[Podster]

lol, but hey that pic is making me regret ordering the black N3

after having a titanium x3 2 and a titanium x5 3 I thought it was time to go back to black. Can't wait to get mine, I always like a smaller dap- hence the plenue D. Unfortunately it didn't have enough punch and sound stage for full sized cans.

I can't believe how much Cayin has put into this little unit for 150 bucks. Unless the build quality is utter carp or crap lol.

Yes, that's going to be a time will tell thing but having had one of their KT88 integrated amps they do make a solid product and IMHO they have really challenged the competition to step up their game!

 

[abitdeef]

Hi all! I'm actually using an iBasso dx50 paired with a Cayin C5 amp. My idea is getting a Cayin N3 when it's on stock. How I could connect this DAP to the Cayin C5 amp? Do you think the SQ will improve in comparision to dx50? Thank you for all!

Yes I do, I know that there are many factors besides what DAC is used, however I believe you still get the character of the DAC coming through. And although Wolfson 8740 is a very nice warm sounding DAC, I think the ak 4490 just sounds better, more detail, better timbre, more natural sounding.

Unless Cayin totally screws up the circuit path or the amp section I would bet your weekly salary the N3 will sound better

 

[mashuto]

So, still havent quite figured out the whole usb-coax thing. Definitely still retains volume control on both the cayin and the mojo. And can do all the processing on the cayin too. Seems to kind of defeat the purpose of doing digital out, since my assumption now is that the signal is getting processed twice. Luckily, usb out works exactly as I would expect.
 
When I have my headphones plugged directly into the N3 I definitely still hear some hiss/buzz. Just seems to be from my vegas though, my noble X's I dont seem to hear it. Just because the impedance is lower on the vegas? I dont know too much about sensitivity/impedance, so I dont know if this is normal or expected. Its just a bit distracting when using them to hear the hiss/buzz. Also weird that it seems to have no bearing on the actual playback volume, because if I turn the volume all the way down, I still hear the hiss/buzz exactly as loud.
 
And one other small question that I just dont know if I missed... but is there a way to show the artist name on the screen during playback? My album art is not correct for everything and I have a lot of music that I just loaded on there or dont always know well enough, but it only seems to show track name, sample rate, and bit depth. Would be nice to have a bit more info on screen (especially artist name). Is there any way to do this?

 

[docholliday]

  And one other small question that I just dont know if I missed... but is there a way to show the artist name on the screen during playback? My album art is not correct for everything and I have a lot of music that I just loaded on there or dont always know well enough, but it only seems to show track name, sample rate, and bit depth. Would be nice to have a bit more info on screen (especially artist name). Is there any way to do this?

That shows that your tracks aren't tagged at all, which is why it reverts to showing the file name. Download MP3Tag and tag your files accordingly. It can look up the metadata for you automatically if you want, just be sure to choose the right edition of albums!

 

[Orac]

There's no way to accurately guarantee uploading samples...

Thanks once more for your insights. I don't own an N3 yet, but my short list for a DAP only has two real candidates: N3 and Plenue D.

The filter doesn't seem like a problem as such, though having to set EQ with nothing playing then reboot the player is probably a bit of a niggly annoyance but did I read Cayin will fix that?

 

[dnullify]

So, still havent quite figured out the whole usb-coax thing. Definitely still retains volume control on both the cayin and the mojo. And can do all the processing on the cayin too. Seems to kind of defeat the purpose of doing digital out, since my assumption now is that the signal is getting processed twice. Luckily, usb out works exactly as I would expect.

When I have my headphones plugged directly into the N3 I definitely still hear some hiss/buzz. Just seems to be from my vegas though, my noble X's I dont seem to hear it. Just because the impedance is lower on the vegas? I dont know too much about sensitivity/impedance, so I dont know if this is normal or expected. Its just a bit distracting when using them to hear the hiss/buzz. Also weird that it seems to have no bearing on the actual playback volume, because if I turn the volume all the way down, I still hear the hiss/buzz exactly as loud.

And one other small question that I just dont know if I missed... but is there a way to show the artist name on the screen during playback? My album art is not correct for everything and I have a lot of music that I just loaded on there or dont always know well enough, but it only seems to show track name, sample rate, and bit depth. Would be nice to have a bit more info on screen (especially artist name). Is there any way to do this?

Maybe doc, or Andy has an idea what's going on with your audio out. I don't recall reading that the n3 had an anolog output through the USB-c port, but if you're able to adjust the volume and what-not the DAC is processing the signal. What cable did you buy?

Is the plug on your Vegas all the way in, like clicking? For whatever reason my aurisonics rockets plug doesn't click all the way in, and any rotation causes it to slightly disengage giving noise. It's the only IEM whose plug fits like that, and I don't have that problem with any of my other sources. Might be it if your BA IEMs are giving more noise than your vegas. I don't know the sensitivity of nobles vs vega but I'd assume if you hear noise on one you should on the other to at least a varied degree. What volume and gain are you using the Vegas at?

 

[docholliday]

Thanks once more for your insights. I don't own an N3 yet, but my short list for a DAP only has two real candidates: N3 and Plenue D.

The filter doesn't seem like a problem as such, though having to set EQ with nothing playing then reboot the player is probably a bit of a niggly annoyance but did I read Cayin will fix that?

You don't have to set the EQ and reboot. It only happens if you change the EQ rapidly and too many times in a row. Even then, it's rare. Once I figured out what EQ I needed, I haven't had a single problem with the N3. 
 
I've never been a fan of Cowon and their overly-warm sound signature. I like having clear and crisp, then adding EQ to the mids should I want more warmth. 

 

[docholliday]

  So, still havent quite figured out the whole usb-coax thing. Definitely still retains volume control on both the cayin and the mojo. And can do all the processing on the cayin too. Seems to kind of defeat the purpose of doing digital out, since my assumption now is that the signal is getting processed twice. Luckily, usb out works exactly as I would expect.
 
When I have my headphones plugged directly into the N3 I definitely still hear some hiss/buzz. Just seems to be from my vegas though, my noble X's I dont seem to hear it. Just because the impedance is lower on the vegas? I dont know too much about sensitivity/impedance, so I dont know if this is normal or expected. Its just a bit distracting when using them to hear the hiss/buzz. Also weird that it seems to have no bearing on the actual playback volume, because if I turn the volume all the way down, I still hear the hiss/buzz exactly as loud.
 
And one other small question that I just dont know if I missed... but is there a way to show the artist name on the screen during playback? My album art is not correct for everything and I have a lot of music that I just loaded on there or dont always know well enough, but it only seems to show track name, sample rate, and bit depth. Would be nice to have a bit more info on screen (especially artist name). Is there any way to do this?

I don't use USB-Coax, so I'm not much help there. I have used the line out and it is very pure with little adjustment available on the N3. Have you tried to kick the headphone/line out setting to line out to see if that affects the USB out as well?
 
I don't have any Noble or Campfire stuff, only UE and JH customs, but you can see if the amp is causing the noise by playing a track and plugging in directly to headphone out, lowering the volume all the way down to zero and seeing if there's any noise (play/pause a few times and it should reveal a change if there is). That should rule out noise in the source track that may be masked by one of your IEMs due to it's design. If there's no noise, I'd suspect another device in the chain.

 

[Orac]

  ...I've never been a fan of Cowon...

 
The clear advantage with the Plenue D is the playback time. Aside from that I'm struggling to justify it.
 
I like how active Cayin are on the forums and I really like that the N3 is released with a UI that works well, lag free and no major bugs or glitches. I find it shocking that so many players costing hundreds, or even a thousand dollars plus are released with just barely beta quality UI. 

 

[mashuto]

  That shows that your tracks aren't tagged at all, which is why it reverts to showing the file name. Download MP3Tag and tag your files accordingly. It can look up the metadata for you automatically if you want, just be sure to choose the right edition of albums!
 
I don't use USB-Coax, so I'm not much help there. I have used the line out and it is very pure with little adjustment available on the N3. Have you tried to kick the headphone/line out setting to line out to see if that affects the USB out as well?
 
I don't have any Noble or Campfire stuff, only UE and JH customs, but you can see if the amp is causing the noise by playing a track and plugging in directly to headphone out, lowering the volume all the way down to zero and seeing if there's any noise (play/pause a few times and it should reveal a change if there is). That should rule out noise in the source track that may be masked by one of your IEMs due to it's design. If there's no noise, I'd suspect another device in the chain.

 
While some of my tracks might not have the correct metadata, I am 99% sure a good majority of my tracks have the proper metadata. Especially tracks that I bought off say google play music. All I get on the display is the track name, file type, sample rate, and bit depth. No artist name or album name, which I would personally like to have in there somewhere.
 
I have tried kicking it to line out, it didnt seem to do anything at all for the volume level through coax. At the end of the day, usb out to the mojo seems to give bit perfect output, and behaves as I expect, so this isnt that big of a deal, just a shame that I bought an extra cable for the coax out and it doesnt seem to behave the way I want.
 
As far as the noise, its not the track, and theres nothing else in the chain since I have the headphones plugged directly into it. And yes, turning the volume to 0, I still hear the buzz. Pausing the track though I hear nothing, but as soon as it plays, I hear it.
 

Maybe doc, or Andy has an idea what's going on with your audio out. I don't recall reading that the n3 had an anolog output through the USB-c port, but if you're able to adjust the volume and what-not the DAC is processing the signal. What cable did you buy?

Is the plug on your Vegas all the way in, like clicking? For whatever reason my aurisonics rockets plug doesn't click all the way in, and any rotation causes it to slightly disengage giving noise. It's the only IEM whose plug fits like that, and I don't have that problem with any of my other sources. Might be it if your BA IEMs are giving more noise than your vegas. I don't know the sensitivity of nobles vs vega but I'd assume if you hear noise on one you should on the other to at least a varied degree. What volume and gain are you using the Vegas at?

All I can think of is that the n3 is processing the file through its dac, and then sending out wav/pcm data via digital. I would imagine its not analog as I am pretty sure the mojo cant accept an analog signal at all. It still decodes and the sample rate ball changes colors properly to match the sample rate of the song. The cable was the one from musicteck, which I know at least one user (not sure if it was you) said theirs had a short. But it still works, just doesnt work the way I was expecting.
 
As far as the plug in the vegas, yes its all the way, at least there is no possible for way for me to plug it in further. And the hiss/buzz is kind of noticeable and annoying, and not something I was expecting. The vegas are 17.5 ohm impedance, while I believe the nobles are 30. I will check with some other iems I own later and see if I hear it on anything else. But the nobles are BA and I hear no hiss or buzz, while the vegas are dd, and I do. Volume and gain have nothing to do with it, as the buzz persists at the same level regardless of what volume or gain I use. I can turn the volume to 0 and still hear the buzz at the exact same level.

 

[docholliday]

   
While some of my tracks might not have the correct metadata, I am 99% sure a good majority of my tracks have the proper metadata. Especially tracks that I bought off say google play music. All I get on the display is the track name, file type, sample rate, and bit depth. No artist name or album name, which I would personally like to have in there somewhere.
 
I have tried kicking it to line out, it didnt seem to do anything at all for the volume level through coax. At the end of the day, usb out to the mojo seems to give bit perfect output, and behaves as I expect, so this isnt that big of a deal, just a shame that I bought an extra cable for the coax out and it doesnt seem to behave the way I want.
 
As far as the noise, its not the track, and theres nothing else in the chain since I have the headphones plugged directly into it. And yes, turning the volume to 0, I still hear the buzz. Pausing the track though I hear nothing, but as soon as it plays, I hear it.
 
All I can think of is that the n3 is processing the file through its dac, and then sending out wav/pcm data via digital. I would imagine its not analog as I am pretty sure the mojo cant accept an analog signal at all. It still decodes and the sample rate ball changes colors properly to match the sample rate of the song. The cable was the one from musicteck, which I know at least one user (not sure if it was you) said theirs had a short. But it still works, just doesnt work the way I was expecting.
 
As far as the plug in the vegas, yes its all the way, at least there is no possible for way for me to plug it in further. And the hiss/buzz is kind of noticeable and annoying, and not something I was expecting. The vegas are 17.5 ohm impedance, while I believe the nobles are 30. I will check with some other iems I own later and see if I hear it on anything else. But the nobles are BA and I hear no hiss or buzz, while the vegas are dd, and I do. Volume and gain have nothing to do with it, as the buzz persists at the same level regardless of what volume or gain I use. I can turn the volume to 0 and still hear the buzz at the exact same level.

If your files are tagged, then the bottom row showing track name, format, and resolution is working like it should. If there isn't metadata, it'll show filename, format, resolution instead. It's never shown the album title, but that would be a lot to scroll along there. I'd just rather tag the file right with an album cover and be done with it!
 
Sounds like your hissing is because of a mismatch between the amp and IEM. Some IEMs are just bad players and don't get along with amps. 16'ish ohm should be on L gain and the 30ohm would do best at medium. I don't hear hissing on any of my IEMs. You could always use an impedance adapter and boost the floor, but that would probably cost some resolution. There's always the UE Pro Line Drive too.

 

[mashuto]

  If your files are tagged, then the bottom row showing track name, format, and resolution is working like it should. If there isn't metadata, it'll show filename, format, resolution instead. It's never shown the album title, but that would be a lot to scroll along there. I'd just rather tag the file right with an album cover and be done with it!
 
Sounds like your hissing is because of a mismatch between the amp and IEM. Some IEMs are just bad players and don't get along with amps. 16'ish ohm should be on L gain and the 30ohm would do best at medium. I don't hear hissing on any of my IEMs. You could always use an impedance adapter and boost the floor, but that would probably cost some resolution. There's always the UE Pro Line Drive too.

Gotcha, yea thats what it shows, name, format, resolution. I just personally wish there was a way to display artist as well. Wasnt sure if there was some setting or something I overlooked.
 
And yea, I just wasnt sure if there was some mismatch or it was a bad pairing with the vega. Its just unfortunate as I was hoping that it would be a good replacement if or when I dont feel like using the mojo. And I dont think gain has anything to do with it either, since I can turn the volume down to 0 and hear the exact same amount of hiss/buzz regardless of volume or gain level. Of course, I already have the mojo and purchased the N3 with the intent of using it with the mojo most of the time anyways. I get zero hiss, or buzz, or noise from the mojo.

 

[docholliday]

  Gotcha, yea thats what it shows, name, format, resolution. I just personally wish there was a way to display artist as well. Wasnt sure if there was some setting or something I overlooked.
 
And yea, I just wasnt sure if there was some mismatch or it was a bad pairing with the vega. Its just unfortunate as I was hoping that it would be a good replacement if or when I dont feel like using the mojo. And I dont think gain has anything to do with it either, since I can turn the volume down to 0 and hear the exact same amount of hiss/buzz regardless of volume or gain level. Of course, I already have the mojo and purchased the N3 with the intent of using it with the mojo most of the time anyways. I get zero hiss, or buzz, or noise from the mojo.

My vote would be to add an option to replace the "Playing Now" at the top of the screen with artist - album scrolling past so that the main screen stays clean. The Fiio X1-II and it's massively cut off album art can be annoying. The N3 shows 80% or so of the artwork and looks great, I'd hate to muck that up with more text and less image.
 
Or, at least put a text box in the middle of the screen and show data there when no art is available (or the art is disabled).

 

[NateInBelgium]

I can't believe how much Cayin has put into this little unit for 150 bucks. Unless the build quality is utter carp or crap lol.

It's a strange oxymoron. The built quality looks solid and sound, but the thing is so light it feels like it's an empty case haha!

 

[docholliday]

It's a strange oxymoron. The built quality looks solid and sound, but the thing is so light it feels like it's an empty case haha!

I agree, it's really well constructed and has no case movement, flex, or creaks. Yet, it feels like an empty aluminum pop can with leather coaster attached. Then you have the Fiio X1-II, which feels hefty and solid with nice rounded edges, but runs like crap in comparison to the N3 (as of current firmware).