[phiemon]

Heard from @So11rek New limited player from Cayin "N30LE" priced at $5K

With UM Amber Pearl IEM 12.999 USD.

The cable seems to be Deep of Universe of Mentor. Maybe it’s some special edition of Mentor?

What the hell is this IEM?!

 

[davidmolliere]

Heard from @So11rek New limited player from Cayin "N30LE" priced at $5K

Oh... my... god...
My wallet hurts already

 

[Tristy]

Can you also leave the suitcase of cash needed for it too?

Murder Brick 10 now bigger than the original murder brick! Also it happens to play music

Sorry, need that for my unit

 

[Imusicman]

I’ll just leave this here…

With UM Amber Pearl IEM 12.999 USD.

What the hell is this IEM?!

Isn't it the one made from a Unicorn's horn? The new ultimate in bone conduction

 

[Sebastien Chiu]

AWESOME...number one thing on my radar right now. I hope it's based off the red prototype I heard in NYC

Edit: Are any Watercoolers going to be at that show this weekend?

I just confirmed with VE on Instagram that it is indeed the red version. They went with my favorite!!!

$5k and it loses 1/2 it’s value in a year. No thanks.

I see this more as a keepsake collector's edition. I wouldn't be buying it if I was going to flip it in a year or two (or more like month or two based on the buying and selling habits on this thread ).

Yeah, really for the most valued supports of Cayin than anything. Not for your average audiophile I'd think. People that are buying this aren't going to be flipping them anytime soon.

With UM Amber Pearl IEM 12.999 USD.

What the hell is this IEM?!

Color me curious.

Oh... my... god...
My wallet hurts already

@Andykong knows

 

[davidmolliere]

That thing is massive. It looks like a love child of the n8ii, LPGT and Shanling M9.

To me it looks like Cayin take on the iBasso Max series and M17...

 

[Arz Mael]

I don't always understand the discussion around the number of chips or their generation tbh.
It's not a dac chip that makes a dap or dac sounding great, but how it's implemented and everything around. Older generation dac chip in a DAP or DAC can sound much better than 2x new dac chips if it's better implemented etc.

Yes… but manufacturers themselves introduce and claim that it is improvement no ?
one DAC chip… then two… then four per channel in parallel for each canal, then soon eight, sixteen, etc, etc…!

 

[Sebastien Chiu]

Additional comments: the new VE flagship will be available to listen to at both CanJam London and SoCal.

SoCal will be under @MusicTeck - I'm not sure about London.

Either way, I'm very excited to hear the final production version as I loved the Red version in Singapore and SoCal.

 

[Sebastien Chiu]

Yes… but manufacturers themselves introduce and claim that it is improvement no ?
one DAC chip… then two… then four per channel in parallel for each canal, then soon eight, sixteen, etc, etc…!

As someone who worked for a comparably large DAC/AMP manufacturer that has a very strong relationship with a several chip manufacturers, all I can say is that people need to stop worrying about the numbers on the chip - it does not matter as much as people think it does.

We can pull a years old DAC chip, put it in a new product, and make it sound just as a good if not better. Why? It's the implementation that matters (the staging, the circuitry, etc.) - not as much the chip in the picture.

 

[Rockwell75]

Heard from @So11rek New limited player from Cayin "N30LE" priced at $5K

Here are the specs Cayin shared:

"N30LE, A Transformative Milestone: 30th Anniversary Limited Edition Digital Audio Player
Key Features:
Digital Decoding:
Dual AK4499EQ, Flagship 32-bit DAC chipset, mono mode, paralleled current outputs.
Decode PCM up to 32bit/768kHz, DSD up to 1 Bit/22.6MHz (DSD512).
Ample 2x2 IV converter network to enhance DAC output.
Comprehensive digital output option: I2S (mini HDMI), USB Audio (USB-C), and S/PDIF Coaxial (Embedded USB-C).
Analog Amplification and Connectivity:
Balanced tube amplification with matched paired KORG Nutube 6P1.
Fully-discrete fully-balanced NPN/PNP Push-pull headphone amplifier supports dedicated 3.5mm single-ended and 4.4mm balanced phone output.
Triple Timber (Nutube Classic, Nutube Modern, Solid-state) from Gen3 vacuum tube audio circuit.
Dual Amplifier Mode (Choice of Class A/Class AB).
Dual Output Mode: P (Standard) and P+ (High Power) mode.
Hyper Mode: Combing Class A, P+, and numerous operation adjustments to deliver ultimate performance.
Highly linear volume control through a pair of low noise, low distortion resistance ladder-based MUSES72320 stereo electronic volume.
Desktop grade 3.5mm single-ended (2.1V, 1.6V, 1.0V) and 4.4mm balanced (4.2V, 3.2V, 2.0V) selectable output level Line Out.
3.5mm single-ended and 4.4mm balanced Preamp output.
Other Features:
470mF/5.5V ELDC (Electric Double-Layer Capacitor) ultra-capacitor as power reserve in the main power supply system.
Compartmented CNC Aluminum frame to improve heat dispersion, reduce internal interference and minimize vacuum tube microphonic.
CNC machines TC21 Titanium alloy steel chassis for lightweight and robustness.
Snapdragon 665 CPU with 8G DDR4 RAM running customized Android 12 with Google Player preinstalled.
Storage capacity: 256 GB internal memory, one microSD card up to 512 GB.
DTA bypasses Android SRC, Hi-Res playback, and streaming to all applications.
6.0” 1080x2160 FHD+ Incell screen support double tap to wake and gestures
12570mAh (3.8V, 48Wh) high-capacity polymer lithium-ion battery, support PD2.0 fast charging technology.
156mm x 89mm x 25mm, ~650g.
N30LE will be available in two versions. The N30LE standard package will be limited to 300 sets globally. There will be a special N30LE Amber Pearl version, only 99 sets are available. This a bundle package with UM Amber Pearl IEM. We have worked with the UM engineering team to fine-tune the IEM, and our engineers have fine-tuned the N30LE DAP accordingly for the best possible synergy.
N30LE (300 units worldwide)
SRP: US$4,999
N30LE Amber Pearl Combo (with UM Amber Pearl IEM)
SRP: US$12,999
Availability: 28 August 2023
The N30LE will be demonstrated in the following shows and events:

Hong Kong High-End Audio & Visual Show (11-13 August 2023)
(Booth C01, Hall 3, Hong Kong Convention Center)

CanJam London (19-20 August, 2023)
(Hifonix, Park Plaza Westminster Bridge, London)"

Hopefully this DAP will be in SoCal too. Interesting that they're limiting it to <512 gb mini sd cards

 

[Zmue]

I think Singularity being a single DD and more in-your-face and visceral sound makes for a decent complimentary to U4S, but even better complimentary for the all-BA U12T.

U4S to me is so close to a homerun but has one minor nitpick which prevents me from saying it's the de-facto kilobuck champion (I mean no one iem can ever be named best). I love its tuning, its blend of technical and fun, but there's clearly a slight disconnect between the quality of the treble vs the midrange. The bass is very well done and tastefully boosted (M15), the treble thanks to the tia driver is fantastic, but the mids suffer a bit in terms of resolution relative to those regions in that its texturing is not quite up to par to the rest of the frequencies. Versus Singularity, U4S has more left-to-right diffusion whereas Singularity is more pronounced in the depth plane. U4S does have more clarity overall, but its vocal presence is not as resolving as Singularity despite it being a bit more liquid and organic. Singularity definitely has a more bodacious and thick presentation throughout the FR for me except female vocals where Singularity is more forward and clean. The main different going from one to the other is that U4S has more air and spaciousness, whereas Singularity is more in your face and draws attention and focus to the music. Timbre of U4S is very good, and Singularity as well but even more analog in its tone, more lush.

U12T pans the image more in width and has more spaciousness and pinpoint placement of notes, but sometimes loses its defined center-stage focus. Singularity really has a more coherent and organic flow in blending all frequencies, but excels and projecting a deeper image in front of the user. Vocals really come through nicely, but without too much bite all while maintaing optimal pinna gain, whereas U12T smoothes it over in order to forefront the crisp and fresh (though not sharp) top end. The Singularity will rumble and give you a sense of air displacement; U12T not quite, but still has a tasteful bounce to its bass. To me, there's no comparison on this front, but you may find the Singularity thick and a bit "slow" if doing direct A/B. This weight and sustain to notes is ultra satisfying and tastefully boosted where its focus is not ultra fast speed but really just a fun guilty-pleasure impactful bass all the while never being mud. It sounds more realistic.

Personally, I find U12T fantastic, but it's not a favorite for musical engagement - but I always find value in owning a reference set. Singularity may not be as technical, but for a more fun and V-shaped (almost L-shape) tuning profile, it may find your ear time more often even if it's not as technical.

I actually even prefer the U4S over U12T, although there's no denying U12T is more technically competent, I do really appreciate the usage and implementation of the DD especially for a hybrid which remains coherent.

Yup, agree with everything on the U12t. It definitely had something special in the technical chops but I always ended up being disappointed at the dull presentation in songs where the bass wasn’t really being utilized. U4s really fixed that for me even if the mid range felt a step down, espy with the ever so slightly warming mid-bass rise. Add some extra weight which I prefer, U12t could sometimes come a cross a bit lean for me depending on track.

Definitely makes me want to pick up Singularity. I could be just getting too excited over the initial graphs, but it does look great and the fact others are saying great things about it helps the decision a lot.

I was originally seriously considering the Maestro SE and Hifiman Svanar, both seems pretty intriguing but Singularity just popped up and it got me rethinking.

 

[kevin638880]

AWESOME...number one thing on my radar right now. I hope it's based off the red prototype I heard in NYC

Edit: Are any Watercoolers going to be at that show this weekend?

Still considering, coz usually there's a 2 hour long queue and it is so noisy and cramped inside you can barely demo anything.

But I do want to try out the Aura/VE10/Brise Shirogane/Raven, not sure if they will be immediately available in the stores after the show.

 

[kevin638880]

Can you also leave the suitcase of cash needed for it too?

Should be around the price of VE8? Still very expensive but not Storm expensive.

 

[Smirk 24]

Having both the U4s and U12t, I also find the U12t a smidge dull at times. I'm trying a few copper cables (due to be delivered at the end of the month) to see if I can eke out some warmth and a more engaging tonality out of the U12t.

 

[Rockwell75]

Should be around the price of VE8? Still very expensive but not Storm expensive.

Yeah I've heard consistently (and from them directly) that this one will be well within the "reasonable" realm of flagship pricing somewhere between $2.5 - $3k.