Got the Cayin N3Pro back from refurbishment/replacement
Seems brand new. Tube amp on the go.
I'm glad to have my first stellar hifi digital audio player back from the vendor. MusicTeck came through again. The Cayin N3Pro is not just an entry-level hifi DAP, a step and a half up from the acclaimed Surfans F20 (which I had, and broke through my careless handling…putting a mass of keys in the same pocket as the Surfans 🙄).
Takeaway: if you want a good-sounding DAP with hi-res and DSD playback, that features two tube amps in addition to solid-state single-ended and balanced amps!…consider the Cayin N3Pro. For tube amplification (done with the smallest vacuum tubes I've ever seen) there are a triode mode and a brighter, ultra-linear mode, in addition to the solid-state single-ended and balanced amplification modes. So that's four amps in a small package. And, perhaps a reason in itself to check out this amp—a window allows you to see the glow of the heater filaments in each tiny tube. There is a 5-second countdown when switching from solid state to tube, to allow the heating filaments in each tube to warm up.
The N3Pro runs a single-ended line level output in addition to a standard 3.5-mm headphone output. It also has a 4.4-mm balanced output that doubles as a headphone output and a preamp output. Or line level (it says “PO” for the option to give high output through the 4.4-mm jack). The dedicated line-level output jack (3.5-mm) is from the single-ended solid-state amp. I've been listening through my home stereo, and it sounds very good! I wish I could get tube out—but I'm running it through my Schiit Valhalla 2 SET OTL tube headphone amp/preamp (link below).
Review: Schiit Audio’s all-tube Valhalla headphone amp and pre-amp†
I have owned my Schiit Audio (https://www.schiit.com) Valhalla headphone amp for a couple of years, though it seems like longer. It has become an integral component in my stereo system. It works as both a single ended-triode, output transformer-less headphone amp and as a pre-amp. First, it only takes one stereo input, through two RCA jacks, so a balanc…
The N3Pro is about half the size of the Cayin N7 (reviewed in an earlier post), and probably 1/3 to 1/4 the weight.
The pull-down control panel allows for control of the features, such as gain setting, amplification mode, DSD mode, USB/DAC, Bluetooth, and anything else that may apply to music playback…
…and there's another screen, a home screen, providing access to much more functionality.
My 1-TB miscro-SD card works with it, although the company-given card-size spec is something like 1/2 or 1/4 of that. So, I have put over 10,000 tracks that fill about half the card, onto the card, and they are available in the small package of the DAP, the N3Pro. I recommend it for really good audio with tube amplification in your pocket! Tubes can make a difference that makes my ears happy.
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