Cayin iHA-8

Fully balanced high-end Class-A headphone amplifier in a compact desktop format

Cayin Audio introduces a new, tiny but mighty Class-A headphone amplifier with serious substance. With the iHA-8, Cayin’s “tube genius” returns to the transistor world, delivering nearly 20 watts of Class-A power in a compact desktop format.

Despite its small size, the Cayin iHA-8 plays big—bringing your music to life with the same dynamic, vivid drive that Cayin’s larger amplifiers have long been known for.

The 75-watt power supply, discrete FET design with Class-A bias, and the huge operating voltage of the optional Hyper Mode make it capable of driving virtually any low-impedance headphone.

The newly added 4.4 mm headphone output makes the iHA-8 a natural member of Cayin’s new desktop family alongside the iDAC-8 and iDAP-8. For IEM use, the electronic resistor-ladder volume control keeps noise extremely low. These precision controls preserve signal-to-noise ratio and channel balance all the way down to the lowest levels of the ALPS-driven encoder.

Transparent at every volume setting—low or high—with near-perfect channel matching, this Cayin mini marvel reveals details that are buried deep inside your music.

With this level of linearity, you’ll hear everything that goes in and comes back out amplified. To support the excellent signal-to-noise performance of the dual NJR MUSES72320 high-tech volume controls, Cayin leans on old-school Class-A bias and high operating voltages. The latter can be raised to over 30 volts by pressing the iHA-8’s Hyper Mode button.

The iHA-8’s FET voltage and power amplification was designed with a tube-like “square-law” behavior that helps reduce distortion. Cayin keeps its individual transistors in their sweet spot and ideal operating range to achieve superb open-loop linearity. It doesn’t rely on the “miracle cure” of heavy negative feedback to correct errors—because there are so few to begin with.

The iHA-8 employs an unusual gain control approach used only as part of the feedback loops around the amplifier’s output stage. Excessive open-loop gain is not something you can accuse Cayin of here— and it lets you turn up the volume control for the best dynamic performance, which in turn benefits the iHA-8’s power delivery. Cayin’s input stage—where much of an amplifier’s sonic signature is defined—uses Toshiba’s ubiquitous 2SK209 JFET. Known for low noise, these JFETs also enable Cayin to DC-couple the iHA-8’s output stage directly.

The frequency response is therefore practically flat, extending from 10 Hz to 80 kHz. It reaches deep into the bass while maintaining phase behavior across the audible band—resulting in fast bass, excellent dynamics, and impressive precision.

The iHA-8’s input JFETs are paralleled to provide the current required to properly drive the large capacitances of Cayin’s 24 Vishay MOSFET output devices. The resulting wide bandwidth preserves phase and enhances spatial cues, imaging, and treble ambience.

The many power transistors are mounted on copper rails, while the chassis provides improved heat dissipation compared to the previous model. This heavy-duty hardware keeps the MOSFET buffers cool and stable, allowing them to handle high current while withstanding high voltage—especially useful with Hyper Mode.

There’s a reason for the high output device count: immense current capability that fully leverages Cayin’s typically oversized power supply—featuring a 75-watt toroidal transformer at its core, 50,000 µF of filter capacitance, ultra-fast rectification, and comprehensive voltage regulation, even in the output stage.

The result is Cayin’s ultimate voltage source—capable of driving heavy hitters like the ABYSS AB1266 Phi TC, Audeze LCD-5, Dan Clark Audio, and HIFIMAN HE-6 and Susvara with ease. At the same time, critical signal-path optimizations mean this “giant” can also dance lightly, controlling virtually any real-world load with finesse.

Whether it’s Fostex, Focal, Final Audio, HEDD Audio, or Sennheiser headphones, there’s essentially nothing the iHA-8 can’t handle—even IEMs like the Subtonic Audio Storm. Make Cayin the heart of a desktop headphone rig fed by the iDAC-8, HIFIMAN EF500, or Matrix Audio Mini-i Pro 4. It’s that good.

Stacked together, the iDAP-8, iDAC-8, and iHA-8 form a fully balanced head-fi system that needs only a 24 × 21.5 cm footprint.

Technical Specifications