Cayin CS-100A (EL34) tube integrated amplifier Review

Cayin CS-100A (EL34) tube integrated amplifier Review

It seems that the threshold has long been passed. The threshold after which the inscription on the label "Made in China" has already ceased to have any emotional impact on a person. Further, an approving text could go, which would say that even bitten apples, the idols of millions, are made in China.

But today is a slightly different case: this product is not only made in China, but also comes from China. "Designed and made in China" - for sure someday these words on the label will stop embarrassing anyone. But let's go directly to the object - this is the Cayin CS-100A amplifier on EL34 lamps.

Cayin brand products have long been popular, although by modern standards it is still quite young - it was founded in 1993. But we know at what pace scientific and technological progress is jumping in the country, which has become a haven for the production and assembly of the vast majority of modern technology in all areas. So in this case, most likely, you can count the year as two. Especially considering that Cayin is a brand of a subsidiary of the state aerospace corporation, created specifically for the development of haifai and highend in the home market.

Of course, there was everything in the history of Cayin: amplifiers, DACs, power supplies ... I am sure that you are aware of what Cayin N6 and its successor Cayin N6-2 are . These portable Hi-Res players made a lot of noise in their time - and still do.

Now the brand is doing well: its own factory, and a full cycle. There, transformers are wound, and amplifiers are manually assembled, and Karl and Marx are honored. Maybe. And they do not need resources with such a parent corporation.

In a cage

First of all, you will be greeted by a cage almost the entire width of the amplifier, which protects just a huge number of lamps from the outside world. Or the world from lamps.

Lamps at Cayin CS-100A - a whole microdistrict! And large, and small, and medium ... Honestly - you can get confused. So keep a list: one 6SN7; two 12AU7EH; two more 12BH7EH and, finally, in the output stage - eight EL34 pentodes!

In keeping with the best tube traditions, the same amp can be purchased with other tubes. Or buy lamps separately and replace - instead of EL34, a KT88 installation is provided. If you still decide on this experiment, do not forget to click the toggle switch on the rear panel to the appropriate position.

Behind the block of lamps, guarding the cage, there are three casings of transformers. The central one is a feeding torus, and on the sides it is supported by two exit W-shaped ones. Their casings, like the entire top panel under the lamps, are decorated in a color rare for haifai, which is very close to blue and generously filled with a metallic effect: this depth was achieved by painting as many as six layers. And the inscriptions on the top panels of the transformers warn that the quality here is high, and nothing else.

Cayin offers two color options for the CS-100A: silver and black. But in fact, only the color of the front panel changes. In my subjective opinion, the device looks more harmonious with a black panel.

Classic again

So, we have a very classic layout for a tube amplifier. And with the design with this arrangement, you can’t really clear up. However, there are a couple of tube devices, which are expensive to look at, but simply expensive to buy. So only anodized aluminum and blue paint with a metallic effect remain with the classics manufacturers.

The front panel of the CS-100A is made of anodized aluminum, which is literally full of all sorts of toggle switches and indicators. The Alps potentiometer and the input switch are understandable and familiar to everyone. Miniature diodes to indicate the selected input and operating mode are quite a solution. But here are four toggle switches for adjusting bias currents ...

Between the lamps there is a window with a pointer indicator for monitoring the level of currents, and on the sides of the case there are four more recessed screws with which you can pass the time by adjusting these same currents that have shifted somewhere ...

Perhaps, for lovers of tube technology, this procedure is akin to setting up the tonearm for vinyl drivers. If so, then all questions are removed automatically. Although, of course, the CS-100A could also automatically adjust the currents for the lamps ... But this is probably a completely different story.

With switching engineers Cayin, one might say, hit the mark. Although there is not much of it, and there are no balanced inputs, but there are three line inputs, one input for sending a signal directly to the power amplifier and a subwoofer output. 

The Pre-In input feeds the signal directly to the power amplifier - this feature is very useful for integration into a home theater, and for connecting to different sources that already have their own preamp.

Cayin CS-100 A also has terminals for connecting speakers with an impedance of both 4 ohms and 8 ohms. Three pairs of terminals look elegant. If you look into the circuitry, then you can find everything that Chinese engineers are capable of with access to the most modern technologies.

For starters, there is a so-called “soft start” that will protect your lamps from the negative effects of high currents at the time of start. A very useful feature that will delay the adjustment of bias currents for the longest possible time.

Otherwise, the manufacturer claims that the entire circuit is implemented at a high level: almost everywhere - surface mounting with silver conductors and only high-quality carbon film capacitors and resistors.

We light the lamps

Everything happened quite quickly: the Cayin CS-100A only hesitated a little after being turned on, but very quickly came to its senses and, with a click of the relay, let me know that it was ready for work. Here, a remote control came to hand, which is made very soundly. Metal everywhere, even on buttons, and milled ends. This is really nice to hold in your hands. 

Its functions are the most necessary minimum: change the volume, select another input and ... select the amplifier operating mode. Triode or ultra-linear - each of these modes has its own personal indicator on the front panel, and its own personal sound. It's like having two different DACs in a system with the ability to change the sound with the remote.

I must say that this game is addictive. I would like to listen to this and that. In the end, you can forget about the reason why we lit the lamps. Therefore, at the first stages of listening, the triode and ultra-linear modes were switched until their genre affiliation was revealed.

But before this huge mystery is revealed, it is necessary to briefly announce the rest of the system components: the Arcam CDS50 universal source and the Monitor Audio Gold 100 shelf speakers.

And now - let's go!

The lamp lights up!

Come on, come on, tell me how to choose genres for a lamp. And in the case of the Cayin CS-100A on EL34 lamps, genres had to be chosen for each of its operating modes!

Just don't think that this was a difficult task or the purpose of the test. Genres from Tidal's playlists went on knurled, and the CS-100A's modes switched to the beat.

In the triode mode, the lamps really shine with a softer and calmer light, on the verge of the shadows of which you can find a myriad of shades. This sound is very similar to what you would expect from tube technology.

However, to call this sound “dark” or “cloudy” simply does not turn the tongue. Rather, it is a neutral-light side, which has retained a pleasant delicacy of additional harmonics.

Nevertheless, we came to this light with a good rhythm: a neutral-light presentation does not mean the absence of bass at all. Even with the not-so-bass Monitor Audio Gold 100s, this all-tube integrator successfully fended off your doubts about its low end abilities.

In short, it is very interesting to listen to jazz, any vocals, sometimes classics, blues and everything related to these styles in the triode mode. Even Alexander Gradsky with the track “How young we were” was listened to the end for the first time and inspired a wave of unknown, but pleasant nostalgia.

Another track that hit the spot is "Let It Take You" by Goldfrapp. The recording is not the most audiophile and the genre is not clear at all. But this time the soloist's vocals found some kind of loophole to new sensations and established a stable connection with them. Super!

"Ultralinear mode" - sounds very pathetic! But in fact there is no pathos there, but there is only hard rock. Cayin CS-100A, loaded with EL34 tubes, began to break stereotypes with the track "All Nightmare Long" from Metallica. Fans of this kind of music will confirm that this is not the easiest track, which is too tough even for many transistor amplifiers.

And then the lamp thumped the barrel so that there was an irresistible desire to drag Monitor Audio Gold 300 floor-standing speakers to the test setup. Fortunately, the administrator of the Audiomania salon, where the test took place, was busy with something and could not prevent the impulse of the soul.

Of course, Gold 300 is no longer equal to our Cayin - both as a load they are not easy, and as a companion in one system they are also hardly suitable due to the difference in price. But if you really want...

Here the ultra-linear mode showed what punch, resolution and speed are! Of course, you should not hope that the CS-100A will outperform a transistor integrated circuit in these parameters, sharpened for a rate of fire. But as an addition and opposite to the emotional triode mode, hardly anyone expected it to be so cool.

I also wanted to change the repertoire to a different acoustics: Bruce Wayne himself ordered to listen to the soundtracks from the movie "Joker" with such floor speakers. And here something went wrong - there was not enough gloom and, as a result, the atmosphere of what was happening. It is clear that a neutral-light source in the company with the same amplifier and acoustics is unlikely to immerse you in gloom and darkness. But I so wanted...

Finally, let there be something special. For example, "Strong" from London Grammar. And just like that, something went wrong again. In the process of searching for darkness and atmosphere at the Joker, I didn’t see at all that the “UL” indicator on the front panel of the CS-100A was on - the ultra-linear mode was on. Immediately, by pressing a button on the remote control, I corrected the situation: the triode mode was “ON”, and the listener literally melted in the chair.

Conclusion

This night I dreamed that on my Cayin CS-100A with EL34 lamps, the settings of all the currents on the lamps went wrong, and I only have a screwdriver and an account on stereo.ru. I woke up in a cold sweat, remembered that this setting should be done only when the tubes in the amplifier were changed. Exhaled. Checked out my favorite transistor in the next room.

Cayin has a special skill that seems to have been inherited from native Chinese engineers: in a refined and delicate sound, with the press of a single button, you can awaken a storm and a storm. And it is just as easy to calm what has been started. You begin to feel like the master of the elements, who is subject to any changes - according to your mood.

Based on the results of testing the CS-100A, you can forgive both the classic uncomplicated design and the slightly strange color of the top panel. Because the sound that it gives the listener is a direct path to the pleasure of music.

Pros

Sound; two modes of operation - a clear plus; high output power; input to the power amplifier; good remote control

Cons

There are no critical shortcomings, even the price looks quite adequate

OFFICIAL SITE

Cayin CS-100A

Specification

Output power: 2 x 80W (ultralinear mode), 2 x 50W (triode mode)

Frequency response: 8Hz - 75kHz (-3dB)

Harmonic distortion: 1% (1 kHz)

Signal to noise ratio: 92 dB

Input Sensitivity: 450mV (Line In), 1300mV (Pre-In)

Input impedance: 100 kOhm

Used lamp types: pre-section - 1 x 6SN7, 2 x 12BH7EH, 2 x 12AU7EH, output stage - 8 x EL34

Soft start mode: yes

Inputs: 3 line RCA, Pre-In (RCA) for direct signal feed to the built-in power amplifier.

Outputs: 2 RCA subwoofer connectors

Speaker connection: 6 screw terminals (selectable for 4-ohm and 8-ohm loads)

Remote control: included

Power consumption: 480W

Dimensions (WxHxD): 420x200x394 mm

Weight: 30 kg