Cayin HA-6A MK2: KT88 Tube Headamp/Preamp with External PSU

[ThanatosVI]

I suppose it's too early to talk about price, but does the MK2 usually end up costing the same as the MK1? Or at least around the same?

This was the Case for the Ha-300.
However the Changes in the Ha-6a between the Versions aeem to be much bigger

 

[MDKrinkles]

Pre amp functionality is huge. If they release a ha300 with what look to be the new production 5 volt rectifier’s and pre amp functionality of the ha6mk2 that will swiftly become my ultimate end game. The 22de4 tubes are a little bit of a turn off for me and I always love having pre outs.

 

[AnyDave]

I suppose it's too early to talk about price, but does the MK2 usually end up costing the same as the MK1? Or at least around the same?

I haven't seen the pricing, but I'd be very surprised if it was the same considering the added manufacturing cost of a 2nd chassis.

 

[Michaels1963]

It's too bad No support for EL34 / KT66 tubes.
I hope the volume knob is better than the original the steps were too big so it had lack of good volume control

 

[PopZeus]

I haven't seen the pricing, but I'd be very surprised if it was the same considering the added manufacturing cost of a 2nd chassis.

Yeah, I figured there would have to be some price increase. Hoping it stays below or close to 3K. It is still their mid-tier offering....right?

 

[ThanatosVI]

Yeah, I figured there would have to be some price increase. Hoping it stays below or close to 3K. It is still their mid-tier offering....right?

This gives me flashbacks about the horrible price differences per Region the Ha-6a Had.

In Germany the mk1 already retailed for 3600€ (=4000$).Just checked today again, still 3500€

Luckily they improved this regional difference With later offerings which are much more in line

 

[MDKrinkles]

Yeah, I figured there would have to be some price increase. Hoping it stays below or close to 3K. It is still their mid-tier offering....right?

I think anywhere between 3-3.5k and it’ll be raplenty competitive in the current market. Cayin tube amps have a lot of things going for them that make for a relatively niche product all together. Can’t think of many fully balanced, transformer coupled, tube headphone amps AND this one now has a pre out which imo has been the biggest drawback of the current Cayin headphone amp offerings (aside from the ha1amk2 oddly enough). As someone who mainly prefers planars but also prefers the sound of a pure tube amp I’m always thrilled to see more of these offerings. Woo also makes balanced transformer coupled tube amps but aside from the wa22 they’re all in a much higher price bracket than most of cayins offerings. A ha300 with the upgrades made to the ha6 would basically be my ideal headphone amp.

 

[Gold Fox]

Well, that sounds fantastic! I spoke with Zach and he is going to check it out at the Munich show. I am not going to Munich, so I will have to live vicariously through him.

Oh Dave, you really should’ve come and tried it yourself!

Though I only had a brief listen yesterday after we finished setting up the booth, very limited time... but I can say it left quite an impression... oops, I’d better not say too much subjectively

Anyway, you can definitely look forward to Zach’s field report!

---

And there are two more things I know many of you have been curious about — now confirmed:

1. EL34 and its interchangeable tubes are still compatible with the HA-6A MK2. I’ll explain the technical reasoning behind this once the show is finished and I get a moment to breathe.

The current list of compatible tubes provided by our engineers is as follows:

2. The volume knob has been changed to a carbon film potentiometer, which means it’s no longer stepped.

Also, it's different from 170HA's pot, the MK2’s pot is analog and directly controls the volume. We’ll be testing every pot before it gets installed to minimize channel imbalance, especially in the low-volume range.

 

[Gold Fox]

Yeah, I figured there would have to be some price increase. Hoping it stays below or close to 3K. It is still their mid-tier offering....right?

As for pricing, there’s no confirmed information yet. We still need to take feedback from the show into account, and there may be some component changes, which would affect the production cost — so at this stage, pricing is still undecided.

That said, two things are certain:

1. The price will definitely increase compared to the original HA-6A.
2. There will inevitably be price differences across regions. This has always been a longstanding issue, but due to factors like shipping fees, import duties, and local VAT, it’s unavoidable. Also, overseas pricing isn’t something we can directly control — the final decision rests with our local distributors.

We can relay customer feedback, but we cannot "mandatory" retail price.

 

[AnyDave]

Oh Dave, you really should’ve come and tried it yourself!

Though I only had a brief listen yesterday after we finished setting up the booth, very limited time... but I can say it left quite an impression... oops, I’d better not say too much subjectively

Anyway, you can definitely look forward to Zach’s field report!

---

And there are two more things I know many of you have been curious about — now confirmed:

1. EL34 and its interchangeable tubes are still compatible with the HA-6A MK2. I’ll explain the technical reasoning behind this once the show is finished and I get a moment to breathe.

The current list of compatible tubes provided by our engineers is as follows:


2. The volume knob has been changed to a carbon film potentiometer, which means it’s no longer stepped.

Also, it's different from 170HA's pot, the MK2’s pot is analog and directly controls the volume. We’ll be testing every pot before it gets installed to minimize channel imbalance, especially in the low-volume range.

Yeah, I wish I could've gone to Germany. I'm busy with both ZMF Development and Dark Matter Audio Labs (which Zach co-owns). Too much going on right now to make the trip, unfortunately.

 

[MDKrinkles]

Will the power supply be compatible with 274b rectifiers?

 

[Gold Fox]

Will the power supply be compatible with 274b rectifiers?

Yes it can! But the height might be an issue — it could end up being too tall, and you may not be able to fit the tube cage back.

 

[MDKrinkles]

Yes it can! But the height might be an issue — it could end up being too tall, and you may not be able to fit the tube cage back.

This amp keeps getting better and better. If there’s a similar update to the ha300 coming down the pipeline ima have to start working extra overtime lol.

 

[PopZeus]

As for pricing, there’s no confirmed information yet. We still need to take feedback from the show into account, and there may be some component changes, which would affect the production cost — so at this stage, pricing is still undecided.

That said, two things are certain:

1. The price will definitely increase compared to the original HA-6A.
2. There will inevitably be price differences across regions. This has always been a longstanding issue, but due to factors like shipping fees, import duties, and local VAT, it’s unavoidable. Also, overseas pricing isn’t something we can directly control — the final decision rests with our local distributors.

Yeah, this makes sense. Even in a perfect world, the MK2 would have to cost more, but at least we'd be getting more for a commensurate price increase. But now due to tariffs and the like, the rise in cost and value are not directly connected. Oh well, I hope selling this amp in the US isn't costed out once all the wholesale price has been tallied.

 

[Newsee]

Looks very sexi

Greeting from the Munich high end show.