[kmmbd]

I had two great weeks with the Cayin N3Pro and could finally finish my review. Here is it on head-fi: https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/cayin-n3pro.24695/review/25146/

The review can also be found on Audioreviews: https://www.audioreviews.org/cayin-n3pro-review-kmm/

To summarize: this is a unique DAP in the sea of Android-totting ones that embraces tubes as a part of the whole experience. In fact, I mostly used the single-ended of the N3Pro solely because the balanced out didn't have the tube signature and I really liked the sound in the Triode mode. I am not a big fan of Ultralinear mode, however, but that may vary upon preferences.

Cayin has truly brought something different to the market and kudos to them for that.

 

[Lokiiami]

Wondering is this normal for volume.to be reduced when I turned on the equaliser function and then volume further reduced when I boost one of the frequencies?

 

[seanwee]

Just got an N3 Pro and I'm already having a number of issues.

When browsing through folders, if I go too deep the device just freezes then restarts. So I let it scan for songs a build a library but after that when i try to use folder explorer it's all messed up and shows all songs out of their folders.

Has anyone experienced these problems before and how can I fix it?

 

[PopZeus]

Just got an N3 Pro and I'm already having a number of issues.

When browsing through folders, if I go too deep the device just freezes then restarts. So I let it scan for songs a build a library but after that when i try to use folder explorer it's all messed up and shows all songs out of their folders.

Has anyone experienced these problems before and how can I fix it?

Yeah, apparently, the folder system can only go 3 levels deep before it crashes the app.

 

[seanwee]

Yeah, apparently, the folder system can only go 3 levels deep before it crashes the app.

Well thats a bummer.

@Andykong maybe Cayin could implement a loading bar to compensate for the slower processor speed? Rather than just crash outright when the processor can't finish the task instantly. Or maybe cut down on UI cosmetics to free up more resources for the cpu, or maybe make the disable album art toggle disable album art when browsing folders as well.

It can definitely be done, the Ingenic X1000 is a widely used cpu in daps and yet only the N8 and N3 Pro have issues with folder browsing.

 

[Andykong]

Wondering is this normal for volume.to be reduced when I turned on the equaliser function and then volume further reduced when I boost one of the frequencies?

Yes, that's normal, when you enable EQ, the output will drop 6dB by design, this is a precaution procedure as well as create more headroom for EQ tuning. In case someone pushed the EQ output to +12 in multiple frequency bands, he/she might suffer very loud volume increase when you toggle between EQ On and Off, might even clip the amplifier or damage the earphone if the volume was set at very high level before EQ kicks in.

 

[Andykong]

I had two great weeks with the Cayin N3Pro and could finally finish my review. Here is it on head-fi: https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/cayin-n3pro.24695/review/25146/

The review can also be found on Audioreviews: https://www.audioreviews.org/cayin-n3pro-review-kmm/

To summarize: this is a unique DAP in the sea of Android-totting ones that embraces tubes as a part of the whole experience. In fact, I mostly used the single-ended of the N3Pro solely because the balanced out didn't have the tube signature and I really liked the sound in the Triode mode. I am not a big fan of Ultralinear mode, however, but that may vary upon preferences.

Cayin has truly brought something different to the market and kudos to them for that.

Thank you very much for your contribution in the N3Pro tour, it's a nice to have different opinion. While majority of the users in this thread prefer Ultralinear, its very important to have some senior users endorse and recognise the beautiful presentation in Triode mode.

 

[Andykong]

Cayin makes a USB-C to COAX cable, not S/PIDF

https://shop.musicteck.com/collections/cayin/products/type-c-to-coaxial-cable?variant=37432238606

The Type-C to Coaxial Cable is a S/PDIF cable, Coaxial is part of the S/PDIF digital audio protocol.

 

[seanwee]

Thank you very much for your contribution in the N3Pro tour, it's a nice to have different opinion. While majority of the users in this thread prefer Ultralinear, its very important to have some senior users endorse and recognise the beautiful presentation in Triode mode.

10 hours in and I prefer Triode mode as well, contrary to what I was expecting. Ultralinear sounds like it pushes the mids forwards so it didn't sound as natural to me. In some songs it does shine but for the majority of songs I prefer do prefer Triode.

 

[Andykong]

I just posted my review for the N3Pro Cayin loaned out to me.

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/cayin-n3pro.24695/reviews#item-review-25095

Overall pretty satisfied with the product, lots of sound signature options and with a small, compact form factor I feel it is a good option in the mid range DAP market.

Thank you, a very straight-to-the-point DAP review, your choice of IEM has leaked your seniority in this hobby. I have owned the Sony EX1000 twice, and I have lost them twice. This was the dark history of my Headfi hobby. The EX1000 is near-perfect to me on tonal characteristic and audio performance, my only complain is the second to none isolation.

By the way, I can't say the N3Pro build like a tank and you won't be able to break it with any drop or knock down, but I have performed multiple "unintentional" drop tests on this DAP already. The N6ii and N8 are bulky so you can feel it anytime, the N3Pro is portable to the level that, in several occasions, I have forgotten about many times when I have a long ride on bus or underground, so when I reach my destination and get up from my seat, the N3Pro just fell to the ground - I simply forget I have put my DAP on my lap or something when I was listening to my earphone and remote control via HiByLink.

 

[Andykong]

A few people showed interest in my earlier post about battery management when the N3Pro is used as a USB DAC/amp - both for the DAP itself and the host device. The setup above was inspired by E1DA’s “red wire” mod, in which you use a Y-splitter to feed the PowerDAC with data from a phone and current from an external battery, and cut the charge (red) wire from the end that goes into the phone so the splitter is forced to draw power from the battery.

In spite of its undeniable Cold War spy movie chic, I wasn’t so keen on this mod, especially the part where both the current and the data transit between high-quality devices through a crappy $2 generic splitter with presumably high manufacturing tolerances and no particular concern for audio - which on top of that you’ve pried open then sealed back shut.

The device above allows the same fundamental setup but it’s a reliable little hub with an aluminum enclosure, more substantial but still small and lightweight, that doubles as an SD, MicroSD and TF card reader (cool of you dabble into photography too). The phone has to be plugged into the white USB-C cable that sticks out from the hub itself, and the battery then charges both the DAP at a reasonable rate and the phone, lightly (in my case it’s keeping the battery reading stable). This is the page on amazon.de, (it’s a German brand), I found mine on amazon FR, if you search for “kwmobile hub” you’ll find it easily.

I’m happy this way, but it doesn’t address the fact that charging can’t be switched off at all on the N3Pro. @Andykong dismissed my concern and wrote it had been discussed before, but I remember that part of the thread and it wasn’t about that exact issue. I still fail to understand why I can toggle the charging on or off on my Qudelix-5K and not on the N3Pro when both have their own battery.

I also encounter little pops and artefacts on LDAC receiver mode that I don’t understand. It doesn’t seem to be tube-related because I get them in SS mode too. Nor interference, which I get when sticking the DAP and my phone together but is otherwise well managed. Anyone else experience this? @Stuff Jones do you still get those pops in USB mode or did firmware updates take care of them?

The Y splitter cable is technically feasible but I have not recommended to other users simply because of the reason you have mentioned. If I could find a high quality Y Splitter adapter or cable months ago when this problem were first reported, I definitely will provide the link and use this as the escape course to the limitation of N3Pro USB power drain issue. There are actually quite a lot of adapters designed for this purpose in China, and they are mainly develop to facilitate unlimited playtime on mobile game (which is a huge business in China), but as you said, these are low-quality implementations.

For the record, I didn't dismiss you, but I can't continue the dialogue when you don't accept my answer. I have told you that we need an alternative power supply path so that you can switch between charging and not-charging in the menu, we don't have that in N3Pro, so that is not feasible. You asked me 100 time, and you get the same answer 100 times. I can't comment on the implementation of other brands, other products, and I don't think you are certain that they didn't have the alternative power supply path build in as I have explained, you only see the menu choice, you didn't know their power management design. which is something you can't observe even when open up the chassis - unless you have special vision that can see through the circuit inside multi-layer PCB.

 

[Andykong]

https://www.head-fi.org/showcase/cayin-n3pro.24695/reviews

Posted my review.

Thank you very much for your contribution to N3Pro tour.

The link will lead you to the review page of N3Pro, to access Gordec's review directly, check HERE.

Glad to run into a reviewer who "didn’t quite enjoy the pure tube mode, but I think the tubes add value to the Ultralinear mode". Finally I find the right person to answer this question: Will you pay for a N3Pro when you are not attracted by the tube sound? My Sales Manager probably don't like this question, but I think this is a valid question to the portable headfi community.

By the way, looks like you have an IEM cable that can switch among different connectors, 2.5/3.5/4.4? I have a DUNU and a Dita cable that works like that, so brand/model IEM cable is this?

 

[Andykong]

Yeah, apparently, the folder system can only go 3 levels deep before it crashes the app.

This is not the situation we have discovered in our past discussion in HERE, HERE and HERE. No one is having any problem with 4 levels of subfolders, someone reported system crashed at 5 levels of folder hierarchy, and when we test the limit, we start to hit into problem at 7th level (yes, the 6th level folders works fine in our test).

 

[seanwee]

This is not the situation we have discovered in our past discussion in HERE, HERE and HERE. No one is having any problem with 4 levels of subfolders, someone reported system crashed at 5 levels of folder hierarchy, and when we test the limit, we start to hit into problem at 7th level (yes, the 6th level folders works fine in our test).

Any clue why this is happening? Folder browsing should be a trivial task.

Other daps with the Ingenic X1000 cpu don't have this problem so there must be something wrong with the code. The original Cayin N3 worked flawlessly so its not like Cayin hasn't made good daps with this cpu before.

 

[Zambu]

@seanwee What exactly do you mean by "crashing the app", is it like a forced restart or what? I've never had anything that I would call an actual crash, but sometimes the UI becomes unresponsive for 2-3 seconds, like pressing a few keys in quick succession and then it eventually gets there in a bit.
But my simple folder structure (2-3 levels) which mostly just means "albums in root folder" seems ideal here.