What struck me right away was the Cayin's immediacy - a lifelike quality that was nearly like the sound of a single-ended-triode (SET) amp. (The Mac MC-275 is like that, too)...There was another similarity between the A-88T and the MC-275: ballsy bass. The Cayin's bass was exceptionally well controlled and extended for a tube amp. When a tube amp gets bass right, it gets it very right - ripe, rich, full-bodied. The Cayin did. I do like tight bottom ends...This amp was silent. There was very little background noise, either - a bugaboo with some tube amps (and solid-state models, too). The Cayin A-88T's price, design, build quality, and sound are exemplary...it looks beautiful, and it looks beautifully built."
- Sam Tellig, Stereophile
This piece was hand-built with extreme attention to detail, including point-to-point wiring. Point-to-point was the way that amps used to be wired back in the 1950s and '60s when cost was not the primary objective. Nowadays, most everything contains circuit boards instead of this point-to-point wiring, which is much more dependable and better performing. The bottom line is that point-to-point wiring sounds better. It's one of the main reasons why these Cayin pieces sound like the classic tube gear from Marantz and McIntosh. Anymore, products that feature point-to-point wiring cost a fortune, or they feature sub-par workmanship. You simply are not going to find craftsmanship likewith this Cayin gearfor anywhere close to this price.
There are output taps for 4, 8 or 16 ohms. This allows you to fine-tune the sound that you desire. Switching is simple, and listening to the differences is a lot of fun.
There is a removable cage, included at no extra charge. The cage snaps into place simply, so that you can take it on and off with no problem. Keep it on if you're worried about protecting your tubes, or take it off to show what real, heavy-duty, classic tube gear looks like.
Features:
Includes remote-control selection of preamp (bypass) input, allowing for power amp configuration Includes Protective Cage Tubes: 6550/KT88x4, 6SL7x2, 6SN7x2 Power output: 22W triode; 45W ultralinear Frequency response: 18Hz-35kHz THD: 1% (1kHz) S/N Ratio: 90db Input impedance: 100K ohms Input sensitivity: 260mV (integrated); 600mV (pre-in) Output impedance: 4 ohm, 8 ohm, 16 ohm Weight: 55 pounds (25 kg) Power consumption: 280W Hand made with point-point wiring Soft-start circuit (30 seconds) - ideal for extended tube life Tube plate fuse protects the amp output stage Custom designed output transformers for low impedance/wide bandwidth with multiple-tap outputs Toridal power transformer Heavy-gauge, ventilated steel chassis - hand rubbed and polished Premium parts, including chassis-mounted ceramic tube sockets, ALPS volume control, Nichicon and Realcap capacitors, WBT style speaker terminals and Gold-plated input jacks