Dillan has publish his iHA-6 and iDAC-6 review. This is the first review from the US Tour, and the report has been recommended on the HeadFi home page.
http://www.head-fi.org/products/cayin-iha-6/reviews/16731
Associated Equipment:
LH Labs Vi Dac Infinity
McIntosh MHA100
Audeze LCD4
Grado RS2e
Kaiser K10
With permission from Dillan, I have extracted the sound-related content of the report for your reference and discussion:
LCD-4: With the combination of both of Cayin's offerings I thought the sound was very good actually. I definitely have used these LCD-4's with some world class components and I didn't feel like I needed "more" of anything. I found them driven quite well using the four pin balanced connection and even used the HIGH level of single ended configuration with satisfaction. The only time I felt them needing more juice was when I experimented with the LOW port, which obviously isn't meant to drive power hungry planars. The bass was nice and punchy, mids were accurate and detailed and the highs were crisp. If I used some imagination I could call the signature slightly cold, as you expect that warm enveloping sound from the tube stage, but you never really got that. However, because these Audezes already give you a very laid back sound to begin with, I thought the pairing was just fine.
RS2e: I really love my Grado RS2e. It really is a great sidekick for the LCD-4 in that they have a differentiating sound and at different price points. Listening to the duo with my pair of Grados was another positive experience. Gregory Porters latest album really had me respecting these little devices more and more. With the RS2e's I did feel like I heard a little more of the lushness seeping into the midrange on the tube setting. The bass seemed slightly more euphonic than I had remembered it being and the instrumental treble was very impressive. I tended to use the LOW single ended option with these headphones and I did have to turn the nob up slightly more than you'd expect, but it definitely drove them as loud as I would want them and still with decent headroom. I liked this combo a lot.
Compared to McIntosh MHA100: ....... Looking at purely the sound I will say both are different, but good. If you happen to prefer an uncolored, unmodified amplifier and just want a great, detailed and accurate sound then I would definitely look at the iHA-6. It sounds very much how a high end solid state amplifier should sound.. comparable to something like the Auralic Taurus or even Schiit's Ragnarok. I found myself grabbing my darker sounding headphones when listening to the Cayin duo and my brighter Grados with the McIntosh. The solid state amplifier coupled with the tube DAC create a sort of detailed musicality that really bring my headphones to life. It is sort of ironic how a tube DAC sounds a lot less warm than the solid state MHA100, but that is what I have found through the comparisons. I would only say that the unique features in the MHA100 outshine Cayins offerings, but the sound itself were almost equally enjoyable and impressive albeit slightly different.
Compared to LH Labs Vi Dac Infinity: I actually pretty much enjoyed both of these the same, if maybe the Cayin duo more. Both amplifiers can power just about everything I throw at them with pretty impressive headroom. The Vi Dac is again about double the price, but sound-wise I believe it is very easily in the same league as both the iHA-6 and iDAC-6. If anything I think the filters and tubestage options on the iDAC made it a lot more impressive. I certainly found the filters almost inaudibly different, but they were slight enough to make things interesting. Features in general wasn't even a contest as the Cayin combination have many more options and outputs ...... I think I would recommend saving your coins for something else and going for the Cayin units if it were a choice between these two. Really great stuff from Cayin!
Closing Thoughts: I really enjoyed my time with both the iDAC-6 and the iHA-6. The best situation for someone to buy these is if they have limited desk space or don't want huge devices getting in the way.. all while gaining a modern stylish look of audio products with excellent sound quality and a few niche bonuses such as a quad tube DAC. I didn't mention before that these little offerings pair well with a broad selection of IEMs too. My Kaiser K10's especially were driven correctly and sounded as perfect as they ever had. I only very faintly heard a whisper of hiss-like distortion due to the sensitivity of the K10's, which is completely expected. These are very versatile, sound just as good as much more expensive equipment and I think anyone would be proud to have these in their inventory. Well done Cayin!
I want to thank Dillan for his helpful and informative contribution. The review certainly provides a solid background for HeadFier who are looking for DAC or headphone amplifier at this price range. Complete a product review at this level of detail within 7 days period is a very tough job, and I salute Dillan for his diligent and hardworking.
Please feel free to share your views after reading Dillan's report, and we are looking forwards to more Tour reports down the road.
http://www.head-fi.org/products/cayin-iha-6/reviews/16731
Associated Equipment:
LH Labs Vi Dac Infinity
McIntosh MHA100
Audeze LCD4
Grado RS2e
Kaiser K10
With permission from Dillan, I have extracted the sound-related content of the report for your reference and discussion:
LCD-4: With the combination of both of Cayin's offerings I thought the sound was very good actually. I definitely have used these LCD-4's with some world class components and I didn't feel like I needed "more" of anything. I found them driven quite well using the four pin balanced connection and even used the HIGH level of single ended configuration with satisfaction. The only time I felt them needing more juice was when I experimented with the LOW port, which obviously isn't meant to drive power hungry planars. The bass was nice and punchy, mids were accurate and detailed and the highs were crisp. If I used some imagination I could call the signature slightly cold, as you expect that warm enveloping sound from the tube stage, but you never really got that. However, because these Audezes already give you a very laid back sound to begin with, I thought the pairing was just fine.
RS2e: I really love my Grado RS2e. It really is a great sidekick for the LCD-4 in that they have a differentiating sound and at different price points. Listening to the duo with my pair of Grados was another positive experience. Gregory Porters latest album really had me respecting these little devices more and more. With the RS2e's I did feel like I heard a little more of the lushness seeping into the midrange on the tube setting. The bass seemed slightly more euphonic than I had remembered it being and the instrumental treble was very impressive. I tended to use the LOW single ended option with these headphones and I did have to turn the nob up slightly more than you'd expect, but it definitely drove them as loud as I would want them and still with decent headroom. I liked this combo a lot.
Compared to McIntosh MHA100: ....... Looking at purely the sound I will say both are different, but good. If you happen to prefer an uncolored, unmodified amplifier and just want a great, detailed and accurate sound then I would definitely look at the iHA-6. It sounds very much how a high end solid state amplifier should sound.. comparable to something like the Auralic Taurus or even Schiit's Ragnarok. I found myself grabbing my darker sounding headphones when listening to the Cayin duo and my brighter Grados with the McIntosh. The solid state amplifier coupled with the tube DAC create a sort of detailed musicality that really bring my headphones to life. It is sort of ironic how a tube DAC sounds a lot less warm than the solid state MHA100, but that is what I have found through the comparisons. I would only say that the unique features in the MHA100 outshine Cayins offerings, but the sound itself were almost equally enjoyable and impressive albeit slightly different.
Compared to LH Labs Vi Dac Infinity: I actually pretty much enjoyed both of these the same, if maybe the Cayin duo more. Both amplifiers can power just about everything I throw at them with pretty impressive headroom. The Vi Dac is again about double the price, but sound-wise I believe it is very easily in the same league as both the iHA-6 and iDAC-6. If anything I think the filters and tubestage options on the iDAC made it a lot more impressive. I certainly found the filters almost inaudibly different, but they were slight enough to make things interesting. Features in general wasn't even a contest as the Cayin combination have many more options and outputs ...... I think I would recommend saving your coins for something else and going for the Cayin units if it were a choice between these two. Really great stuff from Cayin!
Closing Thoughts: I really enjoyed my time with both the iDAC-6 and the iHA-6. The best situation for someone to buy these is if they have limited desk space or don't want huge devices getting in the way.. all while gaining a modern stylish look of audio products with excellent sound quality and a few niche bonuses such as a quad tube DAC. I didn't mention before that these little offerings pair well with a broad selection of IEMs too. My Kaiser K10's especially were driven correctly and sounded as perfect as they ever had. I only very faintly heard a whisper of hiss-like distortion due to the sensitivity of the K10's, which is completely expected. These are very versatile, sound just as good as much more expensive equipment and I think anyone would be proud to have these in their inventory. Well done Cayin!
I want to thank Dillan for his helpful and informative contribution. The review certainly provides a solid background for HeadFier who are looking for DAC or headphone amplifier at this price range. Complete a product review at this level of detail within 7 days period is a very tough job, and I salute Dillan for his diligent and hardworking.
Please feel free to share your views after reading Dillan's report, and we are looking forwards to more Tour reports down the road.
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