Description

Cayin Audio has been known in the international trade press for 25 years, as Cayin Audio is one of the best brands on the planet in the HiFi and mobile sectors among insiders who build very elegant devices at a very good price-performance ratio.

With the N8, Cayin has built the Rolls Royce as a walkman for on-the-go high resolution mobile players using their tube technology. More than 200 albums in dream sound quality can be stored here in the highest resolution and connected to smartphones or PCs. The N8 has a very high-quality digital converter and can be connected to any stereo system as a playback device and will certainly play some CD players in the 500 - 2000 euro price range and upgrade your hi-fi system. At the same time, you can also stream all top streaming services such as Tidal Audio, Spotify, Google Play in fantastic sound quality via Bluetooth.

The international trade press writes about the Cayin N8: THE HEADPHONE OUTPUT (BALANCED/UNBALANCED) AND LINE OUTPUT STAGES ARE HANDLED BY TRANSISTORS OR BY THE KORG FLAT VACUUM TUBE, DEPENDING ON WHAT THE USER CHOOSES. LASTLY, IT’S POSSIBLE TO TRANSMIT DATA WIRELESSLY FROM A SMARTPHONE OR TO COMPATIBLE HEADPHONES VIA APTX AND LDAC BLUETOOTH.

GOOD TO KNOW: THE Cayin N8 CAN BE CONTROLLED VIA BLUETOOTH IF THE HIBY CONTROL APP IS INSTALLED ON YOUR SMARTPHONE. AS SOON AS WE HEAR THE FIRST NOTES, WE FORGIVE THE N8 FOR ITS CONSIDERABLE WEIGHT, FOR HEATING UP EXCESSIVELY AND FOR NOT BEING POWERED BY THE SNAPDRAGON 845 SOC. THE TRANSISTOR MODE IS MORE MEASURED AND PRECISE, BUT MOST OF THE TIME WE LISTENED TO MUSIC WITH THE TUBE MODE… THERE’S JUST NO COMPARISON.

Sony NW-WM1Z: the Sony has a better interface. But when it comes to sound, it's colder, less engaging and less powerful. Astell&Kern A&ultima SP1000: the A&K SP1000 has a double Asahi Kasei DAC, but no tube. Undeniably an excellent DAP, with irreproachable ergonomics. But its sound is not quite as good as the Cayin N8’s.

The Cayin N8 and the pocket triode

Cayin uses the new Korg NU Tube 6P1 double triode. The Japanese at Korg have developed the electron tube in mini format, which, strictly speaking, is not an electron tube, but the vacuum fluorescence display technology developed by Noritake Itron is used here. Here the electrons travel from a cathode, which is heated, to the anode via a grid. The whole number is an LED rather than a tube. The power consumption is extremely reduced and is around 2% of that of a comparable tube. Mobility is only possible through this engineering masterpiece. In addition, this LED tube has a disproportionately longer service life than a conventional triode.