a second reason which makes the GF8 ideal to use for longer listening periods.

On the front part of the monitor that we call faceplate is a small LED status indicator and the GEEKFLY branding. The surface of the faceplate is a touch sensitive area and acts like a multifunctional button.

At the rear part of the monitor shell are the Left/Right indicators, the charging ports and the sound nozzle. The sound nozzle features a metal mesh on the top that prevents the insertion of unwanted particles like dust, ear-wax, etc.

The GEEKFLY GF8 comes with a small carrying & charging case like most TWS IEM’s on the market which is also made of the same black plastic material with a smooth surface. On the top of the Case is the GEEKFLY product branding.

At the bottom are some technical specifications and industrial certification of the GF8.

On the rear surface is the USB Type-C charging port, 4 LED indicators that light up in blue color while charging and a hinge in silver color.

When you open the case you will see the seats for the Wireless Monitors. These seats have a magnetic surface to ensure a tight/save connection for the charging process and to avoid any drop out of the monitors.

The case has a build in battery with a capacity of 580mAh and is pretty lightweight tanks to the use of plastic material.

 

 

 

Technical Specifications:

  • Driver Type                 : 1x BA + 2x Piezoelectric Ceramic + 1x Dynamic Driver
  • Frequency response   : 20Hz – 40kHz
  • Sensitivity                    : 104 dB
  • Impedance                  : 10 Ohm
  • Bluetooth version        : BT5.0
  • Bluetooth distance      : 10 meters
  • Bluetooth Mode          : HSP1.2/HEP1.7/A2DP1.3/AVRCP1.6/SPP1.2/PBAP1.0
  • Charging Port              : Type-C USB
  • Charging case battery : 580mAh
  • Earphones battery       : 3.7V 65mA*2
  • Battery Life                  : approx 4 Hours

 

 

Battery Life:

Each GEEKFLY GF8 monitor comes with a built in battery with a capacity of 65mAh, which offers a playtime of approx 3.5 – 4 hours while listening to your music.

The charging case which has a capacity of 580mah is able to fully charge each monitor for about 4 times.

 

 

Pairing, Navigation, Signal Strength & Call Quality:

The pairing process of the GEEKFLY GF8 is quite easy. The first step is to open the charging case cover and to put out the monitors from the seats and the second step is to touch the multifunctional surface of both the left and right monitor for about 10 seconds until the blue light flashes. Your phone, tablet, etc will detect the GF8 that you can now pair with it.

The signal strength of the GEEKFLY GF8 is quite ok which works stable in a distance around 7-8 meters at home, while the signal strength in open environments, for example outdoors does increase (without objects like walls, trees, etc.) up to 13-15 meters.

At the very beginning you need to get used in terms for control of the touch sensitive surface, but it works pretty well after while.

Here are some examples of the touch control option;

  • Voice assistant             : touch the right earphones 3 times
  • Pause playback            : touch the right earphones twice
  • Previous song              : touch the left earphone 3 times
  • Next song                    : touch the left earphone twice
  • Sound Mode Switch    : touch left and right earphones at the same time for more than 5 seconds

When it comes to the call quality I can say that the voice transmission quality paired with my Samsung Galaxy S9+ is on an average level, neither too muddy nor crystal clear.

 

 

Equipment’s used for this review:

  • TWS IEM’s                            : GEEKFLY GF8, HiFiMAN TWS600
  • Source                                  : Samsung Galaxy S9+, iPad Air2, Hidizs AP80 CU

 

 

 

 

Albums & tracks used for this review:
  • Massive Attack – Angel (Tidal Hi-Fi)
  • Lorde – Team (Flac 24bit/48kHz)
  • Metallica – Sad but True (Flac 24bit/96kHz)
  • Megadeth – Sweating Bullets (Tidal Hi-Fi)
  • Slayer – Angel of Death (Spotify)
  • Tom Player – Resonace Theory “Album” (Tidal Hi-Fi)
  • Liquid Tension Experiment 2 – Acid Rain (Spotify)
  • Edith Piaf – Non Je Ne Regrette Rien (Flac 24bit/48kHz)
  • Sertap Erener – Aşk (Spotify)
  • London Grammar – Interlud (Live) (Flac 24bit/44kHz)
  • Laura Pergolizzi – Lost On You “Live at Harvard and Stone” (Tidal Hi-Fi)
  • Leonard Cohen – You Wnt it Darker (Spotify)
  • Dave Gahan – Kingdom (Tidal Hi-Fi)
  • Eric Clapton – Wonderful Tonight True (Flac 24bit/96kHz)
  • Vivaldi – Le QuarttroStagioni “The Four Season” (Tidal Hi-Fi)
  • Otto Liebert& Luna Negra – The River (DSF) – Binaural Recording

 

 

 

The Sound:

 

MEAOES (Multiple Audio Experiences) Technology & Sound Modes:

The GEEKFLY GF8 features a so called “MEAOES technology” which is the word for Multiple Audio Experiences. You can switch between 3 different sound modes that do activate or deactivate some of the drivers.

The LED indicator shows you which mode is actually activated that I will list now below;

 

  • 1) Default Mode: Balanced Armature + Dynamic Driver (red light flashes for 10 seconds quickly)
  • 2) Hybrid mode: All 3 Drivers (red light lasts for 10 seconds)
  • 3) Ceramic Mode: Dynamic + piezoelectric Drivers (red light flashes slowly for 10 seconds)

 

a) Ceramic Mode (Dynamic + Piezoelectric Driver):

 The Ceramic Mode offers in general the warmest and fullest sound signature and is suitable for songs that do need some extra bass emphasis. Both the bass and the treble range are highlighted, while the midrange is less emphasized, which is a typical V-shaped sound signature.

The bass is pretty deep while the treble shows good extension which makes the Ceramic Mode compatible for genres like Pop, EDM and Hip-Hop. The soundstage width is on an average level while the depth is pretty good for a True Wireless IEM.

 

 

b) Default Mode (BA + Dynamic Driver):

The Default Mode offers a more forward oriented and transparent midrange presentation compared to the Ceramic Mode and is suitable for those who like a more intimate vocal presentation. The Default Mode shows a good bass depth and treble extension, while it is inferior to the Ceramic Mode in terms of bass intensity and quantity.

 

c) Hybrid Mode (All Drivers Activated):

The Hybrid Mode is the reference mode of the GEEKFLY GF8 and offers a more balanced sound signature compared to the Ceramic and Default mode. This mode is more genre friendly compared to the Ceramic & Default mode, while all three frequency regions (bass, midrange, treble) are close to each other in terms of detail retrieval. The Hybrid Mode shows less bass quantity and intensity compared to the other two modes, while the treble intensity and extension is superior.

The Hybrid Mode has a slightly warm tonality compared to the other two modes and is ideal for genres like Rock, Classic, Jazz and many other genres. The vocal presentation is brighter more transparent compared to the other modes.

 

PS: The Hybrid Mode will be the base of my sound analysis for the GEEKFLY GF8 review since it shows a more balanced sound signature compared to the Ceramic & Default Mode.

 

Bass:

The GEEKFLY GF8 has a good subbass depth and extension, with an emphasis that is not too little or too high. The tonality on the other hand is in general soft and warmish. The depth and emphasis of the subbass is sufficient for instruments like cross drums or guitars up to synthesizers and doesn’t show any lack of quantity while listening to most music genres.

The GEEKFLY GF8 has a full bodied, strong warm and fast midbass presentation. The midbass region is smooth, musical and pronounced without to show any remarkable muddiness and mixings. It has a good level of intensity and impact that is highly pleasant.

The general bass presentation is fast and controlled with a good level of detail and tightness. The bass is well tuned, so that it doesn’t comes to upfront that would negatively affect the stage and midrange.  The bass is in general smooth, clear and pretty detailed for a TWS IEM especially for a product at this price range.

 

Midrange:

The GEEKFLY GF8 shows a balanced, musical smooth and fairly airy midrange presentation, with a warmish full bodied tonality.

 

Vocals:

The GEEKFLY GF8 has a lower midrange that shows a good level of depth, which is an advantage for male vocals. Male vocals do sound soft, moderate thick and warm, without to sound veiled. The level of clarity and resolution is pretty good.

The GEEKFLY GF8 has a strong upper midrange emphasis; this is an important factor which makes the female vocal presentation quite detailed. Female vocals are more highlighted and detailed compared to male voices and do show a good level of transparency and airiness along with a nice softness and emotion.

 

Instruments:

The performance of the GEEKFLY GF8 in terms of placement and separation of instruments is good, without to show any remarkable congestion.

The instrument presentation of the GEEKFLY GF8 is on the warmer side and shows a fairly musical and natural tonality. The general presentation of instruments is full bodied and didn’t sound dry or thin. For example, acoustic guitars are bassy and have a sweat/warmish tonality. Especially violas that I really like to listen do sound emotional, quite natural and warm. Pianos have slightly bright tonality, while violins are soft and lush without to show any annoying sharpness.

 

Upper Midrange & Treble:

The upper midrange of the GEEKFLY GF8 is pronounced and do show a warmer than neutral tonality. The upper midrange transitions are pretty controlled while I have listen to some of my favorite metal tracks that could be sound otherwise fairly ear piercing. The GEEKFLY GF8 has in general a good upper midrange extension, everything from female vocals up to the violins are vivid, clear and detailed in its presentation, which I really didn’t  expected from a True Wireless IEM.

The GF8 has an accented and strong lower treble (presence) presentation. The treble shows a tad of warmth, is slightly bright but not overdone, which is the reason why the GF8 sound pretty musical in this frequency range. Instruments like hi-hats are highlighted and it the hits are clearly to hear. Crash and ride cymbals are fairly fast and controlled with a good level of extension. The treble range of the GF8 sounds quite controlled in fast piano passages of genres like jazz music. The level of airiness in the treble range is on an average level, while the tonality is in general more neutral than the rest of the sound spectrum.

 

Soundstage:

The GEEKFLY GF8 offers a good instrument separation and positioning. The separation of instruments and the vocals is also pretty good. The stage of the GF8 has a moderate width, while its depth is slightly more successful than.

 

 

 

Conclusion:

The GEEKFLY GF8 is not only the first product on the market to offer a True Wireless Triple Hybrid Driver configuration; it also has a unique feature called MEAOES Technology that offers 3 different sound signatures for your liking, which is a unique ability that we have seen for the first time on a TWS IEM. The best part is the sound performance which is impressive for a product at this price range with its solid bass, clear midrange and well extended treble tuning.

 

 

Pros & Cons: 

  • + Solid, Impactful Bass Performance
  • + Midrange Clarity and Musicality
  • + Treble Control & Extension
  • + 3 Different Sound Modes
  • + High Value for the Money
  • – No apt-X support

 

 

 

 

 

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2 Responses

  1. Mikhail says:

    Hello. Please tell me, does the indicator on the headphones blink while listening to music?

    • Gökhan AYDIN says:

      Hello Mikhail, no the indicator on the GF8 doesn’t block while listening to music.
      Cheers

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