[BroncoVA]

No problem bud, let us know how the cable works out once you get it!

Will do!
But it'll take a few weeks, as i haven't yet the Xduoo

 

[groucho69]

Yeah, I've been waiting to see this nipple background!

One of my favorite features!

 

[groucho69]

Drop everything, N3 Custom Firmware V2.0 by XVortex and gLer is here!

DISCLAIMER: Cayin and its distributors do not warrant support for custom firmware at this stage. While we've tested V2.0 extensively and found it to work 100% on our players, should you experience any problems or need to send your N3 for any unrelated fix, please re-flash the device with the official Cayin V2.0 firmware.

It gives us great pleasure to present you with V2.0 of our custom firmware for the Cayin N3, the 'little DAP that can'. Many of you have already downloaded and use our previous release (V1.2). The latest version includes ALL the new features of Cayin's official V2.0 firmware, including HiBy Link support, PLUS:

• All-new CALM look-and-feel, including wallpapers and visual elements in three different colors (blue, bronze, black)
• All-new startup and shutdown animations
• Consistent UI elements
• Fixed and tweaked English, French and Russian messages and strings (spelling/grammar)
• Stripped unnecessary resources improving speed and responsiveness
• PLUS a hidden 'naughty' Easter egg (let's see who can find it first).

Sorry guys (and gals) but the visual 'theme' of V1.2 split opinions and made the N3 unsuitable for many work or family environments (yes, the famous 'nipple' wallpaper is no more), but we think you'll find V2.0 all the more appealing and 'calming', for want of a better word, with fewer distractions. That said, if you really, really need your nipple fix, go find the egg!

Screens below. You can download Custom Firmware V2.0 here: https://mega.nz/#!JsEwGRyR!fGrYh6SY07L-Mc0lO1CD-7uNd4VbDeuu-lFsuhCZgng

Thanks again to the genius behind the code, @XVortex!

Must have egg.....

 

[adrsz]

shanling m1 vs or cayjin n3 or shozy alien gold edition ? i only care about sound quality. nothing else.
in my country prices are 130 euro for m1, n3 for 150 euros and shozy for 140 euros

 

[riffrafff]

Thanks for the feedback Doc. It's always a work in progress; the next iteration (which we'll release when Cayin releases the next firmware version) will be even more refined, with a different choice of wallpaper textures (rather than just color variations), and maybe even a 'risqué' theme if we get enough requests for one.

By the way, in case you're like me and can't understand why the N3 would boot up with a random image of a piano (and not even a good one at that), @XVortex has figured out how to replace it with a black screen, so the N3 boots straight into the Cayin logo animation. It really puts the last bit of polish on the theme. PM me if you want the link, but be warned that it involves writing over the kernel code of the N3 and will definitely void the warranty if you don't do it right and brick your player (there's also a second script that restores the old logo in case you need to send the N3 in for an under-warranty repair). It worked for me and is very simple to do (it's literally a one-line script that runs once at boot up), but just know that we take absolutely no responsibility if you use it and it doesn't work for you. This is the first feature request I made (an on-off switch in settings for the boot logo) but since one wasn't forthcoming we have @XVortex to thank for making it for us (and he's not even an N3 user!).

Excellent job, you two!

In my excitement to get this loaded as soon as I got home from work, I must have just glossed over the bit about the black boot screen in the above-quoted post. Oops. When it first booted after flashing, and I saw that piano, I was like...wait, what?? LOL. My bad. Guess I'll have to contact Mr. XVortex about that script line.

 

[Slater]

Do i need the amp capabilities of the x3? Since the phone is actually low impedance. The other headphone i have is modded fostex t50?

My only concern are sound quality and battery life. I wont be needing the extra feature the n3 gives. If sq and battery life are almost on par then im probably settled with the xduoo x3.

With (what I assume are) 16ohm earphones, you will be just fine. In fact, the X3 will drive the Fostex fine too.

If you really don't need the extra features of the N3, I'd save the pile of cash and go for the X3 (because otherwise you're just paying more for features you won't use). Use the money you save for (2) 128GB microSD cards.

Again, the X3 isn't perfect, but neither is the N3. Plan on using Rockbox on the X3 though.

You can find out everything you ever wanted to know, talk to other owners, etc at the following X3 threads:

https://www.head-fi.org/f/threads/rockbox-xduoo-x3.803844/

and

https://www.head-fi.org/f/threads/x...khz-cs4398-chip-lossless-music-player.782912/

 

[firgoe]

I almost had a go with the x3, but i had the price wrong. I thought i saw around 90 dollar yesterday, but all i can find is 125 dollar. The cayin is 150 dollar. With only 25 dollar difference i have to rethink.

With (what I assume are) 16ohm earphones, you will be just fine. In fact, the X3 will drive the Fostex fine too.

If you really don't need the extra features of the N3, I'd save the pile of cash and go for the X3 (because otherwise you're just paying more for features you won't use). Use the money you save for (2) 128GB microSD cards.

Again, the X3 isn't perfect, but neither is the N3. Plan on using Rockbox on the X3 though.

You can find out everything you ever wanted to know, talk to other owners, etc at the following X3 threads:

https://www.head-fi.org/f/threads/rockbox-xduoo-x3.803844/

and

https://www.head-fi.org/f/threads/x...khz-cs4398-chip-lossless-music-player.782912/

 

[fourrobert13]

The X3 isn't that great. I had one for a short time. I barely got 6 hours out of the battery when it was brand new. You have to run rockbox to correct it's shortcomings (pitch error and lack of features in general). There are more choices in the entry level market that are better IMO. I returned my X3 within 30 and waited for the X1II. Now i'm getting my N3 this Saturday so I'll see what it can do.

 

[BroncoVA]

I almost had a go with the x3, but i had the price wrong. I thought i saw around 90 dollar yesterday, but all i can find is 125 dollar. The cayin is 150 dollar. With only 25 dollar difference i have to rethink.

http://www.gearbest.com/mp3-mp4-players/pp_440370.html
99$ on gearbest (but sometimes the price drops, with an impromptu sale periode...)

 

[Slater]

I almost had a go with the x3, but i had the price wrong. I thought i saw around 90 dollar yesterday, but all i can find is 125 dollar. The cayin is 150 dollar. With only 25 dollar difference i have to rethink.

X3 is currently $50.99 shipped:

https://www.head-fi.org/f/threads/rockbox-xduoo-x3.803844/page-117#post-13583818

 

[riffrafff]

Hmmmm. Another issue with not being able to disable the scrolly bits across the bottom...when playing WAV files, all it ever says is, "Unknown artist, unknown album." As far as I know, one cannot embed info into WAV files. Please, Cayin, can we have the ability to turn off the scrolls? Please?

 

[BroncoVA]

X3 is currently $50.99 shipped:

https://www.head-fi.org/f/threads/rockbox-xduoo-x3.803844/page-117#post-13583818

good lord!
That's legalised theft!
I don't need one, i'll have to restrain myself

 

[Wiljen]

Having used the X3 as my primary dap for almost a year I can say with no doubt that the difference in UI alone is worth the difference in price from X3 to N3 to me. Mine would freeze up on a regular basis and have to be factory reset. Rockbox helped but wasn't perfect either although each release has helped. The good things about X3 were , decent sound quality, dual SD card slots, and ample battery life. The downsides were random lockups and a crappy IU.

 

[firgoe]

I finally purchased the cayin since I can't wait for a good priced X3. Im planning on using it next week on a trip since my sansa battery has dropped to probably 4 hours.
First impression was it sounded good, then i switched to my sansa clip apparently its also sounded good. The difference between these two to my ear are little, to describe it, i will say the cayin sounds more refined. But not very easy to distinguish to my untrained ear. User interface is quite straight forward. The other thing is im confused is the filter menu, why there is no default selection or use no filter at all. The presence of filter feels like making it unnatural. So i just kept it unchanged.

The device came with firmware 1.0. Should i upgrade it to 2.0 ? I wont do it unless it gives better battery performance or better sound quality etc.

 

[gLer]

I finally purchased the cayin since I can't wait for a good priced X3. Im planning on using it next week on a trip since my sansa battery has dropped to probably 4 hours.
First impression was it sounded good, then i switched to my sansa clip apparently its also sounded good. The difference between these two to my ear are little, to describe it, i will say the cayin sounds more refined. But not very easy to distinguish to my untrained ear. User interface is quite straight forward. The other thing is im confused is the filter menu, why there is no default selection or use no filter at all. The presence of filter feels like making it unnatural. So i just kept it unchanged.

The device came with firmware 1.0. Should i upgrade it to 2.0 ? I wont do it unless it gives better battery performance or better sound quality etc.

Worth upgrading to V2 if you have an Android phone and want to use HiBy Link as a remote control. Feel free to download V2 custom firmware I created with @XVortex for a more refined interface and corrected English language UI elements throughout. The custom firmware also strips out some unneeded resources to make it a bit faster and more responsive. No changes to sound quality but the user experience is improved in my opinion.