[Auricon]

Mines the same, takes a good 45-60 minutes to warm up to get the best sound quality. My old N8ii was the same. Sounds quite dynamically flat and veiled before warm up. It’s kinda annoying but I’m used to it now.

I just switched back to 1.2….and I don’t hear any difference over 1.3…..

I do agree that it sounds better once warmed up but I’m used to R2R daps/dacs where this has always been the case.

Ja, coming from N8ii and owning both N30LE and RS8 – both DAPs need a bit of warm up to sound their best, usually 30min+

Avoiding the which firmware sounds best discussion, but 1.3 has been the most stable firmware, fixing Android instability that plagued both of my LE70 and LE292.

 

[jwilliamhurst]

Ja, coming from N8ii and owning both N30LE and RS8 – both DAPs need a bit of warm up to sound their best, usually 30min+

Avoiding the which firmware sounds best discussion, but 1.3 has been the most stable firmware, fixing Android instability that plagued both of my LE70 and LE292.

I agree, the 1.3 has been the most stable and IMO sounds identical..I have put mine back to 1.3

 

[confined9991]

tese are nice

 

[Kobe4ever]

Ja, coming from N8ii and owning both N30LE and RS8 – both DAPs need a bit of warm up to sound their best, usually 30min+

All audio devices need a few minutes of warm-up, more or less, to give the best of their capabilities.
Maybe someone made the discovery of hot water

 

[phiemon]

All audio devices need a few minutes of warm-up, more or less, to give the best of their capabilities.
Maybe someone made the discovery of hot water

For me, the DX320Max was fantastic for the first 5-10 minutes. It also works the other way around.

 

[Andykong]

Announcement of N30LE Firmware v1.4

New Functions and System Optimisation

1. Rectify the problem that the DAP volume knob cannot adjust the volume of connected Bluetooth headphones;
2. Rectify the problem that the Cayin Music Player APP, when track transition is set as Fade In / Fade Out, will crash when the player skips to the next song after the end of the current song;
3. The volume of Phone Out and Preamp Out will be memorized independently;
4. Modify the selected User Interface.
5. Other bug fixes and optimisations

Link to official firmware announcement.

Firmware Update

Cayin will release firmware updates to enhance and optimize N30LE as deemed required. Users can update the firmware through OTA or local updates. To manually download the firmware, please visit the SUPPORT center of our official website HERE.

Attention

• Please make sure the DAP has not less than 30% battery power, otherwise please charge up the player before you proceed to a firmware update.
• Please make sure your DAP has more than 2GB of storage before the firmware update.
• Do not operate the device during a firmware update.
• Please delete the firmware file from the TF card or internal storage after you have completed the firmware update process

OTA Update Procedures

1. Connect the N30LE to the internet via Wi-Fi.
2. Enter the Settings menu, and then proceed to “System” -> “System Update”.
3. Press “check version”, the system will check for new firmware.
4. Press “Download” when your DAP detects a new firmware. The N30LE operating system will download the new firmware as instructed.
5. Press “Install now” after the firmware is successfully downloaded.
6. Press “OK” at the pop-up dialogue, and the system will start installing the new firmware.

Local Update Procedures

1. Download the latest firmware update package from the SUPPORT center of Cayin's official website (en.cayin.cn), you should receive a compressed file as cayin_N30LE_XXXX.zip which is used for the N30LE firmware update.
2. DO NOT decompress the zip file.
3. Copy the firmware file into the root directory of N30LE internal memory or the root directory of the TF card, and insert the TF card into N30LE before you proceed to the next step.
4. Enter the Settings menu, and then proceed to “System” -> “System Update”.
5. Press the “┇” icon on the top right corner of the screen.
6. Select “Local updates” in the pop-up menu.
7. Proceed to the directory where the firmware file is located, and then select the firmware file.
8. Press “INSTALL NOW”.
9. Press “OK” at the pop-up dialogue, and the system will start installing the new firmware.

 

[Andykong]

Hi , I see from your photo that it says v 1.4 firmware... when is it coming and is it just a bug fix or is there any news?

Even the smallest mistake will be caught by dedicated Cayin users.

Word of caution, the firmware is getting bigger, we have now recommended keeping at least 2GB of storage in your internal memory before the firmware update.

 

[Kobe4ever]

The volume of Phone Out and Preamp Out will be memorized independently;

Great !

 

[mgsu]

I just switched back to 1.2….and I don’t hear any difference over 1.3…..

I do agree that it sounds better once warmed up but I’m used to R2R daps/dacs where this has always been the case.

Sorry to hear that you took the struggle to downgrade from 1.3 to 1.2 without any gain semnificative gain.

Could it be because of your Tinnitus that you dont hear any difference?

I stand by my statement that 1.2 is better than 1.3.
I am saying this with confidence because i have conversations with three people in DMs that confirmed the same thing:
"1.3 has some kind of vail to the sound and by switching back to 1.2 the vail is removed."

Dont know why such things are discussed in DMs and not public. Everyone is afraid to hurt someones feelings. Gents, its a frikkin firmware.

@Andykong is a big man, he can take the criticism. I se it as input, It is not criticism per se. Without input we are not moving anywhere.

i apologize for everyones struggle downgrading, but i stated before that "if you are happy with the sound and can easily connect to the music, than there is no need to downgrade"

Why have you put your N30 up for sale? It is such a fantastic DAP, you would miss it when its gone. It is not only very good sounding but also very good looking. You would miss the sound but also certainly miss the haptics/esthetics !

There is a saying in haute cuisine: you eat not only with your mouth but also with your eyes.

The same is true also for us audiophiles: we hear music not only with our ears but also with our eyes. #gearporn

Who feels guilty should raise theyr hand!


Edit about your Tinnitus:
Could it be that your Tinnitus is at a certain frequency that gets triggered by certain IEM that had a peak at that frequency?

I am saying this because i took yesterday the hearing test on Watercooler thread and the high frequencies messed up my ears for about 2 hours. Music sounded flat and i missed the micro dynamic swings from N30.
I had a slight whistle in my ears and had to took afterwards the volume down on my DAP by 6 notches for 2 hours to reset and heal my hearing.

Meaning: look for an IEM that has a dip in the same frequency range with your Tinnitus, so your hearing does not get bombarded in this frequency range and can rest/reset/heal

 

[Vamp898]

@Cayin @CayinTechnician Is there a change in the sound from Version 1.2 to 1.3?

 

[shznn]

Announcement of N30LE Firmware v1.4



New Functions and System Optimisation

1. Rectify the problem that the DAP volume knob cannot adjust the volume of connected Bluetooth headphones;
2. Rectify the problem that the Cayin Music Player APP, when track transition is set as Fade In / Fade Out, will crash when the player skips to the next song after the end of the current song;
3. The volume of Phone Out and Preamp Out will be memorized independently;
4. Modify the selected User Interface.
5. Other bug fixes and optimisations

Link to official firmware announcement.

Firmware Update

Cayin will release firmware updates to enhance and optimize N30LE as deemed required. Users can update the firmware through OTA or local updates. To manually download the firmware, please visit the SUPPORT center of our official website HERE.

Attention

• Please make sure the DAP has not less than 30% battery power, otherwise please charge up the player before you proceed to a firmware update.
• Please make sure your DAP has more than 2GB of storage before the firmware update.
• Do not operate the device during a firmware update.
• Please delete the firmware file from the TF card or internal storage after you have completed the firmware update process

OTA Update Procedures

1. Connect the N30LE to the internet via Wi-Fi.
2. Enter the Settings menu, and then proceed to “System” -> “System Update”.
3. Press “check version”, the system will check for new firmware.
4. Press “Download” when your DAP detects a new firmware. The N30LE operating system will download the new firmware as instructed.
5. Press “Install now” after the firmware is successfully downloaded.
6. Press “OK” at the pop-up dialogue, and the system will start installing the new firmware.

Local Update Procedures

1. Download the latest firmware update package from the SUPPORT center of Cayin's official website (en.cayin.cn), you should receive a compressed file as cayin_N30LE_XXXX.zip which is used for the N30LE firmware update.
2. DO NOT decompress the zip file.
3. Copy the firmware file into the root directory of N30LE internal memory or the root directory of the TF card, and insert the TF card into N30LE before you proceed to the next step.
4. Enter the Settings menu, and then proceed to “System” -> “System Update”.
5. Press the “┇” icon on the top right corner of the screen.
6. Select “Local updates” in the pop-up menu.
7. Proceed to the directory where the firmware file is located, and then select the firmware file.
8. Press “INSTALL NOW”.
9. Press “OK” at the pop-up dialogue, and the system will start installing the new firmware.

Have you changed the sound or current in any way? This DAP needs the current as well as physical warm-up to perform. I'm about to downgrade to 1.12. I'd prefer if any changes to the sound or current are documented. It's what matters.

 

[Andykong]

We didn't change the sound from v1.2 to v1.3, and we didn't change the sound from v1.3 ti v1.4.

We provide the service and features, including rollback to previous firmware.

User has the complete freedom to do whatever they prefer with their DAP, and we won't disagree with your impression, we can't because we have been in this business long enough to know that there are uncountable system in the Cayin community, everyone has their personal preferences, and everyone hears differently.

We always try our best to provide in due course.

 

[phiemon]

We didn't change the sound from v1.2 to v1.3, and we didn't change the sound from v1.3 ti v1.4.

We provide the service and features, including rollback to previous firmware.

User has the complete freedom to do whatever they prefer with their DAP, and we won't disagree with your impression, we can't because we have been in this business long enough to know that there are uncountable system in the Cayin community, everyone has their personal preferences, and everyone hears differently.

We always try our best to provide in due course.

Thank you very much for the clear answer .

I am a "firmware skeptic" and I do not believe that any sound changes have taken place. What is suspected here from others, however, is that such a change could have taken place indirectly by changing the power output (power consumption). So could this be the case if you change the voltage (?)? As I said, I don't think so. But I ask anyway.

 

[FooFighter]

Am sorry but I have now tried going from 1.3 to 1.2 and listened several hours last night and today again installing 1.3 and 1.4, listened and switched back to 1.2
1.2 is more transparent and slightly brighter and more reveilling than 1.3 and 1.4 to my ears.
Latter ones are slightly warmer and darker.
Tested on Class A, P mode, Medium Gain with Aroma Fei Wan.
But in the end it's a matter of taste and synergy, still undecided what I will end up with.
For Amber Pearl IEM I might prefer 1.2, for FW I am not sure yet as it's comparibly brighter tuned yet than AP.

 

[eatmoreplant]

I am one of the few that say 1.2 is better than 1.3. I have tried upgrade/downgrade 3x to confirm this. I only use Tidal. 1.2 + Tidal on Uapp Pro (bit perfect on) is best. I think those who experience a difference between 1.3 and 1.2 is because they use P mode / Tidal / low volume listening. Those who don’t experience a difference probably use P+ / hyper mode / local files / loud volume. I also notice that 1st day of upgrade to 1.3, the sound is same as 1.2 but next day the 1.3 sound quality drops. I notice this because 1 day I can’t stop listening then next day after 2 songs I just feel meh and stop listening. My settings : medium gain, P mode, Class A, Tube Modern and low volume of 7. Perhaps at higher volume of 35-50, there is no difference between 1.2/1.3.

If you use Tidal, please try Uapp Pro with bit perfect on.