[gr4474]

I think you meant to say A90 Discrete..?
Of course the D90 is a DAC.

I haven't heard the A90D but compared to the OG A90 the Cayin amp is smoother and more accomplished to my ears.
I found the A90 to be a tad clinical and fatiguing personally whereas I can listen to the iHA-6 ad infinitum.

Yes the A90. I've been obsessing over an amp and dac purchase for the past few days, and up very late.

 

[gr4474]

I dont have them anymore, but I will give an edge to iha6, it has more power over the d90, treble is clear and cleaner campare to d90 and jotungeim.
However, I can hear the differences between iha6 vs jotuheim. With iha6 vs d90 they both almost similar.

Do you mind explaining the difference between Iha6 and jotuheim? It would help a ton.

 

[nghenhac]

Iha6 is more balanced in all frequencies. Jotunheim is a little bit on mid frequency, so some songs I feel it is shouty.

 

[gr4474]

Iha6 is more balanced in all frequencies. Jotunheim is a little bit on mid frequency, so some songs I feel it is shouty.

I love the internal build, and it sounds like an good amp for me. I've contacted @Andykong and just need conformation about honoring possible warranty details.

 

[gr4474]

ZMF is our authorized US dealer and MusicTeck is another option. You should be able to order iHA-6 from them. If they don't have any stock on hand, they can place an order for you but that will take a slightly longer time.
.......
Cayin offers a limited nontransferable warranty to all products sold through an authorized dealer. The warranty is only valid at the original place of purchase. In other words, if you purchase a Cayin amplifier in US, the warranty will only cover within US territory. Alternatively, if you purchase the amplifier from China and ship it to US, the warranty will remain at China and the amplifier will receive no warranty coverage in US.

Edit: I have to buy from ZMF. MusicTeck doesn't carry it. I wonder if they too many warranty claims. Sorry to take over the thread

 

[JaquesGelee]

Hey,

I got an iHA-6 (Loaner) here actually. I've been experiencing some crazy things over the past few weeks.
I also think I read something about it here. however, can't find it anymore!? Among others from @Andykong, if i remember right.

It doesn`t matter, which headphone, cable or hp output i use. I rule out the connected dac and interconnects as well.

Starting with the iHA-6 at Low Gain/ High Current. Sounds the best to me using HFM Arya f.e.. I get a clearly perceptible hum, when i switch to high gain, low gain is silent.
But sometimes it is the other way around. Hum on Low Gain, nothing on high gain. Current mode the same. Depending on the song, bass or whatever it triggers, i get a sound like bass distortion and/ or a hissing noise. Changing gain and/or current back and forth usually fixes it.

If i use dynamic driver hp`s f.e., i get a hissing noise/ a bit like pink noise (no hum), which sounds really weird. Switching modes usually fixes this too. But high current for dynamic drivers?
Also here, the other way around from time to time. So, no clear procedure overall.

Any suggestions as to what it is or how to fix or even prevent it. A defect?

Thank you.

Cheers


Aunt Edit(h):
I'm going to put this together from the forum below to get to the bottom of it all.

- User Asukara mentioned one of the named issues here: Link
-- Answer from @Andykong about High Current - Low Impedance/ Sensitive HP´s: Link
--- High Current for several days to test: Link
---- SQ gets bad? Low Current, High Gain: Link

- Later evaluation, @yenrios: Link
-- next one(s): Link, Link, Link, Link and follow-up posts

 

[xtiva]

Haven't tried mine with Arya but have tried with HE1KSE but didn't hear any hiss/hum using whichever mode I used. This is with XLR output.. never tried 1/4" output..

may be let it warm up a bit?

 

[capetownwatches]

This is really weird and I can only think that your unit may be faulty in some way.
I have no noise issues whatsoever with my 14 month old unit.

Using balanced connection from Yulong D18 I can max the pot in all modes and the unit is utterly silent.
Using SE from the same DAC I can hear a slight hiss at full volume only in high gain.
This is with HD650 (300Z) and TH-X00 (25Z) so impedance isn't the issue.
The only planar I've tried thus far was the HE400se and no issues there either.

I'm not technical enough to offer a possible explanation for what you're experiencing.
To my mind it sounds like connections or power supply might be possible reasons.

 

[Andykong]

Hey,

I got an iHA-6 (Loaner) here actually. I've been experiencing some crazy things over the past few weeks.
I also think I read something about it here. however, can't find it anymore!? Among others from @Andykong, if i remember right.

It doesn`t matter, which headphone, cable or hp output i use. I rule out the connected dac and interconnects as well.

Starting with the iHA-6 at Low Gain/ High Current. Sounds the best to me using HFM Arya f.e.. I get a clearly perceptible hum, when i switch to high gain, low gain is silent.
But sometimes it is the other way around. Hum on Low Gain, nothing on high gain. Current mode the same. Depending on the song, bass or whatever it triggers, i get a sound like bass distortion and/ or a hissing noise. Changing gain and/or current back and forth usually fixes it.

If i use dynamic driver hp`s f.e., i get a hissing noise/ a bit like pink noise (no hum), which sounds really weird. Switching modes usually fixes this too. But high current for dynamic drivers?
Also here, the other way around from time to time. So, no clear procedure overall.

Any suggestions as to what it is or how to fix or even prevent it. A defect?

Thank you.

Cheers


Aunt Edit(h):
I'm going to put this together from the forum below to get to the bottom of it all.

- User Asukara mentioned one of the named issues here: Link

- Answer from @Andykong about High Current - Low Impedance/ Sensitive HP´s: Link
-- Test High Current for several days to test: Link
--- SQ gets bad? Low Current, High Gain: Link

Sounds like a defeated unit to me, the problems you described are way different from previous low gain low current noise problem.

 

[JaquesGelee]

Haven't tried mine with Arya but have tried with HE1KSE but didn't hear any hiss/hum using whichever mode I used. This is with XLR output.. never tried 1/4" output..

may be let it warm up a bit?

Got a run yesterday from about six hours with several headphones, so warm up should be long enough.
The hum noise is only noticeable on high gain. I use Dual 3PIN BAL Out.

This is really weird and I can only think that your unit may be faulty in some way.
I have no noise issues whatsoever with my 14 month old unit.

Using balanced connection from Yulong D18 I can max the pot in all modes and the unit is utterly silent.
Using SE from the same DAC I can hear a slight hiss at full volume only in high gain.
This is with HD650 (300Z) and TH-X00 (25Z) so impedance isn't the issue.
The only planar I've tried thus far was the HE400se and no issues there either.

I'm not technical enough to offer a possible explanation for what you're experiencing.
To my mind it sounds like connections or power supply might be possible reasons.

That's what I'm trying to find out. It doesn't always happen, except for the buzzing noise. but that can also partly be due to the electricity in the house/ grounding issue.
I got no experiences so far with purifiers
the (white) noise occurs sporadically and currently only with dynamic headphones, 32-80 ohms.

Sounds like a defeated unit to me, the problems you described are way different from previous low gain low current noise problem.

How do you come to this conclusion directly?
I have now skimmed the last forty-five pages. I also edited the initial post for maybe a possible solution here. The "issues" have increased with the last few pages. Although they would have to be checked first. So please don't misunderstand.

I sued Dual 3Pin XLR BAL out and 4Pin XLR Out HP stock cables. The (white) noise only occurs sporadically with DD headphones (32-80 Ohm range so far) independant from used current/ gain mode.

Is there any thing to try/ find out/ test or is the unit really done? If yes, warranty ran out definetly.

Thank you

 

[Chodi]

Got a run yesterday from about six hours with several headphones, so warm up should be long enough.
The hum noise is only noticeable on high gain. I use Dual 3PIN BAL Out.


That's what I'm trying to find out. It doesn't always happen, except for the buzzing noise. but that can also partly be due to the electricity in the house/ grounding issue.
I got no experiences so far with purifiers
the (white) noise occurs sporadically and currently only with dynamic headphones, 32-80 ohms.


How do you come to this conclusion directly?
I have now skimmed the last forty-five pages. I also edited the initial post for maybe a possible solution here. The "issues" have increased with the last few pages. Although they would have to be checked first. So please don't misunderstand.

I sued Dual 3Pin XLR BAL out and 4Pin XLR Out HP stock cables. The (white) noise only occurs sporadically with DD headphones (32-80 Ohm range so far) independant from used current/ gain mode.

Is there any thing to try/ find out/ test or is the unit really done? If yes, warranty ran out definetly.

Thank you

I bought this amp 2 months ago. I have tube amps but I like to keep solid state amp for my Hifiman headphones. I have used it with several headphones with both balanced and occasionally single end. The balanced output and the ability to select gain and current make this a very good amp for the price. I have experienced no noise or any other strange sounds regardless of the headphone I use. I have headphones from 18 ohms to 600 ohms. No noise at all. Very nice sounding amp probably better than the price would suggest. I would say you have been unfortunate and should return your amp for service.

 

[jclyle]

Has anyone in the US bought one from MoonAudio or ZMF recently? I'd like to try one for use with my 300ohm cans using single ended, but have seen the posts about noise, and faulty units. Please share any experiences you've had.

From what I've read, they aren't serviceable in the US.

 

[czalarenta]

Yeah, I bought mine from ZMF, sometime around September last year I think. I haven't had a single issue at all. It's been a phenominal performer, with one exception. I originally bought it for 300 ohm headphones, and while the high-impedance output is an improvement for sure over most low-impedance amps, it isn't a major jump. For headphones that really need 300 ohms, you'd still feel like you're lacking with the iHA-6.

Despite that, I'm really happy with it. It sounds awesome and handles anything you plug into it really well. If you're looking for a Swiss-army knife of an amp, this is a great option, but just view the high-impedance out as a bonus, not as the main reason to buy.

 

[jclyle]

Have there been any comparisons made between IHA-6 and Schiit Valhalla when using Sennheisers or ZMFs? My Valhalla is great with those cans, but I'd like to add a solid state amp to the rotation to better accommodate planars.

 

[elwappo99]

Have there been any comparisons made between IHA-6 and Schiit Valhalla when using Sennheisers or ZMFs? My Valhalla is great with those cans, but I'd like to add a solid state amp to the rotation to better accommodate planars.

These are very different amps. The Valhalla is an OTL which is ideal for higher resistance loads. The IHA-6 will have a lot more power and authority, but will also be much brighter sounding as well.