The Cayin N8ii is a solid digital music player. It's on the larger and thicker side when compared to many other DAPs, but is comparable in size to other flagship music players on the market (we'll take a look at some of these in the comparison section later). It's still a very palm-able size music player - made from CNC aluminum - the chassis is sleek-looking and durable. I would certainly recommend using a leather case to protect the finish, especially at this price point. Like DAPs of this size and price range, you'll find buttons, ports, and knobs of the highest quality. Precision is important for all these components to feel like a seamless and whole unit, rather than a series of parts put together - and that is something that impressed me with the N8ii. On the top of the music player, you'll find the volume knob. It's large, tactile, and milled with a nice design placed on the gold-colored wheel. It's a smooth scrolling experience with a slight tactile clicking - there's not as much resistance as other manufacturers, but there's enough to give you a sense of measurement.

On the right side of the DAP are the power, track skip, and play/pause buttons, along with the microSD card slot for added external storage. On the bottom are the 4.4mm balanced and 3.5mm unbalanced headphone jacks, a designated line out, an I2S port, and the USB-C port. Here's a full list of I/O:

The screen is a very nice and responsive 5-inch 1280x720 AMOLED screen. The colors are vibrant, the text is sharp looking, and the gestures are accurate. Pretty much on par with every other mobile device out there, so no real complaints in that department.

The music player is striking in its all-black aluminum design. The headphone jacks, USB-C, and I2S ports are all accented with gold lining, and combined with the gold volume knob on top, make for a premium-looking music player. I'm impressed with the unit overall, the heft of the music player is not just appropriate for this kind of quality, but it's also appreciated. There are few things I like less than having something feel light and cheap. The N8ii is the opposite of this in every way.

I just want to make a quick mention of the packaging also. Cayin has done a lovely job packing up the N8ii in a box that feels worthy of the price. The music player is located on the top when you slide off the main cover and flip open the top panel. The panel is held down to cover the player by a magnet, and the cardboard is durable as well. The side panel is also magnetized shut, and flips down, revealing an additional compartment that slides out underneath the player. Here's where you'll find your cables, case, and more. It's a very satisfying unboxing experience.

The N8ii is equipped with the ROHM BD34301EKV DAC chipset in a dual configuration (x2). This is the first time that the chipset has been used in a portable music player. Cayin operates these chips in mono mode for better performance as well. The ROHM chips are natural-sounding, and as much as I can tell are about as accurate as you can get. The ROHM Chips decode DSD as pure 1-bit here, and this is only just the first step in a much larger and more nuanced audio circuit design.

The N8ii also has the ability to switch amp modes between Class A and Class AB, which affects the tone of the music player in its own way:

• Class A Mode features low distortion and an optimum playback condition. Silky smooth, warm, and lush. Best fit for sentimental music with lots of detail and macro dynamics.
• Class AB Mode features higher efficiency and dynamics. Clean, tight, extended, and authoritative slam. Best fit for music with a high dynamic range.

Stunt is one of those top 10 albums for me that defines a specific part of my musical journey. Every song, every detail memorized and known by heart. A band that was arguably at its peak exposure, but maybe/maybe not at its peak musical writing. Stunt is an album that captures the best sound of the music industry at a specific time in history: alternative in the early 2000s. It's an album that is synonymous with the word nostalgia. Might Up My Room wasn't one of their most popular songs, but to me, it's one that captures the essence of this album. The acoustic guitars are detailed and the picking is wonderfully metallic. The brushes on the snare drum are consistent and the kick has some great expression for a lighter song like this. There's not much to the drums other than some brushes, kick, and a cymbal here and there. The ting of a crash here and there is just enough sizzle to give the song the accent it needs without being too distracting or harsh. The vocals are intimate and full with the backing harmonies. It's not like I'm hearing this song for the first time again, or even hearing parts that I've never heard before. The stand-out factor to me is that I'm hearing this song in the most balanced and natural way possible. It comes across as effortless - easy listening in the most literal meaning. Yes, of course, the N8ii provides great airiness and texture, depth, and detail. It does all of that just as well as any other flagship on the market. But the thing that makes it stand out from the crowd is the accuracy, balance, and natural tone of the music. You're not just hearing it as the mix engineer intended, but each individual performance is equally unveiled and equally blended as one sound. It's hard to describe in words, but that's the whole point of nuance, isn't it?

The N8ii is consistent too across the board of music genres. BB King's guitar sounds wonderfully toasty in the DAP. You can hear the proximity of the mic to the amp almost - hearing those overdriven amp tubes deliver that quintessential blues tone that BB loves so much. The walking stand-up bass parts lie in place in the back of the mix but fill in that low register between the kick and beefy snare. It's hard to listen to his rhythm section and not rock back and forth like I'm doing at this exact moment. I hope no one comes in and thinks I'm doing a Ray Charles impression. Grunge, Rock, Classical, R&B - everything I am throwing at the N8ii sounds phenomenal. It's a sound you can only really hear to believe.

DUAL OUTPUT MODE
Offering P (Standard) & P+ (High Output) which regulates the operational voltage of the headphone amplification circuit to offer two distinctive outputs. P+ will increase output and handling power with a more saturated sound signature.

• Single-ended Phone out: 720mW (16Ω)
• Balanced Phone out: 1200mW (16Ω)

Astell&Kern SP3000: I think Astell&Kern has made some significant improvements in the sound department this year with the new flagship. This is the maiden voyage for the world's first AK4499EX DAC chips, AKM's latest flagship set, which arranges them in a quad-DAC format. On top of that, the new innovative HEXA-Audio Circuitry structure design puts two AK4191EQ chips for processing digital signals directly. Most digital players process digital and analog signals together inside the DAC. However, the SP3000’s advanced HEXA-Audio Circuitry structure reduces the noise of the digital signal input through the AK4191EQ, a separate digital delta-sigma modulator, and the AK4499EX DAC is then designed to process the analog signals separately.

This is a new approach to sound for DACs, and by using this design the digital and analog signal processing is physically separated resulting in some astounding signal-to-noise ratio measurements and dynamic sound. Astell&Kern's marketing speak made this a bit confusing for me at first so let me break it down for you. The AK4191 chip handles the digital filtering and the initial delta-sigma conversion stage, while the new flagship 4499EX does the final digital-to-analog conversion. Note that the DAC arrangement and design are implemented by AKM's chip architecture, Astell&Kern collaborated in its development and is one of the first in the high-end consumer market to use one of the new chips. So just what does this new architecture do for the SP3000 sonically? Quite a bit. The 4499EX chip combined with the HEXA circuitry provides a richer, more dynamic listening experience that really shows off in the imaging, layering, and textures. The imaging on this thing is some of the best three-dimension sonic renderings I've heard on an audiophile device.

Sony NW-WM1ZM2: The Sony Nw-WM1ZM2 is going to appeal to listeners who prefer a warmer, more analog signature with a smoother top end and plenty of bass punch, while the SP3000 is resolute and rich-sounding with a more defined top end. The Sony has sound adjustment options and the AK has six DAC filters, so users have options for playing around with sound. Sony has a musicality to their DAPs that few others can match. It's lovely, especially for those genres wanting body, breadth, and extension. The 10 Band equalizer is a great option for those who feel the need to manually adjust tonal aspects of their music. Sony also uses what they call DSEE Ultimate. Using Edge-AI (Artificial Intelligence), DSEE Ultimate™ (Digital Sound Enhancement Engine) upscales compressed digital music files in real-time. And the evolving algorithm now delivers even greater benefits for CD-quality (16-bit 44.1/48kHz) lossless codec audio. Restoring acoustic subtleties and dynamic range, it provides a richer, more complete listening experience.

Like Astell&Kern's filters, The DC Phase Linearizer works to effectively replicate a wide variety of sonic signatures. It applies digital-signal processing to match the phase characteristics of various types of analog amplifiers to deliver a purer, more analog-like sound. Choose from six-phase character settings. It's effective and makes for further customization options to adjust to your listening preferences.

When it comes to DAPs it's hard to get any better than the Cayin N8ii, Sony WM1ZM2, or the AK SP3000. They're the leader of the pack in their respective brands, and simply provide some of the best portable sound the audiophile market offers. Concerning sound signature, if you like a warmer and more bodied tone to your music, the N8 and the WM1ZM2 are going to have a leg up on the SP3000. Astell&kern tends to be more analytical in nature, but the SP3000 is far from sounding analytical. It's rich and more nuanced than the others, the highlights being the clarity and details that shine through. If you like being unplugged for as long as possible, the Sony flagship wins hands down with superb battery life. All the DAPs here functionally work in the same way, with nice responsive touchscreens, intuitive layouts, similar ports, expandable storage, wifi, and more. I guess the lesson to be learned here is, if you have the cash and you want the best of the best, go with one of these three. You won't be disappointed. Be sure to check out our Flagship DAP Comparison video coming soon for a more in-depth discussion on how these DAPs stack up against one another.