N8 Brass Black
Master Quality Digital Audio Player with Dignis Case
MSRP: US$3,699 (available by April 2019)
Cayin shall extend the N8 legend by offering the N8 Brass Black, a new version of N8 that includes all the fabulous N8 technologies and a new chassis that offers the finest texture and detail.
When we announced Cayin N8, we surprised the world with numerous technological innovations to portable audio application. We offered 3 choices of amplification (4.4mm BAL, 3.5mm SE-SS, 3.5mm SE-Tube) in N8. On top of the full-blow balanced circuit behind the 4.4mm connector, users can choose between vacuum tube or solid state from the 3.5mm headphone output. This is, for the first time in audiophile history, vacuum tube amplification is implemented in portable DAP. The 5-stages amplification circuit behind the Timber selection feature is another significant achievement in portable audio. In addition, the newly introduced High Impedance High Output Mode, I2S digital output, and dual (balanced and singled-end) line out are unique features that covers different aspects and applications of DAP. We have indeed pushed the envelope and delivered our ultimate DAP implementation.
Metal work and Surface Treatment
N8 starts off with Stainless Steel chassis in brushed natural color finish, but when we want to introduce a “black” version, we decided to go for brass instead. We want to take advantage of brass’ better thermal conductivity characteristics but we need to resolve a long list of surface treatment problems before we can realize the edge. The first thing we need to do is to revise our tooling and CNC process. This is costly, but relatively straight-forward from technical point of view.
A new set of tooling before we start to use a new material for chassis
N8 Chassis in CNC Process
N8 Chassis before Surface Treatment
We spend around 6 months trying out numerous options (yes, we have this in mind before we launch N8 to the market), and our final solution is CNC from solid piece of brass, brushed and then sandblasted, and finally Telfon spray coating at not lower than 220oC. This is the only solution that, when executed correctly, delivers the finest texture and detail, and achieve a hardened surface that offers excellent wear-resistant, anti-oxidation and anti-corrosive protection to our satisfactory.
Laser engraving penetrates Telfon coating, labels are displayed in natural brass color
Comparing Brass Black to Stainless Steel version
We shall provide a brief comparison between the original N8 and N8 Brass Black as follows:
Heat Management
To dissipate the heat generated by the audio circuit effectively, we have attaching Panasonic PGS (Pyrolytic Graphic Sheet) to components that generated a lot of heat and direct the heat energy to the Stainless steel body. In other word, the chassis works as a heatsink and lower the operation temperature of N8.
Since brass is a much better thermal conductor then stainless steel, so when we apply the same heat management technique to the Brass Black N8, the heat energy will dissipate more effectively. It will reach stable operation temperature more quickly, and the surface temperature of N8 Brass Black is approximately 2℃ lower than the standard stainless steel version
Weight
The Brass Black version is about 5g heavier than the stainless steel version, user probably won’t notice the different unless they compare them carefully.
Sound Signature
Both Stainless Steel and Brass Black version employ exactly the same circuit design and components, the only different are chassis material and coating technique. Standard version of N8 is 304 stainless steel and it contains small amount of chromium and nickel. It is an austenite steel and is slightly responsive to magnetic fields. Brass, on the other hand, is non-magnetic but it possesses relatively good electrical conductivity when compare to Stainless steel. These physical characteristics will introduce minor different in audio performance because stainless steel chassis will offer better anti-interference (especially to high frequency) while brass chassis will improve the efficiency of the grounding system due to its edge in conductivity. As manufacturer, we shall leave the final listening impression to users. The different is subtle, it is not an “A is better than B” scenario and personal preference will pay a major role.
Dignis Protective Case
When we provide a set of dummy N8 chassis to Dignis during the early stage of their development project, we have reminded them about the need to protect the two control dials from accidental operation because we received a lot of user feedbacks on this regard. Dignis takes users suggestions seriously and spend 3 months to develop the N8 protective case. They have custom make a set of three metal guards and attached them with high quality adhesive tape strategically on the right side panel of N8. The protective case is semi-closure design with the control dials all wrapped up, leaving opening on both side for their designated operation. We have tested the protective case thoroughly and are happy to report that the Dignis solution is “almost” bullet proof.
We received the protective case sample just before CanJam New York. The case is carefully hand crafted and fit like a glove to the N8. Every corner is tailor-cut to perfect fit, and pierced metal plates were installed at the back of the case to enhance ventilation and deliver a very eye-catching 3D glitch-effect. We like it so much that we immediately place an order with Dignis and adopted this projective case as our standard accessories for Brass Black version. According to Dignis, the protective case will be available at their website by end of March. It will retail at US$199 and will be available through Cayin’s dealer network.
Price and Availability
In order to maintain consistency on the Telfon spray finishing and fulfilling the MoQ requirement, we shall produce the N8 Brass Black in one lot only. In other word, N8 Brass Black will be a limited edition and we have allocated 300 units for International market. Since the N8 Brass Black takes longer to produce (extra surface treatment and coating process) and has a lower yield-rate, we have to adjust the retail price accordingly. The US suggested retail price is $3,699 (with Dignis case bundled) and will be available by early April 2019. The N8 Brass Black will debut at CanJam Singapore (30-31 March 2019). Please stay tune for user impressions from the CanJam event, or contact your Cayin dealer for availability and local retail price.
