[Onurb8690]

Any distributor in Europe?

 

[Jimmy34]

You guys are tearing me between the M15 and RU7. I would've figured the M15 would've been brighter than the RU7 but guess I'm wrong

 

[jsmiller58]

You guys are tearing me between the M15 and RU7. I would've figured the M15 would've been brighter than the RU7 but guess I'm wrong

I don’t think there are many comparisons yet, so you might want to look at a few more before concluding one way or the other.

 

[Surdzo]

You guys are tearing me between the M15 and RU7. I would've figured the M15 would've been brighter than the RU7 but guess I'm wrong

I don’t know about RU7 (haven’t heard yet) but I have both M15 & RU6.
And if I have to keep only one it would be RU6.
Consider that I mainly listen Jazz, Blues, instrumental music and in general slow vocal focus songs (Diana Krall, Patrica Barber, Melody Gardot, Sara K. Luka Bloom, Ottmar Liebert, Allan Taylor, Chris Jones, Boz Scaggs, Ben Sidran, Marcus Miller, Dominic Miller, Natalie Merchant, Steely Dan, Fleetwood Mac… those kind of music)
If you ask me M15 is better for Electronc, Hip-Hop, Dance, Hans Zimmer, Draft Punk, Tiësto, Kygo, Marian Hill, Röyksopp, Slederbodies, Yosi Horikawa…
That’s why I keep both DACs among others as mains.
Don’t get me wrong they will sound great on 95% of songs but they shine at different stuff.
Also you should consider your gear (IEM) my main IEM is IE600 maybe that’s why I prefer RU6 more but some others prefer M15 depending on gear they use and sound signature they like to hear out of their gear. So pairing is crucial also. In general I would pair bright and resolving IEM to RU6 and warmer/darker with M15 but that is only me
Cheers.

 

[Jimmy34]

I don’t know about RU7 (haven’t heard yet) but I have both M15 & RU6.
And if I have to keep only one it would be RU6.
Consider that I mainly listen Jazz, Blues, instrumental music and in general slow vocal focus songs (Diana Krall, Patrica Barber, Melody Gardot, Sara K. Luka Bloom, Ottmar Liebert, Allan Taylor, Chris Jones, Boz Scaggs, Ben Sidran, Marcus Miller, Dominic Miller, Natalie Merchant, Steely Dan, Fleetwood Mac… those kind of music)
If you ask me M15 is better for Electronc, Hip-Hop, Dance, Hans Zimmer, Draft Punk, Tiësto, Kygo, Marian Hill, Röyksopp, Slederbodies, Yosi Horikawa…
That’s why I keep both DACs among others as mains.
Don’t get me wrong they will sound great on 95% of songs but they shine at different stuff.
Also you should consider your gear (IEM) my main IEM is IE600 maybe that’s why I prefer RU6 more but some others prefer M15 depending on gear they use and sound signature they like to hear out of their gear. So pairing is crucial also. In general I would pair bright and resolving IEM to RU6 and warmer/darker with M15 but that is only me
Cheers.

Thanks, yeah my main are the Sony Z1R so in my opinion slightly bright so was/is hoping the RU7 is in between the M15 and RU7, a nice middle ground but I'll see sooner or later

 

[baskingshark]

Great review, can I ask how severe the power drain is from a smartphone? Estimated use from fully charged (battery efficient)smartphone

I'm not an Apple user, but different Android smart phones have different battery capacities and efficiencies, so it's kind of hard to generalize a % drain, which may not be comparable across different phone models.

FWIW, ballpark with the RU7 on high gain/4.4mm/DSD 128 and at moderate volumes, I get a 1% battery drop every 2.5 min or so on 2 of my phones. I suppose if you use a lower DSD format, with 3.5mm and low gain, the battery should be preserved better.

Great review indeed @baskingshark. @Polky74 watch this space...

Really looking forward to the comparison! I am receiving the RU7 tomorrow and already have the W2. Will be interesting to see if I should also pick up the W4… Wow, my case of GAS* is really flaring up…

*For those new to Head-Fi, GAS = Gear Acquisition Syndrome

Look forward to your reviews and impressions on the RU7, friends.

 

[Jimmy34]

I'm not an Apple user, but different Android smart phones have different battery capacities and efficiencies, so it's kind of hard to generalize a % drain, which may not be comparable across different phone models.

FWIW, ballpark with the RU7 on high gain/4.4mm/DSD 128 and at moderate volumes, I get a 1% battery drop every 2.5 min or so on 2 of my phones. I suppose if you use a lower DSD format, with 3.5mm and low gain, the battery should be preserved better.







Look forward to your reviews and impressions on the RU7, friends.

If your phone lasted lets say 30 hours plugged directly into it will it now last half that you think?

 

[baskingshark]

If your phone lasted lets say 30 hours plugged directly into it will it now last half that you think?

Hmm, I think probably less than half, but I do use the 4.4mm and DSD 128/256 most of the time, which is the most battery draining configuration on the RU7.

 

[HiFlight]

Given all the enthusiasm expressed in the last 46 pages, I gave in and forced myself to order an RU7!

 

[Andykong]

Here are my initial findings:

-RU7 is a bit more punchy and contrasty than RU6. Less silky and smooth; more detailed and crisp/etched(=artificial?).

-Bass definition, and general separation, is better on RU7, but there is too much treble fatigue, and RU6 sounds more fluid and coherent/contiguous(="like music").

-M15 is the most spacious, distanced, separated sounding VS the RU's, but has the worst and softest bass, and of course a big handicap of no volume control or line-out. RU7 is slightly brighter and more fatiguing than M15, but has a fuller sound. RU7 has more resolution/shimmer/detail contrast than M15.

-I would keep M15 over RU7 for FPS gaming. RU7 would be the best one for sound editing. (Or cheap DAC?)

-After testing only 4 songs on my phone, I found one MP3 that plays perfectly with RU6 and M15, but stutters and clips with RU7, every time, on any DSD setting.

TL;DR:
Seems that RU7 doesn't make music sound better than RU6, or FPS games/movies more enjoyable than M15.

RU7 has more resolution/shimmer/detail contrast than M15 right out of the box? I am a bit surprised by that.

MP3 "stutters and clips with RU7, every time, on any DSD setting"? Is this only applicable to MP3? or sutter happens with regular 16/44.1 or 24/96 lossless FLAC as well? May I know what IEM/headphone were used? Volume and gain setting? This will provide a more informative guideline to steer customers away if they need to operate the RU7 in similar condition.

 

[Jimmy34]

Option to be bundled with the Iphone cable would've been nice instead of having to buy it separately

 

[Andykong]

It’s not about fakes, if it breaks what are you going to do? Who will service it? If it’s “grey” market item - I don’t know. We need to ask AndyKong on this

Cayin operates our own store on Aliexpress, which is the one and only authorized Cayin shop in Aliexpress, all other Aliexpress stores are authorized to sell Cayin products to oversee users. These products only carry a domestic warranty as we'll cover the local return postage after repair. These sellers can't offer an international warranty on our behalf. If you need any warranty or repair service, you need to send the product back to the seller and ask the seller to submit the product to Cayin IF THEY ARE AN AUTHORISED DEALER IN CHINA DOMESTIC MARKET. Cayin will send the product back to them after repair, and you'll have to work out the shipment and tax processing with your seller directly. For this reason, we always recommend our customers buy Cayin products from your local dealer, we had a lot of bad experience when customers say they'll take the risk but at the end of the day when the product need after-sales service, they'll try to force their way into our system or blame Cayin for not standing behind their product. Sorry, we really had a lot of bad experiences on this subject during the past years.

 

[Andykong]

Option to be bundled with the Iphone cable would've been nice instead of having to buy it separately

Some dealers offer a package deal with iPhone cable bundled.

From what we gathered through our dealers, less than half of our customers need the CS-L2C cable. Users with Android device or iPad don't need that cable.

 

[laleeee]

Here are my initial findings:

-RU7 is a bit more punchy and contrasty than RU6. Less silky and smooth; more detailed and crisp/etched(=artificial?).

-Bass definition, and general separation, is better on RU7, but there is too much treble fatigue, and RU6 sounds more fluid and coherent/contiguous(="like music").

-M15 is the most spacious, distanced, separated sounding VS the RU's, but has the worst and softest bass, and of course a big handicap of no volume control or line-out. RU7 is slightly brighter and more fatiguing than M15, but has a fuller sound. RU7 has more resolution/shimmer/detail contrast than M15.

-I would keep M15 over RU7 for FPS gaming. RU7 would be the best one for sound editing. (Or cheap DAC?)

-After testing only 4 songs on my phone, I found one MP3 that plays perfectly with RU6 and M15, but stutters and clips with RU7, every time, on any DSD setting.

TL;DR:
Seems that RU7 doesn't make music sound better than RU6, or FPS games/movies more enjoyable than M15.

Stammering and fatiguing highs are grounds for exclusion I think

 

[gLer]

Stammering and fatiguing highs are grounds for exclusion I think

I've heard no such thing so far, even with IEMs that tend to be brighter. RU7 is the epitome of silky smooth, rich sound. More to come, but just wanted to say it's about as far from harsh as anything I've heard.