SILENCER SATURDAY #191: The Beast Unleashed – The Dead Air Silencers Primal

Good afternoon everyone and welcome back to TFB’s Silencer Saturday brought to you by our friends at Yankee Hill Machine, manufacturers of the YHM Turbo K rifle suppressor. Last week we get a basic overview of the very capable SilencerCo 36M modular suppressor. This week we have a review of the brand new Dead Air Silencers Primal – a multi-caliber, multi-host suppressor that can handle anything from rimfire to .338 Lapua. That’s quite an accomplishment, especially coming from a company known for making quiet, well-engineered silencers. So, is this your next suppressor purchase? Let’s take a look.

Above: The Dead Air Primal can suppress the H&K MK23 and the H&K SP5K.

I’m beginning to sound like a broken record: do-it-all suppressors are usually not my cup of tea. But, since I’m not the typical silencer owner, I have to keep myself in check. While I prefer to have dedicated suppressors for most hosts, I am a special case in that most people don’t have an NFA disease that coaxes you into spending their retirement money on silly metal tubes.

But after spending time with the 36M last week and the Primal this week, I believe I’m maturing as a silencer owner. While there are some detractors to multi-caliber and multi-host silencers, when designed correctly, they are an excellent way to gain functionality without investing in additional tax stamps.

Let’s take a look at the details.

The pistol hosts suppressed very well with the Primal. While it is not the quietest pistol suppressor I’ve shot, it was better than I expected. The H&K SMG suppressed decently – the .458 bore may have made it louder than other options. Blowback was very minimal.

All of the supersonic rifle rounds seemed to perform on par with other rifle silencers currently on the market. Without proper metering equipment, it would be difficult to make any conclusions based on the perception of the shooter’s ear alone. Anecdotally, the AR-10 was my favorite host out of all the supersonic rifle calibers.

Where I believe I can offer the most insight is with the subsonic 300BLK hosts. I’ve shot a decent amount of 300BLK over the years and have earned my Blackout Connoisseur merit badge. First, there is a noticeable first round pop. Not obnoxious or annoying, but it’s there. That was a bit of a surprise since Dead Air has always ranked high in the absence of FRP (the Nomad line). After the first shot, the rest of the rounds suppressed well above average. Impressive when factoring in the over generous bore size.

When making your decision whether or not the Primal meets your needs, I would evaluate it holistically – that is don’t judge it based on the performance of a single round or host. This is a Swiss Army Knife, not a scalpel, butcher knife, or EDC folder. With the Primal, you could suppress nearly every threaded barrel in your safe. Why quibble over a decibel or two when in a few minutes you can go from a .45-70 rifle to a 9mm pistol. That’s the Primal’s real power.

Thanks for reading. Be safe and we’ll see you back here next weekend for another Silencer Saturday.