Cayin N6II Review
Accessories:
It comes with a leather cases, a pretty sturdy braided cable USB 3 cable, Cayin’s 2.5mm to 4.4mm adapter, and a glass screen protector. It comes with a preinstalled screen protector already on too. Packaging wise it seems to very much fit the general style of Cayin like the YB04 box. It comes with a A01 motherboard but there is also an option to buy the T01 motherboard.
Ports:
It comes with a line out, a 3.5mm jack, a 4.4mm balanced headphone jack which is also a line out. SPDIF out through USB-C which is also the charging port, a IIS out via mini HDMI and a micro SD card port allowing use of SDHC and SHXC up to 512GB.
Build Quality:
The moment I first had it, I noticed that it was very sturdy, and hefty. As well as all these features you have really make me wish I could just replace my smartphone with this. The volume knob is very clicky when turning it and acts as well as a clicky power on and off button. It also has a rewind/previous song, pause/play and forward/next song button that are both equally as nice of feel.
General use:
My experience with the N6II Mk2 at home was amazing as it offered such amazing sound quality, often emphasizing and everything my SDAC-B and Atoms can already do and surpassing it. It is somewhat portable, but for me as someone who finds that smartphones are getting too big and I can’t even fit most in my pockets. The N6II Mk2 wasn’t the most portable friendly player I’ve seen. It is a bit too heavy, and it can get a bit warm which might cause issues in the summertime although I'm completely happy to have it in the winter now. The case does a good job of making the heat mostly nonexistent to touch though. Generally, I felt like I needed to bring a bag and leave the N6II there if I wanted to have my hands free to do anything else. Maybe if there was some sort of arm strap for DAPs, I might like it more for outside use while still having my hands free.
Interface Experience:
For the most part I found it to be adequate and snappy enough for a SD 425. It doesn’t have that same snappy experience as something like my LG v20 or even an S8 I also have at home. But for a DAP I don’t think you really need the fastest experience. The music player doesn’t lag at all and it greatly benefits using something energy efficient for more play time.
Sound quality:
A01:
The A01 easily was my favorite of the two motherboards you can get with the N6II. It has a very warm, full body sound. I originally thought my s-dac balanced and atoms were warm, but this takes it to another level. The YB04 greatly benefited from this as I thought it was a bit on the brighter side a bit. The sound not only sounds very warm and relaxing, I feel as if they really take the YB04 to another level in all categories such as micro detail all around, clarity and just how immersive the YB04 can be. I did also notice that the A01 really seemed to soften the mids a bit in a good way. The YB04 greatly benefited from this as I found it a bit too forward in the upper midrange. I wasn’t much of a person that believed dacs/amps have drastic changes in sound, but this experience really opened my eyes. I had no trouble driving any of my headphones here with the HD 800, HD 580 and DT 990 250 ohms being my hardest to drive. I only had to use low gain at 40/100 volume at most.
T01:
My experience with the T01 was great as well as it offered a somewhat similar level of detail, clarity and immersiveness. Although I found the A01 to be a bit more immersive with the soundstage and imaging just a bit better on it. The mids with the YB04 just felt a bit too forward for my preference and wasn't my favorite pairing. The bass sort of takes on a more neutral feel with the YB04 similar to how my atoms and sdac felt. The T01 I felt better to be paired with the HD 580/650 I have. From ears, they both felt similar levels of power they can both push out.
Both motherboards really make the YB04 a much more capable IEM, with these pairings I sort of find it to be surpassing the RE2000 in technicalities. Even the Bass texture on these seem to have gotten better to compare to the RE2000 but not quite there but it got closer. The only issue I have with this pairing is that the YB04 paired on these motherboards seem to have some noise. It’s not unlistenable like my LG v20 was but it is noticeable. My JDS atoms being pretty much completely clean and is a cheap alternative if you just want something noise free, but you are losing so much detail in comparison to the N6II Mk2 with either the A01 or T01. My HD 800 also exhibited some noise as well but no where near as the level as the YB04. All my other headphones like the HD 580, 650 and 595 seemed to not have this issue.
I also noticed some popping noise in between songs that namely have a different bit, or sample rate and to a much lesser extent the bitrate. This happened on the A01 and T01. For example, switching from a song that is 16bit 44khz with a bit rate of 600 kbps to a 24bit 192khz 6000kbps would yield the loudest pop. It was evident at first in the T01 and the A01 although I am noticing it isn’t as loud right now while I am writing. I am possibly guessing a buildup of heat can make it louder, but I am not completely sure. It didn’t make a difference if it was locally on the device or through a micro SD card. Also only really used the Cayin Music app.
In comparison to my LG v20 it doesn’t really seem to have this issue, but it may be because it just downscales all my music to a similar bit/sample rate.
Bluetooth:
To me I am not a huge fan of Bluetooth. I still very much prefer wired options as my experience with tws earbuds has been hissy/noisy messes. Using the Bluetooth on the N6II Mk2 I noticed that is it SO much cleaner than my LG v20 included BT. It makes my cheap TWS earbuds listenable to which I was surprised they can sound anywhere near good. They pair also easily in comparison to the LG v20 taking much longer than it needs to.
Cayin Music App:
I never really used any other apps besides Foobar2000 or the included app on my LG v20, but the Cayin Music App was decent. I didn’t really have any issues with the interface at all and it was pretty feature packed and all I needed was included. The equalizer on it was alright from my experience, it wasn’t as clean of an EQ as it is on the PC but on the go it works fine. As well as the included Replay Gain due to my tracks being variably different in their gains worked well. I can't really have any complaints about it as it never caused any issues.
Screen:
The viewing angles are great on it and I don’t see any issues with it. The screen being a little small if you ever want to browse the web but, it’s fine for a music player majority of the time case. Colors also seem to be represented accurately as well.
Power on time:
For this test I used the YB04 at 18/100 on low gain and the HD 800 at 40/100 on low gain as well as the Cayin Music App. The screen was set to 50/100 as well with wifi and BT turned off.
On a continuous basis of nonstop FLACs playing at 16bit 44khz to 24bit 192khz I found myself having about 8.5 hours of use on the YB04 and 7 hours of use on the HD 800.
Charging back to 50% took me about 1 hour and to 100% about 3 hours in total.
Random thoughts:
Using the Cayin N6II Mk2 I did find it the volume knob to be a little too sensitive. I usually find myself accidentally turning up or down the volume knob. I think maybe it might be better to have a button for volume. While the N6II Mk2 is quite feature packed I think it would be amazing if the battery on it could be user replaceable. For the most part it lasts pretty much a whole workday for me but eventually batteries do lose their charge. Although I do like the clicky power on and off button a double tap to wake on screen I feel would be a great addition to the N6II Mk2. The device itself is also very prone to get fingerprints, mostly on the screen and back part.
Also found these really cool Hi-Res Audio stickers with the manual.
Would I buy it?
It is on the pricier side of what I can afford right now. But from my experience it was amazing to see what it could do and how much it can make the YB04 stand out. Basically takes everything it does well and brings it to another level. The only other issues I might have with this is pairing it with a sensitive IEM, and the possibility of having the battery loss of its charge in the long term. If I had the money, I think it would be a compelling offer on its features, and musical sound to get it, although my experience in the DAP market is limited.
Thanks to Andykong and Cayin for supplying the N6ii A01 + T01 and YB04. Really appreciated it and was a fun experience.
Accessories:
It comes with a leather cases, a pretty sturdy braided cable USB 3 cable, Cayin’s 2.5mm to 4.4mm adapter, and a glass screen protector. It comes with a preinstalled screen protector already on too. Packaging wise it seems to very much fit the general style of Cayin like the YB04 box. It comes with a A01 motherboard but there is also an option to buy the T01 motherboard.
Ports:
It comes with a line out, a 3.5mm jack, a 4.4mm balanced headphone jack which is also a line out. SPDIF out through USB-C which is also the charging port, a IIS out via mini HDMI and a micro SD card port allowing use of SDHC and SHXC up to 512GB.
Build Quality:
The moment I first had it, I noticed that it was very sturdy, and hefty. As well as all these features you have really make me wish I could just replace my smartphone with this. The volume knob is very clicky when turning it and acts as well as a clicky power on and off button. It also has a rewind/previous song, pause/play and forward/next song button that are both equally as nice of feel.
General use:
My experience with the N6II Mk2 at home was amazing as it offered such amazing sound quality, often emphasizing and everything my SDAC-B and Atoms can already do and surpassing it. It is somewhat portable, but for me as someone who finds that smartphones are getting too big and I can’t even fit most in my pockets. The N6II Mk2 wasn’t the most portable friendly player I’ve seen. It is a bit too heavy, and it can get a bit warm which might cause issues in the summertime although I'm completely happy to have it in the winter now. The case does a good job of making the heat mostly nonexistent to touch though. Generally, I felt like I needed to bring a bag and leave the N6II there if I wanted to have my hands free to do anything else. Maybe if there was some sort of arm strap for DAPs, I might like it more for outside use while still having my hands free.
Interface Experience:
For the most part I found it to be adequate and snappy enough for a SD 425. It doesn’t have that same snappy experience as something like my LG v20 or even an S8 I also have at home. But for a DAP I don’t think you really need the fastest experience. The music player doesn’t lag at all and it greatly benefits using something energy efficient for more play time.
Sound quality:
A01:
The A01 easily was my favorite of the two motherboards you can get with the N6II. It has a very warm, full body sound. I originally thought my s-dac balanced and atoms were warm, but this takes it to another level. The YB04 greatly benefited from this as I thought it was a bit on the brighter side a bit. The sound not only sounds very warm and relaxing, I feel as if they really take the YB04 to another level in all categories such as micro detail all around, clarity and just how immersive the YB04 can be. I did also notice that the A01 really seemed to soften the mids a bit in a good way. The YB04 greatly benefited from this as I found it a bit too forward in the upper midrange. I wasn’t much of a person that believed dacs/amps have drastic changes in sound, but this experience really opened my eyes. I had no trouble driving any of my headphones here with the HD 800, HD 580 and DT 990 250 ohms being my hardest to drive. I only had to use low gain at 40/100 volume at most.
T01:
My experience with the T01 was great as well as it offered a somewhat similar level of detail, clarity and immersiveness. Although I found the A01 to be a bit more immersive with the soundstage and imaging just a bit better on it. The mids with the YB04 just felt a bit too forward for my preference and wasn't my favorite pairing. The bass sort of takes on a more neutral feel with the YB04 similar to how my atoms and sdac felt. The T01 I felt better to be paired with the HD 580/650 I have. From ears, they both felt similar levels of power they can both push out.
Both motherboards really make the YB04 a much more capable IEM, with these pairings I sort of find it to be surpassing the RE2000 in technicalities. Even the Bass texture on these seem to have gotten better to compare to the RE2000 but not quite there but it got closer. The only issue I have with this pairing is that the YB04 paired on these motherboards seem to have some noise. It’s not unlistenable like my LG v20 was but it is noticeable. My JDS atoms being pretty much completely clean and is a cheap alternative if you just want something noise free, but you are losing so much detail in comparison to the N6II Mk2 with either the A01 or T01. My HD 800 also exhibited some noise as well but no where near as the level as the YB04. All my other headphones like the HD 580, 650 and 595 seemed to not have this issue.
I also noticed some popping noise in between songs that namely have a different bit, or sample rate and to a much lesser extent the bitrate. This happened on the A01 and T01. For example, switching from a song that is 16bit 44khz with a bit rate of 600 kbps to a 24bit 192khz 6000kbps would yield the loudest pop. It was evident at first in the T01 and the A01 although I am noticing it isn’t as loud right now while I am writing. I am possibly guessing a buildup of heat can make it louder, but I am not completely sure. It didn’t make a difference if it was locally on the device or through a micro SD card. Also only really used the Cayin Music app.
In comparison to my LG v20 it doesn’t really seem to have this issue, but it may be because it just downscales all my music to a similar bit/sample rate.
Bluetooth:
To me I am not a huge fan of Bluetooth. I still very much prefer wired options as my experience with tws earbuds has been hissy/noisy messes. Using the Bluetooth on the N6II Mk2 I noticed that is it SO much cleaner than my LG v20 included BT. It makes my cheap TWS earbuds listenable to which I was surprised they can sound anywhere near good. They pair also easily in comparison to the LG v20 taking much longer than it needs to.
Cayin Music App:
I never really used any other apps besides Foobar2000 or the included app on my LG v20, but the Cayin Music App was decent. I didn’t really have any issues with the interface at all and it was pretty feature packed and all I needed was included. The equalizer on it was alright from my experience, it wasn’t as clean of an EQ as it is on the PC but on the go it works fine. As well as the included Replay Gain due to my tracks being variably different in their gains worked well. I can't really have any complaints about it as it never caused any issues.
Screen:
The viewing angles are great on it and I don’t see any issues with it. The screen being a little small if you ever want to browse the web but, it’s fine for a music player majority of the time case. Colors also seem to be represented accurately as well.
Power on time:
For this test I used the YB04 at 18/100 on low gain and the HD 800 at 40/100 on low gain as well as the Cayin Music App. The screen was set to 50/100 as well with wifi and BT turned off.
On a continuous basis of nonstop FLACs playing at 16bit 44khz to 24bit 192khz I found myself having about 8.5 hours of use on the YB04 and 7 hours of use on the HD 800.
Charging back to 50% took me about 1 hour and to 100% about 3 hours in total.
Random thoughts:
Using the Cayin N6II Mk2 I did find it the volume knob to be a little too sensitive. I usually find myself accidentally turning up or down the volume knob. I think maybe it might be better to have a button for volume. While the N6II Mk2 is quite feature packed I think it would be amazing if the battery on it could be user replaceable. For the most part it lasts pretty much a whole workday for me but eventually batteries do lose their charge. Although I do like the clicky power on and off button a double tap to wake on screen I feel would be a great addition to the N6II Mk2. The device itself is also very prone to get fingerprints, mostly on the screen and back part.
Also found these really cool Hi-Res Audio stickers with the manual.
Would I buy it?
It is on the pricier side of what I can afford right now. But from my experience it was amazing to see what it could do and how much it can make the YB04 stand out. Basically takes everything it does well and brings it to another level. The only other issues I might have with this is pairing it with a sensitive IEM, and the possibility of having the battery loss of its charge in the long term. If I had the money, I think it would be a compelling offer on its features, and musical sound to get it, although my experience in the DAP market is limited.
Thanks to Andykong and Cayin for supplying the N6ii A01 + T01 and YB04. Really appreciated it and was a fun experience.