Bonger

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
3 Months to 1 year

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5, 3.00 votes

Price Paid:  $950.00 from authorized dealer

Summary:
Wanting to get back into tubes after selling off my Jolida 302b, I was searching for a high quality tube amp with modern features (remote, pre-amp bypass) to combine with my HT system.

Cayin caught my attention because of the numerous positive reviews of the PrimaLuna/Cayin el-34 models but wanting to get something with a little more power so thought I’d try a KT88 based tube amp.

After surfing around, the Cayin A88T met my criteria but unlike the previous reviewer, I did not critically audition the competition for a broader comparison. So, my review is solely based on what I know about this amp as accurately as possible.

Like many people, I started online and easily found the authorized and Asian “grey market” distributors. But, there was a big discrepancy between the MSRP of these distributors. At first glance, the hundreds dollars saved purchasing through “grey market” was alluring. But once you factor in higher shipping costs, lack of warranty, professional advice/service, duties and voltage difference, it probably isn’t worth while to save a few hundred bucks at most.

Still torn on where to buy the Cayin, I intentionally held off on my purchase for a few months until my vacation in Asia where one stop off was Hong Kong…and that’s where I got it. This baby was purchased new from Hong Kong’s authorized Cayin dealer for a price so good, that the plane ticket + cost of amp, equaled the North American MSRP for ~$2000.

How It Sounds
At first, I wasn’t that impressed and thought it didn’t even equal my good old Jolida 302b. But after 10-15 hours of play, the amp opened up and music became richer sounding.

Sonically, I pretty much agree with what the reviewer below mentioned, so I’m not gonna repeat what’s already been said (just read review below).

Tube Rolling
After a month, indeed the Cayin is wonderful sounding, good but not great, not jaw dropping WOW.

Then, I did the obvious thing for tube amps and changed the stock power tubes KT88 (actually not bad, very neutral & clean sounding) to 6550 Tungsol re-issues and right away there was an audible improvement. Instruments & vocals had more “weight” and generally more realistic sounding.

However, it wasn’t until I changed the preamp tubes did I fall in love with the Cayin. First, I swapped the stock 6sn7 tubes for vintage RCA’s (reputation for being smooth and luscious sounding) but the dynamics, resolution & soundstage dwindled and after a few weeks swapped back the stock tubes.

Still not satisfied, I swapped all 4 preamp tubes to tungsol reissues. Now I had an all Tungsol tubes (preamp+power)…and I was indeed WOWED!! Like the 6moons professional review said about this amps, “it sounds strikingly glorious”. Tonality is spot on! Strings have a natural sounding reverberation, individual piano keys are heard with accurate decay time.

To sum it up, the Cayin has the strengths of a good solid state integrated such good bass control, rhythm, dynamics and the smoothness, tonal accuracy that tubes amps are reknown for.

On a side note, plugging my cd player directly into the Cayin and using it only as power amp does open up the sound and has an even fuller & 3D presentation. Also, even though it’s only rated at 45/watts/channel, it sounds just as powerful as solid state amps I have owned with double the power.

Strengths:
looks, cosmetics, features, sound, build quality

Weaknesses:
tubes not auto biasing, you have to flip open the bottom of the amp to rebias tubes

Similar Products Used:
Jolida, Bryston, NAD, Marantz

bwright

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Used product for
1 to 3 months

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5, 8.00 votes

Price Paid:  $2095.00 from The Analog Room, San

Summary:
Over the past year and a half, I listened all the top lines available in my area, and came down to a few finalists - the Ayre AX-7e, Simaudio I-5 LE, Marantz PM-11S1, and the McIntosh MA2275. All were superb, and had their own signature sounds. The Marantz in particular has been overlooked by the audio press, which is puzzling - a fascinating product, relaxed, highly detailed and musical.

I eventually arrived at the Analog Room in San Jose, a friendly establishment with a hand-picked inventory of the very best products. I listened to a variety of high end systems, then wandered over to the Cayin. I was curious, but not particularly hopeful - I had heard other Chinese products which hadn't been all that remarkable.

Was I wrong. This amp blew the doors off everything I had heard up to that point. The sound was deep and warm, yet highly detailed with a perfect tonal balance (to my ears, anyway). It handled everything across the board - electronica, rock, jazz, acoustic, soul, vocals, classical. The low watt rating was deceptive, as it effortlessly drove a pair of demanding speakers. I returned with my money in hand the very next day. When I got the unit, they upgraded it with 6550s - said it would sound slightly better. Either way, it sounds incredible.

If you are in the market for a new integrated amp, check this out. You'll be amazed.

Strengths:
Smooth and extended highs - sparkling clarity, yet without that ear surgery "bite"
Fast, deep bass - great for rock & electronica(!)
Balanced midrange - vocals are stunning
Overall, musical with excellent detail
The better the speaker, the better this will sound - no limitations

Weaknesses:
None detected yet - will update the review if any come up

Similar Products Used:
Evaluated: Marantz Reference Series (detailed & surprisingly musical), Simaudio I-5 LE (a very close second - strong contender), Cary (great build but sounded somewhat diffused in comparison), McIntosh tube integrated & MC275 amp (great units, but Cayin sounded slightly better - personal preference), Manley Stingray (another close finisher - sounded great but just liked Cayin better), PrimaLuna (fine build, good at extremes of detail, but seemed to only hit extended highs and deep lows with the midrange somewhat lost in the middle - however, this could have been speakers, and I hear rumors that PrimaLuna and Cayin are built at the same facility. Besides, Upscale Audio/Kevin is awesome), Musical Fidelity A5 (very nice for solid state but not as good as the Cayin), Ayre (SUPERB highs, close decision also, if I could have afforded high end Ayre separates this may have been the winning line). Caveat - all units were 2005/2006 issue - heard in different systems and many variables with speakers, sources, cables, etc. were involved - I may have decided differently if all units were presented in the same system, but the Cayin sounded simply perfect.