Cayin RU6 DAC/Amp: R-2R Pocket Dongle weighing 30g

Chinese brand Cayin has announced a truly pocket-sized USB DAC with RU6 headphone amplifier. The Cayin RU6 would be lost in today’s world of analogs, if not for one feature: a 24-bit discrete R-2R resistor converter with 99 steps. The volume is controlled both by hardware and by buttons on the case.

According to the Cayin, in addition to the high-precision ladder scheme (and even in the DAC NOS/OS DA versions), the novelty will be able to boast of many advantages of the brand’s flagship models at a very humane price tag. These include, for example, a discrete volume control on the Resistor Array assemblies.

At the output of the Cayin RU6 – 3.5mm and symmetrical 4.4mm connectors, at the input – the USB Type C interface. Information about the status of the device is shown on an inch OLED display with a resolution of 128×64. The Cayin RU6 delivers 138mW of nominal power into 32ohm headphones with 113dB SNR and 0.032% THD.

The new product supports PCM up to 384kHz and DSD 64/128/256. To get the lowest phase distortion, low jitter and no artifacts, you can use the NOS mode, which disables the digital filter. The RU6 circuitry is located on two 6-layer printed circuit boards: one for the digital part, the other for the analog one.

All this is arranged in a metal case, milled from a single piece. The total weight of the device is 28g. The set includes a shielded USB-C cable, and optionally you can add a USB-C to Lightning cable and an orange or blue leather case. The Cayin RU6 will go on sale on December 1.

For US buyers, the Cayin RU6 USB DAC/Headphone Amplifier will cost $250.