Cayin HA-6A Class A KT88/EL34 Tube Headphone Amplifier
Feb 15, 2022 at 11:03 AM Post #961 of 1,923
I just received the HA-6A and it's heating up already.

This is by far one of the best money spent in my life, will give sound impressions later compared to the latest amps I had and I pretty much remember their sound.... SA-1, Jotunheim 2, Feliks Elise and the one I still have and love like a son, the Kinki THR-1

Thanks again @Nikols
 

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Feb 18, 2022 at 7:19 PM Post #962 of 1,923
I want to begin my "review" by saying that this is the best amp I have ever had, both visually and technically speaking. It is beautiful.

I decided to get the HA-6A because I saw the review of @Relaxasaurus (Midfi Guy on YT) and he's one of a very selective few that I trust on YT

My unit is already 1 year old, so the valves already have x hours of use

The very first time I plugged it in, there was a very noticeable hiss, the cursed hiss I've read a lot here about the HA-6A so instead of crying like a baby I removed all the tubes, plug them back again, but not KT88. I used the EL34, moved the switch behind the amp to EL34 position and voila: 0 hum, 0 hiss, 0 noise, very very black background, you can
hear there's something but it is very black. After checking out about the fact that the hiss was gone, I plugged KT88 back again and no noise at all either. ("Fixed" by restarting I guess)

Sound impressions with KT88, default valves, I preferred TR to UL with these:
(D8000 Pro, no EQ, volume at 9:00 position most of the time. RCA+SE, low impedance position)

Big sound, big body, never boring, every single instrument has its own personality, its own place and its own position within the soundstage... Layering and depth is impressive when the music allows it. Very holographic.

Every single instrument has texture, you can feel it, it is virtually solid in front of you, you can't see it but it is there, has its own importance and relevance...

Bass is amazing, going very low and with this valves sometimes a bit boomy but very sweet, the midrange is there, vocals are really good, a bit forward to me but never too intimate and the treble is on pair, very detailed and never strident

Resolution compared to let's say the Kinki is like going from 1080 to 4K, the naturality and organic sound of instruments makes you smile like a child, like how is this possible? this is just headphones!!

The quality of what you're hearing is so detailed that you can even know how big the concert hall is because the reproduction of the air between the instruments, the echoes, resonance etc.... It is like you are really there, very very hard to really get this feeling on headphones. Never felt any brightness.


Sound impressions with EL34, default valves, I preferred UL to TR with these:
(D8000 Pro, no EQ, volume at 9:00 position most of the time. RCA+SE, low impedance position)

Sound is not as big or full as with the KT88 valves but this time we're going for surgical accuracy and precision of the sound, while still being a romantic and funny mix of tubey sound and SS, never sterile or boring

Again, every single instrument has its own texture but with even more resolution than KT88, I could say EL34 for classical music might be the best if you want to experience the ultimate detailed experience

The soundstage gave me the impression of being a little bit smaller than KT88 but with more coherence and maybe, realistic. I know my music and I spent many hours everyday listening to it so I'm not afraid to say that

Bass is amazingly detailed and linear, never boomy and never too much, even if I give 8dB+ to 20-60hz it will still sound very precisse and never loose

Midrange is to die for, I had never listened to voices with this resolution, detail and realism, specially women, you can even draw their faces, it's like they are in front of you singing for you haha

Strings are simply amazing, it is so very very very detailed and accurate than a simple guitar can transform your listening experience

Piano, for the first time sounds like piano, from the very first keystroke you know that is a real piano, I've heard many live and I know how they're supposed to sound, you can get that experience with this amp and EL34

Treble is never strident either with this valves, very detailed and sweet. Never felt any brightness.

Cons:
- (Not Cayin's fault) I will probably have to change the EH 12au7, one of them is probably dying and I get an interference in the right channel (after many hours of use), which is where the valve is and I tested it by hitting it with a pencil and
you can hear is not a solid hit, like something vibrates inside more than it should. Luckily they are very cheap so I might try different brand, I wonder if buying valves with low power needed will reduce any hiss even more

- 100 watts of use, compared to the 10-20 watts of the Kinki, still I don't really mind, I get pleasure for 100 watts and the room gets heated, not really a 'con' haha
The amp made me have to buy a new table to place it on, we're talking 20-25 kg of weight it is no joke, but it looks so very beautiful....

Final notes:

I never expected to have this kind of amp, I've always wanted to get the best sound by spending the less possible, I was close to it with THR-1 or Elise but somehow decided to try this and while it's not end game for me because I know I will end my journey with SS, this is worth it for real, this is not a joke of an amp.

You can really play with it using all the tubes you want, adapters, TR, UL, different impedances,
any headphone you throw at it will work, SE, 4.4 or XLR..... And whatever you do, the quality of the sound is going to be superb

Again, this is my first Cayin, I don't care where they come from or where they are, I'm just honored to have a piece of gear designed by beings that made me enjoy my music even more and provided joy in the darkest of times

José
(Thank you to @ThanatosVI for his inestimable help)
 

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Feb 18, 2022 at 7:32 PM Post #963 of 1,923
I want to begin my "review" by saying that this is the best amp I have ever had, both visually and technically speaking. It is beautiful.

I decided to get the HA-6A because I saw the review of @Relaxasaurus (Midfi Guy on YT) and he's one of a very selective few that I trust on YT

My unit is already 1 year old, so the valves already have x hours of use

The very first time I plugged it in, there was a very noticeable hiss, the cursed hiss I've read a lot here about the HA-6A so instead of crying like a baby I removed all the tubes, plug them back again, but not KT88. I used the EL34, moved the switch behind the amp to EL34 position and voila: 0 hum, 0 hiss, 0 noise, very very black background, you can
hear there's something but it is very black. After checking out about the fact that the hiss was gone, I plugged KT88 back again and no noise at all either. ("Fixed" by restarting I guess)

Sound impressions with KT88, default valves, I preferred TR to UL with these:
(D8000 Pro, no EQ, volume at 9:00 position most of the time. RCA+SE, low impedance position)

Big sound, big body, never boring, every single instrument has its own personality, its own place and its own position within the soundstage... Layering and depth is impressive when the music allows it. Very holographic.

Every single instrument has texture, you can feel it, it is virtually solid in front of you, you can't see it but it is there, has its own importance and relevance...

Bass is amazing, going very low and with this valves sometimes a bit boomy but very sweet, the midrange is there, vocals are really good, a bit forward to me but never too intimate and the treble is on pair, very detailed and never strident

Resolution compared to let's say the Kinki is like going from 1080 to 4K, the naturality and organic sound of instruments makes you smile like a child, like how is this possible? this is just headphones!!

The quality of what you're hearing is so detailed that you can even know how big the concert hall is because the reproduction of the air between the instruments, the echoes, resonance etc.... It is like you are really there, very very hard to really get this feeling on headphones. Never felt any brightness.


Sound impressions with EL34, default valves, I preferred UL to TR with these:
(D8000 Pro, no EQ, volume at 9:00 position most of the time. RCA+SE, low impedance position)

Sound is not as big or full as with the KT88 valves but this time we're going for surgical accuracy and precision of the sound, while still being a romantic and funny mix of tubey sound and SS, never sterile or boring

Again, every single instrument has its own texture but with even more resolution than KT88, I could say EL34 for classical music might be the best if you want to experience the ultimate detailed experience

The soundstage gave me the impression of being a little bit smaller than KT88 but with more coherence and maybe, realistic. I know my music and I spent many hours everyday listening to it so I'm not afraid to say that

Bass is amazingly detailed and linear, never boomy and never too much, even if I give 8dB+ to 20-60hz it will still sound very precisse and never loose

Midrange is to die for, I had never listened to voices with this resolution, detail and realism, specially women, you can even draw their faces, it's like they are in front of you singing for you haha

Strings are simply amazing, it is so very very very detailed and accurate than a simple guitar can transform your listening experience

Piano, for the first time sounds like piano, from the very first keystroke you know that is a real piano, I've heard many live and I know how they're supposed to sound, you can get that experience with this amp and EL34

Treble is never strident either with this valves, very detailed and sweet. Never felt any brightness.

Cons:
- (Not Cayin's fault) I will probably have to change the EH 12au7, one of them is probably dying and I get an interference in the right channel (after many hours of use), which is where the valve is and I tested it by hitting it with a pencil and
you can hear is not a solid hit, like something vibrates inside more than it should. Luckily they are very cheap so I might try different brand, I wonder if buying valves with low power needed will reduce any hiss even more

- 100 watts of use, compared to the 10-20 watts of the Kinki, still I don't really mind, I get pleasure for 100 watts and the room gets heated, not really a 'con' haha
The amp made me have to buy a new table to place it on, we're talking 20-25 kg of weight it is no joke, but it looks so very beautiful....

Final notes:

I never expected to have this kind of amp, I've always wanted to get the best sound by spending the less possible, I was close to it with THR-1 or Elise but somehow decided to try this and while it's not end game for me because I know I will end my journey with SS, this is worth it for real, this is not a joke of an amp.

You can really play with it using all the tubes you want, adapters, TR, UL, different impedances,
any headphone you throw at it will work, SE, 4.4 or XLR..... And whatever you do, the quality of the sound is going to be superb

Again, this is my first Cayin, I don't care where they come from or where they are, I'm just honored to have a piece of gear designed by beings that made me enjoy my music even more and provided joy in the darkest of times

José
(Thank you to @ThanatosVI for his inestimable help)
Glad I could help you enjoy this nice amp :)
Together with the D8000 Pro and the Pontus II you have quite the Setup.
 
Feb 18, 2022 at 8:36 PM Post #964 of 1,923
Great thanks for the detailed response, it should help people faced with a "is the new thing around the corner" thought trap (a pretty serious affliction I might add)


I looked at the MHA200 before getting the HA-6A, now I wasn't able to listen to the MHA200 but a friend whose ears I mostly trust did listen to one for me in america (and the HA-6A ofc) he basically said that the MHA200 was good yeah but on a pure sound fidelity level it wasn't even in the same league as the HA-6A, he pretty much confirmed other first-hand comments from people, that a big part of the MHA200 is its size, specifically its footprint, it's very small (he said in person its even smaller than the photos, that it looked cute) so it's very desk friendly, the HA-6A is not exactly desk friendly, for some people this is a big deal so keep that in mind.

Thats just on the sound fidelity, it has other factors, like the small power tubes you mentioned so its power output is extremely low, no way you'll run actually demanding headphones on it and an extremely strange and possibly unique volume control, my friend found it incredibly annoying to use, to me it sounded like it's been designed that way to be used with a line out volume box /shrug, but hey you might really like the McIntosh sound and want to place your tube amp on a desk so then it's much more appealing.


I feel I have to clarify on that, what people described from the first production units sounded pretty dire, what I hear now not even close to what they said, is it silent? no, still some background hiss on my verité's (which are well known to pick it up) it does change on what output settings you have and what voltage tubes you have in, on some tubes it is virtually silent, but I have a separate problem to do with this, my hiss is unbalanced, one channel is worse than the other that's consistent over different tubes, but I do believe that my amp is damaged, besides this I also have a channel imbalance that can be seen on the VU meters, so I don't think this is normal, just my unit has a problem, I'm going to contact my dealer to see what we can do about it, might have to return it if we can't come to a solution.

In regards to the HA-300, also looked at that one before getting the HA-6A, people I spoke to said yeah the sound fidelity is higher but you are mostly stuck with the type of sound it gives out, no adjustable output mode (triode/ultralinear, very cool feature) and no power tube rolling, now the 300B is an extremely famous tube for a good reason, it sounds awesome, everyone agrees it sounds awesome, my dad's 2 channel system is SET with REAL western electric 300B, so I know that it's awesome but I also know what it sounds like and I don't want to have that sound for my personal headphone chain or at least I don't want to have ONLY that sound for my personal headphone chain, the HA-6A is extremely rollable, when I showed my dad the little chart with useable power tubes he was actually impressed that I could try all of these tubes (or valves as he says) and when I explained the adjustable output mode he did say that's a pretty nifty feature to have, so you see the HA-6A does have its points that you can't just say the HA-300 is the superior unit, it's going to come down to what you're looking for, hope this helps.
Thanks for the great replies. It really sounds like the HA-6A is everything I hoped it to be, but after a month of trying to get one, I gave up. I've had my order cancelled twice because there was no stock and these are out of production. I ordered a third time from an Ali Express vendor who showed them in stock(220v model that I was going to run with a SU transformer), but later found out he had nothing. He was selling factory direct. After a few days of beating around the bush, I decided to cancel that order. Of course, he argued with me for about a day before accepting the cancellation. I will NEVER make that mistake again. It turns out he could have forced the amp on me if he wanted and could manage to get it to ship within 10 days(before Ali cancels for non-shipment). In the end, I just can't justify doing any more business with a company that can't manage it's own inventory any better than this. What happens if I need a part or the amp needs repair? They don't even have repair facilities in the US that I can find. How long would I be stuck with a 45lb paper weight? This entire experience has just reminded me of almost every reason why I should be avoiding Chinese products any time that it's in any way possible. From the shoddy customer service to the crooked vendors that make deals that they can't deliver on, I'm done with the whole lot of them.

Now, ranting aside, I opted for the Ampsandsound Mogwai SE Rev 2 instead. Not as fancy, but it will take the nice tubes that I already bought for the Cayin, and it gets a lot of good reviews and recommendations for use with Verite, which is my favorite headphone. Who knows, maybe the HA-6A will be available in the US again one day and maybe I will decide that I can't live without it after all. If so, great. For the time being, I'm just glad to have something on the way that should fit nicely into my plans for my system. Thanks again!
 
Feb 18, 2022 at 10:47 PM Post #965 of 1,923
I want to begin my "review" by saying that this is the best amp I have ever had, both visually and technically speaking. It is beautiful.

I decided to get the HA-6A because I saw the review of @Relaxasaurus (Midfi Guy on YT) and he's one of a very selective few that I trust on YT

My unit is already 1 year old, so the valves already have x hours of use

The very first time I plugged it in, there was a very noticeable hiss, the cursed hiss I've read a lot here about the HA-6A so instead of crying like a baby I removed all the tubes, plug them back again, but not KT88. I used the EL34, moved the switch behind the amp to EL34 position and voila: 0 hum, 0 hiss, 0 noise, very very black background, you can
hear there's something but it is very black. After checking out about the fact that the hiss was gone, I plugged KT88 back again and no noise at all either. ("Fixed" by restarting I guess)

Sound impressions with KT88, default valves, I preferred TR to UL with these:
(D8000 Pro, no EQ, volume at 9:00 position most of the time. RCA+SE, low impedance position)

Big sound, big body, never boring, every single instrument has its own personality, its own place and its own position within the soundstage... Layering and depth is impressive when the music allows it. Very holographic.

Every single instrument has texture, you can feel it, it is virtually solid in front of you, you can't see it but it is there, has its own importance and relevance...

Bass is amazing, going very low and with this valves sometimes a bit boomy but very sweet, the midrange is there, vocals are really good, a bit forward to me but never too intimate and the treble is on pair, very detailed and never strident

Resolution compared to let's say the Kinki is like going from 1080 to 4K, the naturality and organic sound of instruments makes you smile like a child, like how is this possible? this is just headphones!!

The quality of what you're hearing is so detailed that you can even know how big the concert hall is because the reproduction of the air between the instruments, the echoes, resonance etc.... It is like you are really there, very very hard to really get this feeling on headphones. Never felt any brightness.


Sound impressions with EL34, default valves, I preferred UL to TR with these:
(D8000 Pro, no EQ, volume at 9:00 position most of the time. RCA+SE, low impedance position)

Sound is not as big or full as with the KT88 valves but this time we're going for surgical accuracy and precision of the sound, while still being a romantic and funny mix of tubey sound and SS, never sterile or boring

Again, every single instrument has its own texture but with even more resolution than KT88, I could say EL34 for classical music might be the best if you want to experience the ultimate detailed experience

The soundstage gave me the impression of being a little bit smaller than KT88 but with more coherence and maybe, realistic. I know my music and I spent many hours everyday listening to it so I'm not afraid to say that

Bass is amazingly detailed and linear, never boomy and never too much, even if I give 8dB+ to 20-60hz it will still sound very precisse and never loose

Midrange is to die for, I had never listened to voices with this resolution, detail and realism, specially women, you can even draw their faces, it's like they are in front of you singing for you haha

Strings are simply amazing, it is so very very very detailed and accurate than a simple guitar can transform your listening experience

Piano, for the first time sounds like piano, from the very first keystroke you know that is a real piano, I've heard many live and I know how they're supposed to sound, you can get that experience with this amp and EL34

Treble is never strident either with this valves, very detailed and sweet. Never felt any brightness.

Cons:
- (Not Cayin's fault) I will probably have to change the EH 12au7, one of them is probably dying and I get an interference in the right channel (after many hours of use), which is where the valve is and I tested it by hitting it with a pencil and
you can hear is not a solid hit, like something vibrates inside more than it should. Luckily they are very cheap so I might try different brand, I wonder if buying valves with low power needed will reduce any hiss even more

- 100 watts of use, compared to the 10-20 watts of the Kinki, still I don't really mind, I get pleasure for 100 watts and the room gets heated, not really a 'con' haha
The amp made me have to buy a new table to place it on, we're talking 20-25 kg of weight it is no joke, but it looks so very beautiful....

Final notes:

I never expected to have this kind of amp, I've always wanted to get the best sound by spending the less possible, I was close to it with THR-1 or Elise but somehow decided to try this and while it's not end game for me because I know I will end my journey with SS, this is worth it for real, this is not a joke of an amp.

You can really play with it using all the tubes you want, adapters, TR, UL, different impedances,
any headphone you throw at it will work, SE, 4.4 or XLR..... And whatever you do, the quality of the sound is going to be superb

Again, this is my first Cayin, I don't care where they come from or where they are, I'm just honored to have a piece of gear designed by beings that made me enjoy my music even more and provided joy in the darkest of times

José
(Thank you to @ThanatosVI for his inestimable help)
Great review, José!

I'm actually close to making a decision on the HA-6A but wasn't sure about its synergies with the Pontus II - is this what you pair with the HA-6A?

Cheers,
Nick
 
Feb 19, 2022 at 5:57 AM Post #966 of 1,923
Great review, José!

I'm actually close to making a decision on the HA-6A but wasn't sure about its synergies with the Pontus II - is this what you pair with the HA-6A?

Cheers,
Nick
Hi there,

Thank you mate, yes I pair it with the Pontus II using Mogami's RCA, it is really good and detail retrieval much better than with Feliks Elise and upgraded valves
 
Feb 19, 2022 at 4:19 PM Post #967 of 1,923
I want to begin my "review" by saying that this is the best amp I have ever had, both visually and technically speaking. It is beautiful.

I decided to get the HA-6A because I saw the review of @Relaxasaurus (Midfi Guy on YT) and he's one of a very selective few that I trust on YT

My unit is already 1 year old, so the valves already have x hours of use

The very first time I plugged it in, there was a very noticeable hiss, the cursed hiss I've read a lot here about the HA-6A so instead of crying like a baby I removed all the tubes, plug them back again, but not KT88. I used the EL34, moved the switch behind the amp to EL34 position and voila: 0 hum, 0 hiss, 0 noise, very very black background, you can
hear there's something but it is very black. After checking out about the fact that the hiss was gone, I plugged KT88 back again and no noise at all either. ("Fixed" by restarting I guess)

Sound impressions with KT88, default valves, I preferred TR to UL with these:
(D8000 Pro, no EQ, volume at 9:00 position most of the time. RCA+SE, low impedance position)

Big sound, big body, never boring, every single instrument has its own personality, its own place and its own position within the soundstage... Layering and depth is impressive when the music allows it. Very holographic.

Every single instrument has texture, you can feel it, it is virtually solid in front of you, you can't see it but it is there, has its own importance and relevance...

Bass is amazing, going very low and with this valves sometimes a bit boomy but very sweet, the midrange is there, vocals are really good, a bit forward to me but never too intimate and the treble is on pair, very detailed and never strident

Resolution compared to let's say the Kinki is like going from 1080 to 4K, the naturality and organic sound of instruments makes you smile like a child, like how is this possible? this is just headphones!!

The quality of what you're hearing is so detailed that you can even know how big the concert hall is because the reproduction of the air between the instruments, the echoes, resonance etc.... It is like you are really there, very very hard to really get this feeling on headphones. Never felt any brightness.


Sound impressions with EL34, default valves, I preferred UL to TR with these:
(D8000 Pro, no EQ, volume at 9:00 position most of the time. RCA+SE, low impedance position)

Sound is not as big or full as with the KT88 valves but this time we're going for surgical accuracy and precision of the sound, while still being a romantic and funny mix of tubey sound and SS, never sterile or boring

Again, every single instrument has its own texture but with even more resolution than KT88, I could say EL34 for classical music might be the best if you want to experience the ultimate detailed experience

The soundstage gave me the impression of being a little bit smaller than KT88 but with more coherence and maybe, realistic. I know my music and I spent many hours everyday listening to it so I'm not afraid to say that

Bass is amazingly detailed and linear, never boomy and never too much, even if I give 8dB+ to 20-60hz it will still sound very precisse and never loose

Midrange is to die for, I had never listened to voices with this resolution, detail and realism, specially women, you can even draw their faces, it's like they are in front of you singing for you haha

Strings are simply amazing, it is so very very very detailed and accurate than a simple guitar can transform your listening experience

Piano, for the first time sounds like piano, from the very first keystroke you know that is a real piano, I've heard many live and I know how they're supposed to sound, you can get that experience with this amp and EL34

Treble is never strident either with this valves, very detailed and sweet. Never felt any brightness.

Cons:
- (Not Cayin's fault) I will probably have to change the EH 12au7, one of them is probably dying and I get an interference in the right channel (after many hours of use), which is where the valve is and I tested it by hitting it with a pencil and
you can hear is not a solid hit, like something vibrates inside more than it should. Luckily they are very cheap so I might try different brand, I wonder if buying valves with low power needed will reduce any hiss even more

- 100 watts of use, compared to the 10-20 watts of the Kinki, still I don't really mind, I get pleasure for 100 watts and the room gets heated, not really a 'con' haha
The amp made me have to buy a new table to place it on, we're talking 20-25 kg of weight it is no joke, but it looks so very beautiful....

Final notes:

I never expected to have this kind of amp, I've always wanted to get the best sound by spending the less possible, I was close to it with THR-1 or Elise but somehow decided to try this and while it's not end game for me because I know I will end my journey with SS, this is worth it for real, this is not a joke of an amp.

You can really play with it using all the tubes you want, adapters, TR, UL, different impedances,
any headphone you throw at it will work, SE, 4.4 or XLR..... And whatever you do, the quality of the sound is going to be superb

Again, this is my first Cayin, I don't care where they come from or where they are, I'm just honored to have a piece of gear designed by beings that made me enjoy my music even more and provided joy in the darkest of times

José
(Thank you to @ThanatosVI for his inestimable help)
Hey José, how would you say it compares with the Jot2? I know they’re in completely different ball parks price-wise, and obviously different tech. I’ve been looking for a good bang-for-buck SS amp, and as I use the Bifrost 2 it can sit neatly in a stack without taking up more desk space.

I’ve been trying to decide between the Jot2, or selling the Bifrost2 and getting a Chord Hugo TT (1st version). I’m just not sure how much I’ll use an SS amp as I love the HA-6A sound, but I’d like something that is comparable
 
Feb 19, 2022 at 4:41 PM Post #968 of 1,923
Hey José, how would you say it compares with the Jot2? I know they’re in completely different ball parks price-wise, and obviously different tech. I’ve been looking for a good bang-for-buck SS amp, and as I use the Bifrost 2 it can sit neatly in a stack without taking up more desk space.

I’ve been trying to decide between the Jot2, or selling the Bifrost2 and getting a Chord Hugo TT (1st version). I’m just not sure how much I’ll use an SS amp as I love the HA-6A sound, but I’d like something that is comparable
Hi there!

I had both Jot 2 and Bifrost 2, while I could have lived with Bifrost 2 as DAC the Jot 2 is kind of bright on the treble, depending on the headphone you use, it can be amazing or make it too bright.

It has 2 sound signatures one for SE and one for XLR, XLR is more energetic with more punch, also preamp for both XLR and RCA and tons of power, on a different league compared to HA-6A that's for sure but it is very cheap for all the features

I never tried Hugo TT but I've read it doesn't have the best amp
 
Feb 20, 2022 at 6:35 AM Post #969 of 1,923
Edit: Hiss/hum is gone, it is very very low with D8000 Pro using socket savers, it is still here but this time very low hiss, with EL34 almost inaudible. EH 12au7 valves have very thin pins

Edit: I connected my very first tube amp, a Loxjie P20 and the D8000 Pro has very slight hiss and hum, like 60% hiss and 40% hum, it is hard to hear but it is there and I am a freak of silence.... F hell. And in all power outlets in my house, both grounded and not grounded. Even with only the UPS connected without power line......


José
 
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Feb 20, 2022 at 7:52 AM Post #970 of 1,923
Hi there,

Thank you mate, yes I pair it with the Pontus II using Mogami's RCA, it is really good and detail retrieval much better than with Feliks Elise and upgraded valves
Appreciate the reassurance, @joseG86 👍- I've gone ahead and ordered a set after auditioning.

Coincidentally I also own the Jot2 and I agree with your comparison of the 2 😀
 
Feb 20, 2022 at 12:51 PM Post #971 of 1,923
Edit: Right socket of ECC82/12au7 is loose, the valve inside moves very easy to any direction, if I remove the right 3.5mm plug from my headphones the hum disappears so it is the right socket 100%, If switch the valves it does the same so it is a socket problem. I won't try to tightening it or do any tricks yet and wait for the socket saver with thick pins to arrive.... If you have a different solution for this loose socket let me know :heart_eyes:

Edit 2: I rotated a little bit the valve inside the socket and the hum is now gone, I hope the socket saver has thick pins so I can get mental peace, at this point there's no longer hum but it is the right socket, I'll ask @Andykong if he could ask any Cayin engineer on how to proceed, tighten or replace the socket by experienced technician in Spain

Thanks!
José
Hello,
Great report, thanks.

How do you feel about the Feliks compared to the Cayin?
Does it beat the Feliks or both on the same eye level?
 
Feb 20, 2022 at 1:01 PM Post #972 of 1,923
Hello,
Great report, thanks.

How do you feel about the Feliks compared to the Cayin?
Does it beat the Feliks or both on the same eye level?
They're very different, you could have both and you'd maybe reach end game haha

HA-6A: Speed, micro and macrodynamics, resolution, detail retrieval, layering and depth, very honest soundstage, big when it's big and small when it's small....

F. Elise MKII w stock tubes was warm, slow and very relaxing sounding (which is really good), with Psvane CV181 MKII and RCA6080 becomes faster and resolution improves but the Cayin plays in a different league IMHO

José
 
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Feb 22, 2022 at 11:47 AM Post #973 of 1,923
2nd day with 0 issues, no hiss no hum,nothing, just perfect organic, natural, detailed and amazing sound with stock EL34 valves (my favorites so far)

Will give more impressions when I get new 12au7 and Psvane MK2 KT88
 
Feb 24, 2022 at 7:44 AM Post #974 of 1,923
2nd day with 0 issues, no hiss no hum,nothing, just perfect organic, natural, detailed and amazing sound with stock EL34 valves (my favorites so far)

Will give more impressions when I get new 12au7 and Psvane MK2 KT88
I got my Psvane KT88 MK2 and the soundstage is bigger and more detailed compared to GL KT88, unfortunately as happened before with all the tube amps I had, the D8000 Pro will develop hiss/hum and never be a black background

I've put for sale my unit with all the tubes I already bought, I don't really want to change my headphones as I really love the D8000 Pro but this amp is god like for real.

Thanks!!
 
Feb 24, 2022 at 8:26 AM Post #975 of 1,923
I got my Psvane KT88 MK2 and the soundstage is bigger and more detailed compared to GL KT88, unfortunately as happened before with all the tube amps I had, the D8000 Pro will develop hiss/hum and never be a black background

I've put for sale my unit with all the tubes I already bought, I don't really want to change my headphones as I really love the D8000 Pro but this amp is god like for real.

Thanks!!
The hum may be caused by Ground Loop and you may try iFi Ground Defender on your HA-6A. I am having low frequency hum in my Fostex HP-V8 with D8000, and just got the iFi Ground Defender today and it is magic! The amp is now dead silent with all my headphones including D8000 and the ultra sensitive Focal Stellia.
 

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