[kmmbd]

Cayin N7 X Sennheiser IE 900 is a phenomenal pairing.

 

[sk57rus]

I did download my SD card and LOVED what I heard. It was left on for about 30mins and a bit warm. Easy to hear the difference between Class A and AB. It is connected to my internet, but says it's not connected to the net. I use an Amplify router and it shows it as connected and everything else is working perfectly via wired (my home audio is direct connected) and wireless (most things other than TV, wife's work phone and my audio music player).

Any advice on wifi connection would help here, lol. thanks guys.

Update the firmware and wi fi will work

 

[Scubadevils]

Cayin N7 X Sennheiser IE 900 is a phenomenal pairing.

Yes they are fantastic together.

 

[Andykong]

Hello all, I spent some time this morning trying to hear any differences in class A between medium and high gain, doing my best to adjust to a similar phon level.

High gain seems to bring the mids more forward and create a greater sense of air, I also hear more edge in the treble and presence. It can convey a sense of an event or excitement at times. I also found it to become a bit fatiguing over time.

Medium gain sounds smoother and more layered, and the instruments have more body and are rounded. I can hear a touch more emotion in voices, more intimacy. Depending on the track, I find it more engaging and deep.

The differences are so slight I really had to work to try to generalize this. I’m curious whether anyone else has thoughts or perspective on the topic. I tend to favor high gain for rock or big stage orchestral arrangements and medium gain for everything else. If I had to only pick one gain level, I would pick medium as it can do it all oh so well.

The main purpose of gain control is a tool to match the amplifier output to your IEM/headphone, making sure you have the desired range of volume control, and your amplifier will operate in a fairly optimized condition, not stressing too hard and yet not choking the output too much. It does affect the sound signature slightly, but only slightly, so I didn't pay attention to this myself.

 

[Andykong]

Spending a relaxing weekend unwinding with one of two early Meze birthday splurges, Empy + N7.

Meze Liric almost become the bundled headphone with my N7 at home now, but Hong Kong is too hot for any full-size headphones in the outdoor environment right now. The Liric is not as "splurges" as Empyrean, but it has a higher WAF with its low profile design, especially when you need to price them at a wife-friendly range.

 

[Andykong]

I finally got to spend my 2 weeks with the N7 and I think this is truly an amazing device. I have had a few daps and a few extra sources. My most used source gear at the moment is my Prism Sound Calia > IHA1 Tube Amp or Prism Sound Calia with the headout. I also use a Hiby RS6 on the go or Q5k if I need to travel light. My main usage is with IEMs, but occasionally, I will break into my headphone collection.

Character: I think the first and most important step in source gear reviewing is trying to figure out what the intention is and what kind of presentation it will offer. The Calia is bright and revealing while the RS6 is warm and bassy. I think the best way to describe the N7 is relaxed. It seems to be a bit rolled off in the treble and the bass in a way that I found very pleasing. Initially I thought the lack of high end detail would bother me, but more and more I was reaching for this as my go to with IEMs, headphones and even into my speakers. I just kept reaching for it.

Drivability: This thing is powerful enough to drive any headphone or IEM you throw at it without exception. I enjoyed listening to my Verite Closed and my Philphone very much. Volume on medium gain was around 60 and was comfortable to my ears. The problem child, which is my HE6 6 Screw, was driven to volume well, but the bass rolled off too heavy for this to be usable. HE6 is an extreme outlier and isn't driven well by almost anything I own. It's mostly a collector's item at this point.

Interface: It runs android, it has great battery, it has a nice screen I really liked the heft and size of the unity. It felt very sturdy and good in the hands. The volume knob turned nice and the build quality felt top notch. I was very happy at all times.

IEM and headphone pairing ratings:

A12t was an excellent pairing source as A12t is a bit warm and lacking in upper mids however the holes filled in well with the character of the device while the roll of tames the 16k peak that is unbearable on most mobile sources I have tried. If you have an A12t, I highly recommend the N7

Helios SE: This is a medium pairing as the Helios is pretty picky with sources. It is incredibly detailed with a wide stage and the more relaxed tone of the N7 seems to fight with the Helios rather than work together. Overall, I would not recommend this pairing, but it's not awful.

Hidition Viento B Custom: This was a good pairing as well as the Viento is not overly detailed or overly sharp. It plays into the hands of the N7 and helps tone down the high treble, which can be problematic for Viento owners. if you have a Viento, I would happily recommend the N7

Philphone: This was my favorite pairing. If you don't know what a philphone is, it's a franken phone made my Phil (shocking I know) that uses an AT500DX chasis with a custom driver implementation of what used to be a Fostex bio dynamic driver, but I believe is something different currently. It's character is tons of bass slam and high end sparkle. This is a nice v shaped headphone that is extremely fun to listen to. The N7 tones down the bass and the high end making it feel very lively, but toning down the bombastic nature. I loved what the N7 did to mu Philphone and is making me consider buying my own after the tour is up.

Overall Score and Value: I think my biggest issue is payiong $2000 for a device that is not top of the charts in resolution compared to the HIBY RS8, DX320 MAX Ti or my desktop stack makes me feel that it might not be worth it. However, it was something I unconsciously kept reaching for so maybe it has more value then I realized. I would recommend this over my RS6 or my old Fiio M11 LTD. However those devices are about half the price. I love what this offers, but I'm not sure if it's a good value. When you're buying a $2000 DAP that might not matter. I will give this a 4.5/5 due to my sheer enjoyment of it and my only knock being price and detail.

Thank you very much for your impression. When you said the N7 is what you "unconsciously kept reaching for", I assume you like it "unconsciously".

For the record, freeryder05 is one of the N7 tours reviewers, I am filling this in because I have suggested all tour reviewers state that the Cayin N7 is a free loan unit from Cayin Audio, and he/she has to return the unit to Cayin at the end of the review period.

 

[Andykong]

It's less dynamic and flatter compared to the TOTL competitors to my ears (and other ears).
Connect it to some C9 for example and it will surpass the competition - and you don't need Overears to recognize that even but everyone hears differently

PS: I don't find N7 stock bad, am using it myself around the house in my jeans pocket but you have to see if I invest a small car worth of even only IEMs than I am not willing to make compromises, so trying to get the maximum out of the gear.
Still stock can be decent.

That's a very fair opinion, but on the other hand, saying the amplification section of N7 is not as good as the amplification section of N8ii is, kind of endorsing Cayin for doing the right job in developing and pricing our products. .

 

[Andykong]

Has anyone made a comparison between preamp mode and line out?
Meanwhile with c9 and ferrum oor in pre mode it sounds great!
Really connecting to an amp brings the n7 to another place.

In our past experience with C9, if you connect N7 to C9 in preamp mode, the overall sound signature will lean towards N7. If you connect them in line-out mode, the overall sound signature will lean towards C9.

In addition, the Line out mode also offers blacker background but the preamp mode can control the IEM/headphone better, especially with hard to driven items. This is because the C9 amplifier is operated at full power when connected with preamp input.

So there are proc and cons, there is no clear winner between the two.

 

[FooFighter]

That's a very fair opinion, but on the other hand, saying the amplification section of N7 is not as good as the amplification section of N8ii is, kind of endorsing Cayin for doing the right job in developing and pricing our products. .

Sure, no doubt about that.
I ve heard that opinion about "flat" sound without external amping compared to the TOTL flagships now from quite some people but I am telling them or they admit that connecting N7 to external amps like C9 will make N7 TOTL overall and that doesn't mean that N7 doesn't sound decent standalone, we are talking about high end differences.

 

[Andykong]

greetings

do you perceive any differences in sound by upsampling to dsd 64 to 512 from the headphone inputs

Since I know nothing about your IEM/Headphones or choice of music, I can only respond in generic terms. Let's said DSD64 is the baseline, N7 is smooth and musical in this setting, this is the setting I go for when I listen to vocal tracks, or want to relax for a long music session. When you move up to high sampling frequency in the All-to-DSD setting, you'll gradually improve the technicality of the headphone output: the soundstage is expanded, imaging is more precise, separation is more distinctive and the transients is also smoother across all genres.

 

[Andykong]

Cayin N7 X Sennheiser IE 900 is a phenomenal pairing.

There is a saying that Cayin DAP works particularly well with DD IEMs. I don't know how true that is because I am DD person so my opinion is definitely affected by my preference.

 

[Andykong]

Sure, no doubt about that.
I ve heard that opinion about "flat" sound without external amping compared to the TOTL flagships now from quite some people but I am telling them or they admit that connecting N7 to external amps like C9 will make N7 TOTL overall and that doesn't mean that N7 doesn't sound decent standalone, we are talking about high end differences.

I think we agree perfectly, but quite often, some of the opinions were taken out of context and expanded with literal meaning instead of maintaining the original comparative terms. That's unfortunate but I need to take that into consideration when I respond to opinion in public platform.

 

[FooFighter]

Btw I find N7 even standalone more holografic than a desktop RME ADI 2 using my Jewel and Mentor.
Currently have that one for demo and it's very decent also for IEMs out of its SE IEM port without any noise like Sp3k but missing out a bit on excitement and especially 3d stage

 

[ctsooner22]

Update the firmware and wi fi will work

Thanks. I'll try that. I am also on the tour and assumed it was up to date as the shipping was only two days. When was the last firmware offered? Heading up for my daily 2hr recumbent elliptical ride and will be using the N7. Can't wait.

 

[Auricon]

Meze Liric almost become the bundled headphone with my N7 at home now, but Hong Kong is too hot for any full-size headphones in the outdoor environment right now. The Liric is not as "splurges" as Empyrean, but it has a higher WAF with its low profile design, especially when you need to price them at a wife-friendly range.

Have you listening the 109 Pro? They’re quite fun and bring the best of Empy and Elites and would consider them wife-friendly for the married Heas-Fi’ers