buihia
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Not that I come across for N5. In fact I have not seen any user contribution / screenshot of their N6 themes... hmm
Cayin N5 DAP - Product Info (Post #2), Resources (Post #3) and Discussion
- Thread starter hakushondaimao
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Not that I come across for N5. In fact I have not seen any user contribution / screenshot of their N6 themes... hmm
Nope, N5 theme development kit never existed, not yet. But I was told by colleagues someone has used N6 theme kit to develop N5 theme for personal use.
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Cool. Maybe I'll give it a shot soon and see what people think.
buihia
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Today's rig
Dudes, this Dignis case is SEXAY!!!
I'm using the wine colour case as well, my favorite part of the case is the back, which looks padded but its actually not! The quality feels so supple and nice
Crease appeared on the low left corner on day two though, just directly above the charging port.
I'm looking forward to the "seasoned" look... the shine will definitely add some character to the case !
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It's my fave Dignis case yet!
x RELIC x
Headphoneus Supremus
Nik, if you have the FiiO unpacking tools just edit the 'unpack.bat' and 'pack.bat' files to replace the firmware name to 'n5.fw'. I just tried it and it works.
Andy, the firmware version3.0 took forever to download for just 33mb. You may want to look at a faster server. :wink_face:
As I mentioned previously through PM, I don't have Mac computer available handy, so I have asked the Engineer to verify the situation, we didn't run into any problem so far.
You mentioned "a message about dsp and 0 bits" previously, and now you "get a message about dsd and a frequency", maybe this warning message is part of the problem that we need to look into, can you do a screen capture or take a photo of the screen and PM to me? I'll forward the warning message to the Engineer concerned and hopefully we can generate some insight to the issue.
Yes! Another N5 + Zen 2.0 fan
I know Andykong questioned whether N5 can power Zen 2.0 effectively, but I'd say it's a matter of priorities. Of course it won't sound as good as desktop gear, but it still sounds damn good and is much easier to move around with!
:wink_face:
Absolutely right buddy, I find it needs hi-gain and about 35 on volume dial.
I do hope the N5 can handle the zen v2.0 alright, I only have the v1.0 and both N5 and N6 didn't do justice with the zen v1.0, I need to add C5 to the chain in order to achieve reasonable good result, and the zen v1.0 sounds wonderful when driven by the iDAC-6/iHA-6 combo.
I'll bring the zen 1.0 with me to CanJam SoCal, those who want to check it out with N5/N6/C5 can drop by our booth if you were around.
Many Thanks, most appreciated.
I remember watching your N6 open box video review as well, you are very hardworking and consistent my friend, salute to your effort.
The particular format that don't work with N5 is DST encoding, and this included both DST-encoded SACD-ISO and DST encoded DFF files.
From what I understanding, this is a specific encoding format primarily set for multichannel applications in DSD domain, but it is NOT limited to multichannel in terms of formatting. Because of the compression features in DST encoding, some user will employ this to stereo DSD material, this might help to trim down the storage requirement, but lead to a much larger processing requirement at playback, as you need to decompress while you play the file. This is kind of OK to desktop device or CAS, but a nightmare to DAP.
If you checked the file extracted, it is likely that the DFF file is no longer DST-encoded. DSF is uncompressed format and therefore will not have the DST encoded issue at all.
QP1R vs N5 vs N6: A Brief Comparison
There have already been lots of reviews on the N6 and N5, so in this comparison I focus on the differences between the DAPs.
@Andykong
from Cayin contacted me back in Sept. last year to see if I was interested in reviewing their DAPs. I said why not but due to my travel schedule I didn't get the units until 3 months later. I am not affiliated with Cayin in any way.
Note: The QP1R is my own.
General
Questyle QP1R: M.S.R.P. USD $899
Cayin N5: USD $349 at Amazon
Cayin N6: USD $599 at Amazon
Build
All three have very high quality all-metal construction and are fairly bulky (especially the N6). It's nice to see such build on the N5 its price point: for USD $349 (Amazon) or RMB 2099 (Taobao) you get a full metal housing and a carbon fiber back panel. The QP1R has Gorillas Glass on the front and back.
Firmware
These DAPs have very similar functionality as well as shortcomings such as the 5,800 (*) songs limit for tag browsing (since they all share the same codebase of the Ingenic SoC.) If you're like me who only uses folder browsing then you'll be fine with any of them.Sadly there is no gapless playback support on the Cayin DAPs. (EDIT: Seems like the N5 supports Gapless in later firmware)
(*) With the 1.0.5 firmware the limit has been raised to 9,999 on the QP1R.
Feature Comparison
N5 N6 QP1R Volume Control Buttons Buttons+scroll wheel AK-style rotary decoder DAC Chip AK4490EQ PCM1792 CS4398 No. of Card Slots 2 1 2 Line out Shared with PO Dedicated Dedicated, variable voltage USB DAC Yes(+) Yes(+) No USB3 File Transfer Yes No No Balanced Output Yes No No Digital Output Coaxial Coaxial Optical No. of Gain Levels 2 2 3
(+) Didn't work with my iPhone 6, got "This accessory requires too much power". I'd like to see this fixed on the next-generation Cayin players.
Sound
Gear used: I used my UERM and NT6-Pro CIEMs for most of the listening, and a FIIO HS2 for switching quickly between DAPs. I tried my best to match volume by ear (didn't have a SPL meter.)
I didn't test the 2.5mm balanced out on the N5 since it's too noisy with my earphones.
QP1R vs N6
Both are neutral and after volume matching, I actually had trouble telling them apart. These two are not only close in signature but also in performance. I would say the QP1R has little bass depth, slightly better clarity and a tad wider soundstage. TBH I doubt I'd be able to tell them apart in a blind test.
N5 vs N6/QP1R
The N5 has smoother and a slightly warmer but still kind of neutral tonality. Soundstage is smaller giving it a more intimate feeling. Detail level is actually quite good but cannot match the other two, which is especially apparent with well-recorded classical music. Also the N5 has slightly more mid-bass to my ears giving music a more lively feeling.
Power
The QP1R is pretty good at driving planars due to its current mode amplification. I once tried the HE560 and HE1000 at a audio shop; the HE560 sounded great and HE1000 wasn't bad at all, though I had to max out the volume at high gain. Unfortunately I didn't get a chance to try full-size headphones on the N5 and N6.
Summary
I'm impressed by what the N5 and N6 can do in the SQ department at their price points and I'd certainly pick the N6 over the QP1R if it were a little smaller, had a more modern design and dual card slots. If you are mostly into pop or rock music then the N5 is a very good choice, too.
I'd like to thank @Andykong
of Cayin for loaning me their DAPs. I had the pleasure of meeting Andy in person and learned a great deal about DAP development from him. I am very excited for what Cayin brings to the table in 2016!
My sincere thanks for pekingduck to taking the time to check out N5 and N6 in the middle of his packed schedule. I am sure your contribution and sharing is appreciated by the N5/N6 community.
Just want to keep you updated on one small issue. The upper limit of Music Library in N5 has been increased from 5500 titles to 15,000 titles when we release the firmware v3.0, and so far the respond is positive, the database operation is smooth and selecting songs from Music categories is reasonable fast after the update, even when over 10,000 music files is involved. The following firmware release note has documented the detail of changes.
www.head-fi.org/t/771208/cayin-n5-dap-product-info-post-2-resources-post-3-and-discussion/1170#post_12189547
Thanks again for your informative replies!
In a way is a pity that the N5 does not share the same DAC chip as the Mojo (as I had thought) as it would have been interesting to compare different design philosophies.
Andy paid a visit over to the Mojo thread a while back if my memory is correct, which to me shows his passion for his job which is nice to see.
Anyway I still have the N5 in the basket ready to press the point of return button but will likely hold off until I decide what to do with the Mojo I have - which I am using less than I was expecting!
Will the search ever end! :rolleyes:
Indeed, I have showed up briefly at the Mojo thread, that was the time when I borrowed a Mojo from a dealer and I was testing the DoP output from the N5 firmware v3.0 with Mojo, just to confirmed it works alright before we release the firmware. Unfortunately I probably has triggered the nerve of individual members in the Mojo and the exchanges was kind of tensed and awkward, so I backed off and become a CD-ROM to the Mojo thread now.
The Mojo is indeed great value for money and exceeded the N5 in many ways. If you plan to use a mobile phone as music source and needed a DAC/amp, the Mojo probably is a better solution to you. Alternatively if you want to achieve better result by using a DAP as the music source to the Mojo, then I recommend you check out N5 seriously. The dual TF card, small format, long battery life and last but not least, the coaxial DoP capability make it a perfect companion to the Mojo.
I do not see the Mojo and N5 as exclusive choice, so do check it out when you run into it later.
x RELIC x
Headphoneus Supremus
Indeed, I have showed up briefly at the Mojo thread, that was the time when I borrowed a Mojo from a dealer and I was testing the DoP output from the N5 firmware v3.0 with Mojo, just to confirmed it works alright before we release the firmware. Unfortunately I probably has triggered the nerve of individual members in the Mojo and the exchanges was kind of tensed and awkward, so I backed off and become a CD-ROM to the Mojo thread now.
The Mojo is indeed great value for money and exceeded the N5 in many ways. If you plan to use a mobile phone as music source and needed a DAC/amp, the Mojo probably is a better solution to you. Alternatively if you want to achieve better result by using a DAP as the music source to the Mojo, then I recommend you check out N5 seriously. The dual TF card, small format, long battery life and last but not least, the coaxial DoP capability make it a perfect companion to the Mojo.
I do not see the Mojo and N5 as exclusive choice, so do check it out when you run into it later.
A very refreshing and realistic reply from a Cayin sponsor. Double thumbs up Andy!
Light - Man
Headphoneus Supremus
Indeed, I have showed up briefly at the Mojo thread, that was the time when I borrowed a Mojo from a dealer and I was testing the DoP output from the N5 firmware v3.0 with Mojo, just to confirmed it works alright before we release the firmware. Unfortunately I probably has triggered the nerve of individual members in the Mojo and the exchanges was kind of tensed and awkward, so I backed off and become a CD-ROM to the Mojo thread now.
The Mojo is indeed great value for money and exceeded the N5 in many ways. If you plan to use a mobile phone as music source and needed a DAC/amp, the Mojo probably is a better solution to you. Alternatively if you want to achieve better result by using a DAP as the music source to the Mojo, then I recommend you check out N5 seriously. The dual TF card, small format, long battery life and last but not least, the coaxial DoP capability make it a perfect companion to the Mojo.
I do not see the Mojo and N5 as exclusive choice, so do check it out when you run into it later.
Thanks Andy! on HF we all know that there is always someone poised ready to take offense and a place where egos abound! but we should not let it put us off.
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